Hail To The Victors: MICHIGAN FOOTBALL '99
|
A TRIAN CARRIES UM TO VICTORY
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Sept. 4) Anthony Thomas' 1-yard touchdown run with 1:38 left lifted No. 7 Michigan to a 26-22 victory over the No. 16 Fighting Irish. "They hurt themselves with penalties in the end, and we took advantage of it,'' Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr said. "It was as hard a hitting football game as I've ever been in.'' Playing before an NCAA-record crowd of 111,523 at Michigan Stadium, the Fighting Irish (1-1) went ahead 22-19 with 4:08 remaining on Jarious Jackson's fourth-down, 20-yard pass to tight end Jabari Holloway. Then it got a little nuts. After Jackson's 2-point conversion pass to Bobby Brown, the Irish were penalized 15 yards for excessive celebration. Thomas, who carried 32 times for 138 yards and two TDs, took the ensuing kickoff -- from the Notre Dame 20 after the penalty was assessed -- and returned it 20 yards to the Michigan 42. Brady hooked up with David Terrell for 20 yards to the Irish 5 later in the drive to set up A-Train. Three plays later, from the 1, Thomas got the best of a goal line collision with linebacker Anthony Denman, barely getting into the end zone for the winning TD. Notre Dame gave it a final shot. Jackson, who was 19-of-28 for a career-best 302 yards, had completions of 36 and 15 yards to Raki Nelson which moved the ball to the Michigan 21 with under a minute to play. Three plays later, after Jackson was sacked for a crucial 10-yard loss by Dhani Jones, the quarterback completed a 19-yarder to Nelson -- one yard short of a first down, which would have stopped the clock. With no timeouts left, the Irish were helpless as time ran out with the ball on the 12 and the crowd singing "The Victors". -PROPS TO AOL SPORTS AND THE ASSOCIATED PRESS |
My Game Notes
Dave Terrell stepped up in a big way Saturday afternoon. He was Tom Brady's favorite target who caught 8 passes for 115 yards, and took attention away from A-Train to balance out Michigan's attack. On a crucial play with less than 2 minutes to go, and Michigan driving through the red zone, Terrell caught a pass to set up A-Train's 1-yard run with 1:38 left. This allowed Michigan to take their time and score the go-ahead TD. Tom Brady was outstanding as well on Saturday as he threw for 197 yards on 17 completions, and most importantly no interceptions. Sophmore sensation Drew Henson wowed me with his rifle arm and ability to pick up the blitz. He was only 3-8 for 40 yards but converted on 2 3rd downs to lead the Wolverines into field goal range. However, it is apparent to me that Henson should wait his turn as Brady's senior leadership was a big reason the Wolverines pulled it out. Brady showed poise, was accurate and was flawless. He read the defense well and picked up key first downs on great calls. Michigan was not able to put the ball into the end-zone early and depended on a kicker making his debut. Michigan needed every FG and Jeff Del-Verne came through going 4-4 from 21, 27, 35, 37 yards out. Michigan also refused to give ND good starting position as Hayden Epstein boomed more than 6 kicks for touchbacks. Jarious Jackson was shaky at times, but showed his ability to pick apart defenses with his running and play calling. The defense was inconsistant on Saturday for Michigan, they were steller at times, but blew coverage, and let up key plays as well. Tommy Hendricks made 3 huge plays I can think of. He picked off Jarious Jackson on a crucial play, realized the ND WR was wide open on a play fake and reacted quickly forcing Jackson to change plans and throw the pass to the outside, and missed his open reciever on a possible 50 yard TD. The biggest play however was the last play. Jackson threw the final pass and Hendricks drilled the receiver 6 INCHES, yes I said inches, away from the first down to stop the clock. But time ran out on Notre Dame: Hail to the Victors. |
HOOK UPS
For MY other michigan site that moved involving Henson and Brady..CLICK HERE NOW For The best MICHIGAN HOCKEY site staright from Ann Arbor CLICK HERE NOW To see The official Michigan Athletics Website click here now To see The best Michigan Football pics and game summaries click here now
|
