By Michael J. Happy
CBS SportsLine Staff Writer
Sept. 12, 1998
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- It's a long-standing tradition at Michigan: The Wolverines run under a maize and blue banner and leap to touch it for luck as they take the field before each home game.
The 37-year-old banner was stolen Friday night, so a different one stood in its place before Saturday's game against Syracuse.
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Problem was, the replacement banner stood too high for anybody to touch on the way out of the tunnel. It was simply out of reach.
The same can be said about Syracuse quarterback Donovan McNabb, who was simply out of reach for Michigan's slumping defense Saturday afternoon.
In front of the biggest on-campus crowd in the history of college football (111,012 at Michigan Stadium), McNabb led the No. 19 Orangemen to a stunning 38-28 victory over the No. 13 Wolverines. At the same time, he became a legitimate candidate for the Heisman Trophy.
"THAT DOESN'T MEAN nothing to me," McNabb said of the Heisman. "I just want to continue to get better with my team so that we can get more wins like this.
"I'm feeling good now, and tomorrow I'll prepare for Rutgers."
Poor Rutgers.
For that matter, poor Michigan, which is 0-2 for the first time since 1988.
After looking pretty good in the first half of a 36-20 loss at Notre Dame last week, Michigan showed no signs of being the defending national champion against Syracuse. This one was over after the opening drive, which -- of course -- featured McNabb.
McNabb option right for 6 yards; McNabb pass to Maurice Jackson for 14 yards; McNabb option pitch to Jackson for 8 yards. So went the first three plays.
MCNABB, MCNABB, MCNABB. Or Father, Son and Holy Ghost on this afternoon.
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Donovan McNabb worked on his Heisman pose, thrusting himself into the thick of the race with another huge game.
(AP)
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The 11-play, 78-yard drive ended with McNabb running right, then pitching to Kevin Johnson, who scampered right for a 6-yard score. And the rout was on.
It was 17-0 at the end of the first quarter, 24-7 at the half. Two late Michigan touchdowns made it look closer that it was.
"We wanted to take the crowd out of it," Syracuse free safety Phil Nash said. "We wanted to make sure that they didn't become a factor."
Never before have over 100,000 people been so quiet. McNabb -- 21-of-27 for 233 yards and three touchdown passes -- shut them up.
He was too much for a Michigan defense that shows little resemblance to the squad that ranked No. 1 in the country last season. In two games, the Wolverines have surrendered 74 points; this after holding opposing teams to under nine a game in 1997.
BUT THE WOLVERINES, who have some soul searching, had to see this one coming.
Notre Dame QB Jarious Jackson had similar success with the option last week, keeping the Michigan defense on its heels the entire second half of 36-20 Irish victory. The Wolverines' front seven was so bad against the run, four of the team's top five tacklers were members of the secondary.
The Wolverines weren't any better getting a handle on McNabb, who carried the ball 19 times for 60 yards and a touchdown. Even when they appeared to have him, well, nabbed, the senior quarterback found a way to break free.
In the drive that put Syracuse ahead 24-0 late in the second quarter, McNabb escaped would-be tacklers at least three times:
- On third and five deep in his own territory, he went back to pass, was forced out of the pocket to the right, eluded a tackle, did an about-face to the left, then broke down the sidelines for 8 yards and a first down.
- On third and four at the Michigan 20, he ran the option left, peeled off a Michigan defender and dived for 6 yards and another first down.
- Two plays later, McNabb started right, reversed his field, then ran for 17 yards and a touchdown. He somehow managed to stay on his feet after a Michigan defender got a hand on his foot, causing him to literally stumble into the end zone.
THE 14-PLAY, 89-YARD drive could be used as promotional material in the "McNabb for Heisman" campaign. He also completed two key passes for first downs, including a 7-yard strike to Stephen Brominski -- with Tommy Hendricks closely covering him -- on third and three.
"Donovan McNabb has played two outstanding games," Syracuse coach Paul Pasqualoni said. "The great thing and the exiting thing about Donovan McNabb is he's not done getting better yet."
A scary thought considering what he did to Michigan -- which sorely misses All-American defensive back Charles Woodson -- and what he accomplished in a 33-32 loss to Tennessee last week. Despite being on the short end against the Vols, McNabb completed 75 percent of his passes for 300 yards and two touchdowns.
"You have to look forward," McNabb said of the Tennessee loss. "You have to just prepare for the next week, so that you can come out and just prove that last week's loss wasn't something that summarizes Syracuse football. I just want to come out and continue to get better each week. ... I think we all got better today."
And whether McNabb wants to talk about it or not, his version of better put him near the top of the list of Heisman hopefuls.
Michael Happy is a sportswriter on CBS SportsLine's staff.