Postgame Notes: Michigan 31, Western Michigan 7
9/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
• Today's announced crowd of 109,019 marks the 216th consecutive game of more than 100,000 fans at Michigan Stadium.
• Michigan improved its record in season openers to an impressive 107-20-3, including a 91-15-2 mark in season openers at home. Today's victory over Western Michigan snapped U-M's two-year skid in season openers.
• The Wolverines improved to 107-18-2 all-time in home openers.
• Michigan improved to 25-1 all-time against teams from the Mid-American Conference. The Wolverines boast a 5-0 advantage in the all-time series against Western Michigan, outscoring the Broncos 178-59 over the stretch.
• Michigan's game captains were senior running back Carlos Brown, fifth-year senior defensive end Brandon Graham, fifth-year senior punter Zoltan Mesko and fifth-year senior offensive tackle Mark Ortmann.
• Today's alumni captains were Joe O'Donnell (1960, '62-63), Mercury Hayes (1992-95) and Erick Anderson (1988-91).
• Six Michigan players earned their first collegiate start: freshman quarterback Tate Forcier, junior/sophomore right tackle Mark Huyge, sophomore defensive tackle Mike Martin, freshman outside linebacker Craig Roh, junior/sophomore safety Mike Williams and junior safety Troy Woolfolk.
• Twenty-one Wolverines made their collegiate debut today. In addition to Forcier and Roh, freshman defensive tackle Will Campbell, sophomore/freshman running back Michael Cox, freshman safety Vladimir Emilien, sophomore/freshman J.T. Floyd, junior/sophomore receiver Kelvin Grady, freshman linebacker Brandin Hawthorne, freshman cornerback Teric Jones, sophomore/freshman center Rocko Khoury, sophomore/freshman safety Jordan Kovacs, sophomore/freshman offensive guard Elliott Mealer, fifth-year senior placekicker Jason Olesnavage, sophomore/freshman offensive tackle Patrick Omameh, junior/sophomore long snapper Tom Pomarico, freshman quarterback Denard Robinson, sophomore/freshman receiver Roy Roundtree, sophomore/freshman safety Floyd Simmons, sophomore/freshman linebacker Brandon Smith, freshman receiver Je'Ron Stokes and freshman running back Vincent Smith all earned playing time in the season opener.
• Forcier is the third true freshman quarterback in Michigan history to start the season opener. The other two were Rick Leach (1975) and Chad Henne (2004). All three were victorious in their collegiate debuts. Forcier completed 13-of-20 passes for 179 yards and three touchdowns. He guided a seven-play, 52-yard opening drive, capped by a 28-yard touchdown pass to junior/sophomore Junior Hemingway, who ended the game with two touchdowns, five receptions and 103 receiving yards. The touchdowns were the second and third of his collegiate career. The last U-M player to register multiple touchdown receptions was Adrian Arrington, who scored two against Florida in the 2008 Capital One Bowl (Jan. 1, 2008).
• Hemingway's 44-yard touchdown catch late in second quarter was the longest of his career. He caught a 33-yard pass for a touchdown in last year's season-opener vs. Utah.
• Sophomore cornerback Boubacar Cissoko collected his first career interception in the first quarter, returning the ball 14 yards.
• Both freshmen quarterbacks -- Forcier and Robinson -- led Wolverine scoring drives in their first series under center.
• In his first play at quarterback, freshman Denard Robinson ran 43 yards for a touchdown. Robinson picked up his first career completion in Michigan's next series on a seven-yard pass to junior/sophomore receiver Kelvin Grady. The reception was the first of Grady's career.
• Sophomore tight end Kevin Koger caught a seven-yard pass from Forcier early in the second quarter for his second career touchdown. Koger reeled in a leaping, one-handed 20-yard reception late in the fourth quarter for the third-longest reception of his career. He ended the game with 32 receiving yards -- the second-greatest single-game total of his career.
• Fifth-year senior placekicker Jason Olesnavage converted a 44-yard field goal in the second quarter on his first collegiate attempt.
• With its 31 points in the opening half, Michigan tallied its greatest halftime point total since scoring 31 in the first half against Purdue on Oct. 13, 2007.
• The last time Michigan held an opponent scoreless through the opening half was last season against Minnesota (Nov. 8, 2008). U-M led 16-0 at halftime and went on to a 29-6 victory.
• U-M held Western Michigan to five first downs in the opening half -- four of which were allowed during the final drive of the half, which ended on a missed 44-yard field goal attempt.
• During WMU's final drive, freshman linebacker Craig Roh and junior/sophomore defensive end Ryan Van Bergen combined to each record their first collegiate sack -- for a nine-yard loss -- on third down inside the Michigan 20-yard line.
• Senior/junior linebacker Jonas Mouton collected his first career interception on the opening play of the fourth quarter.
• Fifth-year senior punter Zoltan Mesko registered the third-longest punt of his career with a 66-yard effort in the fourth quarter. It was his longest in two seasons; Mesko previously tallied punts of 68 and 67 yards during his sophomore season (2007).
• Junior/sophomore linebacker Brandon Herron earned his first career fumble recovery in the fourth quarter. The fumble -- on a five-yard run by WMU's Brandon West -- was forced by senior/junior linebacker Obi Ezeh.
• Michigan forced three WMU turnovers -- two interceptions and one fumble -- and committed one on a third-quarter interception. The Wolverines did not lose a fumble for the first time in seven games -- since falling to Toledo last season (Oct. 11, 2008).
• Four different Michigan quarterbacks -- Forcier, Robinson, senior/junior Nick Sheridan and senior/junior David Come -- saw playing time vs. Western Michigan.
