NCAA Football Recap (Michigan-Notre Dame)
Posted: Sat September 5, 1998 at 9:53 p.m. EDT
Jarious Jackson threw a pair of third-quarter touchdowns as
Notre Dame made several key adjustments after
halftime to blast and defending national champion
Michigan, 36-20.
It was a game of two distinctly different halves. The
Wolverines (0-1) were unable to administer the knockout blow in
the first half, leading 13-6 at the intermission despite totally
dominating Notre Dame (1-0). Kraig Baker missed a pair of
first-half field goals and quarterback Tom Brady could not get
the Wolverines into the end zone until a one-yard sneak late in
the second quarter.
"We have no excuses," said Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr. "We
didn't take advantages of the opportunities in the first half
when we had a chance to blow the game open. Our defense tired
and we missed four field goals. We've got a long way to go, a
lot of corrections to make and not a lot of time to do it."
The Fighting Irish, led by Jackson's smart decisions in the
option offense, took advantage of two Michigan turnovers to
score 17 points in the third quarter. Then tailback Autry
Denson wore down the Wolverines in the final 15 minutes. He
finished with a career-high 162 yards on 24 carries and two
scoring runs as Notre Dame beat Michigan for the first time
since 1993.
Notre Dame, which avenged a 21-14 loss at Michigan last season,
improved to 11-16-1 all-time against the Wolverines and the 36
points were the most ever scored in the 111-year series by
either school. The Irish scored 35 in a 23-point win in 1943.
"They deserved it, they worked hard and prepared well, and it
showed in the second half," said Fighting Irish coach Bob Davie
about his players. "It's a big win, but it's only a big win if
we do this next week. Our focus is on Michigan and Michigan
State."
Jackson completed 4-of-10 passes for 96 yards and added another
62 on the ground.
The 36 points were the most allowed by the Wolverines since a
51-31 home loss to Florida State on September 28th, 1991.
Michigan, which went 12-0 and allowed only 114 points last
season en route to sharing the national title with Nebraska,
lost for the first time since a 17-14 defeat to Alabama in the
1997 Outback Bowl.
The Wolverines, who lost a season opener for the first time
since a 28-24 setback to Notre Dame in 1990, are 0-5-1 against
the Irish in season starters since a 24-23 triumph in 1986.
Brady completed 23-of-36 passes for 267 yards. Clarence
Williams rushed for 114 yards on 13 carries, while Tai Streets
caught eight passes for 101 yards -- all in the first half.
"I thought he played well, I thought he showed a lot of maturity
for playing as well as he did in an environment such as Notre
Dame Stadium," said Carr about his new quarterback.
Notre Dame opened the second half with a 10-play, 62-yard drive,
capped by a 32-yard field goal from Jim Sanson 3:26 into the
third quarter. On the ensuing kickoff, Brock Williams stripped
Clarence Williams of the ball and Tony Driver recovered at the
Michigan 34.
Jackson, running the option and often calling his own number,
had a five-yard run on 3rd-and-4 and added an 11-yard scamper to
the 12. After a pair of four-yard runs by Denson and Joey
Goodspeed, Jackson called a play-action pass that Denson sold
with a dive into the pile, and the quarterback found tight end
Dan O'Leary wide open in the left side of the end zone to make
it 16-10 Notre Dame with 7:40 to go in the third quarter.
Another miscue by the Wolverines, a fumble by Ray Jackson
recovered by linebacker Grant Irons at the Michigan 35, gave
Notre Dame the ball again. Jackson wasted no time, calling a
play-action on the Irish's first play. He stumbled as he
tripped over the foot of an offensive lineman but found an
uncovered Raki Nelson on the left side of the field for an easy
touchdown and a 23-10 lead.
"I was very close to falling," said Jackson. "I just held my
feet and held my ground."
"One thing the option does is it makes you defend it all," noted
Davie. "It may not show up right away, but it shows in other
areas when it wears them down."
In the third quarter all last season, Notre Dame scored only 27
points and Michigan allowed just 29.
Denson scored from three yards 1:37 into the final quarter to
make it 30-13 and bounced in from one yard on a 4th-and-goal
with 4:09 to play. Michigan backup quarterback Drew Henson, a
true freshman, threw a eight-yard pass to tight end Jerame Tuman
with 2:09 to play to complete the scoring.
"I think we outexecuted them," said Denson. "Our defense
carried us until we could hold our own weight. I'd like to
think it was my biggest game."
Baker opened the scoring with a 36-yard field goal 5:23 into the
contest, but Sanson equalized for Notre Dame just over two
minutes later. Jackson had a sure touchdown pass dropped by
split end Malcolm Johnson before Sanson booted a 32-yarder.
Baker squibbed a 33-yard kick wide left and then was short on a
43-yarder right before the end of the first quarter. Carr used
Jay Feely for a 21-yard kick in the second quarter, giving
Michigan a 6-3 lead 3:24 into the second quarter.
Notre Dame pulled even again on a 27-yard field goal by Sanson
with 3:08 remaining. Brady's sneak capped a 12-play, 73-yard
drive as he barely broke the plane of the goal line with 23
seconds left in the half.
Michigan had 269 yards of total offense in the first half to 114
for the Irish. The Wolverines had 16 first downs in the opening
30 minutes and ran 54 plays to Notre Dame's 22.
"I just said to stay positive -- not one negative thought, not
one negative word," Davie said about the first half. "There
weren't a lot of Xs and Os going on."
© 1998 Sportsticker Enterprises, LP
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