The Michigan Daily I michigandaily.com I November 17, 2008 ST LL SLIPPING Apathy reigns Blue reaches eight || in Ann Arbor losses for first time about Michigan's abil- ity to respond. Throughout the Wolverines' five-game losing streak that ended last week at Min- nesota, their frustrated, closed-off post- game reactions were inter- changeable and predictable. COURTNEY They answered RATKOWIAK questions about motivation by saying they would try to win for the seniors. But after their fourth straight home loss Saturday, with their biggest rivalry game looming ahead, they were just deflated. The emotion wasn't the shock of the Toledo game, when the Wolverines were embarrassed after losing to a Mid-American Conference team for the first time. It wasn't the despair of the Penn State game, when a half- time lead looked so promising before Michigan was blown out by 29. It wasn't the letdown of the Purdue game, when bowl hopes officially ended after allowing the Boilermakers' last-minute touchdown. Instead, the Wolverines just sounded tired and unmotivated - and at this point, even a win against Ohio State can't salvage Michigan's season. Yes, the Wolverines talked a lot Saturday about looking for- ward to the Buckeyes, includ- ing Donovan Warren's remark that "all the anger that's built up this season" will be let out in Columbus. But after watching Satur- day's apathetic postgame dis- play, believing that Michigan is truly pumped up for Ohio State wasn't as easy as it has usually been. You almost had to feel sorry for them. The worst team in Michi- gan history sealed that fate on a miserable, rainy afternoon in front of a Big House crowd that was anything but big. Instead of booing at halftime, like they did when Michigan was losing 19-0 against Wisconsin, the fans just filed out in droves. They were freezing, wet and unwilling to see their team lose, even though the Wolverines were winning 14-7 at the time. Rodriguez wasn't snide or sar- castic in the postgame press con- ference after Michigan's eighth loss, like he has been for most of the season. ie was almost mel- low, calmly answering the tough questions. See RATKOWIAK, Page 4B By DAN FELDMAN Daily Sports Editor Wide receivers Darryl Stonum and Greg Mathews were sitting on the bench during the final minute of Saturday's game when offen- sive linemen David Moosman and David Molk walked over and urged them to get up. Get up to watch Northwestern take a knee and secure its 21-14 victory over the Michigan football team. Get up as the Wolverines were down, losing their program-re- cord eighth game of the season. And most importantly, with the loss sealed, get up for Michigan's biggest game of the season. For the first time since 2002, the Wolverines will enter the sea- son finale against Ohio State with- out a chance to win at least a share of the Big Ten title. But they were eliminated from the conference championship race weeks before their loss to the Wildcats on acold and wet Senior Day. Saturday's defeat ensured Michigan (2-5 Big Ten, 3-8 over- all) will not win back-to-back games in a season for the first time since 1962. But this season has done more than set several marks for futility in the record books. It's taken an emotional toll on every- one in the program. "That's it," senior nose tackle Terrance Taylor said. "My last time ever playing in this stadium. I don't know how to explain it." The Wolverines led 14-7 at half- time, but Northwestern (4-3, 8-3) held Michigan scoreless in the second half. The Wildcats have shut out opponents seven times in the fourth quarter and four times for the whole second half. "This is the kind of game we win," Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. Meanwhile, the Wolverines have struggled to win games of any type this year. But that gives them one slight advantage in their attempt to avoid a fifth straight defeat to the Buckeyes, which would be their longest losing streak in the history of the rival- ry. "(Motivation is) goingto be easy because I'm sure (we'll) hear all week, our guys have no chance," Rodriguez said. No. 10 Ohio State opened as 24-point favorites, and Michigan is 0-5 in Columbus when entering the matchup with a losing record. Besides Rodriguez's confidence, almost everything else is uncer- tain for the Michigan entering The Game after its loss to North- western. Who's the quarterback? Redshirt sophomore Nick Sheridan started against North- western after his career game at Minnesota the previous week. But Threet replaced him in the sec- ond half Saturday, when Sheridan struggled. Then, Threet, who missed the See WILDCATS, Page 4B (ABOVE) Fifth-year senior Mike Massey tries to catch a Steven Threet throw that ended with a Northwestern interception. (BELOW) Massey reacts after quarter- back Nick Sheridan threw the ball into coverage. Burns will use Big Ten loss to motivate 'M' By CHANTEL JENNINGS Daily Sports Writer MADISON - When Michigan coach Steve Burns sat his play- ers down at halftime of their Big Ten semifinal playoff loss to No. 18 Indiana on Friday, he asked them three questions. What do you want? What does it cost? Are you willing to pay the cost? Despite the outcome of the game, a1-0 upset loss, he was pleased with their responses. Burns believes a hard-fought loss to a great team won't affect No. 10 Michigan that ' much because the season isn't even close to being over. The Wolverines (5-2-1 Big Ten, 12-5-3 overall) are now focused on answering those three questions as they head into the NCAA tourna- ment. They want to make it to the Col- lege Cup, the tournament's final four. It will cost everything they have. And yes, they're willing to do anythingto get there. "If anything, this just gives us a lot of hunger," Burns said after the loss. "Now the boys have felt what its like for a run to end, and so now I think that they're going to find everything within themselves to keep this run going, all the way to a final four." The team's main goal right now is to learn what it can from the loss to Indiana (5-3-0, 12-5-3), but not dwell on the defeat. The Wol- verines are looking to the NCAA tournament pairings and seedings, which will be announced tonight, with the team concentrating only on whoever they draw for the first round. "What can you do about it now?" junior forward Peri Marosevic asked after the loss. "It is in our past. We are going to have to take a look at this game - the good things and the bad things - and put them into perspective as we head into the NCAA Tournament." See BIG TENS, Page 3B Wolverines spli By CHRIS MESZAROS Daily Sports Writer KALAMAZOO - The No. 8 Michigan hockey team has perfected the recipe for a weekend split. A disheartening loss on Friday, followed by a venge- ful victory the next night. And this weekend was no different. On Friday, the Wolverines (8-4-0 overall, 5-3- 0-0 CCHA) lost a heart- breaker 2-1 to Western W. MICHIGAN 2 Michigan (2-7-3 overall, MICHIGAN 1 1-4-3-1 CCHA), a' team that had won just one MICHIGAN 5 previous game. Michi- W MICHIGAN 0 gan took a 1-0 lead in the second period with a Carl Hagelin poke-in rebound goal that slipped between the legs of Bronco goalie Riley Gill. But the Broncos clawed their way back in the hostile Yost Ice Arena. Seconds after senior goal- tender Billy Sauer made some of his best sprawl- ing saves of the season, a slap shot by Tyler Ludwig from the point baffled the senior top shelf to tie the game. Western Michigan then took an unexpected and silencing lead off another point shot, this time from defenseman Kevin Connauton, that, though seem- ingly harmless, snuck past Sauer's blocker side. As Friday's final buzzer sounded, the Broncos hugged and jumped on top of an elated Gill, whose 33 saves sealed them the win for Western Michi- gan. The Wolverines stood near the bench wonder- See BRONCOS, Page 3B it another weekend series SAID A LSALAH/Daily Sophomore Carl Hagelin scored Michigan's lone goal in its upset loss to Western Michigan Friday.