Neither rain, nor lightning, nor a delayed start in a smart-as-gravel November night game could keep the Little Brown Jug from its appointed place.
Yes, it’s still in Ann Arbor. That’s not exactly a stunner. It’s been here in all but four years since Lyndon B. Johnson prepared to hang up his presidential cleats.
The Wolverines appeared in a rush to make sure the jug stayed home. They found the proper historic manner to banish Minnesota back to the Land of 10,000 Lakes with its dry spell intact.
Jim Harbaugh gave a silent shout out to his old coach, playing Bo ball in Michigan’s 33-10 rumble past the Gophers. The Wolverines posted 371 rushing yards, junior tailback Karan Higdon leading the way with 200 and sophomore tailback Chris Evans kicking in 191.
Their double-triple gave Michigan its first consecutive two-game set featuring a pair of 100-yard rushers since Schembechler’s ground-shakers did so in 1975. Harbaugh’s crew almost did the grand old man one better.
Never in the history of Michigan football had two runners burned past the 200-yard mark in the same game. One more chains-mover by Evans and the Wolverines would have been there.
No matter. This one still stirred competitive fires in the great names from more than four decades ago.
“It was a stalwart performance,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said, clearly pleased. “I looked up at one point and the statistics looked like we were Air Force. We were Air Force running the ball. I thought we were Western Kentucky back in the early ‘90s, under Jack Harbaugh.”
They were Rob Lytle and Gordie Bell, Harlan Huckleby, with Easy Ed Shuttlesworth leading the blocking charge. Go down the list of great backs and the road graders that paved the way, and they recaptured that spirit under the lights.
“Karan and Chris had spectacular runs,” Harbaugh said. “The counter play was really good to us today. The blocking was really efficient — great precision there by the line, and the tight ends were really good.
“The guys up front — that was a game for the ages, if you’re an offensive lineman. The fullbacks, the same. The receivers got in on the action and were blocking as well. It was quite the performance running the ball.”
Higdon noted he almost teared up at one point, when informed he’d hit 100 yards rushing for the second straight week. The hard-charging back out of Sarasota, Fla., has paid a lot of dues to get his chance and readily credits all those around him, while feeling the exultation of getting it done.
“That’s the best feeling in the world, just seeing everybody happy for you, proud of you,” he said. “We’ve been waiting a long time for the season to come, running gassers and all that stuff. Just to see all our hard work pay off makes us feel so much better.”
They want to feel as good as they can, and it’s not too late for some serious satisfaction.
The Wolverines can’t undo a lost opportunity at home against Michigan State, which now sits atop the Big Ten East along with Ohio State — as predicted by precisely no one. All the Wolverines can do is smack down whoever steps up next.
On their post-Penn State-stunner checklist, they’re 2-0. They’ve got to survive a pair of road games before facing an Ohio State squad that’s hardly invincible (just ask Iowa, who rolled 55-24 over the Buckeyes).
Some might have been tempted to smile and nod politely recently, when fifth-year senior center Patrick Kugler cautioned that the Wolverines could still win out and have a chance in the Big Ten race.
Sure, most thought. Penn State’s going to start dropping games left and right. Ohio State’s going to lose, after escaping with a win against the heretofore unstoppable Nittany Lions.
Guess what? It’s November, the Midwest weather is playing the game as well, and anybody can lose. Are the Wolverines likely to be in position to make the Big Ten championship game with a season-ending victory over Ohio State? No.
But think about how much more possible it is now than it was after they limped out of Beaver Stadium two weeks ago, thoroughly bloodied.
The Wolverines know this — they’re getting better. They saw a rookie starter at quarterback and eased his mind against Minnesota. About all redshirt freshman Brandon Peters had to do was hand the football off and watch Higdon and Evans disappear on the horizon.
Michigan hasn’t disappeared yet. It’s determined to give everybody a run for their money, and in a wild Big Ten scramble, nothing seems far-fetched.
---
• Talk about this article inside The Fort
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolverine
• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolverineMag, @BSB_Wolverine, @JB_ Wolverine, @AustinFox42, @AndrewVcourt and @Balas_Wolverine
• Like us on Facebook
