Hail To The Victors: MICHIGAN FOOTBALL '99
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BRADY OUTPLAYS BREES AS UM PREVAILS
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Oct. 2) -- Michigan's offense got balance from the passing of Tom Brady and the running of Anthony Thomas, and the defense did the rest as the fourth-ranked Wolverines ended No. 11 Purdue's winning streak at 10 games with a 38-12 victory Saturday. "I liked it,'' Michigan cornerback Todd Howard said. "We've been looking forward to this game. We haven't overlooked anybody, but we were really looking forward to this game. "Last week our guys got an opportunity to play against a great runner (Wisconsin's Ron Dayne). We got to play against a great passer today.'' The key, as is frequently the case for Michigan (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten), was defense. The Wolverines held heralded Purdue quarterback Drew Brees to 20-of-49 passing for 293 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Brees, who had been sacked just once all season, was sacked twice by the Wolverines. Michigan also harassed Purdue receivers into several drops.
Brady was 15-of-25 for 250 yards and Thomas carried 24 times for 116 yards for Michigan. "I think our team outperformed them,'' Brady said. "The defense outperformed them and the offense as a unit kind of outperformed them. But they're a great team. We still have a ways to go with this team.'' Purdue (4-1, 1-1) tried to confuse Michigan's defense by substituting as many five players at a time just before the snap. But the strategy didn't seem to bother the Wolverines much. Michigan finished with 489 yards, 171 on the ground, while holding Purdue to 396 yards -- just 68 on the ground. Brady, who had to leave last week's game at Wisconsin with a concussion, was especially sharp in the first quarter, passing for both of his touchdowns as the Wolverines built a 14-3 lead. "I'm just happy about being 5-0,'' Brady said. "It's always a big deal. Every time there's a quarterback situation, it's always a big deal. It's no different here.'' Drew Henson, who battled Brady for the starter's job during the non-conference portion of the schedule, played the second quarter and was 3-of-3 for 68 yards, including a 23-yard pass that set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Thomas. Thomas, who has been the workhorse of Michigan's running attack, scored on runs of 1 and 5 yards. But he lost two fumbles -- one in the first quarter and one in the second -- and the Boilermakers turned both into field goals. Thanks to the Michigan defense, however, those were the only points Purdue could manage in the first half as the Wolverines built a 21-6 halftime edge.
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My Game Notes
Wow! This was the most impressive game the Wolverines have played all year. The defense as usual pressured the opposing quarterback. However, the somewhat slugish offense played a huge part in the game. Tom Brady outplayed Heisman favorite Drew Brees, as he threw for 2 TDS, led the Wolverines 2 more scroring drives, threw for 250 yards passing with no INTs. Brady was the one who looked Heisman bound. He threw for big gains of 39 and 56 yards as well in clutch situations. It was great to see Anthony Thomas run for 116 yards but the fumbles worried me. After the first fumble which came 2 plays into the game, the Michigan defense won the game. Purdue drove to the 11 yard line with a first down awaiting them. The defense stopped Drew Brees and the Boilermakers on 3 plays forcing a Field goal. The rejuvinated Wolverines then used their main threat Dave Terrell, with Brady throwing him a 18 yard pass, as he tiptoed the endzone boundry line. Terell, celebrated with his teamates this week instead of by himself. He caught a 26 yard pass earler in the drive as well. I found it to be very important that Brady was 4-4 for 78 yards on the drive as he started off red-hot. This took the momentum away from Brees and Purdue, and served as a confidence builder for Brady. Purdue never rebounded. The defense again let up big plays including a 24 yard pass on the next possesion but in the clutch they came through again. At the Michigan 16 yard line, Brees bobbled the snap and then was rocked hard while attempting to maintain a grip on the ball. James Hall, who has made huge plays this year recovered the ball. the key on the play for the defense was never giving in. The A-Train then got involved taking a Brady hand off for 39 yards. It was great to see Thomas run well after his disasterous performance against Wisconsin. Knight who had a carreer day caught a 17 yard bullet from Brady to give Michigan breathing room. The difference in Brady this week was his arm strength. he did not underthrow any balls, nor did he let any balls sail on him, a problem he dealt with the last 2 weeks. Marcus Knight, who I thought needed to be thrown to more, caught 5 balls for 136 yards. He ran great routes and made spectacular moves(An example was his 56 yard catch, as he caught the pass then redirected his body fully, allowing him to run for an extra 10 yards). If the wide receivers can play this well together and A-train runs well at the same time the offense will be outstanding.
The Michigan defense never allowed Purdue back in the game, as they racked up an INT, 2 sacks and help Brees to only 20-49 passing. The difference in this game compared to other games this season was that the Michigan defense never let Purdue gain momentum, and the offense created their momentum early on, as they put their opponent away before the 4th quarter this time. I was extremely happy to see Walter Cross run for 38 yards. Even though he did not play all that well, he served as a decoy and showed excellent agility and acceleration. BJ Askew, a true Freshman had a 10 yard TD power-run and recovered an ofensive fumble. I was very impressed with his limited performance as well. Aaron Shea continued to block well and serve as a third or fourth wide receiver out of the backfield.I was excited to see the offense going for big plays. The veteran expirience (Knight, Brady)young talent (Thomas and Terrell), and the coaching of Llyod Carr enables the wolverines to spread out and be expolsive. michigan never gave up or sat on the ball. They kept pounding at the Purdue defense with a balanced attack, a neccesity for a contending team like UM. |
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"It's great as a quarterback knowing that your defense is always there to play,'' Brady said.
A 28-yard field goal by Travis Dorsch gave Purdue a 3-0 lead 2:40 into the game, marking the first time the Wolverines had been scored upon in the first quarter this season.
Brady drove Michigan 83 yards in six plays, finishing the drive with an 18-yard touchdown toss to David Terrell.
Brees drove the Boilermakers to Michigan's 16 on their next possession, but he fumbled a snap from the shotgun formation and linebacker James Hall recovered at the Michigan 31.
A 39-yard run by Thomas jump-started a five-play drive that ended with Brady hitting Marcus Knight with a 17-yard scoring strike.
Thomas carried seven times for 43 yards during a 63-yard, 10-play drive that ended on his touchdown and a 21-3 Michigan lead with 6:57 left in the second quarter.
Dorsch, who missed a 42-yard attempt late in the first quarter, kicked a 31-yard field goal with 21 seconds left in the half.
Brees hooked up with Vinny Sutherland for a 66-yard touchdown pass play with 8:24 left in the third quarter, but it was all Michigan after that.
Thomas scored on a 5-yard run later in the third quarter. Freshman B.J. Askew had a 10-yard touchdown run and Jeff Del Verne kicked a 25-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
