Michigan Rallies Late, But Loses 38-28 To Iowa

(Recap from The Sports Network)

Ann Arbor, MI – Ricky Stanzi threw for 248 yards and three touchdowns to Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, as 15th-ranked Iowa held on to beat Michigan, 38-28, at the Big House.

Adam Robinson ran for 143 yards and two scores for the Hawkeyes (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten), who were coming off a bye week and have won three in a row. Iowa built up a 28-7 lead after three quarters, but only took the win after Michigan posted a big fourth quarter.

Tate Forcier led the comeback attempt after taking over for Denard Robinson, who left the game in the third quarter when he was shaken up on a run. Forcier passed for 239 yards and a touchdown, and also ran for a score, but was intercepted twice as the Wolverines (5-2, 1-2) lost for the second straight week.

If you have watched any NFL games in October, you probably have noticed that players are sporting pink gear in order to raise awareness for breast cancer. This Saturday for the Iowa game, Michigan will be doing its part to raise awareness by sporting pink gear of its own on the sideline.

University of Michigan head football coach Rich Rodriguez  and select sideline personnel will wear special pink themed apparel and headwear in support of Breast Cancer Awareness this Saturday (Oct. 16) during the Wolverines' game against Iowa. [...]

Coaches and support staff will wear sideline polos and hats with a pink Block 'M' in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Other adidas schools are participating in the initiative to raise awareness for the cause.

In addition to coaches wearing pink, the Block 'M' formed by fans in the student section will be pink instead of blue. For big games over the last few seasons, fans in designated parts of the student section have worn blue shirts to form the Block 'M' in the sea of maize, but this Saturday they will instead wear pink. I'm not quite sure if that will stand out at all among the sea of maize, but it's the thought that counts, right?

(Preview from The Sports Network)

GAME NOTES: The 15th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes take to the road in Big Ten play this weekend, as they invade Ann Arbor to tangle with the Michigan Wolverines.

Kirk Ferentz's Hawkeyes opened up conference play in impressive fashion two weeks ago, making light work of Penn State in Iowa City, 24-3. The victory was the second straight for the Hawkeyes, whose only loss has come to nationally-ranked Arizona in week number three. The Hawkeyes were idle this past weekend, giving the team additional time to prepare for Michigan.

The Wolverines also only have one loss on the season, but that came last week to rival Michigan State by a score of 34-17. Prior to that, Rich Rodriguez's squad had reeled off five straight wins, mostly on the legs and arm of Heisman frontrunner Denard Robinson.

Rodriguez knows there was an opportunity to win the game against Michigan State.

"We hurt ourselves with a couple of interceptions, and there were definitely some points down there. It's the same old thing: you ought to be able to stop them running when you know they're going to run. We can't do that right now, and we've got to figure it out and get better for next week."

This marks the 56th all-time meeting between these two programs, with Michigan holding a sizeable 40-11-4 all-time advantage. The two schools however, have split the last six meetings, with Iowa claiming a 30-28 victory in Iowa City last year.

The Hawkeyes bring a balanced attack into Ann Arbor, averaging 172.2 yards per game rushing the football, and an additional 254.2 yards passing.

Quarterback Rick Stanzi has played well under center, completing 67.8 percent of his pass attempts, for 1,226 yards, with 10 TDs against just two INTs. His top target is Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, who has hauled in 21 balls, for 334 yards and four TDs.

The ground attack is paced by tailback Adam Robinson. He is netting almost five yards per carry and nearly 100 yards per game (96.0) and is responsible for six of the team's nine rushing TDs to date.

While the Hawkeyes have been able to move the chains on the ground, it has been a futile venture for opponents trying to do the same. Iowa ranks second nationally in rush defense (63.2 ypg) and is the only team in the country that hasn't allowed a rushing score in 2010. An ailing Jeff Tarpinian leads the team in tackles (32), although he played sparingly against Penn State. Fellow LB Jeremiha Hunter is next in line with 29 tackles. Rush end Adrian Clayborn (25 tackles, 4.5 TFLs, one sack) and tackle Mike Daniels (19 tackles, 8.0 TFLs, 3.0 sacks) provide strong play up front.

As good as the Iowa defense has been, Ferentz knows the challenge of trying to stop Michigan's Heisman hopeful.

"He's an excellent football player, and I'm guessing what they hoped to get from him when they recruited him is what they've seen happen this year. He's a very dynamic football player, very explosive player, and with that offense that they give you, it presents an awful lot of challenges. They try to spread the field and basically have an extra man on the field because they've got a guy that can not only throw it but he can run the ball. He's very dangerous. It really makes it a challenge for you defensively when you play a team like this, and that's kind of what we're looking at here."

The Wolverines lost for the first time this season against the Spartans last weekend, but look for a more spirited outing this week. While Iowa has successfully defended the run this season, the Hawkeyes will have their hands full with Michigan's Heisman hopeful. Just a sophomore, Robinson has already rushed for 991 yards (165.2 ypg) and nine TDs, while passing for 1,223 yards and eight more scores. Wideout Roy Roundtree has been the biggest benefactor down the field, leading Michigan in receptions (31) and receiving yards (385), with two TDs.

The Wolverines have struggled at times on the defensive side of the football, with opponents averaging 26.8 ppg and a whopping 450.7 yards of total offense. Pass defense has been particularly suspect, with foes netting just over 300 yards per game through the air.

Senior LB Jonas Mouton leads the way with 56 total tackles. He also has five TFLs, one sack and two INTs to his credit. Strong safety Jordan Kovacs is a close second with 53 stops and has four TFLs and one INT on the year.

This is strength against strength with Robinson attempting to slash through a stout Iowa run defense. While Michigan's superstar will have his moments, the Wolverines will struggle once again defensively, leading to a big road win for the Hawkeyes.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Iowa 24, Michigan 20

Michigan's injury report for Saturday's Iowa game has been released. Interestingly, all of the players on the list are out for this game; none are probable, questionable or doubtful. Here it is:

OUT

RB Fitzgerald Toussaint (Shoulder)

WR Martavious Odoms (Foot)

LB Mike Jones (Leg)

CB Troy Woolfolk (Ankle)

S Mike Williams (Head)

S Jared Van Slyke (Clavicle)

Aside from Toussaint and Odoms, this is mainly a list of players who have been out for the season for a while now. Toussaint has consistently appeared on the injury report because of various issues, but he is not out for the season. Odoms may miss the rest of the regular season, but this is his first week on the injury report.

I'm not sure if Michigan simply decided to not list minor injuries this week, but whatever the case, it's good that the likes of Michael Shaw, David Molk and Mike Martin aren't listed. All were a bit banged up coming out of the Michigan State game, but it appears they will be good to go on Saturday.

Michigan receiver Martavious Odoms was scheduled to have surgery sometime this week on his broken foot. The injury, which happened against Michigan State, is severe enough that he will likely miss the rest of the regular season, although Rich Rodriguez wouldn't close the door on a return late in the year.

"There's a possibility he could get back later in the year, slim possibility, in maybe the last couple of ballgames," Rodriguez said Wednesday during his weekly conference call.

If Michigan gets to a bowl game, I'd imagine Odoms would be ready to play. A return is iffy for regular season games, though, because a broken foot could keep him out of action for around six weeks. Michigan has only six weeks left in the regular season, so he would probably have to recover ahead of schedule to make it back for one of the last regular season games.

With Michigan being in the 3:30 p.m. ABC/ESPN timeslot for the second consecutive week, there was a possibility that Matt Millen could be the color commentator for back-to-back Wolverines games. Thankfully, unlike this past Saturday's Michigan-Michigan State game, ESPN came to its senses and decided to send Millen somewhere else, because he is not on the call for this week's Iowa game.

The Michigan and Iowa game will be televised regionally by ESPN on ABC. Any market not receiving the game on their local ABC affiliate will receive the game on ESPN. Ron Franklin will handle the play-by-play with Ed Cunningham serving as the color analyst.

Franklin is an excellent play-by-play announcer, and together he and Cunningham make for a solid crew. Don't get me wrong, I like Sean McDonough, who is stuck working with Millen, but I will take a crew without Millen over one with him any day of the week.