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Little Brown Jug — Looking Back – 2005

Looking Back is a Special Feature by Jeff Cummins

Well, there’s no rest for the weary. Just a few days after defeating USC, the Wolverines face the reality of battling for the Little Brown Jug. Minnesota will be hungry after losing to Iowa, so our guys will really have to get after those “Fleckers!”

The first installment of this series looking at the Little Brown Jug rivalry illustrates the fact that you can’t underestimate any opponent. The 2005 Wolverines felt confident entering their game against Minnesota. On paper, the Wolverines could match up with anyone, but their performance seldom lived up to their potential.

It started off like so many other games. Garrett Rivas made a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter, and the Wolverines were ready to take charge. The only problem was, they never completely took control of the game. Still, after a Minnesota field goal tied the game at 13 apiece in the third quarter, the Wolverines grabbed the lead right back when Steve Breaston zigged and zagged his way to a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to give Michigan a 20-13 advantage. Unfortunately, the score occurred so quickly that the defense got virtually no rest, and it showed as Minnesota tied the game on the ensuing drive.

Michigan still had some chances, but a pall settled over Michigan Stadium when Rivas pulled a pair of field goal attempts wide left. Late in the game, Minnesota faced a 3rd down and 10 yards to go when Laurence Maroney swept around the right end and ran 60 yards to give the Golden Gophers a first down at the Michigan 15-yard line. With one second to go, Jason Giannini kicked a 30-yard field goal to give Minnesota a 23-20 win. The game exemplified Michigan’s season in a microcosm. The Wolverines finished the season with a record of 7 wins and 5 losses, falling to Nebraska in the Alamo Bowl.

Many thanks to YouTube and YouTube poster RXwolverine for the video of this episode of “Michigan Replay.” As always, we own nothing, and this blog post is provided strictly for the enjoyment of readers.

About Jeff Cummins

Jeff Cummins has written about football since 1998, including nine years with The Record of Hackensack, N.J. He frequently contributes feature stories to Touchdown Illustrated, an insert in the national college football game program, published by University Sports Publications, and he has also written the official pregame stories for the game programs of the Rose Bowl, the Cotton Bowl, the Sugar Bowl, the Gator Bowl, and the BCS National Championship game. He has written the preview story for the official program for the NHL Winter Classic at MIchigan Stadium, and numerous college basketball feature stories for College Hoops Illustrated, another game program insert published by University Sports Publications. In addition, he has written stories about theater, music, physical therapy, and newsletter marketing. He’s an avid Michigan football fan and long-time New York Jets season ticket holder, and he can be reached at jeffcummins@optonline.net.

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