NO. 2 MICHIGAN 20 IOWA 6
Wolverines display Hart in second half
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Ralph Russo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ANN ARBOR, Mich. ? Mike Hart kept his legs churning and his knees chugging, plowing into an Iowa defense stacked to stop him.
It took a while, but Michigan broke through ? and its defense did the rest.
Hart and No. 2 Michigan bullied the Hawkeyes around the Big House in a 20-6 victory yesterday.
Hart ran for 126 yards and two second-half touchdowns on 31 carries, and linebacker Shawn Crable and crew put together another punishing defensive performance.
With Iowa (5-3, 2-3) out of the way, only three losing teams stand between Michigan (8-0, 5-0) and top-ranked Ohio State on Nov. 18.
The Wolverines are trying to tune out the Ohio State talk and take ?em one at a time, but it?s not easy.
"I guess you have to deal with it," Hart said. "Everyone is talking about Ohio State, Ohio State. We know we have games before then. Obviously, that?s the big one, but we have three more games."
Iowa, coming off a 31-28 loss at Indiana that knocked the Hawkeyes out of the rankings for the first time this season, muscled up on defense, especially against the run.
Hart was limited to 27 yards on eight carries in the first half, but he appeared to get stronger as the game wore on.
"I think we wore down there a little bit at the end, and that?s what good running teams do," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said."
Iowa?s Mike Humpal intercepted a pass that Chad Henne forced into a crowd on the first possession of the second half at the Michigan 27-yard line, and it set up Kyle Schlicher?s 34-yard field goal to tie it at 3.
Steve Breaston responded for Michigan, returning the ensuing kickoff 64 yards to the Iowa 35. Hart scored on a 9-yard run that made it 10-3.
After Iowa got a 22-yard field goal from Schlicher to make it 10-6 with 2:11 left in the third quarter, Michigan went back to Hart.
He carried six times for 34 yards to help set up a 37-yard field goal by Garrett Rivas to make it 13-6 with 12:55 left in the fourth quarter.
For Michigan?s defense, ranked seventh in the nation and first against the run, that was enough. "They are without question the best defense we?ve played all season," said Iowa quarterback Drew Tate, who faced Ohio State just a few weeks ago. Hart put the capper on the game with a 9-yard TD run with 3:59 left.
