Basketball Betting

No. 2 Michigan holds off Ball State to remain unbeaten

Football Betting Lines

11/04/2006 - Ann Arbor, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mike Hart ran for 154 yards with a touchdown and Brandon Minor added 108 rushing yards with a score, but second-ranked Michigan needed to make a goal line stand in the fourth quarter to earn a 34-26 victory over Ball State.

The Wolverines (10-0) racked up 352 yards on the ground and moved a step closer to an undefeated showdown with top-ranked Ohio State on November 18, but it clearly wasn't easy. Michigan will have to win at Indiana next Saturday before the annual season-ending matchup with the Buckeyes.

"I think it was a great win," said Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr. "It's great to have won 10 consecutive games and gotten a chance to play a lot of different guys. We made it close by giving up two big plays in the second half. There are a lot of things we can improve on, but we're ready to go on the road and play Indiana."

Nate Davis threw for 250 yards with a touchdown for Ball State (3-7), which nearly handed Michigan its first loss against a Mid-American Conference team.

"We came to win and that is what we talked about," said Ball State head coach Brady Hoke. "We are not just going to have any moral victories. We are going to play to win every game. So it is disappointing."

Michigan had all it could handle from the Cardinals, who led 9-7 in the first quarter and clawed back from a 31-12 deficit in the second half.

Trailing by eight with 6:13 remaining, Ball State marched from its own 13 to the Michigan eight. Davis completed passes of 25 yards to Darius Hill and 22 yards to Dante Love to key the series, and a 19-yard run by Larry Bostic set up a first down inside the 10.

After a facemask penalty on third down gave the Cardinals another first down at the Michigan six, Davis threw incomplete and Bostic followed with a four- yard run. Davis then fired an incomplete pass on third down and a penalty pushed Ball State back five yards before Davis' fourth-down throw to Love in the end zone fell short.

"I tried to hit Dante on a little fade-stop," said Davis. "But the play didn't work -- I underthrew him. I just made a bad throw -- that's all it was."

The Cardinals got the ball back near midfield with 16 seconds left after a punt and Davis' last-second heave was picked off in the end zone.

Davis completed 18-of-34 passes and had a stellar second half. He threw for just 45 yards in the first half and followed with 205 after the break.

The Wolverines outgained Ball State 507-297.

Chad Henne completed 17-of-25 passes for 155 yards for the Wolverines.

Michigan took the opening kickoff and drove 76 yards on 10 plays for a touchdown. Hart did most of the damage early with 29 yards on four carries and Henne completed each of his three passes before Jerome Jackson scored on a one-yard run.

The Wolverine offense then appeared to take the rest of the quarter off.

After a Ball State punt pinned Michigan at its own two-yard line, Hart fumbled in the end zone and the ball went out of bounds to give the Cardinals a safety.

Late in the first quarter, Henne was picked off by Erik Keys, who raced 35 yards into the end zone to give Ball State a 9-7 lead with 1:24 to play in the period.

Michigan then woke up and scored the next 17 points.

Henne hit Carson Butler with a seven-yard touchdown pass just over two minutes into the second quarter to put the Wolverines on top for good and Garrett Rivas kicked a 22-yard field goal to end Michigan's next series. Minor then broke free for a 40-yard touchdown run on the ensuing Wolverine possession to extend the lead to 24-9.

Ball State tacked on three more in the final minute of the half when Brian Jackson drilled a 46-yard field goal.

The Wolverines ran out of time in the opening half with the ball at the Ball State 12, but marched 80 yards on 12 plays for a touchdown on their initial series of the second half. Hart capped the long drive with a one-yard scoring run to extend the lead to 31-12.

Ball State, though, answered right away when Love beat one-on-one coverage along the right sideline and hauled in a 54-yard touchdown pass from Davis.

The Wolverines followed with a 54-yard drive that ended with a 23-yard field goal from Rivas to make it a 34-19 game.

After a trade of punts, Davis hit Terry Moss with a 62-yard pass to set up a first down at the Michigan two and Bostic carried it into the end zone two plays later to pull Ball State within eight with 8:45 remaining.

"I give Ball State a lot of credit. They continued to fight and did a good job," said Carr. "I'm disappointed that we let them back in the game."

Game Notes

Michigan improved to 22-0 against teams currently from the MAC...Jackson finished with 68 yards on just six carries for Michigan...Bostic had 46 yards on 12 carries to lead Ball State, while Love finished with 107 yards on six catches...Michigan receiver Mario Manningham played for the first time since October 7 after recovering from knee surgery, but saw limited action and did not catch a pass...Rivas set the all-time scoring record at Michigan with 339 points, surpassing the record of 336 held by Anthony Thomas (1997-2000).