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MADISON, Wisconsin (Ticker) -- The "Great Dayne" again became just average at the hands of Michigan. The 17th-ranked Wolverines held Ron Dayne to 88 yards -- none in the second half -- and came up with enough big plays to defeat No. 17 Wisconsin, 21-16, and take early control of the Big Ten Conference. Limited to 53 yards in last season's 27-10 loss to Michigan --Wisconsin's only setback in a Rose Bowl championship campaign --Dayne's limited success against the Wolverines' swarming defense was to much for Wisconsin (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten) to overcome. "It was a typical Michigan-Wisconsin game," Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr said. "I thought it was very physical and hard-hitting." The most telling moment came early in the fourth quarter, when the Badgers faced a 4th-and-1 on the Michigan 25-yard line. Barry Alvarez, coaching from the press box because of upcoming knee replacement surgery, called for an option instead of a straight-ahead run and Dayne was stopped by three Wolverines well short of the first down. Wisconsin went three-and-out on its next possession. After a punt by Michigan, freshman backup quarterback Brooks Bollinger led an 80-yard drive and brought the Badgers within five points by scrambling for a 13-yard score with 1:29 left. Vitaly Pisetsky got a perfect high bounce on the ensuing onside kick but running back Anthony Thomas, who led the Wolverines in rushing with 46 yards, leapt to grab the ball and seal the victory for Michigan (4-0, 1-0). "We were beat by a very good football team," Alvarez said. "I tought both teams played extremely hard. When you play a game like this, the team that makes the most plays wins, and I think that's exactly what happened." Dayne carried eight times for no yards in the final 30 minutes after totaling 88 on 14 carries in the first half. He needs 1,103 yards to pass Texas' Ricky Williams and become Division I-A's all-time leading rusher. "The coaches told me not to get frustrated, that we were going to get one- or two-yard runs so I tried to keep going," Dayne said. "It was probably tougher on me than on the team because I felt I should have gotten the yards." "When they (Michigan's defense) get an opportunity against maybe one of the most highly touted backs that every played in the Big Ten, it brought out the best in them," Carr added. (Dayne) is a tough, hard-nosed guy and made some good runs there today." Most of the Wolverines' big plays came on defense, but they were able to come up with two on offense that became touchdowns. The Wolverines opened the scoring 7:44 into the contest as Tom Brady hooked up with tight end Aaron Shea for an eight-yard score. Brady, who appears to have grabbed the starting job from Drew Henson, completed 17-of-27 passes for 217 yards and was picked off once. "I thought we threw the ball well and made some good catches," said Carr. "I thought both quarterbacks played well." Carr dug deep into the playbook for Michigan's second score. With the ball at the Wisconsin 45, Brady handed off to wide receiver Marcus Knight, who was cutting from the right side. But Knight pulled off a double reverse, handing to David Terrell, who sprinted around the right end and down the sideline for a touchdown. Terrell caught seven passes for 88 yards, while Marquise Walker totaled 49 yards on a career high-tying five receptions for the Wolverines, who were held to just 94 yards on the ground. Wisconsin fought back in the second quarter, its best of the day. Pisetsky got the Badgers on the scoreboard with a 32-yard field goal and Dayne broke loose for a 34-yard TD run. Pisetsky missed the extra point, leaving Wisconsin down 14-9. Scott Kavanagh was 9-of-19 for 94 yards and an interception for Wisconsin before yielding to Bollinger late because of a bruised right elbow. Bollinger was 6-of-9 for 61 yards. "I was very impressed with what Brooks did," Alvarez said. "I thought he opened the game up and gave us a different dimension to our game with his running ability. He made some exceptional throws." Brady's 23-yard touchdown pass to Diallo Johnson with 1:02 to play in the third quarter provided the Wolverines with some breathing room. "I don't think we really did much differently in the run game in the second half," Alvarez added. "They overplayed the run as we knew they would. They had their package and I think they continued to use their package throughout."
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