The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/178977
where are they now? "That '97 team, I have so much respect for them, because when I think of Michigan, I think of how they played that year. That was Michigan football — everybody playing together. On defense, all 11 hats were on the ball. When they scored, all 11 guys came into the end zone to celebrate." That, he noted, represents the very essence of what the coaches he knew then — Jackson, Brady Hoke, Greg Mattison — are still preaching today. "That is Michigan football," he emphasized. "That's how it was always devised for us to be. … Everybody says to me, 'Man, you missed it by a year.' No, I didn't miss it by a year. I enjoyed all of those same players, and those players got bet- Irons — who married his wife, Jazelle, on Oct. 20, ter. They understood Michigan 2012 — works as a general contractor in the medimore, and they took the things cal supplies business. photo courtesy Jarrett irons we taught them and took them to the next level. victory at Notre Dame with his team"I enjoyed that national champion- mates, Remy Hamilton's last-second ship year probably more than most 42-yard field goal triggering the jupeople. I felt like that '97 team was bilation. Irons also went 3-1-1 versus just as much mine as Marcus Ray's. the Buckeyes, including wins in the But that's the Michigan way." memorable '95 and '96 contests. Irons harbors plenty of his own In '95, Tshimanga Biakabutuka ran on-field memories as well. He stood wild on the Buckeyes for 313 yards in at the heart of Michigan's revered U-M's 31-23 victory. goal-line stand in the first-ever Mich"I'm going to be honest with you igan-Penn State contest in 1993. That — that was probably one of the easidefense dug in to turn away Joe Pa- est games we've ever played," Irons terno's Nittany Lions, boosting the said. "I've never seen holes that big. Wolverines to a 21-13 win. Tim is probably still running right He celebrated Michigan's 26‑24 now.