The second straight OT thriller falls M’s way againEAST LANSING, MICHIGAN OCT. 1, 2005 Garrett Rivas’s kick wasn’t crisp or firm, but it sailed through and ended another classic Michigan vs. Michigan State game and DB13. The Wolverines’ 34-31 win was a tale of two halves: the first a wild offensive show, the second more of a chess match, highlighted by big blunders by each team. The win essentially salvages Michigan’s season and certainly puts at least a hold on the Spartan’s desire to win a Big Ten title. At least for two weeks when MSU can get right back where they want to be with a win at Ohio State. Michigan has plenty of brutal games coming up but the pieces seem to be back in place for a run at a title. The difference? Not much, but as mentioned in earlier columns, the difference Mike Hart makes to this team is significant. He was clearly not at full speed but was the best player on the field today. Drew Stanton of MSU played a great game, and some in the Ann Arbor media are questioning Spartan coach John L. Smith for holding back the MSU offense in the second half. Another big break for the Wolverines came on the overtime coin toss (they called ‘tails’), which gave them…
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Michigan Flex Muscle, Down Spartans in 2003
Wolverines, Chris Perry own scrimmage line EAST LANSING, MI NOVEMBER 2, 2003 Nothing comes easy for the Wolverines when they visit East Lansing. Despite a complete domination of basically every statistical category, the Spartans still had the ball at the end of the game and a chance to tie. Jeff Smoker’s final pass was picked off in the endzone, and the entire Michigan bench sprinted for toward the tunnel as if to say, “Get me the hell out of here!”. With the win, the Wolverines move to the top of the Big Ten standings and will win the championship with wins over Northwestern and Ohio State. Meanwhile, the Eleventh Annual Dooley Brothers tailgate took place in the shadow of the stadium starting, in darkness, at around 6 a.m. We moved a few spots down from our traditional location in the A lot to take advantage of more real estate. The extra space was needed as a large crowd showed up to enjoy the cold brews, brats, and especially the incredible jambalaya and gumbo compliments of chef James Soniga. A few takes on the game:– Jeff Smoker played an outstanding game, although his numbers may not show it. He threw nice, on-target spirals to the MSU receivers all day long. Although Michigan didn’t get their hands on him very much during…
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On the Road with the Wolverines
Here is a listing of the different stadiums in which I have seen Michigan play football. Obviously the most common place I have seen the Blue play is at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor (around 90 or so games). After that, it has to be Spartan Stadium (around 10), then a tie with Notre Dame Stadium and the Rose Bowl (4 each). The best is of course the Rose Bowl, but after that I would have to say Notre Dame and Ohio State. The worst is easily Ross-Ade at Purdue – it is like a high school stadium at the time. I know they made some changes to spruce it up, but it had a long way to go. Michigan Stadium (Michigan) Ann Arbor, MI Spartan Stadium (Michigan State) East Lansing, MI Ross-Ade Stadium (Purdue) West Lafayette, IN Memorial Stadium (Indiana) Bloomington, IN Ohio Stadium (Ohio State) Columbus, OH Ryan Field (Northwestern) Evanston, IL Notre Dame Stadium (Notre Dame) South Bend, IN Rose Bowl (vs. UW, WSU, USC) Pasadena, CA Orange Bowl (vs. Alabama) Miami, FL