The Wolverine

MICHIGAN FOOTBALL it would obviously occur in a bowl game. But the Wolverines have plenty of them to choose from in their football history, and that's what fans on TheWolverine.com did recently. Those on the premium message board voted on U-M's best-ever win over an SEC squad. The results are as follows: Top Five: U-M's Best Win Over An SEC Team If Michigan adds a victory over a Southeastern Conference opponent this season, 2008 Capital One Bowl: Michigan 41, Florida 35 — 60 percent 2000 Orange Bowl: Michigan 35, Alabama 34 (OT) — 36 percent 2003 Outback Bowl: Michigan 38, Florida 30 — 2 percent 1991 Gator Bowl: Michigan 35, Mississippi 3 — 1 percent 2001 Citrus Bowl: Michigan 31, Auburn 28 — 1 percent Redshirt junior Fitzgerald Toussaint sat out U-M's season opener versus Alabama, and then he gained just 150 yards on the ground in U-M's next three games. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN on eight carries, while the Michigan offensive line struggled to create holes against the Air Force defense. Toussaint got it going some the fol- lowing week against UMass, rushing 15 times for 85 yards and a touch- down. He then carried 13 times for 58 yards in the Notre Dame loss, al- though more than half of his rushing total occurred on a 31-yard bolt at the start of the second half. Projected over the 12-game regular season, the veteran's 150 yards thus far amounts to 450 rushing yards for the campaign — an obvious plum- met from his 2011 effort. At the same time, Toussaint didn't come flying out of the gate last year, either. Through the non-conference por- tion of the schedule, he rushed 35 times for 193 yards (5.5 average) and 2012 Football Schedule Date Opponent Time/Result Sept. 1 vs. Alabama* L, 41-14 Sept. 8 Air Force W, 31-25 Sept. 15 UMass W, 63-13 Sept. 22 at Notre Dame L, 13-6 Oct. 6 at Purdue 4 p.m. Oct. 13 Illinois Nov. 24 at Ohio State Noon * at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas TBA TBA Oct. 20 Michigan State TBA Oct. 27 at Nebraska 8 p.m. Nov. 3 at Minnesota TBA Nov. 10 Northwestern Nov. 17 Iowa 3:30 p.m. 44 THE WOLVERINE OCTOBER 2012 1. 2008 Capital One Bowl: Michigan 41, Florida 35 — Voters on an ESPN poll called this one overwhelmingly in favor of Urban Meyer and his Gators. After all, Florida featured Tim Tebow at quarterback and a host of other explosive weapons. Meanwhile, the Wolverines struggled to an 8-4 regular-season mark, starting with the stunning loss to Appalachian State and ending with quarterback Chad Henne trying to gut it out on a bad arm versus Ohio State. Henne healed nicely in the month fol- Alabama for a while, the Crimson Tide surging to a 28-14 lead midway through the third quarter. But Tom Brady demonstrated his NFL readiness by directing a stirring comeback, the third straight to conclude his senior season. Brady completed 33 of 45 throws for 344 yards and four touchdown passes, includ- lowing that 14-3 loss to the Buckeyes at Michigan Stadium — enough to allow the senior to go 25-of-39 passing for 373 yards and three touchdowns in unranked Michi- gan's 41-35 win over the Gators. Running back Mike Hart tacked on 129 rushing yards and two touchdowns, in a Michigan vs. Meyer preview of coming attractions. 2. 2000 Orange Bowl: Michigan 35, Alabama 34 (OT) — This one looked all Wide receiver Mario Manningham and the U-M offense exploded for 41 points in the 2008 Capital One Bowl win over Florida. PHOTO BY WOLVERINE PHOTO ing the game-winner to tight end Shawn Thompson in overtime. Alabama scored in the extra period and had a chance to extend the game, but missed the extra point, boosting the Wolverines to a 10-2 final record and a No. 5 national ranking. 3. 2003 Outback Bowl: Michigan 38, Florida 30 — This one provided a nice capper to Michigan's 10-3 2002 campaign. The shootout win also demonstrated the effectiveness of tailback Chris Perry and quarterback John Navarre in boosting the Wolverines to a No. 9 final ranking. Perry pounded away for 85 yards on 28 carries, scoring four touchdowns for the Wolverines. Navarre threw 21 times for 319 yards (15.2-yard average) and a touch- down in the win over Ron Zook's Gators. 4. 1991 Gator Bowl: Michigan 35, Mississippi 3 — There wasn't any late drama here — just dominance. The Wolverines rumbled for 391 yards on the ground among 715 total yards, prompting the U-M offensive line — Dean Dingman, Tom Dohring, Greg Skrepenak, Matt Elliott and Steve Everitt — to come away with game MVP honors. Quarterback Elvis Grbac threw for 296 yards, including touchdown passes of 63 and 50 yards to Desmond Howard. Meanwhile, backs Jon Vaughn (128) and Ricky Powers (112) each topped the 100-yard rushing mark. 5. 2001 Citrus Bowl: Michigan 31, Auburn 28 — The Wolverines pulled out a close one against Auburn, capping a 9-3 Big Ten championship season with one more day in the sun. Quarterback Drew Henson concluded his U-M career by con- necting on 15 of 20 passes for 294 yards, while tailback Anthony Thomas racked up 182 yards on 32 carries. — John Borton

• Cover