Michigan
3-0
Notre Dame
2-1
Strong First Half Helps Michigan Stun No. 2 Notre Dame
9/16/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Junior quarterback Chad Henne (Wyomissing, Pa./Wilson HS) and sophomore receiver Mario Manningham (Warren, Ohio/Warren G. Harding HS) connected on three first-half touchdowns as the University of Michigan football team (No. 11 AP, No. 13 USA Today) soundly defeated Notre Dame (No. 2 AP, No. 3 USA Today) 47-21 Saturday (Sept. 16) in front of 80,795 fans at Notre Dame Stadium. The Wolverines ended a three-game losing streak at Notre Dame Stadium and a six-game skid in road openers with the victory. The win marks Michigan's first win in South Bend since 1994.
Manningham had a super first half, catching three TD passes from Henne.
The junior tandem of tailback Mike Hart (Syracuse, N.Y./Onondaga Central HS) and Henne powered a balanced offensive attack against the Irish. Hart gained 124 yards rushing on 31 carries and a touchdown, while Henne completed 13 of 22 passes for 220 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Manningham finished with four catches for 137 yards and three first-half touchdowns. Fifth-year senior receiver Steve Breaston (North Braddock, Pa./Woodland Hills HS) led all Michigan wideouts with six catches for 42 yards and added 64 yards on four punt returns.
Defensively, the Wolverines were led by senior linebacker Prescott Burgess (Warren, Ohio/Warren G. Harding HS), who intercepted two passes, with his first career interception going 31 yards for a touchdown on Notre Dame's opening possession. He finished with five tackles and one quarterback hurry. Senior defensive end LaMarr Woodley (Saginaw, Mich./Saginaw HS) put the exclamation point on the victory with a 54-yard fumble return for a touchdown. He also had two tackles on the day, one being for a loss.
Senior cornerback Leon Hall (Vista, Calif./Vista HS) produced three tackles while picking off Irish quarterback Brady Quinn's third and final interception. Fifth-year senior linebacker David Harris (Grand Rapids, Mich./Ottawa Hills HS), junior cornerback Morgan Trent (Brighton, Mich./Orchard Lake St. Mary's HS) and sophomore safety Brandon Harrison (Dayton, Ohio/DeLaSalle Catholic HS) led the team in tackles with six each.
The Wolverines got on the board in style on just the second play of the afternoon with a 31-yard touchdown interception return by Burgess. The pass, intended for tight end John Carlson, bounced off the senior receiver's hands into the waiting mitts of Burgess, who raced down the right sideline for the score. The interception marked Notre Dame's first turnover in its last 273 plays, dating back to last year's contest against Stanford. It was Burgess's first touchdown of his career, and with an extra point by senior kicker Garrett Rivas (Tampa, Fla./Jesuit HS), Michigan gained a 7-0 lead 51 seconds into the game.
The Irish returned the favor on Michigan's first offensive series, as free safety Chinedum Ndukwe picked off a Henne pass on third-and-six and took it 51 yards to the Michigan four-yard line. Following a one-yard rush by tailback Darius Walker, Quinn found fullback Ashley McConnell in the left flat for the three-yard score to tie the game at seven with 10:23 remaining in the first quarter. Before the turnover, the Wolverines started their opening drive at the 50-yard line due to a 14-yard punt return by Breaston. Hart had two carries for four yards on the drive before the interception, which was Henne's first of the season.
After exchanging punts, the Wolverines began their third drive of the afternoon from their own 20-yard line. A one-yard loss by Hart gave way to a 10-yard reception by Breaston before a third-and-one quarterback sneak by Henne kept the drive alive at the 31-yard line. Offensive coordinator Mike DeBord then opened up the Michigan air arsenal, as Henne heaved a 69-yard touchdown pass to Manningham. The standout sophomore receiver beat Irish corner Ambrose Wooden vertically down the field, hauling in the Henne bomb at the 28-yard line before racing in for the score. Rivas' extra point attempt was blocked by Derek Landri, keeping the U-M lead to 13-7 with 3:53 on the first-quarter clock.
The fireworks continued on the ensuing kickoff as fifth-year senior fullback Obi Oluigbo (West Bloomfield, Mich./Walled Lake Western HS) stripped Notre Dame returner David Grimes at the Irish 25-yard line, allowing Trent to fall on the ball at the 27. Henne repaid Oluigbo for his special teams efforts with his first career catch, a nine-yard grab, on the first play of the series before giving way to two Hart rushes for 10 yards. With U-M facing second-and-goal at the ND eight-yard line, the Irish were called for two consecutive penalties, allowing the Michigan offense to set up first-and-goal from the two. The Maize and Blue did not waste time in taking solid field position as Hart exploded over the pile, putting Michigan up two scores, 20-7, with just 1:12 left in the first quarter.
Following Notre Dame's second three-and-out of the game, Michigan went up top once again as Henne connected with Manningham for a 20-yard touchdown, extending the Wolverine advantage to 27-7 at 11:36 in the second quarter. It was the duo's second touchdown connection of the half and third of the season. Hart had four carries for 18 yards on the drive to go along with a 16-yard reception by Adrian Arrington (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Washington HS).
Henne and Manningham hooked up for the third time of the first half when Henne dropped a 22-yard touchdown pass into the hands of the sophomore receiver in the right corner of the end zone, putting the Maize and Blue ahead 34-7 with 2:41 remaining until halftime. The Wolverines continued to use their running attack to set up the pass, as Hart and Kevin Grady (Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids HS) combined for seven carries and 24 yards on the drive. A 13-yard grab by Breaston on third-and-10 kept the Michigan drive alive at the 41-yard line, and Henne eventually founnd Manningham on third-and-10 for the score.
Down four scores, the Irish would not lay over for the Wolverines and switched to a no-huddle offense. Quinn completed seven-of-seven pass attempts for 72 yards, resulting in four first downs and a touchdown on Notre Dame's last possession of the half. The four-yard touchdown catch by Samardzija brought the score to 34-14 with just 24 seconds on the clock.
Entering the locker room, Michigan led Notre Dame 235-107 in total offensive yards while controlling the clock 18:22 to 11:38. Henne had eight completions on 12 attempts for 165 yards and three touchdowns. Hart led all rushers with 66 yards on 17 carries. Michigan's 34 first-half points were the most given up by the Irish in a half since 1998.
The second half began in much the same way as the first half, as Burgess made his second interception of the game, this time picking off Quinn on third-and-six and returning the ball 34 yards to the ND four-yard line. Michigan settled for a 20-yard Rivas field goal, but the score widened the U-M lead to 37-14 with 6:12 left in the third quarter. Junior defensive tackle Alan Branch (Rio Rancho, N.M./Cibola HS) hit Quinn as he released the ball on the interception play. It was Notre Dame's second possession of the third quarter; the first ended in a three-and-out.
Rivas connected on another field goal, this time from 33 yards, on the last play of the third quarter to put Michigan up 40-14 following another Irish three-and-out. Henne was two-of-four on the drive for 41 yards and barely missed Breaston twice on touchdown attempts.
Notre Dame responded with a 28-yard touchdown from Quinn to Rhema McKnight on the following series. The touchdown pass, Quinn's third of the day, brought the score to 40-21 with 12:47 remaining in the contest. Quinn was five-of-eight on the drive for 56 yards. It would be Notre Dame's final points of the game as Hall's interception at 7:15 on Michigan's 40-yard line ended the Irish's last serious scoring threat.
With 3:50 left in the fourth quarter, the Irish returned to the Michigan 42-yard line during a penalty-marred drive, but their hopes of scoring were soon snuffed out as Woodley returned a Quinn fumble 54 yards for a touchdown. The return gave Michigan its second defensive score of the afternoon and capped off a 47-21 Wolverine victory.
The Wolverines open the Big Ten Conference season against Wisconsin next Saturday (Sept. 23) at Michigan Stadium. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN starting at noon EDT.
Contact: David Ablauf, Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423
Team Stats
MICH 7, UND 0
MICH - Burgess, P. 31 yd interception (Rivas, Garrett kick)
MICH 7, UND 7
UND - McCONNELL 3 yd pass from QUINN, B. (GIOIA kick) 2 plays, 4 yards, TOP 0:54
MICH 13, UND 7
MICH - Manningham, M. 69 yd pass from Henne, Chad (Rivas, Garrett kickblocked) 4 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:15
MICH 20, UND 7
MICH - Hart, Mike 2 yd run (Rivas, Garrett kick), 4 plays, 27 yards, TOP 2:41
MICH 27, UND 7
MICH - Manningham, M. 20 yd pass from Henne, Chad (Rivas, Garrett kick) 6 plays, 54 yards, TOP 2:41
MICH 34, UND 7
MICH - Manningham, M. 22 yd pass from Henne, Chad (Rivas, Garrett kick) 10 plays, 59 yards, TOP 4:48
MICH 34, UND 14
UND - SAMARDZIJA 4 yd pass from QUINN, B. (GIOIA kick) 8 plays, 72 yards, TOP 2:10
MICH 37, UND 14
MICH - Rivas, Garrett 20 yd field goal 4 plays, 1 yards, TOP 1:42
MICH 40, UND 14
MICH - Rivas, Garrett 33 yd field goal 9 plays, 51 yards, TOP 4:00
MICH 40, UND 21
UND - McKNIGHT 28 yd pass from QUINN, B. (GIOIA kick) 8 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:19
MICH 47, UND 21
MICH - Woodley, LaMarr 54 yd fumble recovery (Rivas, Garrett kick)
