Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 37

I i i i This Dud's back in command: Bud Grant never expected to coach again until the Vikings fell to pieces and then asked for a favor. Lions Preview, Page 12D. Sports Phone, 1-976-1313 Today's television highlights: 1 p.m. NFL: Detroit at Minnesota 1 p.m. NFL: Cleveland at Pittsburgh 2 p.m.

Auto racing: Australian Grand Prix 4 p.m. NFL: LA Raiders at Seattle Sunday, Nov. 3, 1985 PREPS 3, 15 SCOREBOARD 13 OUTDOORS 14 Call with sports news: 222-6660 1 DETROIT FREE PRESS UMo Illinois fit to be tied 4 Hitch Albom final 12-play drive to Michigan's 20, where Chris White's miss came on a third-and-four play. "We were killing the clock and moving the ball nicely before Gerald's fumble," U-M coach Bo Schembechler said. "But I can't fault the kid.

He played a good game." EACH TEAM WAS stunned by the outcome: Illini coach Mike White (Chris' father): "I'm disappointed. I don't remember feeling worse after a game. In this game, I'm devastated. You can take a tie any way you want to. They were ecstatic.

We were devastated." By TOMMY GEORGE Free Press Sports Writer CHAMPAIGN, 111. As Chris White prepared to attempt a 37-yard field goal that would be the game's final play Saturday at Memorial Stadium, the predicament Michigan found itself in was nothing new. But the result was. White's kick with four seconds left was tipped at the line by U-M defensive back Dieter Heren, hit the crossbar and bounced back, ending this Michigan-Illinois bruising battle in a 3-3 tie before 76,397. Michigan (6-1-1) and Illinois (4-3-1) both slipped to 3-1-1 in Big Ten games.

And the Wolverines could not gripe. The near-defeat that seemed so familiar two weeks ago Iowa beat U-M, 12-10, on a game-ending field goal had been avoided. But Michigan will be smarting for a while over the error that most hurt its chance for victory. After a scoreless first half and a field goal by each team in the third period, U-M had possession at its 20 with 12:03 remaining. It ran on nine consecutive plays, grinding out yardage to the Illinois 34.

A failed pass attempt was followed by three more runs that moved the ball to the Illinois 12, where fullback Gerald White, who had moved to tailback after Jamie Morris left with a bruised shoulder, fumbled. Linebacker Bob Sebring recovered at the Illini 9 with 5:31 left, setting up Illinois' Schembechler: "Yeah, the same situation at Iowa except we didn't have the ball with a chance to put the game away. We've had enough balls tipped against usover the years. A tie was not what we intended to do, but the best-laid plans don't always work out." Heren: "I came between the tight end and slot back. I said a little prayer just to get a piece of the ball.

My finger (his left ring finger) is still tingling. My heart jumped when I saw the ball bounce back." Chris White: "It was a good snap and I thought I kicked it well. I didn't see it get tipped, but I heard it. I looked up in time to See WOLVERINES, Page 11D When the father hurts, the son feels the pain, too CHAMPAIGN, 111. There were four seconds left, the score was tied and Michigan's Andy Moeller, blood smeared across his uniform, was rocking back and forth on his feet, trying to time his leap.

A piece of the football. That's all he wanted. He knew this field goal try by Illinois would be the last play of the game. His muscles throbbed from two hours worth of impact, bruising tackles, helmets in the gut. Who had time to think about that? A piece.

Just a piece. The crowd of 76,397 sucked in its breath. The score was 3-3. Everything was riding on the kick. For Illinois.

For Michigan. And for Andy Moeller and his father, Gary, who was standing on the Wolverines sideline, 30 feet away. In football as in any sport there's the big story, and the smaller stories inside it. This is one of the smaller stories. One from the heart.

A v-1" I i No.l Iowa falls to Ohio St. Ill feelings toward Illinois It begins here, six years ago, when Gary Moeller was the head football coach at Illinois, and his son was a sophomore in high school. The father was in his third year, and the Illini were doing poorly. At the end of the season he was fired. It was ugly.

The coach felt betrayed. He sued the uni versity for the remainder of his contract. It was big news with the local papers and TV stations. And it was sticky business for the family. Under the most normal circumstances, the loss of a father's job is tough for a family to handle.

In a fishbowl like Champaign where Illini football on Saturdays is almost a religious rite it was tougher. Much tougher. "It was such a big deal here," Andy would recall later. "It was blown way out of proportion. It was tough to take.

Let's just say I don't like Illinois, OK? I don't like them." The family moved to Michigan and the senior Moeller severed all ties with Champaign. To this day, he does not speak with certain members of the Illinois staff. He'd found a new job under Bo Schembechler's maize and blue. And his son had come to play for the same team. Not only that.

He'd developed into a standout. By JOE LAP0INTE Free Press Sports Writer COLUMBUS, Ohio The Ohio State Buckeyes earned national recognition and surged to the front of the Big Ten race Saturday with a 22-13 upset of No. 1 -rated Iowa before a network television audience and a record crowd of 90,467 in the rain at the Ohio Stadium horseshoe. The Buckeyes, rated eighth in the AP poll and ninth in UPI, intercepted four of Iowa quarterback Chuck Long's passes and, despite occasional sloppy tackling, stopped the powerful Hawkeyes' offense on several crucial plays. Ohio forced another turnover on a fumble and almost intercepted three more passes, including one on the first play of the day, setting the mood for Long's gloomy afternoon.

Saturday's outcome left the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes tied for the conference lead with 4-1 records with three games left. Michigan and Illinois are a half-step behind at 3-1-1. Ohio State coach Earle Bruce said he didn't realize until after the game that Michigan and Illinois had tied, 3-3. "Isn't that lovely!" he said, slamming his hand on the table in front of him. "Isn't that lovely!" The game was played in steady rain throughout the second half.

LONG, CONSIDERED the best quarterback in the Big Ten, completed 17 of 34 for 169 yards. Safety Terry White of Ohio State said Long "was out of sync," partially because the Buckeyes practiced covering their receivers as if they were playing man-to-man See BUCKEYES, Page 9D Southern nips Tennessee St. This season, Andy a 6-foot, 220-pound linebacker with broad shoulders and a shock of blond hair leads the Michigan defense in tackles. Both father and son have come a long way since 1979. But right or wrong, a firing is difficult to forget for the man fired and for his son especially when the son had to hear it from friends and neighbors and read about it in newspapers.

How many chances come for a son to strike back even in a small fashion? Here was one. The big story was Michigan vs. Illinois. The small story, for lack of better words, Football returned to Tiger Stadium Saturday afternoon for the first time since 1974. But only 18,539 fans showed up to watch Southern rally in the closing minutes to beat Tennessee State, 1 3-10, for the first time since 1969.

The game, expected to feature high-powered offenses, turned into a defenive struggle. Southern's Michael Blount (top) fails in his attempt for an interception. And (right) Southern's John Johnson just misses a pass. Details on Page 9D. Free Press Photos by MARY SCHROEDER was a case of a family's honor.

v. 1 juf i a -fear jtmtr Wt if i I A victory for the father and son And all game long, Andy Moeller played that way. He seemed to be in on every tackle. He made 15 by himself! If they came up the middle, he was there. Tackle.

If they dumped a pass over the middle, he was there. Another tackle. And his father's defensive unit played just as brilliantly, holding an explosive Illini offense to Spartans hold off digging Gophers, 31-26 just three points. And finally it was down to a 37-yard field goal attempt. One play.

Last play. The players dropped into their stances. The crowd rose to its feet. And, of course, by now, you know what happened. The ball was snapped.

Moeller came charging in, leaped high, straining every fiber in his body to get the delicious feel of the ball against his fingers. He didn't get it. But someone else did. Dieter Heren, a senior defensive back, tipped And Dave Yarema, who hit 11 of his 19 passes, complemented the White-wash by throwing a 31-yard bull's-eye to freshman Andre Rison for another MSU touchdown. "In the first half, we made every mistake known to man," Holtz grumbled.

"For the first 26 minutes, it was just a poor football game from our point of view. They were too good to give a 31-7 lead." Perles was enjoying the scene. "It was nice to put that many points on the board in the first half and we needed all we got," he said. "That's the most points and the best See SPARTANS, Page 11D too, for a while. They helped the Spartans to two touchdowns and a field goal with a shanked punt, a fumbled punt reception and a fumbled pitchout.

MSU, meanwhile, was riding Lorenzo White's durable back to two other scores on its own, and midway through the second quarter, the Spartans enjoyed a 31-7 lead. White, a sophomore tailback who gained 172 yards in 49 carries, scored two touchdowns on half-gainers from the one-yard line that would have done credit to Greg Louganis. He added another on a 1 5-yard end sweep after Todd Krumm recovered a fumble at the Gopher 20. "Others talk about bowls but that's better than being negative," MSU coach George Perles said. "If we can keep winning, our chances will be good.

Indiana is next and that's the most important thing The rest (bowl talk) will take care of itself." STATE NEEDS wins over Indiana, Northwestern and Wisconsin to finish at 7-4. Minnesota severely crimped its chances in the Big Ten race with its first-half mis-cues. The loss left the Gophers with a 3-2 conference record, 5-3 overall. Coach Lou Holtz's team played without its star quarterback, Rickey Foggie and the rest of the Gophers looked a little foggy, By JACK SAYLOR Free Press Sports Writer EAST LANSING Michigan State's bowl express, no bigger than the Toonerville Trolley before, grew to Super Chief proportions Saturday, then nearly got shunted to a siding before the dank afternoon was over. The Spartans whipped up a 31-point first half, then played hold-your-breath for the next 30 minutes before slipping past a stouthearted Minnesota team, 31-26, before 63,758 in Spartan Stadium.

The victory leveled MSU's record at 4-4 (2-3 in the Big Ten), and despite the second-half tailspin, visions of a post-season trip will dance in some heads. the ball, it floated softly towards the uprights, and then, almost unbelievably, hit the crossbar and plunked back towards the field. No good. Game over. Tie.

The Michigan players broke into a celebration. Sure, a tie isn't anything to celebrate. Unless you were expecting a loss. Or you had something else riding on it. "We may not have won," said the elder Moeller The Top 10 in the locker room afterwards.

"But I can't tell you how proud I am of this group. They never gave up." He looked across the hall. His son was talking to reporters. Pistons pound Facers a second time, 128-117 In the days to come, the big story will be analyzed; Michigan's performance, their chances for the Big Ten title and for the Rose Bowl. Ohio State 22, No.

1. Iowa 13 No. 2. Florida 14, Auburn 10 No. 3.

Penn St. 16, Boston Col. 12 No. 4. Michigan 3, Illinois 3 No.

5. Nebraska 41, Kansas St. 3 Florida 14, No. 6. Auburn 10 No.

7. Air Force 31. S.D. State 10 No. 8.

Ohio State 22, Iowa 13 No. 9. Oklahoma 48, Kansas 6 Miami. Fla. 35, No.

10. Fla, St. 27 The smaller story will fade quietly, except maybe in the confines of the Moeller household. Andy is a senior. Next year he goes on his way.

The Red Wings rally, tie St. Louis, 5-5 By KEITH GAVE Free Press Sports Writer ST. LOUIS Saturday night, just when the Red Wings appeared content to sleep with the cockroaches the next time they play in St. Louis, they fought off their lethargy and earned a 5-5 tie with the Blues. "The way they played those first two periods," coach Harry Neale said, "I was thinking about a worse hotel." More about that later.

Randy Ladouceur capped a three-goal spurt in three minutes midway through the third period, helping the Wings overcome a 5-2 deficit and continue their unbeaten streak to three games. "Nice time to get it, eh?" a smiling Ladouceur said. See RED WINGS, Page 5D odds that he and his father will ever share such a moment again are slim. Sometimes football tests your strength, some "We finally played the way we're supposed to, and won the way people expect us to win," said Pistons center Bill Laimbeer. THE PISTONS also did what the Pacers couldn't a night earlier: repel a fourth-quarter rush with a closing spurt of their own.

Detroit led by six at the start of the final period, but the Pacers' Clark Kellogg exploded for eight of his game-high 30 points in a three-minute See PISTONS, Page 5D times it tests your stamina. And sometimes, it goes straight for the heart. The scoreboard may only say a' tie. But Andy and Gary Moeller did a little better Saturday. By JOHNETTE HOWARD Free Press Sports Writer INDIANAPOLIS Unlike Friday's victory, Saturday's rematch win against the Indiana Pacers didn't come cheaply for the Pistons.

Detroit won, 128-117, and did it stylishly. The Pistons shot 54 percent for the game. They turned the ball over only 11 times. They played defense with a passion and rebounded when it mattered most. And they got season-best performances from two backups John Long and rookie Joe Dumars.

Other games Notre Dame 41, Navy 17 Michigan St. 31, Minnesota 26 Wisconsin 31, Indiana 20 Purdue 31, Northwestern 7 Miami, Ohio 19, CMU 14 W. Michigan 18, Toledo 13 Michigan 27. Ball State 24 Details, Pages 80 to 11D. Mitch Albom's NFL picks are on Page 12D..