The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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OCTOBER 2022 THE WOLVERINE 15 INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS MICHIGAN'S TOP PERFORMERS Women's cross country and track and field fifth-year senior Kayla Windemuller: The Hamilton, Mich., native was named the Big Ten Cross Coun- try Athlete of the Week Sept. 7, after capturing the season- opening Michigan Open Sept. 2. She led from start to finish in the 5K race, posting a 17:06.4 time. She followed that per- formance up with a third-place finish at the Michigan Big Ten Preview Sept. 9, checking in as the Wolverines' No. 2 runner. Her time in the 6K race was 20:55.5. Men's cross country senior Arjun Jha: He was named the Big Ten Cross Country Athlete of the Week two straight times (Sept. 7 and Sept. 14). He won the Michigan Open Sept. 2, posting a 15:06 time in the 5K race, which was 11 seconds faster than second place and less than five seconds shy of the meet record (15:01.4). The graduate student then won the Big Ten Preview Sept. 9, finish- ing the 6K race in 17:56.9, a full 2 seconds faster than second place. The Worthington, Ohio, native averaged a 4:48 mile, helping the team earn first place. Men's golf redshirt junior Ben Hoagland: He was named the Big Ten Golfer of the Week after start- ing the season with a bang. Playing as an individual in the season-opening Island Resort Intercollegiate (Sept. 4-5), Hoa- gland led U-M with a career weekend. He set a career-low by 2 strokes with a 72 (E), then recorded a new career-best 67 (-5) in the second round, fueled by 5 birdies and an eagle. He ended the event with a 71 (-1) to finish with a career- low 210 (-6), 19 shots lower than his previous career-best 54-hole performance. That score was good for fourth place. Women's soccer junior Sammi Woods: The forward was leading Michigan in goals (7) and points (15) with 1 assist through eight games, averaging almost 2 points per contest. One of just five Wol- verines to score multiple goals, her 7 were three more than any other player on the team. She was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team in 2020, tied for second on the team with 5 goals last fall and is on her way to earning all-conference honors this season. — Clayton Sayfie FIVE YEARS AGO, 2017: Michigan pulled out a hair-raising 27-20 over- time win at Indiana on Oct. 14, 2017. Karan Higdon's 25-yard touchdown scamper in overtime provided the difference. Even then, Indiana came back to enjoy a first-and-goal situation from the 1-yard line. Michigan's defense stonewalled the Hoosiers, and Tyree Kinnel's fourth-down interception in the end zone sealed the deal. Higdon wound up rushing for a career-high 200 yards and 3 touchdowns in the game, helping secure the 500th Big Ten victory in Michigan football history. This one became scarier than it might have been, after Michigan led by 10 with only four minutes to go. Indiana pulled within three on an 8-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Peyton Ramsey to Whop Philyor with 3:27 remaining, then — following a successful onside kick — Griffin Oakes nailed a 46-yard field goal as time expired in regulation to send the game to overtime. Michigan's Rashan Gary, who recorded a sack among his 7 tackles, said of Indiana's final attempt to score: "We're like, 'The game's on us.' Everybody had a chip on their shoulder at that point, everybody was hyped up. Everybody was ready to go. Chase [Winovich] got that pressure. I was like, 'Go get 'em, Chase, go get 'em!' He got that pressure, and the QB had nowhere to throw it. Great coverage. It was great getting this win." 10 YEARS AGO, 2012: Michigan's defense made four field goals stand up for a 12-10 win over Michigan State in a slugfest at Michigan Stadium on Oct. 20, 2012. Neither team scored in the opening quarter, before Brendan Gibbons put the Wolverines on top with a 24-yarder at the 10:20 mark of the second quarter. Matt Wile came on to bomb home a 48-yard field goal with 1:07 left in the half, giving Michigan a 6-0 advantage at intermission. Michigan State's Paul Lang pulled in a 2-yard pass from Andrew Maxwell to cap an 80-play drive and register the only touchdown of the game at 7:19 of the third quarter. It put MSU on top, 7-6, in a contest in which points were harder to come by than maize helmet stickers on Spartan headgear. Gibbons gave Michigan back the lead on a 21-yard field goal with 13:37 left. Dan Conroy delivered the advantage back to MSU, 10-9, on a 19-yarder with 5:48 remaining. But with just five seconds left on the clock, Gibbons made good on his third field goal of the day, a 38-yarder, sealing the 12-10 victory. With the 900th win in Michigan football history, the Wolverines reclaimed the Paul Bunyan Trophy. "Paul's back," U-M safety Jordan Kovacs assured. "He's in the locker room." 25 YEARS AGO, 1997: Undefeated and No. 5-ranked Michigan pulled out a wild one in The Big House on Oct. 18, 1997, rallying from a 14-point halftime deficit to beat Iowa, 28-24. The Wolverines dug a 21-7 hole at the half, Iowa coming up with touch- downs on a 53-yard Tavian Banks run and a 61-yard punt return by Tim Dwight as the half ended. The stunned Wolverines faced the final 30 minutes with their backs against the wall. They came out swinging in the second half, Brian Griese firing a 10-yard touchdown pass to Russell Shaw and scoring himself on a run from a yard out to tie the game at 21 late in the third quarter. Still, Zach Bromert's 38-yard field goal gave Iowa a 24-21 edge heading into the final period. The Wolverines trailed almost to the end, before Griese tossed a 2-yard scor- ing strike to tight end Jerame Tuman, putting U-M up 28-24 with 2:55 left. Griese brought Michigan back after throwing three first-half interceptions and knelt for the victory after linebacker Sam Sword's late interception. "The first half was obviously my worst half of football since I've been here," Griese said. "But I never lost confidence in what I was doing. I'm not the kind of person to dwell on the negative things." — John Borton THIS MONTH IN MICHIGAN ATHLETICS HISTORY