The Wolverine

WOLVERINE WATCH JOHN BORTON enard Robinson looked devastated. He apologized, verbally beat himself up, and vowed it would be different. He didn't want to feel like this ever again, the senior quarterback plain- tively assured. D ND Loss Doesn't Crush U-M's Goal He had plenty of company in that department. Despair isn't an option in a foot- ball season, especially four games in. But for a while in South Bend, following Michigan's 13-6 loss, the feeling proved tempting. The smoking pile of rubble couldn't be ignored. Five intercep- tions on five consecutive throws, a costly lost fumble, and more missed opportunities than a blind python amid cavorting rabbits left the Wol- verines in dismayed disbelief. Only once since the Michigan- ines then lost one of the most thrill- ing Rose Bowls ever to Texas, 38-37, on a last-second field goal. In other words, Michigan teams have been here before. Robinson hasn't, and he looked like he'd just been told he and his teammates didn't get to finish the season. Obviously, they do. That's where the hope lies, even in the darkest moment of Robinson's heretofore- enchanted experience against the Irish. History shows for head coach Brady Hoke and U-M, a setback to the Irish does not have to derail Big Ten title dreams. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Notre Dame series resumed in 1978 have the Wolverines limited the Irish to as few as 13 points and lost. That happened in 1979, when the Irish snuck out of Michigan Stadium with a 12-10 win. This time around, starting punter Will Hagerup never took the field. He couldn't, because the Wolverines gave the ball away before he could punt it away. In the aftermath of that abject des- olation, any talk of a Big Ten cham- pionship seems wildly optimistic. But it isn't, as a quick scan of the history books (not to mention a peek at the present Big Ten) confirms. No less than seven times over the past 32 years, the Wolverines left South Bend spitting misery and wound up singing "The Victors" as conference champions. Here's a look back … 1980 — The Wolverines lost a crusher to the Irish, 29-27, when the wind infamously paused to allow ND placekicker Harry Oliver to knock through the game-winning, 51-yard field goal. Michigan then lost the following week against South Carolina before finishing the season with nine straight victories, including beating the Buckeyes in Columbus (9-3) and Washington in the Rose Bowl (23-6). 1982 — Michigan couldn't claw 8 THE WOLVERINE OCTOBER 2012 past Notre Dame in South Bend, los- ing 23-17 and following it up with a 31-27 loss to UCLA. The Wolverines then ran off seven straight wins to secure a Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl berth. 1988 — U-M absorbed double-dip damage to start this season as well, losing at Notre Dame (19-17) before dropping a crusher at home to Mi- ami the following week (31-30). The Wolverines never lost again all sea- son, winning at Ohio State (34-31) and knocking off USC in the Rose Bowl (22-14). 1990 — Gary Moeller's first game as U-M head coach featured a 28-24 defeat in South Bend. U-M fought back for a share of the Big Ten cham- pionship, knocking off Ohio State in Columbus (16-13) and crushing Mis- sissippi in the Gator Bowl. 1992 — The Wolverines settled for an unsatisfying tie in South Bend, 17-17, but never lost a game, going 9-0-3 and taking down Washington in a shootout Rose Bowl (38-31). 1998 — U-M absorbed the one- two punch of Notre Dame (36-20) and Syracuse (38-28) in Tom Brady's first two games as a starter, but ral- lied to a 10-3 record and a share of the Big Ten championship. The Wol- verines also knocked off Arkansas 45-31 in the Citrus Bowl. 2004 — Michigan lost at Notre Dame, 28-20, before surging to a share of the Big Ten title in Chad Henne's rookie season. The Wolver- Look around. Ohio State and Penn State eliminated themselves from the Big Ten race before kickoff. Wis- consin appears in disarray following offensive coordinator Paul Chryst's departure, and Purdue — the Lead- ers Division favorite by default — falls a couple of hammer blows short of fearsome. Illinois and Indi- ana will do well to win three confer- ence games each. is fresh off a 73-7 decimation of small potatoes Idaho State. But the Cornhuskers allowed 653 yards of offense in their loss to UCLA, and clearly have issues to address. Michigan State needed 36 carries from Le'Veon Bell to hold off Eastern Michigan, which led, 7-6, late in the third quarter. In Michigan's division, Nebraska Iowa appears to be imploding, af- ter a 32-31 loss to Central Michigan, and while Northwestern stands 4-0, it has yet to be tested like it will be. Minnesota scares precisely no one. Michigan won't win much, ei- ther, if it treats the football like free fudge samples at a sugar addicts' convention. That's not likely to hap- pen, and the gains U-M appears to be making on defense and in other areas could put it in position to beat anybody in the Big Ten. The Wolverines will limp for a day or two, toward the most wide- open Big Ten race in years. They'll realize quickly enough that they can run with anyone in their league, and it's time to get going. u Editor John Borton has been with The Wolverine since 1991. Contact him at jborton@thewolverine.com and follow him on Twitter @JB_Wolverine.

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