Michigan Moves to 11-0 After 34-3 Win Over Indiana

By Sean · Sunday, November 12, 2006 · 1:19 PM |  Share | Leave a Comment 

The final obstacle before a trip to Columbus was a meeting with the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington yesterday. Michigan would have to be careful to not overlook Indiana, but after that sloppy game last week against Ball State, I’m sure the coaches had them focused on the Hoosiers only. It certainly was evident that Michigan was ready to play as they came out and quickly rolled over IU. Everyone’s sights now can be set on the biggest game ever as it’s being called by some. First, let’s recap the 34-3 victory over Indiana and see how it all happened before the discussion moves to next week.

Michigan started out things quickly and efficiently. A great drive that really had no faults in it was ended by a 1 yard fade to Adrian Arrington for the touchdown. Henne made a perfect throw and then Arrington just outmatched the defender. Mike Hart definitely gets a pat on the back as he was the big player that helped move the ball down the field. He fought for extra yards on many runs and put the Wolverines in position to get a score.

The defense held up on its end of the bargain by limiting Indiana to hardly any offense in the first quarter. It was only near the end when the Hoosiers finally got a positive-yardage play. Thanks to that, Michigan was able to go down the field again to put another touchdown on the board. This time, Mike Hart took it in from 4 yards out to put Michigan on top 14-0. It really had been a long time since we had seen Michigan jump out to such a good start and lead.

Indiana was able to cut the gap down a little bit after converting a 39 yard field goal, but that would be all they got during the entire game. Michigan answered back quickly with one of their longest plays all season. It was a 62 yard touchdown pass to none other than Steve Breaston. For the first time all season Steve Breaston found the endzone and what a way to do it. He caught a great pass right over his shoulder and the defender just went down trying to knock it down. Because of that, Breaston just walked into the endzone. After one half of play, Michigan leads 21-3.

Going into the second half Michigan hadn’t completely put away Indiana, so the starters would still play another quarter or so. It’s good that the lead was 21-3, and this time there was no comeback. The play that really put the game away and really proved that a player may finally be back to his old self came in the form of a punt return. Steve Breaston got into the endzone for the second time of the game when he returned a punt 83 yards to put Michigan on top 28-3. Breaston made a juke move to shake off two defenders right after catching the punt and was simply gone. His speed allowed him to outrun all of the Indiana players and got him into the promise land.

With the score being what it was, many backups got into the game as the third quarter dwindled down. One of those backups was Jerome Jackson. This player has had a rough season when it came to playing time. In my opinion he was in the doghouse for much of the season, and along with that, far down on the depth chart. But, after playing pretty good against Northwestern and Ball State, Jackson appears to be the new backup to Mike Hart. Using his time on the field wisely, Jackson put together a couple of decent runs and then a 1 yarder into the endzone for a touchdown. That made the score 34-3 (Garrett Rivas missed the extra point), which is what it would be at the end of the game.

Finally, a blowout victory where many second and third stringers got to play. Jason Forcier came in at quarterback and had a nice looking run for a first down. Carlos Brown saw some time at running back and had a few good carries. And then, even Darnell Hood got to play at running back for two rushes. I hadn’t even realized he played there until after the game when it was brought up by someone I was talking to. Even the announcers had no idea. I just figured a #4 at RB would be Brandon Minor. But, it turns out, that it was Darnell Hood. The story behind it as told by Lloyd Carr on Michigan Replay today was that at the start of the season, Hood asked running back’s coach Fred Jackson if he could get one rush during the season. Hood actually was recruited to play on offense, but switched to defense upon his arrival to Ann Arbor. Well, Jackson brought the promise up to Lloyd Carr recently, and since the game was in a position where Hood had the chance to come in, he did, and got two carries out of it. It’s good to get some of those players that may be playing next year some expereince.

Following this 34-3 victory over Indiana, Michigan now controls an 11-0 record, something that we haven’t seen since 1997. The Wolverines now head to Columbus next Saturday for a meeting with the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes. Never before has the “Big Game” been so big. The winner goes to the BCS National Championship Game, and the loser most likely to the Rose Bowl. Everything the players have worked for comes down to this one game, and if Michigan does come out with the win, then pack your bags, because we’re going to Glendale. Stay tuned all week for everything you need to get ready for the Ohio State game.