8602250503
DETROIT FREE PRESS
861207
Sunday, December 07, 1986
METRO FINAL
1G
MITCH ALBOM
Copyright (c) 1986, Detroit Free Press
MICHIGAN HAS LITTLE FUN GOING OVER THE RAINBOWS
HONOLULU -- Don't tell me. Jim Harbaugh came into Michigan's locker room at
halftime Saturday, the Wolverines tied with the unranked Hawaii Rainbows, 3-3,
and he said, "Don't worry. I guarantee we will be lying on the beach
tomorrow."
Well, something like that.
It took just six minutes in Aloha Stadium for Michigan to realize they play
football for real out here. Harbaugh was sacked rudely on U-M's first
possession, a should-have-been touchdown drive turned into a field goal, and
the vacation was over and the game was on.
And then the game stopped and the battle began. And by halftime, the
battle was closer to war. Bo Schembechler was fuming over a call -- an
incompletion ruling on a Greg McMurtry reception over the middle -- and Bo
stayed on the field while his team ran off, he waited for the officials, and
when they caught up to him, he began screaming, a cyclone in the sunshine, and
the Hawaii crowd roared and the scoreboard flashed a message "That's a No No."
Yeah? So is being tied with an unranked team when you are ranked No. 4 in
the country and heading for the Rose Bowl and playing before a nationwide
cable TV audience.
Michigan 3, Hawaii 3, read the halftime scoreboard.
Vacation, my foot.
Hawaii has plenty of muscle
Were you surprised it was this tough? Well, remember, this is a Hawaii team
whose defense is ranked fourth in the nation. A team that features an
All-America defensive tackle and a swift group of linebackers and a
quarterback who threw for more yards than Harbaugh this season. The Rainbows
are confident in this stadium, and, besides, it was their last game together,
this particular group of players, because they were not invited to a bowl.
They were psyched, ready and talented.
Just because they play on an island doesn't mean they sink. Er, stink.
In seasons past the Rainbows have played Nebraska, Oklahoma, Iowa and
Brigham Young in their closing game of the year, all at home. They are used to
the nationally ranked big boys coming in, looking for sunshine, getting leis
and kisses at the airport -- and although Hawaii hadn't beaten any of those
teams, it had not been embarrassed either.
Hawaii was 7-4 coming into this game, which is nothing to sneeze at. And
they honestly believed they could win. The coach, Dick Tomey, once worked for
Bo Schembechler (back at Miami of Ohio) and you always have to be careful of
former assistants playing their larger than life mentors.
Tomey did a good job of setting the trap. When the hosts weren't plowing
head-on into Michigan, they were mixing things up enough to leave any
mainlander dizzy. There were screens and roll outs and audibles.
Al Noga, the Hawaii All-America, wore his brother's uniform in the first
half and his own in the second. In the third quarter, the Rainbows ran a play
called the "muddle huddle" in which the quarterback, Gregg Tipton, lines up
like a wide receiver and snaps the ball to his running back, Danny Crowell,
who ran for a first down.
When they came out in the second half, the Wolverines drove 66 yards in
nine plays for a touchdown. But Hawaii came right back on consistently
effective passing by Tipton and tailback Coyle Permetter leaped over the pile
for a touchdown and all of a sudden it was tied again, 10-10.
Michigan kicked back
The Rainbows' defense was tough, quick, and powerful. Michigan didn't look
terrible, it simply didn't look great. There were not a lot of big passing
plays, mostly there was a lot of runs inside tackle.
Actually their biggest play of the day might have been a punt by Monte
Robbins, from the Michigan 17, with the Wolverines up 17-10 in the fourth
quarter. The ball lifted and lifted and then lifted some more, and by the time
it landed and rolled it had traveled nearly the length of the field, and
corked Hawaii back on its 2.
That seemed to take the edge off Hawaii. The Rainbows ran three plays and
punted and Michigan scored shortly thereafter -- a long run by Bob Perryman --
and it was time to get measured for beach blankets.
There was worry that this game, coming in between the Ohio State showdown
and the Rose Bowl on New Year's day, might be perfect fodder for a letdown.
It was. Michigan survived anyhow.
Schembechler kept his guys virtually indoors before this game, but he
promised them two days of island vacation when it was over. So this afternoon,
they will be horizontal -- by their own choosing -- and between their toes, an
11-1 regular- season record in their pockets.
This is a safe bet.
They won't be looking for rainbows.
COLUMN