Michigan's Edwards, Breaston shine in defeat

Braylon Edwards had TD catches of 39, 8 and 9 yards. Donald Miralle/Getty Images

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) -- Braylon Edwards seemed to magically appear in the open, and teammate Steve Breaston left would-be tacklers frozen in their tracks.

But even the brilliant performance by Michigan's stars wasn't enough against Texas.

Edwards and Breaston accounted for 441 yards and four touchdowns in a record-setting Rose Bowl for each of the Wolverines receivers.

"That was two of the most phenomenal performances I've ever seen," Texas coach Mack Brown said.

Despite their efforts, and a record-tying performance by freshman quarterback Chad Henne, No. 6 Texas beat the No. 13 Wolverines 38-37 on Dusty Mangum's 37-yard field goal as time expired.

The rangy 6-foot-3, 208-pound Edwards confused the Texas coverage with his precise routes and finished with 10 catches for the second straight New Year's Day in Pasadena. He totaled 109 yards and set a record for the game with three touchdown catches.

In the process, he became the Big Ten's career touchdown receptions leader with 39.

Edwards' first TD catch against Texas was a classic. Racing past cornerback Cedric Griffin, then angling to the sideline away from Phillip Geiggar, Edwards ran under Henne's long, high throw and snared the ball in the end zone just over Geiggar's fingertips.

Winner of the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver this year, Edwards had touchdown catches of 39, 8 and 9 yards. He also carried twice and gained 17 yards.

All that was overshadowed at the final gun.

"Losing is losing, no matter how you slice it," Edwards said. "The only thing I wanted to do was win. Right now, I can't think about the records."

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Edwards' three touchdowns eclipsed the Rose Bowl receptions record shared by 17 players, including USC's Keary Colbert in last year's 28-14 win over Michigan. His 39 career catches rewrote former Wolverines star Anthony Carter's Big Ten mark of 37.

Breaston, a wiry and elusive 6-foot-1, 174-pounder, rolled up 315 all-purpose yards, including 221 on kickoff returns, to rewrite O.J. Simpson's 1969 Rose Bowl record of 276 total yards.

The Michigan junior had three receptions for 77 yards, including a 50-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown when he sliced across the field against the defensive grain and juked several defenders on his way to the end zone.

The duly impressed Brown said, "Braylon Edwards, I've said all along he was worthy of the Biletnikoff Award. Breaston, I think the only time we stopped him was when he ran into somebody."

Henne's four touchdown passes matched the Rose Bowl record shared by UCLA's Rick Neuheisel and USC's Pete Beathard.

Michigan did plenty offensively to win this one, the Wolverines' first game against Texas.

But their defense couldn't stop the Longhorns' scrambling quarterback, Vince Young. Even Wolverines' linebacker LaMarr Woodley, voted the defensive player of the game, let Young slip out of his grasp on a 23-yard touchdown run that gave Texas a 35-34 lead with 4:56 remaining.

Woodley pounded the turf in frustration as he watched Young sprint into the end zone for the fourth time in the game.

"We keyed on (Texas tailback) Cedric Benson and stopped him, but the quarterback (Young) ran the game," said Woodley, who made nine solo tackles and was in on two others.