Sifting through the wreckage

Looking at the early returns, a few things are striking about the statistics from today's Rose Bowl game. Michigan was held to 12 net rushing yards. This is not quite as bad as it first seems in that net rushing yards factors in lost yards due to sacks. Michigan yielded 6 sacks and lost over 40 yards which suppressed its rushing yards total. However, it is terrible that the Wolverines yielded seven sacks in this game (five in the first half) after yielding only 18 in the first 12 games of the season. There was a complete and total breakdown of the O-Line in this game. On the defensive side of the ball, Michigan allowed John David Booty (27/45 391 yds. 4 tds.) to amass Heisman-like numbers. His favorite target was Dwayne Jarrett (11 rec. 205 yds. 2 tds.) who tortured the Michigan secondary all afternoon. A team knows it is in trouble when its statistical highlight is the fact that its punter (Zoltan Mesko) had an excellent game. A breakdown of the statistics from the game will occur when my breakdown is over. Go Blue!

USC 32 Michigan 18

Michigan could not keep up with the Trojans high-powered offense and the Wolverines ultimately lost their bowl game for the fourth straight year. The game was tied 3-3 at halftime but Michigan was outscored 29-15 in the second-half by USC. Click here for the event recap, the boxscore, the player participation charts, the postgame notes and a photo gallery. Also, here is a link to the play-by-play charts and boxscore in PDF format. Much analysis to follow when I am done wallowing over Michigan's third Rose Bowl loss in the past four years. Go Blue!

Rose Bowl game is finally here!

With kickoff scheduled for 5:00 p.m. EST today (January 1, 2007), the wait is finally over for Michigan fans who have been longing to watch the Wolverines return to the field since the end of the Big Ten season on November 18, 2006. There is comprehensive coverage of today's Rose Bowl game in both Detroit daily newspapers.

In the January 1, 2007 edition of the Detroit Free Press there is a position-by-position scouting report by Mark Snyder. Michael Rosenberg wrote an article entitled, "Granddaddy of 'em all offers plenty of drama and plot twists." The Freep has a Q&A with Alan Branch, Rondell Biggs, and Terrence Taylor. It also has a more in-depth interview of one of the Michigan players in an article entitled "Getting Personal with: Michigan senior CB Darnell Hood." Finally, the Detroit Free Press includes their U-M Notebook.

Over at the Detroit News, Bob Wojnowski (Wojo) wrote at article entitled, "U-M can recover a lot with a win today." Angelique S. Chengelis (a/k/a "The Angel of the Big House") wrote an article in which she posed the question, "Defining game for Henne?" The Angel also wrote an article re: the weapons of the USC offense. She also did a column regarding the Michigan seniors' last chance to snap the three game bowl losing streak. Finally, there is a photo gallery of pictures from yesterday's pep rally with the team at Santa Monica Pier. Go Blue!

Mike Hart is the mouth that roars

Rose Bowl Media Day was held on Saturday, December 30, 2006, and star running back Mike Hart was one of the Michigan players who was in the spotlight. Shawn Windsor of the Detroit Free Press wrote an article in yesterday's paper entitled "Loquacious RB is heart, soul of Michigan team." The verbose Hart rushed for 1,515 yards in 2006 which placed him 7th best in the nation this season. For his career, Hart has rushed for a total of 3,632 yards (#6 in Michigan history) and he is only 840 yards from becoming Michigan's all-time leading rusher. Hart had a welcome interruption during his Saturday press conference as he received a visit from Traverse City National Cherry Queen Kaley Schroeder. (pictured above). National Cherry Queen Schroeder pinned a cherry sticker on a smiling Hart's jersey as he fielded questions from the media. However, come game time on Monday, Hart will be all business and will likely be up to his usual verbal sparring with the opponents. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of National Cherry Queen Kaley Schroeder with Mike Hart by Danny Moloshok/Associated Press

Michigan to honor Bo & Pres. Ford with helmet sticker for Rose Bowl game

Michigan will adorn their helmets with a "48/BO" sticker during the Rose Bowl game in honor of President Gerald R. Ford and Coach Bo Schembechler both of whom passed away in the past couple of months. The number "48" is being used to represent President Ford because that was his jersey number during his playing days (1932-1934) at Michigan. President's Ford's number is one of of only five in Michigan football history to be retired. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo by Eric Seals/Detroit Free Press

Michigan works activities into Rose Bowl schedule

Michigan has been conducting their closed practices at The Home Depot Center since they have arrived in California but they have managed to work in some fun activities around their tough practice schedule. On Thursday night, December 28, 2006, the Wolverines attended a private party at the Improv Comedy Club in Los Angeles. The team watched multiple comedians perform their sets before a couple of the players took the stage and tried their hands at telling a few jokes. One of the players to reportedly brave the hecklers was team funnyman Darnell Hood.

On Friday, December 29, 2006, Michigan took a short trip to Santa Monica Pier. A couple of the players even took a quick dip in the chilly waters of the Pacific Ocean. Also, a group of players (including Mike Hart, Jamar Adams, Jason Olesnavage and Matt Hornaday) went to Children's Hospital of Los Angeles to visit with kids. A picture gallery of both activities with photos by John T. Greilick (The Detroit News) can be found here. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of Mike Hart, backup kicker Jason Olesnavage, and Jamar Adams with Dr. Cecilia Fu (who earned her undergrad degree at U of M) by John T. Greilick/The Detroit News.

Michigan 2007 Rose Bowl Media Guide

Michigan's Rose Bowl Media Guide is available on-line in PDF format. It is divided up in sections. Click on the links below and read to your heart's content. If you ever wanted a question answered about Michigan Football, the answer is probably in there or it probably did not happen. Just kidding. However, the Rose Bowl guide is extremely comprehensive and is another job well-done by the University's Athletic Media Relations Department. Without further ado:

• Table of Contents (PDF)
• Rose Bowl Game Notes (PDF)
• 2006 Season in Review: Game Notes (PDF)
• 2006 Season in Review: Statistics (PDF)
• 2006 team Player Bios (PDF)
• 2006 team Coaches & Support Staff (PDF)
• Bowl History: Recaps (PDF)
• Bowl History: Records (PDF)

For the sake of comparison, the USC 2007 Rose Bowl Media Guide can be found here. Go Blue!

De-fense, De-fense!!!

All the reports coming out of California today seem to be about the defense. In today's Detroit News, Bob Wojnowski ("Wojo") has an article entitled "Michigan 'D' must rebound." Similarly, in today's Detroit Free Press, Michael Rosenberg has an article entitled "Defining moment looms for defense." Apparently, it is the consensus that Michigan's defense needs to play better in the Rose Bowl than it did on November 18th. Keeping with the all-defense theme, Angelique S. Chengelis' Rose Bowl Notebook in the Detroit News features quotes from USC All-American wide receiver Dwayne Jarrett on his perceptions of where Michigan's secondary can be exploited. The quotes sound dangerously close to bulletin board material. The Rose Bowl Notebook also contains the mention that Linebacker Shawn Crable has announced that he will be returning for his final year of eligiblity next year. At the Detroit Free Press, in addition to Rosenberg's article mentioned above, there is an article by Shawn Windsor entitled "Speed Factor: Michigan players are big and strong, but still have to deal with Big Ten misconceptions." Additionally, Windsor wrote a Michigan Notebook in which he observes that Def. Coordinator Ron English remarked that the defense is shaping up and that Coach English likes the looks of how the younger players have been practicing. Finally, click here for a photo gallery by Eric Seals (Detroit Free Press) entitled "Road to the Rose Bowl." Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of Shawn Crable, Leon Hall, Def. Coordinator Ron English, and David Harris at Rose Bowl press conference by Eric Seals/Detroit Free Press.

2007 Beef Bowl at Lawry's Restaurant

Michigan players consumed 612 pounds of meat at this year's Beef Bowl according to Shawn Windsor's article in today's Detroit Free Press. The annual event is held at Lawry's Restaurant in Beverly Hills, CA. Last year marked the 50th anniversary of Lawry's Beef Bowl. As noted in Windsor's article in the Detroit Free Press, the team that wins the Beef Bowl wins the Rose Bowl game 70% of the time. USC is at Lawry's Restaurant tonight (December 28th) trying to better Michigan's feat of finishing 612 pounds. Typically, teams average in the high 400s to low 500s. The Wolverines must have been hungry. Click here for a photo gallery of pictures by Eric Seals (Detroit Free Press) taken at The Beef Bowl. Michigan has enjoyed a lot of success at the Beef Bowl going 12-3 at the event. Unfortunately, it has not fared as well in the actual Rose Bowl games. This year, however, the Wolverines look to make a clean sweep of the events. Go Blue!

*Note: Picture of Michigan Wolverines devouring their meals at Lawry's Restaurant on December 27th by Eric Seals/Detroit Free Press

Team arrives in California today

The Michigan Wolverines are scheduled to arrive in California on December 22, 2006 for their Rose Bowl trip. The team is staying at the Park Hyatt Los Angeles Hotel in Century City. The Wolverines will practice at the Home Depot Center. They are also scheduled to be at Disney's California Adventure Park on December 26, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. On December 27th at 4:30 p.m., the team will head over to Lawry's Restaurant for the Annual Beef Bowl. They have to have some fun while they are out there. Go Blue!

Double Trouble

Michigan has one of the best wide receiver tandems in the country in Mario Manningham (M2) and Adrian Arrignton (A2). However, the Wolverines Rose Bowl opponent-the USC Trojans- are able to counter with their own dynamic duo of Steve Smith (S2) and Dwayne Jarrett (DJ- no double initials here). Smith and Jarrett were both named first-team All-Americans this year and Manningham was a Heisman Trophy candidate until he went down with an injury midway through the season. When Manningham went down, Arrington really stepped up his performance for the Wolverines as he scored 7 touchdowns in the final eight games of the season. With these four gamebreakers on the field, there is a potential for this to be a high scoring Rose Bowl game.

Dwayne Jarrett (junior/junior) had 58 receptions for 773 yards and a team leading 10 receiving touchdowns. He is the Pac-10 Conference career leader in touchdown receptions with 39. He broke the old all-time conference record of 32 this season and he is only a junior. Jarrett has caught at least one pass in every game (37) he has played in during his career and he has gone over the century mark in receiving yardage in a game twelve times. He was a consensus All-American pick for the second consecutive season.

Steve Smith (senior/senior) was the Trojans leading receiver with 64 catches for 975 yards this season and he scored 8 touchdowns. Smith is USC's #5 career receiver and he has posted eight 100-yard receiving games during his time with the Trojans. His best game this season came against conference foe Oregon State when he caught 11 passes for 258 yards and 2 touchdowns. He was a consensus first-team All-American selection in 2006.

Mario Manningham (sophmore/sophmore) missed three games due to injury but still managed 32 receptions for 624 yards (19.5 avg.) and 9 touchdowns. "Super Mario" led the Big 10 conf. in receiving yardage and touchdowns when he originally went out with his injury. After missing three games, he returned for very limited action versus Ball State before playing against Indiana and Ohio State to end the season. The Wolverines hope to have him back up to tip top shape for the Rose Bowl because no one in the nation is better at stretching a defense than M2. All but one of his career touchdown catches have come from beyond the redzone. The one that was inside the 20-yard line was the catch he made last year with no time left on the clock that defeated Penn State. Even with the emergence of A2, a healthy M2 is Michigan's go-to guy.

Adrian Arrington (junior/sophmore) had 36 receptions for 510 yards (14.2 avg.) and 7 touchdowns in 2006 after missing almost all of last season after suffering a season ending injury in the first game. Arrington had a spectacular season, scoring- as previously noted- seven touchdowns in the season's final eight games. Michigan's offense never missed a beat when he seamlessly transitioned into the role of #1 receiver while M2 was out for a few games in the middle of the season. If the Trojans try to double cover M2 in the Rose Bowl, Arrington will likely make them pay by scoring multiple times. Go Blue!

*Note: Photo of Adrian Arrington by John T. Greilick/The Detroit News

2007 Rose Bowl Game

The Michigan Wolverines will be playing the USC Trojans for the eighth time in the Rose Bowl when they meet on January 1, 2007. Overall, this will be the Wolverines 20th Rose Bowl appearance and third in the last four years. Everything you need to know about this year's match-up can be found by clicking here. Go Blue!

Michigan headed to Rose Bowl

Michigan was leapfrogged by the University of Florida Gators for the #2 spot in the BCS standings and a berth in the BCS National Championship Game. Consequently, Michigan is headed to Pasadena, CA to play the Pac-10 champion (USC Trojans) in the Rose Bowl. The match-up between the two traditional Rose Bowl rivals will take place on January 1, 2007. As for commentary about the selection of Florida over Michigan for advancement to the BCS title game, click here to read the article of ESPN.com columnist Gene Wojciechowski. Go Blue!