The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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AUGUST 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 15 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS FIVE YEARS AGO, 2018: Redshirt sophomore runner Camille Davre jump-started her cross country career at Michigan with a win in the non-scoring Michigan Open on Aug. 31, 2018. Davre paced the No. 13 Wolverines with a 5-ki- lometer time of 17:37.5, leading the pack at the Hudson Mills Metropark in Dexter, Mich. The outing proved an excellent one for Michigan's two- time defending Big Ten champs and a strong way for Davre to begin her run for the Wolverines in earnest. "I was excited to race," she said. "Last year this was my first race, and I ran really well, but then I got hurt. I was just happy to be out here again racing. It felt good, and I really like running with the team. "I was not expecting to be where I was. I wanted to just run with the girls I had been training with at camp and see what happened. If I can just get out there and do my best, that's always the goal." Her best in this one led a pack of Wolverines at the front of the race. Finishing just behind Davre were freshman Alice Hill (17:40.0) and senior Claire Borchers (17:41.0), a pair of Michigan's all-time best steeplechase runners. Juniors Anna West (17:54.7) and Audrey Belf (18:05.5) rounded out Michi- gan's top five runners on the day. Davre went on to earn All-America honors that season for U-M, which finished fourth at the NCAA Championships after repeating as Big Ten champs for a third consecutive season. 10 YEARS AGO, 2013: Michigan football chose its cap- tains on Aug. 25, 2013, selecting offensive lineman Taylor Le- wan, cornerback Courtney Avery, and linebackers Jake Ryan and Cam Gordon to lead the team following an 8-5 campaign the previous season. Head coach Brady Hoke commented the next day, just 120 hours prior to the start of Michigan's 2013 campaign against Central Michigan. "It's game week and that's exciting," Hoke said. "Our play- ers, staff and everybody involved has worked very hard since January to get to this point. We're excited about the oppor- tunity to really see where this team is. "We talk about never getting a second chance to make a first impression. It's going to be exciting on Saturday. "We voted on our captains yesterday, and I think the four guys … are very deserving, and at the same time, that whole class has done a tremendous job in terms of leadership, teaching and helping to coach the younger football players. As you know, we are a young football team." Hoke also expressed the desire to field a very physical Michigan team from the opening kickoff until the end of the season. Unfortunately, that didn't work out as planned. U-M started strong with five straight wins, but lost six of its last eight contests to finish a disappointing 7-6 overall and 3-5 in the Big Ten. 25 YEARS AGO, 1998: The 1997 football national cham- pionship would naturally be a tough act to follow. Lloyd Carr knew it, and on the brink of the 1998 season, he admitted he'd been harder on the returners from that squad than some of their predecessors. "A lot of the things I believe in I learned from Bo," Carr said on Aug. 31, 1998. "One of the things Mike Holmgren talked about was the idea that you can't be satisfied. If you are sat- isfied then you are headed on a downward spiral. We've had a very tough camp. I'm pleased with where we are, and we'll see how we measure up. We've done all the preparation." They'd be measuring themselves in the opener at a tough venue in Notre Dame Stadium, taking on the Irish. Carr knew well the site of the showdown and the opponent, one geared for revenge after Notre Dame became one of 12 Michigan victims the previous season. Of course, Carr wasn't looking to give anything away re- garding his starting lineup. Michigan needed to field a new quarterback, with Brian Griese capping his U-M career with the national championship-securing Rose Bowl win on Jan. 1. The Wolverines were about to start Tom Brady, who would become arguably the greatest quarterback in the history of football. But days prior to the opener, Carr wasn't inclined to tip his hand. "The quarterback at Michigan is going to be chosen based on what is fair and what is in the best interest of our team, which means who gives us the best chance to win, period," Carr said. And so it began. — John Borton THIS MONTH IN MICHIGAN ATHLETICS HISTORY Tom Brady became the starting quarterback in 1998, one year after the Wolverines won the national championship. He finished with 5,325 yards passing and 35 touchdowns in his Michigan career. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN