One lump or two?

Michigan looking Sugary sweet after domination of Notre Dame

Michigan's Markus Curry picked off Carlyle Holiday in the second quarter.l AP

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Try as they might, the Michigan Wolverines can't seem to wrestle away the spotlight from their hated rivals in the Scarlet and Gray.

Here they were Saturday, laying a picture-perfect 38-0 whuppin' on Notre Dame in what was supposed to be the biggest game in the country.

Unfortunately, while the Wolverines were building their 17-0 first-half lead, most of the country was watching those damn Buckeyes pull out yet another last-second thriller, this one in triple overtime. By the time ABC switched over, they'd missed most of Michigan's best work.

They missed a thorough domination by Michigan's defense, which held the Irish to 52 yards and one, 1-yard pass completion in the first half. They missed a perfectly balanced offense, with much-improved running back Chris Perry running for 133 yards and efficient quarterback John Navarre completing 14-of-21 for 188; and they missed nifty special teams that helped ensure Notre Dame started two of its first five possessions within its own 10, while the Wolverines began four of seven beyond their 40.

"It's not what you expect," Navarre said of the most lopsided score in Notre Dame-Michigan history, "but it's tough to stop a team from putting that many points on the board when they play well in all areas of the game."

It was Michigan's most convincing performance against a major opponent since a 27-0 blanking of ninth-ranked Penn State on Nov. 7, 1998.

And nobody saw the part that mattered.

Nobody, that is, besides the NCAA-record 111,726 who turned Michigan Stadium into a sea of maize, a few of whom were already sporting Sugar Bowl national championship T-shirts at a pep rally on campus the night before. Such enthusiasm, while admirable, seemed premature at the time, when the only evidence in their favor was wins over Central Michigan and Houston.

However, after lambasting the fabled -- albeit offensively challenged -- Irish, they're perfectly justified in feeling like they might be watching the beginnings of something special.

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"It may be an eye opener to people in the nation, but we see this every day," said Perry. "Of course I think it could be a special team, but no one ever knows."

What makes this team more special than the previous three on which Perry has played? Several things, really.

While Michigan always has talented skill players and a tough offensive line, rarely in recent years have all aspects been so fluid. Perry, who often struggled to break 3 yards a carry last season, has developed new balance and agility necessary to break off big plays. And Navarre, a constant target for criticism throughout his career, is avoiding mistakes and spreading the ball around.

Defensively, where the Wolverines were already tough last season, it's a whole different ballgame. The move of star defensive back Marlin Jackson from cornerback to free safety, along with the emergence of fellow safety Ernest Shazor, gives Michigan a lineup equally adept against both the run and the pass, allowing them to be more aggressive up front. Not only were Notre Dame QBs Carlyle Holiday and Brady Quinn a combined 8-of-22 for 91 yards and two interceptions, but the Irish averaged only 2 yards per carry.

But the most visible improvement may be mental.

In recent years, you could almost count on Michigan to lay at least one egg within the first month of the season. So far, they are one of the only elite teams yet to be challenged.

"I knew in my heart this team had tremendous motivation," said head coach Lloyd Carr. "They worked extremely hard going back to the way that season ended a year ago."

The way that season ended was with their archrival winning the national championship in the Fiesta Bowl, a game they would not have reached had the Wolverines found a way to get in the end zone in a 14-9 loss in Columbus, a memory that still haunts them.

"Are you kidding me?" exclaimed defensive end Larry Stevens when asked about it Saturday. "We feel we let them win the championship."

After thinking about what he said, Stevens politely begged off the topic, but it's clear how the mere mention of OSU's title can get under a Michigan player's skin.

How it must irk them, then, that amidst their most promising start in years, the Wolverines remain only the second-highest ranked team in their own conference, despite every indication that the Buckeyes are on the edge of breaking.

"That's what I expect them to do," said Perry when told of Ohio State's latest heroics. "They're a great team, they're our biggest rival. That's what rivals do, they try to one-up each other. They're one up on us right now."

Even on Notre Dame game day, reminders of the Buckeyes were everywhere in Ann Arbor. Scattered among the street vendors selling "Hail to the Victors" and "Rudy Sucks" T-shirts were three different odes to Maurice Clarett, including "Top 10 Reasons why Maurice Clarett is suspended." And an editorial on the front page of the Ann Arbor News carried the headline "Ohio State should vacate national title."

They were referring to last year's.

As for this year, no one but Brutus himself would look Michigan and Ohio State's first three games and decree the Buckeyes the better team. And with many of their closest Big Ten competitors -- Purdue, Wisconsin, Penn State -- dropping like flies, the path seems clearer for the Wolverines than at any time since their '97 championship run.

But there's a lot of games to be played between now and Nov. 22, when the Buckeyes visit Ann Arbor. Maybe by then the bottom will have finally dropped out for OSU. But just to be sure, Michigan might want to make sure it takes care of business, starting next week at dangerous Oregon and continuing Oct. 4 at undefeated Iowa, which, you may recall, handed the Wolverines a 34-9 whipping their last time out.

"Dealing with success is more agreeable than dealing with losing," said Carr, "but it's no less difficult. Now we have to deal with all these people patting us on the back. But it's not wise to listen to that because it might distract you from what you need to get done."

It's been another Michigan trademark in recent years to suffer a letdown after a win like this. But if the humble-sounding Perry is any indication, this year might be different,

"This team's on a mission," he said, "but it's only three games. It was a great feeling, but now it's time to focus on Oregon."

Stewart Mandel covers college sports for SI.com.