
Michigan’s Off to a Beautiful Start

Just in case you were enjoying the sun or stuck in the rain during the first four minutes of the monumentally unimportant Michigan-Notre Dame game this afternoon, let’s sum up an incredible Wolverine start.
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↵* UM returner Boubacar Cissoko muffs the opening kick, and gets only to the nine.
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↵* After one first down, on 2nd and three, a Michigan lineman gets called for a 15-yard chop block.
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↵* Steven Threet telegraphs a screen pass to Brandon Minor -- everyone in South Bend sees it coming ... except Minor. It’s a fumble on the Michigan 16. The Irish recover.
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↵* 3rd and six on the 7 for N.D. Pass interference on Michigan in the end zone. Irish score on the next play.
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↵* On the resulting kickoff, Michigan’s Michael Shaw fumbles it. Notre Dame ball on the 14. Three plays later, and it’s 14-0 Irish. After four minutes of game play.
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↵I’m convinced that wasn’t Michigan football -- it was performance art by UM students pretending to be football players. I’m not sure I “get” the piece (even Charlie Weis seeks explanation), but I must say it was executed well.
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↵UPDATE: Michigan gets into N.D. territory, just misses a TD on a Threet bomb ... and turns it over on downs. Two plays later, Jimmy Clausen hits Golden Tate for a 48-yard score. 21-0 in the first. Flippin’ incredible.
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↵UPDATE #2: Sam McGuffie hates art, and has vanquished the Michigan masterpiece. A 40-yard scamper brings us to 21-7 N.D. Glad the Maize ‘n Blue could get one play of “The Victors” in.
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↵UPDATE #3: Notre Dame wins 35-17, but in a freak sideline accident, Charlie Weis suffers a torn ACL and MCL after an Irish player rolled up on his leg from behind. No, that’s not an attempt at humor; that
really
happened. Fine, still don’t believe us? Just check out the photo in your upper right.↵
This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
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