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September 25, 2017 - Image 9

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The Michigan Daily

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A conversation with former
Republican Congressmen
Mike Rogers and Dave Camp

» Hosted by Joe Schwarz, former U.S. Congressman and Visiting Lecturer

Mental health: Personal
and policy perspectives

» Moderated by Professor Paula Lantz

MICHELLE RIBA, MD

SHERVIN ASSARI, MD, MPH

NANCY BAUM, PHD

TRISH CORTES, RN, MS

Wednesday, September 27, 2017
4:00-5:30 PM

Free and open to the public. Reception to follow.

Info: fspp-events@umich.edu

fordschool.umich.edu

Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

Annenberg Auditorium, 1120 Weill Hall

735 S. State Street

Follow us: @fordschool

Join the conversation: #policytalks

This event is made possible in part through the generous support of
the Gilbert S. Omenn and Martha A. Darling Health Policy Fund.
In complement to the September performances of “Every Brilliant Thing,”
visit ums.org/performance/every-brilliant-thing for tickets

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
September 25, 2017 — 3B

The good, bad and ugly: Purdue

If you were looking for drama

on Saturday, West Lafayette was
the place for you.

Trailing by three until the end

of the third quarter, the Michigan
football team was staring down
the barrel at an upset in Ross-Ade
Stadium. But behind a redemption
story from John O’Korn that is oft
reserved for movies, the eighth-
ranked Wolverines managed to
pull away and not look back.

Michigan
escaped
Purdue

with a conference-opening win,
and is now entering its bye week
undefeated with Michigan State
as the next team on the docket.

The Daily breaks down the

good, the bad and the ugly from
Saturday’s game.

The good

There was a lot to like about

the
Wolverines’
road
trip.

O’Korn finally had his day, the
defense had yet another standout
performance
and
Michigan’s

tight ends — redshirt sophomore
Zach Gentry and sophomore
Sean
McKeon

solidified

themselves as reliable options in
the Wolverine passing attack.

Michigan’s
fifth-year
senior

quarterback seized his moment
after being thrust into a tense game
following Wilton Speight’s exit.
He was perfect on his first drive,
completing all five of his passes for
61 yards before finding Gentry for
a touchdown, and ended the game
with 270 yards and a touchdown
on 18-of-26 passing. He did have
an interception, but it was more so
the product of an unlucky bounce
on a catchable ball than a poor
decision.

More than anything, O’Korn

helped the Wolverines exorcise
their demons in the red zone —
converting on every trip — and
he connected on a number of
difficult throws throughout the
matchup with the Boilermakers.
Speight, on the other hand,
entered the matchup 1-of-17 in the
red zone.

Gentry and McKeon proved to

be O’Korn’s fail-safes, as the duo
finished as Michigan’s top two

receivers. McKeon finished with
five catches for 82 yards, while
Gentry recorded three catches for
48 yards and the Wolverines’ lone
receiving touchdown.

There were concerns about

who would replace freshman
wide
receiver
Tarik
Black’s

production, but McKeon and
Gentry left the Michigan faithful
with a sense of relief for now.

And of course, Michigan’s

stout defensive unit had another
hallmark day. Purdue — an
offense brimming with trickery
— managed to score 10 points in
the first half while racking up 179
yards, but the Wolverines held
the Boilermakers scoreless with
just 10 yards in the second half.

The performance catapulted

Michigan to the top of the team
defense rankings, as the unit is
surrendering an average of 203.3
yards per game.

Not
to
be
overlooked,

sophomore
running
back

Chris Evans finally had the
performance that many were
waiting for. He finished the game
with two touchdowns and 97
yards, highlighted by a 49-yard
touchdown run in the fourth
quarter that effectively ended the
contest for good.

The bad

Michigan
is
beginning
to

show an affinity for turning the
ball over, as the Wolverines have
forfeited possession seven times
through four games.

With just under 10 minutes

remaining in the third quarter,
O’Korn completed a pass to
sophomore running back Karan
Higdon for an 11-yard gain.

The
positive
yardage
was

canceled
out,
however,
by

Higdon’s
ensuing
fumble.

Linebacker Danny Ezechukwu
recovered the ball at Purdue’s
37-yard
line.
Though
the

Boilermakers
didn’t
manage

to capitalize on the mistake —
Purdue went three-and-out — it
was still a dangerous moment
given that the Wolverines trailed,
10-7, at the time.

The fumble opened up the door

for Evans’ breakout performance,
however, as Higdon did not

receive a carry for the rest of the
game.

The second turnover came

earlier in the game, with just over
eight minutes remaining in the
second quarter. O’Korn’s pass to
junior wide receiver Grant Perry
was picked off by Navon Mosley
and returned seven yards to
Michigan’s 27-yard line.

The Wolverines’ defense bailed

them out, though, forcing Purdue
to settle for a field goal. Again,
the interception was not really
O’Korn’s fault, as it bounced off
Perry’s hands.

Still, while no team has been

able to truly make Michigan pay
for turning the ball over, that can
only last so long.

The ugly

It didn’t take long for Michigan

to hit a low point against Purdue.
Midway through the first quarter,
redshirt
junior
quarterback

Wilton Speight was sacked by
linebacker Markus Bailey for an
11-yard loss before absorbing a
second hit that crunched his neck
and ended his day.

It was a scary moment in

West Lafayette, as Speight laid
motionless on the ground before
gingerly walking off the field with
the help of trainers.

He needed to leave the field to

receive X-rays and never returned
to the game.

While there is no official

diagnosis, Jim Harbaugh said
after the game that he believes it
to be a “soft-tissue” injury.

There is still no timetable for

Speight’s return, but O’Korn’s
performance begged the question
of whether or not a fresh
quarterback competition would
be opened.

Harbaugh did not answer the

question directly, but he did give
O’Korn the credit he was due.

“I thought John really played

great,” Harbaugh said. “He was
seeing things really good from the
time he came into the ballgame.
He ran the offense well, made
the big plays. The throw he hit
Gentry on the seam route down
the middle was a big-time throw.
And he had others. Really proud
of him. Proud of the whole team.”

RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily

Sophomore tight end Sean McKeon led all receivers with five catches for 82 yards against the Boilermakers.

KEVIN SANTO

Managing Sports Editor

Cerda keys Michigan to needed victory

Entering Sunday afternoon’s

contest against Northwestern
(0-4-0 Big Ten, 2-7-0 overall),
the No. 22 Michigan men’s
soccer team had been held
scoreless with no shots on
goal in its past two games. As
a result, the Wolverines went
0-2-1, halting the momentum
they had gained early in the
season.

Just
under
six
minutes

into the first half against the
Wildcats,
Michigan
(2-1-1,

5-2-2) had already registered
one shot on goal, but was still
unable to convert set pieces
and scoring chances against
a
struggling
Northwestern

defense

it
had
been

outscored, 10-1, in the first half
and outshot, 98-74, this season.

In the 16th minute, yet

another
Wolverine
chance

went
by
the
wayside,
as

sophomore
midfielder
Jack

Hallahan’s through ball sailed
past the outstretched foot of
freshman
midfielder
Marc

Ybarra and trickled out of
bounds.

After groans from the crowd

subsided, midfielder Ivo Cerda
stared
at
his
teammates,

clapped his hands fervently
and shouted, “Keep it going!”

The junior captain lived

by his mantra, setting the
example for his teammates to
follow. Fifteen minutes later,
Cerda’s header into the top-left
corner of the goal off another
Hallahan cross from the right
flank put the Wolverines on
the board and, ultimately, back
in the win column with a 3-1
victory.

Though the goal — Cerda’s

second this season — helped
the
Santiago,
Chile
native

further his poise the rest of the
game, it was more about using
the goal as inspiration for his
teammates.

“Every player would like to

score early,” Cerda said. “It’s

easy then to play, but I always
try to rub that confidence
off and motivation onto my
teammates,
especially
after

scoring a goal.”

In
his
newly-established

role as one of the team’s three
captains, Cerda
blends
self-

confidence
and work ethic
to be a model
for the players
around him.

“(They

should) try to
stay
focused,

try
to
keep

a
high
line,”

Cerda
said.

“They all knew
what this game meant to us.
It was a turning point for
our season, we hoped to get a
win today so we can get back
on a winning streak. There’s
so much to say: they’re all
focused, but I just try to keep

them motivated.”

After a red card to junior

forward
Francis
Atuahene

left Michigan fielding just 10
players for the end of the first
and the entire second half, it
was the workhorse Cerda who

stepped up once
again with a man
down.

“He’s
done

really well,” said
Michigan coach
Chaka
Daley.

“He’s
been

asked to play in
many
different

positions
as
a

result of having
a little bit of an
injury to start

the year and having to wean
him into our team. He and
(Ybarra) are probably the two
fittest guys on the team. All of
the hard work they do — and all
the hard work the team does —
is the difference.”

Added Cerda: “I felt that,

at
moments,
you
would

imagine they had 10 men. We
were looking good, keeping
possession. … That’s because
we trusted what we do, we don’t
get scared by any pressure like
this. We’re prepared to be a
man down and we were lucky
enough to get a 2-0 lead.”

After defenseman Jackson

Ragen scored in the 55th
minute to put the Wolverines
up 2-0, it was Cerda who was
first to sprint to the freshman
with a big hug.

It was Cerda who, as the

final whistle blew, breathed a
sigh of relief, displayed a wide
grin and threw his hands up
in the air as if he was Rocky
winning a 10-round fight.

And
it
was
Cerda
who

motioned his teammates to run
over to the Michigan Ultras,
waved at fans to stay and not
head for the exits, and started
to sing “Hail to the Victors.”

CLAIRE MEINGAST/Daily

Junior midfielder Ivo Cerda helped lead the Wolverines to victory despite losing Francis Atuahene in the first half.

BENJAMIN KATZ

Daily Sports Writer

I felt that, at

moments, you

would imagine

they had 10 men.

‘M’ tops Northwestern

Last year’s match between

Michigan and Northwestern
epitomized
the
Wolverines’

2016 season.

The Michigan men’s soccer

team outshot the Wildcats 23-13
but fell in a double-overtime
heartbreaker – a capsule of
what was frequently described
by coach Chaka Daley as “balls
not bouncing the right way.”

But on Sunday at U-M Soccer

Stadium, things broke more
in No. 22 Michigan’s favor –
as they have for much of this
season. The Wolverines (2-1-
1 Big Ten, 5-2-2 overall) beat
Northwestern (0-4-0, 2-7-0) 3-1
to exceed their win total from
last year.

“It means a lot, it’s definitely

a special season for us,” said
junior midfielder Ivo Cerda.
“We don’t like to talk a lot about
last year, but it’s definitely
important to get back in the
winning race. We come from
two really tough losses, but I
think this team has a lot in store
and it’s important for us to get a
win today.”

After an uneventful start

to the match, the Wolverines
broke through in the 31st
minute.
Sophomore
forward

Jack Hallahan sent a soaring
free kick into the box that met
the head of Cerda, deflecting
into the top left corner past the
goalkeeper’s reach.

But almost as quickly as the

score came, Michigan would
lose a man for the rest of the
afternoon.

Just seven seconds after his

substitution,
junior
forward

Francis Atuahene received a
red card after he got too much
of a Northwestern player on a
challenge.

It was a tough break for the

Wolverines’ 2016 leading scorer,
who has battled injuries and
found the back of the net only

once in the young season.

Michigan would add to its

lead off another set piece to
open the second half – this time
off a corner kick from junior
defender
Marcello
Borges

that met the head of freshman
midfielder Jackson Regan for
his first career goal.

As displayed by both of those

conversions, Daley sees these
set pieces as an asset.

“It’s something you obviously

want to get sharper with,”
Daley said. “When you look at
the run of the game, most games
concede within the 18-yard box
or set plays. Certainly, to put
yourself in a position where
we’re competitive I think is
important.”

A 10-man formation wouldn’t

hurt the Wolverines until the
65th minute, when a free-
running Sean Lynch connected
from the right flank to cut the
lead in half.

Northwestern
continued

to pressure in an attempt to
equalize, sending four shots
on goal in the final 15 minutes.
Sophomore goalkeeper Andrew
Verdi, however, was aggressive
in knocking away attempts near
his net.

The
Wildcats
nearly

equalized off a free kick via a
yellow card in the 90th minute
– Michigan’s fifth of the day
– but the Wolverines would
instead seal the victory thanks
to Jack Hallahan’s open-net
conversion.

“If we can control our own

destiny and stay within the
top half of our league – this
win was huge for that,” Daley
said. “To be down a player and
have to grind it out for 60-70
minutes is phenomenal. I’m so
proud of our guys and what they
accomplished.”

Northwestern
outshot

Michigan, but balls bounced the
Wolverines’ way.

What a difference a year

makes.

MEN’S SOCCER

MARK CALCAGNO

Daily Sports Writer

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