Michigan Football: Is MSU Loss Forgotten with Win over Iowa?

Respect. The Michigan Wolverines will be fighting for just that when they entertain Iowa Saturday at the Big House. A win over the Hawkeyes would actually qualify Michigan for its first bowl game since the 2007 season.

A win would even place Michigan back into the Big Ten championship conversation, but most importantly, it would keep the detractors away from the head coach’s front door.

“We have to be resilient,” coach Rich Rodriguez said at his Monday press conference. “We’ll fix our mistakes and learn from what happened, and then move on.”

Beating this Iowa team is not going to be easy. The Hawkeyes come off a bye week with some pretty good defensive stats, especially compared to Michigan State.

Iowa has allowed a measly 10.2 points per game, 63.2 rushing yards and 179 passing yards. Michigan State, which did a pretty good job of limiting Michigan’s attack, has per-game stats that look like this: 18.1 points, 111.3 rushing yards and 225.3 passing yards.

Other than the previous comparison, the Spartans need not be mentioned again—since Michigan is actually in control of its own destiny. The Wolverines can reach the Ohio State game with an outside chance of winning the title.

A very, very outside chance. Nobody is expecting this Wolverine team to get that far anyway. It would be nice to get by Iowa so MSU could just become a fading memory.

Maybe that’s why Spartan fans get so frustrated over the rivalry. It just doesn’t mean that much unless the Spartans are leading the Big Ten late in November. And that just doesn't happen very often.

That’s probably why Michigan-Ohio State has become so huge. How many times has “The Game” been for all the marbles? Next year things will be a little different, when the conference splits into two six-team divisions.

Imagine the excitement if Michigan really does beat Iowa? Making Bowl plans would actually be fun again. Orlando or Tampa would be great. After all, who isn't a fan of Pirates of the Caribbean or the Tower of Terror?

Like this past Saturday, Michigan will face a similar offensive challenge in senior quarterback Ricky Stanzi, who throws to a variety of talented receivers.

No less than four Iowa running backs have been sidelined this season, but Adam Robinson has carried the load with 480 yards and six touchdowns. Another missing element is tight end Tony Moaeki, who is already leading the NFL Kansas City Chiefs with 16 receptions. Moeaki caught TD passes of 34 and 42 yards in last year’s 30-28 Iowa victory.

Denard Robinson, who obviously took his lumps Saturday, had a chance to lead Michigan to a come-from-behind win in last year’s game at Iowa. With starter Tate Forcier on the bench, Robinson first led Michigan on a 11-play, 59-yard drive to cut Iowa's lead to two points.

Michigan got the ball with 1:30 left on its 17, and all Michigan needed was a field goal to leave town with a victory. Three plays later, Robinson was welcomed into the Big Ten when safety Brett Greenwood intercepted an ill-advised pass to end the threat.

Like last season’s loss, Robinson was quite upset with the Spartan defeat.

But the quarterback later proved he is in fact, a year older. In the locker room after Saturday’s game, Robinson delivered a passionate speech that apparently struck home to the whole squad. “I’ve never heard him speak out the way he did,” slot receiver Kelvin Grady said, "He took a step closer to being the leader of this team.”

*Next season's Big Ten alignment (championship game follows season)

Division 1: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin

Division 2: Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern.