Wolverines ready after tough loss

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr is in a predicament IU coach Cam Cameron was in earlier this season. Cameron saw his team drop its first two games after holding big first half leads. \nAfter last weekend, Carr and his Wolverines for the second time this year dropped a halftime lead and lost, this time at Purdue, 32-31. \nMuch like the Hoosiers did earlier in the season, the Wolverines (4-2, 2-1) repeatedly tried to give the game away before the Boilermakers eventually took it with a field goal with four seconds left.\nCarr said he was very upset with the loss and how his team let an opportunity go by, but took full responsibility.\n"Winning is about finishing, and what I saw in the second half I don't like," Carr said. "What I saw is a direct reflection of the way I coached and I don't like that either. I didn't see anything in the second half I liked."\nAt the core of the second-half letdown was a poor defensive effort by the Wolverines, who led at the half 28-10. The Wolverines yielded a school-record 540 total yards and allowed the Boilermakers to convert 14 of 18 third down attempts. Purdue outscored Michigan 22-3 after the break. \nWolverine senior cornerback James Whitley attributed the debacle to a number of things, but singled out a lack of effort on the part of his defensive cohorts.\n"I think we got a little lazy on offense and defense in the second half," Whitley said. "We didn't do a particularly good job of tackling and we missed a lot of assignments. Those were some of the main (problems)."\nThe same second half debacle led to the Wolverines' demise at UCLA earlier in the year. Michigan held a 20-10 lead in the third quarter before the wheels fell off, and the Bruins rallied to win 23-20.\nNo matter what the score or situation is, Carr is not in the losing business and he made that clear to his team.\n"I've never had a good loss," Carr said. "I've never been part of a good loss. I don't think I ever will."\nThe Hoosiers (2-3, 1-1) pose the same type of problems for the Wolverines that Purdue did, mainly because of their quarterback. Junior Antwaan Randle El, like Purdue's Drew Brees, has the ability to throw and run with the ball. \nIn fact, the Hoosier offense is averaging 470.6 yards per game, good enough for second in the conference. IU leads the Big Ten in scoring with 38.4 points per contest.\n"(IU) has the capability of scoring a lot of points and scoring fast so we have to stay on our toes and be prepared," Whitley said.\nWhitley has especially been impressed with Randle El.\n"Randle El is a good quarterback," Whitley said. "He's pretty much like Drew Brees. He can throw the ball and scramble. We'll have to be well aware of his ability to make plays and just stay on our toes."\nFor the Wolverines offense, things couldn't get much better for them than what they did in the first half last week at Purdue. Michigan scored four touchdowns on four possessions, all of which were 80 yards or longer.\n"We've probably never played better when you look at the first half," Carr said. "We dominated the line of scrimmage up front. You can't play any better against a very good defense."\nCameron, a former Michigan assistant coach, agreed with Carr.\n"The way Michigan played in that first half is as well as I've seen a team play both offensively and defensively in this league," Cameron said. "So, I think that tells you what kind of team we're getting ready to play."\nThe Hoosiers defense struggled last week at Northwestern, giving up 292 yards rushing to junior Wildcat running back Damien Anderson. The front of the defense struggled in particular, but Carr is still concerned about the play of Hoosier junior linebacker Justin Smith.\n"He's a guy they bring on a lot of blitzes," Carr said. "He's a tremendous athlete and can make plays. Anytime you have a guy like that you have to have the means to deal with him because if you don't, he'll disrupt the offense."\nIn the end, in beating Michigan, Purdue could be hurting IU without even playing them. The Wolverines seem to be eager to get back in the win column and back in control of their own destiny in the Big Ten. \n"It's really a pride thing," Whitley said. "We have to pick it up. This week will be a very intense week of practice and we'll be well prepared for this Saturday"