Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, September 30, 2015 — 7A

Haidar enjoying breakout senior season

Even when she

comes off the bench,

Haidar makes an

impact for Michigan

By BETELHEM ASHAME

Daily Sports Writer

With five minutes left on the

game clock, nerves began to run
high on the sideline and in the
crowd. The score was deadlocked
at 0-0, and time was running out
for the Michigan women’s soccer
team.

The Wolverines had dominated

the game against Iowa, controlling
possession
and
dictating
the

run of play on their way to
manufacturing the majority of
the scoring opportunities in the
match. They held a 12-1 advantage
in corner kicks and produced 27
shots while allowing just three, but
the potential for victory seemed to
be drifting further and further out
of reach as the game clock wound
down to four minutes, then three
minutes, then two.

Michigan threw players into the

attack. Senior defender Christina
Murillo scrambled down the left
flank, dribbling through scores of
defenders, and launched a cross
into the middle of the box filled
with Wolverines and Hawkeyes
awaiting the delivery, either to
slam the ball in the direction of
the goal or punt it far away from
the penalty box.

All the eyes in the U-M Soccer

Stadium looked up, and one head
soared above the rest. Michigan
senior
forward
Lulu
Haidar

buried the ball in the back of the
net, unleashing the home crowd
and team into a joyous frenzy.
It was the 88th minute, and
Michigan finally found its game-
winner. And its hero.

Though an underrated player

on the team, Haidar has the ability
to take control of a game and

impact the final score, according
to Michigan coach Greg Ryan.

“Lulu is the kind of kid that’s

very confident when she gets
around the goal,” Ryan said.
“She’s not tall by any means, but
she has great timing, she reads
the flight well, and she can head
the ball better than most of our
players. The confidence she has
in the attacking part of her game
helps her keep at it and keep going,
knowing if she gets that chance,
she’s going to score.”

But that climactic finish only

tells part of the story of a player
who knows how to make the most
of her opportunities.

To start the season, Haidar

has tallied five goals and one
assist while playing in eight of 10
matches and starting just three.
The results haven’t always come in

the past — Haidar has more goals
than in her first three seasons
combined — but now she’s a spark
plug whenever she enters the
game.

“Lulu’s one of the best soccer

players on our team in terms of her
attacking ability,” Ryan said. “She’s
got great skill, she can shoot from
anywhere and has a very powerful
shot, and she sees the field well
and is able to make great passes to
give her other teammates chances
to score, so she’s got all the great
qualities of an attacking player.”

Her position on the team as a

non-starter but a key role player
affords her the opportunity to
come into a game and dramatically
affect the outcome.

Part of the explanation for her

strong start may be related to her
summer job. Haidar spent the

summer playing on Motor City
FC – a Women’s Professional
Soccer League
U-20
team.

There,
her

team captured
the
league

championship,
and
she

won
Golden

Boot
and

Tournament
MVP awards.

“It
was

a
great

experience for me, and it had a great
effect on me as of now,” Haidar
said. “It was a good opportunity to
play other teams and to challenge
myself as a player, and it helped me
stay in the game and stay in shape
in addition to working out and
practicing on my own.”

Ryan
believes
that
her

productive offseason is paying

dividends
both for her
and for the
team
as
a

whole.

“Just
like

Christina
Murillo
playing
for

Mexico in the
World
Cup,

when
your

kids play at

a high level over the summer, it
helps tremendously because they
come back already ready to go,”
Ryan said. “I think Lulu came back
in great shape because she played
a lot, so she was really ready to put
her best foot forward, and she has.
Some of our players that didn’t

play much this summer, it has
showed in their ability to impact
the team.”

Sharing Ryan’s belief, Murillo

thinks the team has responded
well to the example Haidar has set
in the early stages of the season.

“It’s really amazing to see a

player like Lulu who’s not always
starting but who goes into the
game and makes a difference,”
Murillo said. “That’s inspired
other players to think ‘I’m getting
90 minutes, so I need to be making
more of a difference in the game.’ ”

Making
the
most
of
her

opportunities, Haidar serves as
a reminder of the importance of
each member of a team through
her perseverance, dedication and
passion for the game. For a senior’s
final hurrah, she’s making quite a
statement.

SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily

Senior forward Lulu Haidar has tallied five goals and one assist in Michigan’s first 10 games this season. Haidar has made the impact despite starting just three of the Wolverines’ games.

“She’s got all of

the great qualities

of an attacking

player.”

Johnson again looking to
rebound from ACL tear

The running back
did not allow time
for sadness during

his recovery

By MAX BULTMAN

Daily Sports Editor

Drake Johnson gave himself

one hour for pity.

The day he found out he

had torn his anterior cruciate
ligament for the second time,
Michigan’s
then-redshirt

sophomore running back needed
to get his feelings out. He drove
around, listening to Boyz II Men
and Mariah Carey, wallowing in
the raw emotion of being told he
had reinjured his ACL. But just
for an hour.

“After
that

… I had to get
back,” Johnson
said. “I couldn’t
have
any

more negative
emotions if I
wanted to play
(again), so it
was like, ‘It’s
time
to
get

going.’ ”

Johnson, who grew up in Ann

Arbor and came to Michigan
from Pioneer High School, made
immense strides at the end of the
2014 season. He rushed for 122
yards and two touchdowns in a
breakout game against Indiana,
and by the time the Ohio State
game rolled around, he was
verging on being the go-to back.

But in the third quarter

against the Buckeyes, Johnson
injured his knee as he scored a
touchdown. He didn’t return
to the game, and it was later
revealed he had torn the same
ACL he had injured his redshirt
freshman season, in 2013.

It could have been a devastating

blow to his confidence and to his
career. But Johnson didn’t let his
second torn ACL keep him down

long.

Today,
Johnson
exudes

optimism even when talking
about one of the most difficult
injuries
an

athlete
can

face. He worked
himself
back

to
health
in

time for camp,
a
nine-month

process for the
same
injury

that took him
six the first time around.

“I was in a wheelchair for a few

weeks,” Johnson said. “Luckily it
was over winter break, so I kind
of, like, wheel-chaired around
my house. I got really bored, so I
tried to do tricks on it, do wheelies
on it and stuff, entertain myself. I
got really good, actually.”

After

getting
out
of
the

wheelchair,
Johnson
began
the

rehab process
and expected
to be ready for
full contact by
the first day
of fall camp.
But
when

he saw the speed at which his
teammates were playing, he
realized he wouldn’t be able to
jump back in as quickly as he
initially wanted.

And when he finally got the

green light to return in August,
he had to play catch-up to an
even deeper stable of running
backs
than
the
Wolverines

had last season. But according
to Johnson, there hasn’t been
any envy or hostility between
him, redshirt junior De’Veon
Smith, junior Derrick Green and
redshirt sophomore Ty Isaac.

Instead,
he
says
the

competition has helped the backs
learn from each other.

“I watch De’Veon, I watch

Derrick and Ty all practice,
and they do good things. They

do dope things,” Johnson said.
“You’re like, ‘Wow, that was
dope.’ They make cuts, they make
blocks, they make all these plays

and
you’re

like, ‘I should
do that!’

“That’s

the kind of
environment
we have. I’ll
pop off a long
run, and I’ll
look back, and

they’ll be like, ‘Hey Drake, how’d
you do that?’ Or, I’ll come back
and I’ll watch them pop off a long
run: ‘Hey, how’d you do that?’ ”

And so far, that growth is

showing on the field. Through
four
games,
Michigan
is

averaging 202 rushing yards per
game. Johnson has gotten just
11 carries for 57 yards, but right
now, he’s focused on being part
of a unit that amasses large totals
together.

After two torn ACLs, he’s not

taking any role for granted, even
if that means standing on the
sideline, watching Smith carry
the load. He isn’t content to warm
the bench, but at the same time,
he roots for his fellow backs, his
friends, to succeed.

“We aren’t having to have

this pissing contest to see who
can kick the other in the shins
harder,” Johnson said.

But Johnson is getting closer

to being able to take back part of
the load, adding burst and agility
to a backfield that is mostly built
for power.

“Obviously,
like
I
said,

everyone wants to be the starter,”
Johnson said. “But I’m happy
with wherever they’ll play me. I
just want to be effective for the
team, essentially. If that’s being
a third-down back, if that’s goal-
line back, if that’s second-string
back. Whatever it is, I just want
to help the team in a positive
manner.”

The time for pity has long

since passed. Now, Johnson just
wants to play football.

FOOTBALL

“I couldn’t
have any

more negative

emotions.”

“I’m happy with
wherever they’ll

play me.”

Man coverage keys success
of Wolverines’ elite defense

By ZACH SHAW

Daily Sports Editor

With a new set of coaches

in spring practice, Michigan’s
secondary knew there were going
to be changes in 2015. The unit
wasn’t sure what those changes
entailed, though, until it got onto
the field.

Suddenly,
the
cornerbacks

were in the faces of wide receivers,
running
backs
and
linemen.

Rather than standing five yards
back and waiting for the play to
reveal itself, the Wolverines were
on top of the offense right at the
snap.

That only intensified come

August,
when
the
Michigan

football coaching staff increased
man coverage in the secondary.

The
cornerbacks
were

exhausted, but, aside from a few
miscues, they were thriving —
recording 90 turnovers in three
weeks of training camp practices.

With eight returning starters

and over a dozen key contributors
back from last season, much of the
Wolverines’ development into the
nation’s second-best defense this
fall can be attributed to simply
growing up.

But in recording a shutout over

then-No. 22 Brigham Young, the
secondary made it loud and clear
what the key to their success was —
they were manning up more than
many had in their entire careers.

“We noticed all the way

through camp we were doing
man, that’s all we practice really,”
said redshirt junior cornerback
Jeremy Clark. “We were really
prepared for a season of it. We
were all on board with it.”

Like any football decision,

increasing man coverage in the
secondary comes with pros and
cons. It’s more physical, risky
and challenging, but can equate
to more turnovers, fewer big
plays and — most importantly
for Michigan — a smash-mouth
identity that sends chills down
opposing offenses’ spines.

“It’s a compliment to me that

(Michigan defensive coordinator

D.J. Durkin) thinks we can play
like that in man coverage,” said
senior cornerback Jeremy Clark.
“It’s tiring, but as Coach Durkin
says, we want to play aggressive,
and to do that we’ve got to play
man coverage. We love it.”

On Saturday, the Wolverines

stood tall against the Cougars’
four 6-foot-4 or taller receivers,
holding
quarterback
Tanner

Mangum to just 12 completions
on 28 attempts.

In four games this season,

Michigan
has
held
opposing

quarterbacks
to
a
93.93

quarterback rating, 43.4 points
below
those
quarterbacks’

season averages. That, too, can be
attributed to the man coverage.

“I really like it — it allows

them to be aggressive with the
receivers and take control,” said
senior safety Jarrod Wilson. “I
know it’s tiresome for them, but it
makes my job easier so I can just
focus on the quarterback and get
my reads off the quarterback and
make some plays.”

Having to track the receivers

from the opening snap tires

cornerbacks out over the course of
the game, and corner may be one
of Michigan’s thinnest positions.
But the Wolverines feel more than
ready to continue meeting that
challenge.

“If you tell a corner they can’t

sit back on their heels, they have
to be aggressive and go after the
receiver, they’re not going to
hesitate,” Wilson said. “(Playing
man’s) got them excited now, and
they’re rising to that challenge.”

Though Michigan has just

three interceptions in four games,
the entire defense has felt the
effect of the man coverage.

In addition to being second in

the nation in yards allowed, the
Wolverines are fourth in points
allowed, 10th in pass defense and
17th in tackles tackles for loss per
game with eight, all thanks to the
secondary.

“Every time we get a sack, we

know it’s because our secondary
made sure nothing was open,”
said senior defensive tackle Mario
Ojemudia. “I definitely tip my
hat to the secondary — they’re
playing great.”

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Jeremy Clark has picked off two passes for Michigan this season.