2B — November 2, 2015
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

FOOTBALL

A moment of waiting and

an answered prayer

M

INNEAPOLIS — Taco 
Charlton held his 
hands in front of his 

chest, his 
palms clasped 
together. 
He looked 
toward the 
sky.

The public-

address 
announcer 
had just said 
the ruling on 
the field was 
that Mitch 
Leidner was down before he 
reached the end zone. No time 
remained on the game clock, 
giving Michigan a 29-26 win.

Next to Charlton, Mo Hurst 

pointed to the ground where 
Leidner fell. He didn’t know 
what happened on the game’s 
final play, but he was hoping with 
all of his heart that Leidner was 
down. Willie Henry pounded his 
chest repeatedly.

They waited, and there was 

nothing else they could do. 
They had half an inch to work 
with, half an inch to avoid 
a devastating defeat for the 
second game in a row. They had 
swarmed Leidner, bringing the 
quarterback to the ground in a 
heap, a group tackle so strong 
it was nearly impossible to 
pick out who exactly was most 
responsible.

Defensive coordinator D.J. 

Durkin knew it was coming, 
Harbaugh said after the game. 
He called his shot, and the 
defense was ready.

But after the tackle, there 

still was that chance, a very real 
chance, that the play could be 
overturned. Michigan did not 
have to look back further than 
its loss to Michigan State to 
realize that crazier things have 
happened.

The air was still, and the 

sanity of an entire team — an 
entire fanbase, really — hinged 
on one voice, that of the PA 

announcer, confirming that 
Leidner was down. All Charlton 
could do was pray.

Pray that for the second game 

in a row, the hopes and dreams 
of the Michigan football team 
would not crumble on a last-
second play. Pray that Wilton 
Speight, the spunky redshirt 
freshman quarterback, had not 
led a comeback in vain.

Before Saturday, Speight had 

been an unknown commodity, a 
6-foot-6 quarterback who came 
to Michigan by way of Virginia 
as a sought-after recruit but 
not a surefire prospect. He was 
accustomed to adversity. Speight 
missed his junior season of high 
school with a broken collarbone, 
suffered during his team’s first 
game of the season. Schools 
backed off recruiting him, but 
Michigan came on strong after 
he returned.

During his time on campus, 

he had stayed behind the scenes. 
Speight appeared in mop-up 
duty four times before Saturday, 
attempting four passes but 
completing none. Most assumed 
the playing time was solely to 
preserve Shane Morris’ redshirt.

But Saturday, when the time 

came and Jake Rudock lay on the 
ground in pain, it was Speight 
who entered the game, Speight 
whose arm Michigan’s prayers 
rested upon.

He looked shaky at first, airing 

out passes that never had a shot. 
Harbaugh noticed, too. The 
coach started “pounding on” his 
quarterback on the sidelines, 
hitting his shoulder pads to 
simulate the sensation of getting 
hit.

So when Speight took the 

field with 8:36 remaining in the 
game and his team trailing by 
five, he was ready. He completed 
one pass to Jake Butt, and then 
another to Khalid Hill after 
De’Veon Smith ran for a first 
down. He was rolling.

Michigan drove toward 

Minnesota’s rambunctious 

student section, where they 
chanted “Jerry! Jerry!” in honor 
of former coach Jerry Kill all 
night long. On 3rd-and-10, 
he faked a handoff to Drake 
Johnson and then pulled the 
ball back in. He delivered a 
dart to Jehu Chesson in the 
back of the end zone, and the 
Wolverines once again held the 
lead. After Speight stepped up in 
the pocket and flicked the ball 
to Amara Darboh for the two-
point conversion, Michigan led 
by three.

And that’s where the score 

remained on the Golden 
Gophers’ following drive. The 
crowd yelled “Jerry! Jerry!” 
once again as music blared and 
Minnesota’s offense moved the 
ball down the field. The Golden 
Gophers got all the way to the 
half-yard line, when the nice 
man on the intercom relayed 
the Wolverines good news for 
the first time on the last drive. 
Drew Wolitarsky had not scored 
a touchdown with 19 seconds 
remaining. He had been down at 
the half-yard line.

But then, as the clock ticked 

down and down and down 
some more, just two seconds 
remained after Leidner threw an 
incomplete pass. Minnesota went 
for the score, and Michigan’s 
defense swarmed. And then it 
waited.

The seconds bled together. 

Charlton prayed and prayed. But 
then the booming voice graced 
the Wolverines with its presence. 
Leidner was ruled down.

Harbaugh threw his hands 

into the air. Durkin high-fived 
everyone in sight. Michigan’s 
players, an entire mass of them, 
rushed Minnesota’s sideline.

They didn’t know where the 

Little Brown Jug was, but they 
wanted it in their hands. It had 
spent the year in Minneapolis, 
the place where they did not 
believe it belonged. It didn’t take 
too long for them to find it. Jabrill 
Peppers emerged from the scrum, 

holding the trophy up in his arms 
while his teammates touched it.

Jon Falk, the former 

equipment manager and keeper 
of the jug, smiled as he watched 
the celebration unfold. The 
players ran around with the 
trophy, back and forth. They 
remembered last year’s game, 
when they lost the trophy for the 
first time since 2005.

“We got the f---ing trophy 

back,” one player yelled.

They brought it into 

the tunnel, where some of 
Michigan’s key players lingered 
for a moment longer, taking 
everything in. Captain Joe 
Bolden hugged everyone in sight, 
including Rudock, the starting 
quarterback’s jersey caked 
brown with turf stains. Desmond 
Morgan, a fifth-year senior, 
embraced the younger Speight, 
pulling him in tight.

Speight had done what once 

seemed hopeless, when his first 
few passes fell to the ground. He 
played it cool in his postgame 
press conference, saying he did 
nothing more than be ready like 
Harbaugh always tells him to 
be. After all, Speight said, you’re 
probably a fool if you don’t listen 
to Jim Harbaugh.

Harbaugh hoped Saturday’s 

game provided a lesson for his 
team, one that will stick with his 
players for the rest of their lives, 
until they’re 80 or 90 years old.

“You don’t give up,” Harbaugh 

said. “You keep fighting, keep 
playing.”

And then, when you’ve fought 

for every last half-yard, when 
you’ve been through heartbreak 
and hell and back again, when 
you’ve lost your starting 
quarterback and have inserted 
enough steel in your spine to 
build a skyscraper, maybe, just 
maybe, all of your prayers will be 
answered.

Cohen can be reached at 

maxac@umich.edu and on 

Twitter @MaxACohen.

MAX
COHEN

JAKE 
LOURIM

The good, bad and the 
ugly: ‘M’ vs. Minnesota

By ZACH SHAW

Daily Sports Editor

If nothing else, the No. 16 

Michigan 
football 
team 
is 

entertaining. After losing their 
previous game to Michigan State 
on a devastating final play, the 
Wolverines got to experience the 
other side of the coin Saturday, 
making a goal-line stand to beat 
Minnesota, 29-26.

As with any close game, 

there’s plenty to take away from 
Michigan’s win. The Daily breaks 
down the good, the bad and the 
ugly from Saturday night.

The good

The 
good 
news 
is 
that 

Michigan didn’t lose in the final 
seconds of the game.

Jokes aside, the Wolverines’ 

performance didn’t look “good” 
on paper, but the ability to win 
close games is a critical skill for 
Michigan to develop. In games 
decided by 10 points or fewer 
since 2012, the Wolverines had 
gone just 8-12, including an 0-2 
mark this season.

And while a strong argument 

could be made that Minnesota 
blew 
the 
game 
more 
than 

Michigan won it, a win is a win 
nonetheless.

So 
is 
bowl 
eligibility, 
as 

Michigan guaranteed itself a 
postseason game for the 40th 
time in 45 seasons.

Beyond team success, redshirt 

freshman safety Jabrill Peppers 
was as good as he has been in 
his career at Michigan. Seeing 
his role on offense expanded 
considerably, 
Peppers 
played 

more than 90 snaps Saturday 
night, 
earning 
a 
rushing 

touchdown, two pass breakups, 
100 all-purpose yards and plenty 
of near-highlight plays.

The bad

 As explosive as Peppers was, 

Saturday’s game — and Michigan’s 
season — almost blew up in a bad 
way for the Wolverines. Prior 
to Saturday, Michigan had been 
relatively fortunate in the injury 

department, keeping the offense 
intact and only losing sophomore 
defensive tackle Bryan Mone 
and senior defensive end Mario 
Ojemudia to severe injuries.

But midway through the third 

quarter, the wheels began to 
fall off when fifth-year senior 
quarterback Jake Rudock left 
the game with an injury. On 
ensuing drives, junior running 
back De’Veon Smith and junior 
tight end Jake Butt, who led the 
team in rushing and receiving, 
respectively before the game, 
were taken out as well.

Both Butt and Smith returned 

later, and redshirt freshman 
Wilton 
Speight 
performed 

honorably in Rudock’s absence, 
but the drop-off in production 
was clear.

The ugly

The game’s finish will be what 

fans remember, but the most 
surprising note from Saturday’s 
game may well have been the 
sudden collapse of the Michigan 
defense. Entering the game first 
in the nation in points and yards 
allowed per game, the Wolverines 
were expected to shut down, if 
not shut out, the Golden Gophers.

Instead, Minnesota, entering 

the night as the Big Ten’s lowest-
scoring and worst total offense, 
gashed Michigan for a season-
high 461 yards to go with 26 
points.

Quarterback Mitch Leidner 

threw for a career-high 317 
passing yards, and the Golden 
Gophers had four plays of 30 
yards of more. The Wolverines 
had only allowed five such plays 
in their first seven games this 
season.

“We’ve got to go back and 

self-check ourselves and watch 
this film intently to clean that 
stuff up,” said senior linebacker 
Desmond Morgan. “It feels better 
watching this film with a win 
than a loss.”

Michigan survived the scare 

and won, but the ugly truth is 
that based on its performance 
and costly mistakes, it probably 
shouldn’t have.

FOOTBALL

SPORTSMONDAY COLUMN

Saturday beckons, ready or not

T

hey didn’t prepare for this. 
They couldn’t have. Since 
the spring, Michigan 

and Minnesota have prepared 
for the game 
they played 
Saturday 
night in 
Minneapolis. 
They 
organized 
personnel, and 
they installed 
schemes.

But the 

game didn’t 
warn either 
team of what happened in the two 
weeks leading up to Saturday. By 
now, you know the stories: The 
Wolverines had a win in their 
grasp against rival Michigan 
State before the Spartans picked 
up a fumbled snap on a punt and 
returned it for a touchdown with 
no time left.

The Golden Gophers lost to 

Nebraska on the same day, 48-25, 
but that paled in comparison 
to what they lost Wednesday. 
That morning, head coach Jerry 
Kill announced his retirement 
amid health concerns. In three 
days, Minnesota would have 
to play without Kill. Defensive 
coordinator Tracy Claeys took 
over and tried to get his team 
ready.

“It’s our obligation to be ready 

to go on Saturday,” Claeys said. 
“That’s one thing this game 
teaches you — it’s for tough 
people. I believe that. Tough 
people get through tough times.”

And the game didn’t warn 

either team of the final play, 
either. Fifty-nine minutes and 
58 seconds of football had boiled 
down to this: Wolverines 29, 
Golden Gophers 26, Minnesota 
ball at the Michigan half-yard 
line.

Best push wins.
The crowd of 50,709 at TCF 

Bank Stadium watched in agony. 

Maybe the teams were ready. 
Maybe they had recovered from 
the adversity of the past two 
weeks. Maybe they hadn’t.

It didn’t matter. The play was 

coming anyway, ready or not.

Minnesota called its last 

timeout to draw up the play. The 
play clock wound down, and 
time seemed to crawl by. There 
was no escaping. The collision 
would transpire at the line of 
scrimmage. One team would win, 
grab the Little Brown Jug and 
start celebrating. The other would 
lose, go home and try to recover 
from more heartbreak.

The former was Michigan. The 

Wolverines stood firm, jumped 
the snap and stopped Minnesota 
quarterback Mitch Leidner shy 
of the goal line. They played a 
second straight game decided 
on the final play but redeemed 
themselves this time. They were 

heading home at 6-2 with the 
Little Brown Jug.

The latter was Minnesota. 

The Golden Gophers went for it 
all, trying to punch in the game-
winning touchdown rather than 
kick a field goal and play for 
overtime. They said all week they 
would try to win for Kill, and they 
put it all on the line, only to come 
up short.

The chants came from the 

crowd all night: “JER-RY! JER-
RY! JER-RY!” The first came 
when Claeys was introduced 
before the game. Another began 
after a video tribute to Kill played 
on the big screen during the first 
stoppage of play. The last chant 
occurred when Minnesota faced 
1st-and-goal from the half-yard 
line, trying to secure the win.

The Golden Gophers had 

played without Kill before — he 
missed seven games in 2013 due to 

his health — but he always came 
back. Until this week, he had no 
reported incidents since that leave 
of absence, and Claeys said last 
week he had stopped worrying 
about it until Kill stepped down 
Wednesday. That left Claeys, his 
longtime assistant, to pick up the 
pieces.

“Is it a challenge? Sure, 

it’s a challenge,” Claeys said 
Wednesday. “But hey, life’s a 
challenge. Every day is, and you 
get up in the morning, it’s a new 
day and we’ll go attack it.”

Kill informed the team of 

his decision early Wednesday 
morning, and the Golden Gophers 
had to move on and adjust. The 
players made it to class that 
day, returned to practice that 
afternoon and turned in a gutsy 
effort Saturday.

They put up 26 points against 

what was the nation’s top scoring 

defense. Leidner was their leader, 
with 354 total yards and two 
touchdowns. He opened his night 
by running around frantically 
in front of the student section, 
carrying a maroon flag that read 
“JERRYSOTA” to fire up the 
crowd.

“Coach Kill is so important to 

the state of Minnesota,” Leidner 
told reporters after the game. 
“The entire student section 
loves him. He’s done so much 
for this team, this program. I 
was honored to be able to do that 
tonight.

“They asked me earlier in the 

week if I wanted to do it, and I 
said, ‘Hell yeah, I want to do that. 
I want to do that so badly.’ To get 
the opportunity to do that tonight 
for Coach Kill is something I’ll 
never forget.”

He almost ended his night on 

a similar high. His pass to Drew 

Wolitarsky with 19 seconds left 
was initially ruled a 22-yard, 
go-ahead touchdown pass. The 
crowd erupted into frenzy, until 
the video review overturned the 
touchdown, Michigan stopped 
Minnesota just short and the 
stadium went silent.

That was the position the 

Wolverines were in just two weeks 
ago. They, too, had to regroup. 
Coach Jim Harbaugh vowed the 
Wolverines would put steel in 
their spines to recover. The players 
insisted they moved on and were 
preparing for another game. Fifth-
year senior punter Blake O’Neill 
and senior linebacker Joe Bolden, 
who took the biggest blows from 
the loss, rose back up, dusted 
themselves off and readied for 
another Saturday.

But there was no way of 

preparing for that kind of 
situation, no way of knowing what 
would happen next. Saturdays are 
like that sometimes.

They twist and turn 

throughout the day, spinning 
emotions and shifting momentum 
back and forth until finally, four 
hours later, it all comes down to 
one play.

There’s no preparing for that 

either. You do everything you can, 
work as hard as you can and show 
up. There’s no play call for when 
a coach has two seizures on the 
Tuesday of game week and has to 
step down. There’s no defensive 
scheme for letting a huge win slip 
away on a fumbled punt return as 
time expires.

There was none of that. They 

lined up, and Michigan emerged 
victorious.

That was it. The game chose a 

winner and a loser. Now they both 
go forward from that. Five days 
from now, another Saturday will 
beckon, ready or not.

Lourim can be reached 

at jlourim@umich.edu or on 

Twitter @jakelourim.

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Michigan responded to a devastating loss to Michigan State and won a battle on the final play to beat Minnesota, whose coach resigned three days before the game.

