4B — November 9, 2015
SportsMonday
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
THE MICHIGAN
DAILY TOP-10 POLL
2. OHIO STATE: Jake Butt is
the Buckeyes’ No. 1 fan.
1. CLEMSON: #Soybeanwind
has his team in the top spot.
Maybe he is paying his players,
after all?
9. LSU: I’m Leonard Fournette
against Alabama, and I have
cable.
3. ALABAMA: Those reporters
who wrote the Crimson Tide
off after their loss to Ole Miss
must feel really, really stupid.
6. NOTRE DAME: We try not to
play favorites, but who wouldn’t
love to see Irish fans up in arms
if their team gets left out of the
playoff?
5. BAYLOR: Barely know
‘er, and even if we did, her
schedule is nowhere near as
tough as Oklahoma State’s and
thus she is incapable of being
ranked higher. But yeah. Barely
know ‘er.
7. STANFORD: The Cardinal’s
slogan is “Fear the Tree”. If
Harbaugh were a tree what
would he be?
4. OKLAHOMA STATE: Eight
years removed from turning 40,
Mike Gundy’s team is playing
like a bunch of men.
8. IOWA: Iowa’s schedule is
easier than finding corn in the
state: All you really have to do
is show up.
10. UTAH: Hey! They’re back!
Each week, Daily sports staffers fill out ballots, with
first-place votes receiving 10 points, second-place
votes receiving nine and so on.
Five Things We Learned
By MAX BULTMAN
Daily Sports Editor
Behind a career performance
from
fifth-year
senior
quarterback Jake Rudock, the
Michigan football team improved
to 7-2 on the season with a 49-16
win over Rutgers on Saturday.
Redshirt
freshman
Jabrill
Peppers
scored
his
second
rushing touchdown of the season
in the win, continuing his ever-
expanding role in the offense. But
even aside from that, there were
plenty of new developments on
display.
Here are five things we learned
from the game.
1. Jabrill Peppers still finds
ways to impress Jim Harbaugh.
At this point, there’s not
much Peppers could do on
the football field that would
surprise anyone, least of all
his coach. But in the second
quarter, when Peppers turned
a bubble screen into an 18-yard
touchdown, even Harbaugh was
impressed.
“I knew he was good, but he’s
really good,” Harbaugh said. “I
thought there was not another
rung to go on the ladder, but
there is. He found another rung
to go even higher.”
Peppers first dodged a would-
be tackler in the backfield,
then weaved his way into the
end zone, high stepping as he
crossed the plane. When his
coach called him over after the
play, Peppers was concerned
he would be chastised for
showboating.
Instead,
he
received praise.
“I thought he was about to
yell at me for my celebrating,”
Peppers said. “But he just
stopped me and he was like,
‘Man, I knew you were good,
but you’re really good.’
“We just shared a laugh with
each other. It was a special
moment.”
2. Deception is prohibited.
The
most
head-scratching
moment of the game came late
in the second quarter, when
Michigan appeared to pick up a
huge gain on a pass to junior tight
end Jake Butt, who was wide
open on the right sideline and
took Rudock’s pass 51 yards.
But to Michigan’s dismay, the
play was called back due to a
penalty for “intent to deceive.”
And as it turns out, there is a rule
prohibiting using the substitution
process to deceive opponents.
Butt left the huddle around the
same time as several teammates
who ran off the field. And while
Butt was distinctly behind those
teammates, the point is that the
defense could have reasonably
assumed he was exiting the field.
Hence the penalty for deception.
The notion that deception is
illegal seems a little silly in a
sport where play-action fakes are
a cornerstone of most offenses
and trick plays are praised. But
there is a rule against what Butt
did, and it appears to have been
applied correctly. Who knew?
3. Jourdan Lewis can return
kicks, too.
Peppers
isn’t
the
only
Michigan defensive back who
can make an impact with the ball
in his hands on special teams.
With
Peppers
banged
up
following a practice collision
with redshirt junior cornerback
Jeremy Clark, and with Harbaugh
trying to limit Peppers’ workload
anyway,
junior
cornerback
Jourdan Lewis got to try his hand
at returning kickoffs. And the
results were impressive.
On two kickoff returns, Lewis
totaled 59 yards, including a
long of 35. He flashed impressive
speed and good instincts going
toward the sideline if lanes in the
middle closed.
Maybe Michigan should just
let its defensive backs play every
position.
4. Big guests gather at the Big
House
Rapper Big Sean was in his
native Detroit for his concert
over
the
weekend,
and
he
stopped by Michigan Stadium to
watch the game and speak with
the team following the game. Big
Sean attended Cass Technical
High
School,
where
several
Wolverines, including Lewis and
linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone
also attended. Some players took
pictures with the rapper, who
even helped Harbaugh break the
postgame huddle.
5. Bold Prediction: Michigan
will play for the Big Ten
Championship.
Bear with me here. Nebraska’s
controversial win over Michigan
State on Saturday night opened
the door for this, and actually it’s
not as outlandish as it seems.
The most likely path to
this
unlikely
outcome
is
Michigan winning out, which
includes beating Ohio State.
The Buckeyes are the superior
team on paper, but they still
haven’t played to their sky-high
potential, and they have yet to
play against a team as physical
as Michigan. To make matters
worse, they’ll be taking on the
Wolverines after what should be
a tough game against Michigan
State in Columbus.
And given the way Michigan’s
last rivalry game ended, expect
Harbaugh to have the team at its
highest energy for ‘The Game.’
It’s far from certain, but we
don’t call them bold predictions
for nothing. See you in Indy.
FOOTBALL
The good, bad and
ugly from Saturday
By JAKE LOURIM
Managing Sports Editor
The Michigan football team
left no doubt Saturday. After
stealing a win in their last game
and having one stolen from
them in the game before, the
Wolverines
pounded
Rutgers,
49-16, returning to the form they
showed earlier in the season.
Michigan was most efficient on
offense, in both the running and
passing games, but the defense
showed bright spots, too. A few
mistakes
weren’t
enough
to
make Saturday’s game close, as
the Wolverines (4-1 Big Ten, 7-2
overall) made the Scarlet Knights’
(1-5, 3-6) first trip to Michigan
Stadium a rough one.
The
Daily
breaks
down
the good, bad and ugly from
Saturday’s game:
The good
Fifth-year senior quarterback
Jake Rudock turned in a career
day after leaving last week’s
game at Minnesota with an
injury. Rudock went 18-for-25 for
337 yards and two touchdowns
against Rutgers. The Wolverines
also
took
steps
toward
establishing their deep passing
game, completing seven passes of
20 or more yards. Junior tight end
Jake Butt caught four passes for
102 yards, more than he had in the
previous three games combined
and the most by a Michigan player
this season.
Junior running back De’Veon
Smith got back on track, carrying
15 times for 73 yards and showing
no ill effects after limping off
against Minnesota last week. And
redshirt freshman Jabrill Peppers
remained an offensive weapon
with an 18-yard touchdown run
in the second quarter.
Michigan’s offense wore down
the Scarlet Knights early on by
possessing the ball for 19:04 in
the first half, and the comfortable
lead allowed several reserves
to come in. Redshirt freshman
quarterback Wilton Speight and
redshirt
sophomore
running
backs Wyatt Shallman and Ross
Taylor-Douglas
each
earned
touches.
Defensively, junior cornerback
Jourdan Lewis broke up two
passes to set a school record with
19 on the season.
The bad
While
the
defense’s
performance was strong as usual,
Michigan still had some lapses
that it did not show earlier in
the season. In the first-quarter,
a 54-yard scamper by Rutgers
running back Robert Martin set
up the Scarlet Knights’ first field
goal. In the second, face-mask
and holding penalties put Rutgers
in position for another field goal.
Also in the first half, redshirt
junior defensive lineman Ryan
Glasgow injured his shoulder.
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh
said after the game he was
hopeful it was a minor injury.
The ugly
There wasn’t much to report
in the ugly department, but a
couple of special-teams miscues
stood out. Rutgers wide receiver
Janarion Grant returned a kickoff
98 yards for a touchdown with
10:29 left in the second quarter,
trimming Michigan’s lead to
21-10.
Then, near the end of the first
half, Grant ran back a punt 67
yards to the Wolverines’ nine-
yard line with nine seconds left,
setting up a field goal as the half
expired.
Of course, neither proved to
be significant, but special teams
coordinator John Baxter surely
will make the two plays a point of
emphasis this week.
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Junior tight end Jake Butt caught four passes for 102 yards against Rutgers.
‘M’ falls short in title game
Wolverines rally for
double-OT win in
semifinals, fall to
Maryland in final
By LELAND MITCHINSON
Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan field hockey
team snatched a victory from
the jaws of defeat Friday, beating
Penn State in overtime, 2-1.
But on Sunday, the Wolverines’
luck ran out as they fell, 5-1, to
No. 7 Maryland in the Big Ten
Tournament championship.
Maryland,
coming
off
its
own
double-overtime
victory
over Northwestern, started fast
Sunday on its way to a 5-1 victory.
Forward Wilma Luus opened the
scoring just over two minutes into
the game for the Terrapins.
The
Wolverines
responded
with
three
straight
penalty
corners but were unable to
convert any of them. Though
Michigan created good pressure,
Maryland added another goal to
its lead with 18:16 left in the half
on a counterattack.
Michigan got on the board
when
redshirt
sophomore
forward Allie Sardo controlled a
loose ball in the Maryland circle
and scored with 6:13 left until
halftime.
“I think we knew it was going to
be a game with its ups and downs
and we had to play 70 minutes,”
Scavelli said. “They got on the
scoreboard first, but we’ve had
games where that has happened
in the past. We know you have to
play to the last whistle, so we just
tried to keep that in our mind and
keep playing.”
In
the
second
half,
the
Terrapins dominated possession.
As the Wolverines had to take
more chances as time wound
down, Maryland was able to
take advantage of those risks.
Michigan ran out of luck after a
thrilling win to advance Friday
In that game, Michigan had
the advantage in both shots and
penalty corners in the first half
but went to the locker room in a
scoreless tie.
“I think we were just pressing
a little bit,” said Michigan coach
Marcia Pankratz. “We were a
little bit overanxious in the circle,
but we were dominating and not
getting a lot of chances. I think as
you go longer and longer without
scoring, you get a little bit more
tense.”
Just three and a half minutes
into the second half, a Penn State
player went down inside the
Wolverines’ circle. The following
corner
opportunity
gave
the
Nittany Lions their best chance
of the game.
The initial shot
was saved by
sophomore
goalie
Sam
Swenson,
but
Penn
State
forward
Kirsten
Gochnauer
pounced on the
rebound
and
slotted it into
the net for the game’s opening
goal.
Michigan was unable to find an
answer, and Swenson came out
of her net as time wound down
to make a save. A Penn State
player knocked off Swenson’s
helmet, and Swenson responded
by lashing out at the legs of the
culprit. Nittany Lion forward
Aurelia Meijer retaliated, took a
red card and was ejected from the
game.
With 1:16 left in the game,
Swenson went off for freshman
midfielder Leah Cardarelli so the
Wolverines could have an extra
attacker.
Twenty seconds later, senior
forward Shannon Scavelli’s shot
rebounded off the Penn State
goaltender, and Cardarelli tapped
the ball into the net to send the
game to overtime.
“I think we were having a hard
time getting the ball through
(the defense),”
Cardarelli said.
“Penn State did
a really good
job
marking
the lanes and
open
passes,
so I think once
we were able
to manipulate
that and work
together it kind
of all clicked.”
With
a
player
advantage
due to the earlier red card, the
Wolverines controlled the tempo
in the extra period. With 12:27
remaining in the first extra
frame,
sophomore
midfielder
Katie Trombetta scored on a give-
and-go from freshman forward
Emma Way, winning the game for
Michigan.
“I mean, this could have been
the end of our season,” Trombetta
said. “Being able to go out and
give it your all, and then it ended
up working out in our favor and
getting that goal in the last minute
really was unbelievable.”
But
the
Wolverines’
late
victory was bittersweet. The Big
Ten suspended Swenson just
before Sunday’s championship
game against Maryland due to
her actions in Friday’s game
that resulted in the Penn State
red card. Pankratz called on
redshirt junior Chris Lueb to start
Saturday’s bout — her 16th career
appearance.
Michigan
faced
further
absences during the game. With
5:46 left in the game, senior
defender Lauren Thomas suffered
a blow to the head while lunging
for the ball. During her steal
attempt, a Maryland attacker
accidentally hit Thomas with her
stick and foot, causing Thomas to
be helped off field by the trainers.
Fifth-year
senior
defender
Mackenzie Ellis also took a shot
to the hand, though both will be
ready to go next week, according
to Pankratz.
“We had to take a lot more
risks, and that just opened us up
to be a little bit more vulnerable
as well,” Pankratz said. “Bottom
line, we didn’t have a very good
game today, and they beat us fair
and square.”
AMANDA ALLEN/Daily
Freshman midfielder Leah Cardarelli scored the game-tying goal Friday to help send Michigan to the Big Ten final.
“Bottom line,
we didn’t have
a very good
game today.”