Bo's back with Michigan at the Rose Bowl

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler does not plan on chewing out officials or stalking the sidelines, but he's back at the Rose Bowl as part of the team's travel party.

Schembechler said he has a lot of good memories from Pasadena. Then, he laughed and added: "And a lot of bad ones, too."

The Wolverines were 2-8 in the Rose Bowl while Schembechler was their coach from 1969-89.

Schembechler said his favorite memory was, "the first time we won."

He snapped a five-game losing streak in the Rose Bowl in 1981 with a 23-6 win over Washington.

Eleven years earlier, he had a heart attack and missed the game.

"I wasn't feeling well, went to the doctor and had an electrocardiogram," he said. "I didn't think anything was wrong. But one minute I was studying plays and the next minute, I had a tube in my arm."

Even though Michigan is ranked fourth in the country Michigan, the Wolverines have almost been an afterthought at the Rose Bowl.

Most of the attention has gone to Southern Cal because despite being No. 1 in both polls, the Trojans won't be playing in the Bowl Championship Series' title game. No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 2 LSU will play in the Sugar Bowl.

If Schembechler was coaching, he said that would be used as a motivator for the Wolverines.

"I'd play it to the hilt, and say, 'They're only talking about three teams and you're the fourth team,"' he said. "Everybody assumes USC is going to win."

Big Blue's long break

The Rose Bowl will be Michigan's first game in nearly six weeks.

The Wolverines don't think it will make them look rusty against the Trojans, who last played three-plus weeks ago.

"I think it's a mental challenge more than a physical one to have the lay off, and our guys are as sharp as ever in every way," Michigan offensive coordinator Terry Malone said Tuesday. "I don't think it's going to be a factor. I think it helped us tremendously to get out here early."

The Wolverines have been in California since Dec. 20 in preparation for the New Year's Day bowl game. They practiced for four days last week in Dana Point, south of Los Angeles, before working out at the Los Angeles Coliseum, the Trojans' regular-season home.

"We've practiced 600 times out here, so I'm not worried about us not being sharp," Michigan's Tony Pape said.

Michigan earned its first trip to the Rose Bowl in six years when it beat Ohio State on Nov. 22 in its regular-season finale. USC last played on Dec. 6 in a win over Oregon State.

"It's been a long time and it's killing us," USC's Mike Patterson said. "We're just ready to play."

Come one, come all

USC's practices are family affairs.

Parents of USC's players -- and a lot of young autograph seekers _ are regulars at workouts.

Defensive end Omar Nazel signed autograph books for two young girls, then scribbled his name on one boy's T-shirt and another's cap. Many of the other USC players greet their parents on the sidelines at practice.

Unlike many coaches who keep their practices closed, Pete Carroll wouldn't have it any other way.

"We think of ourselves as a family here, and this is a big part of that," Carroll said. "This is what our program is all about."