The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MARCH 2023 THE WOLVERINE 79 BY CLAYTON SAYFIE T hree former Michigan football players are world champions. Defensive ends Frank Clark and Michael Danna and quarterback Chad Henne won Super Bowl LVII with the Kansas City Chiefs, who came out on top in a 38-35 thriller over the Philadelphia Eagles. Kansas City kicker Harrison Butker nailed a 27-yard field goal with eight seconds to go, after a controversial defensive holding call on third down gave the Chiefs a fresh set of downs. That finished off a back-and- forth game that the Eagles led at halftime, 24-14. Former Michigan defensive end Brandon Graham played in his second Super Bowl with the Eagles but fell just short. At least one former Michigan player has won the Super Bowl for the ninth straight year. This was the second title for both Clark and Henne, and the first for Danna, who played in Su- per Bowl LV, a 31-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with the other two former Michigan standouts. Clark notched 1 tackle and committed an offsides penalty, while Danna also totaled 1 tackle. Danna delivered a block on teammate Nick Bolton's 36-yard fumble return touch- down in the second quarter. Henne, Patrick Mahomes' backup, did not play. At 37 years old, Henne an- nounced his retirement following the game, going out as a two-time champ. Clark, who generated 3 pressures, the second-most on his team in a game that had only 1 sack, has 13.5 career postsea- son sacks, which ranks third all time. With 2.5 during these playoffs, he was a key part of the Chiefs' championship run. "I'm just ecstatic," the former Michi- gan defensive end told Fox. "I'm just overfilled with joy." Clark was suspended earlier in the season after pleading no contest in Sep- tember to two counts of misdemeanor possession of an assault weapon in sep- arate incidents in 2021. "I had a rough year. It's been rough for me," Clark continued. "My teammates never lost faith in me. I'm extremely humbled and thankful. I've got some of the best teammates in the world. "It's a blessing. I know my [late] pops is smiling. I wish he could see it, but I know he's smiling. I've been going through a lot these last few days, but it makes sense now." The Chiefs have won their second Super Bowl in the last four seasons, ap- pearing in three of the last four. FORMER WOLVERINES IN THE NBA Through Feb. 19 • Moussa Diabate (played at U-M from 2021-22), F, Los Angeles Clippers: Played in 17 games with one start for the 33-28 Clippers, who sit fourth in the Western Confer- ence standings … Averaging 3.1 points and 2.6 rebounds in 10.1 minutes per outing, while shooting 52.5 percent from the field … Appeared in nine contests with the G League's Ontario Clippers, where he's averaging 16.2 points and 12.3 rebounds per night. • Tim Hardaway Jr. (2010- 13), G, Dallas Mavericks: Registering 13.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game, while connecting on 37.7 percent of his field goal attempts and 35.3 percent of his three-point tries … Ap- peared in 54 games with 37 starts for the 31-29 Mavericks, who are sixth in the West. • Caleb Houstan, (2021- 2 2 ) , G , O rl a n d o M a g i c : Opened two of 34 games for the 24-35 Magic … Posting 4.2 points and 2.2 boards per game, while connecting on 41 percent of his field goals and 38.8 percent of his three- point tries … Was recently on assign- ment with the G League's Lakeland Magic, where he has played in seven contests, averaging 16.6 points and 2.7 made threes per outing. • Caris LeVert (2012-16), G, Cleve- land Cavaliers: Registering 12 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per clash, while shooting 41 percent from the field … His 36.4 three-point field goal percentage ties his career best for a sea- son (2019-20 with the Brooklyn Nets) … Opened 26 of 55 tilts for the 38-23 Cavaliers, who are fourth in the Eastern Conference standings. • Isaiah Livers (2017-21), F, Detroit Pistons: Averaging 21.1 minutes per game with nine starts in 37 appear- ances for the 15-44 Pistons … Putting Frank Clark notched 1 tackle and generated 3 pressures in Kansas City's 38-35 Super Bowl victory against the Philadelphia Eagles. He now has 13.5 career postseason sacks, which ranks third all time. PHOTO COURTESY KANSAS CITY CHIEFS MICHIGAN IN THE PROS Three Wolverines Win Super Bowl LVII With Kansas City Chiefs