The Mother of all Upsets?
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by The Beast
Facing fifth ranked Michigan, an historic powerhouse with national title aspirations, on the road in Ann Arbor seemed like no small task for the tiny Division 1-AA Appalachian State Mountaineers. While they had previously won back to back 1-AA championships, beating a top ten division one football team would be no cakewalk.
But against all odds, the Mountaineers were somehow able to pull out a 34-32 thrilling upset victory over the highly ranked Wolverines of Michigan. If you read my weekly picks, I thought that Appalachian State could be very competitive against Michigan but I didn't actually think they would win the game.
While the Mountaineers certainly played well, Michigan players, coaches and fans you should still be ashamed. No division 1-AA football team had ever beaten a top 25 AP ranked team, much less the 5th ranked team. The game was utterly embarrassing for Michigan as they turned the ball over a several occasions, committed numerous penalties, and had two field goal blocks.
It has become more and more obvious that Michigan was not truly prepared for the game. When a team with far superior talent loses to a team with inferior talent, only one conclusion can be made: it's the coaches fault for not preparing the players.
Over the past three games, the Michigan defense has looked porous as it has been dominated by Ohio State, USC, and Appalachian State. During these games Michigan Head Coach Lloyd Carr and defensive coordinator Ron English have both failed to make any adjustments, as their opponants continued to dominate through the air.
Besides failing to make any adjustments, the Wolverines also made stupid mistakes against the Mountaineers. The team committed two turnovers in addition to seven penalties. On third downs, the Wolverines converted less than fifty percent of those opportunities, which killed long drives. Most of all, their special teams unit allowed for two fourth quarter field goals to be blocked.
It is sad to see that Michigan's season is already over after just the first four quarters. Seniors Chad Henne and Mike Hart decided to return to school in order to chase national championship dreams but those hopes have already been tarnished. The best hope for Michigan fans is for Lloyd Carr to retire after this year.
