Breaston Sparks U-M Past Hoosiers in Big Ten Opener

Saturday, September 27

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

Michigan

4-1 , 1-0

Indiana

1-4 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Indiana

Michigan

9/27/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan football team survived four first-half turnovers en route to a 31-17 victory over Indiana this afternoon (Saturday, Sept. 27) at Michigan Stadium. The Wolverines (No. 11 AP, No. 10 ESPN/USA Today) improved to 4-1 on the season and are now 1-0 in Big Ten Conference play. The win marked Michigan's 22nd consecutive win in a Big Ten-opening contest. Indiana (1-4) now stands at 0-1 in conference play.

Breaston's 69-yard punt return for a touchdown gave Michigan an early 7-0 lead.

Freshman Steve Breaston (North Braddock, Pa./Woodland Hills HS) scored a pair of touchdowns, on a punt return and a 20-yard TD catch, to key the Wolverine offense. Fifth-year senior quarterback John Navarre (Cudahy, Wis./Cudahy HS) was 15-for-24 for 161 yards and two touchdown passes and senior tailback Chris Perry (Advance, N.C./Fork Union Military Academy, Va.) eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark for the fourth time this season with 112 yards on the day.

Michigan opened the game by taking the ball deep into Indiana territory twice, only to have both drives ended by Indiana interceptions. After two straight three-and-outs for the Hoosier offense, the first spark of the game was provided by Breaston on a 69-yard punt return for the first touchdown of the game. Freshman Garrett Rivas (Tampa, Fla./Jesuit HS) tacked on the extra point as the Wolverines owned a 7-0 lead with 8:33 to go in the first quarter.

On its third drive, Michigan fumbled the ball back to Indiana for its third turnover in as many drives. On the ensuing drive, Indiana found some success on the ground as the Hoosiers plowed their way into Michigan territory. However, on quarterback Matt LoVecchio's first pass attempt of the drive, he threw to the right flat only to have U-M's Jeremy LeSueur (Holly Springs, Miss./Holly Springs HS) step in front of the Hoosier receiver for the interception and return the ball 60 yards for a touchdown. Rivas' extra point pushed the score to 14-0 with 1:22 to go in the first quarter.

The Wolverines earned a field goal on their first possession of the second quarter, moving the ball into Hoosier territory with a mix of pass plays and some trickery. Navarre threw a key block on an end around to receiver Calvin Bell (Simi Valley, Calif./Simi Valley HS), who then ran the ball to the Indiana 22-yard line. However, two dropped passes stalled the Michigan drive to force a field goal attempt by Rivas. His career-long 44-yarder made the score 17-0.

A 24-yard pass play from Navarre to Jason Avant (Chicago, Ill./Carver HS) on third-and-15 keyed the next Michigan scoring threat. On second down from the Indiana 20, Navarre hooked up with Breaston in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown, Breaston's second of the game and Michigan's first offensive touchdown of the contest. The drive covered 68 yards in 12 plays, as Rivas' extra point made the score 24-0 with 2:03 to go in the first half.

LeSueur made three tackles and returned an interception 60 yards for a touchdown.

The first half ended with Marlin Jackson's (Sharon, Pa./Sharon HS) first pass interception of the year on a desperation throw into the end zone by LoVecchio; the interception was Michigan's second of the half. The Wolverines survived four first-half turnovers of their own without yielding any points to take a 24-0 advantage into the locker room.

Indiana's offense showed a spark to open the second half. With a mix of straight-ahead runs and play fakes, IU moved the ball all the way to the Michigan four-yard line. After a run for a loss and an incomplete pass, Indiana got on the scoreboard with a 26-yard field goal by Bryan Robertson, making the score 24-3. The drive, Indiana's longest of the day, covered 72 yards in 19 plays.

Michigan's first possession of the fourth quarter began at midfield with the Wolverine offense still looking to get on track. A Navarre pass to Braylon Edwards (Detroit, Mich./Bishop Gallagher HS) for 23 yards resulted in a first down at the Indiana 19-yard line. Two plays later, Navarre again found Edwards for a 15-yard touchdown strike. Rivas made his fourth extra point of the day to make the score 31-3 with 9:05 to play in the game. The nearly four-minute scoring drive covered 51 yards in eight plays.

Indiana managed to earn a pair of touchdowns by the final whistle on strong play from its special teams units. The Hoosiers' first score, at 4:16, came on a blocked punt deep in Wolverine territory, while the second touchdown came after IU faked a field goal, plowing into the end zone for a four-yard score to close scoring with the final of 31-17 in Michigan's favor.

Michigan travels to Iowa City for a matchup with Iowa next Saturday (Oct. 4). The game will be broadcast regionally by ABC Sports starting at 2:30 p.m. CDT (3:30 p.m. EDT).

Contact: David Ablauf, Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423