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Posted on Sat, Sep 10, 2011 : 7 p.m.

Under the lights: Notre Dame at Michigan

By Jim Knight

MICHIGAN-PLAYERS.JPG

Junior defensive end Craig Roh, senior defensive tackle Mike Martin and senior defensive end Will Heininger celebrate in the first quarter. Michigan players stormed the field after rallying for a 35-31 victory against Notre Dame.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

FOURTH QUARTER
Michigan 35, Notre Dame 31: Roy Roundtree came down with a 16-yard jump-ball pass to give Michigan the lead with two seconds to play. The play was reviewed by officials to see if Roundtree got a foot inbounds. The drive: Michigan took the ball with 30 seconds to play. Denard Robinson found Jeremy Gallon with a 64-yard pass on second down and then hit Roundtree for the game winner.

Michigan players stormed the field as time ran out when Notre Dame couldn't handle the kickoff. Michigan fans didn't move, cheering wildly and singing "The Victors." They stuck around, singing along with stadium music as game highlights were shown on the scoreboards.

The Michigan marching band danced on the field to "Sweet Caroline," as fans in the stadium sang along. At 11:50 p.m., the stadium is mostly full.

Michigan is 2-0 under Brady Hoke heading into next week's game against Eastern Michigan. Notre Dame is 0-2.

Notre Dame 31, Michigan 28: Tommy Rees guided Notre Dame 61 yards in five plays and found Theo Riddick for a 29-yard touchdown pass as the Irish may have ended the comeback hopes for Michigan. Thirty seconds remain in the game.

Michigan 28, Notre Dame 24: Vincent Smith scampered into the end zone on a 21-yard pass from Denard Robinson as Michigan took its first lead of the night. Robinson rolled out right, looked left and found Smith, who was never touched by the Notre Dame defense. There's 1:12 left in the game.

Interception: Robert Blanton intercepted Denard Robinson's long pass in the corner of the end zone, ending a potential game-changing drive with 4:23 left in the game.

Notre Dame 24, Michigan 21: Denard Robinson lofted a 14-yard pass to the end zone to Jeremy Gallon as the Wolverines continued their comeback. A 40-yard, nine-play drive.

Notre Dame 24, Michigan 14: Denard Robinson picked up a fumble by Stephen Hopkins and raced 1 yard into the end zone. The four-play, 83-yard drive was all Robinson as he hit Junior Hemingway with a 77-yard pass and picked up 7 yards himself on a hard run.

THIRD QUARTER
Notre Dame 24, Michigan 7: TJ Jones caught a 15-yard pass over the middle from quarterback Tommy Rees and outran the Michigan defense to the corner of the end zone to cap an eight-play drive.

Attendance: Announced attendance is 114,803, a Michigan Stadium record.

Fumble recovery and an interception: Michigan's Will Campbell recovered a Cierre Wood fumble at the Michigan 29-yard line with 7:36 left in the quarter. Four plays later, Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson's pass was intercepted by Notre Dame's Zeke Motta.

SECOND QUARTER
Notre Dame 17, Michigan 7: David Ruffer kicked a 38-yard field goal with 1:40 left in the quarter. Notre Dame has 268 yards of total yardage, compared to 92 for Michigan.

JUNIOR-HEMINGWAY.jpg

Senior wide receiver Junior Hemingway catches a 43-yard touchdown pass from Denard Robinson in the second quarter.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Notre Dame 14, Michigan 7: Wide receiver Junior Hemingway caught a 43-yard pass from Denard Robinson as Michigan scored two plays after Jordan Kovacs' interception. The play was reviewed by game officials before being declared a touchdown.

Interception: Michigan strong safety Jordan Kovacs created the loudest cheer so far when he intercepted Notre Dame quarterback Tommy Rees to give Michigan the ball on their own 45-yard line with 11:06 to play in the first half.

FIRST QUARTER
Notre Dame 14, Michigan 0: Cierre Wood scored on a 4-yard run as Notre Dame quieted (somewhat) the large night crowd at Michigan Stadium. Notre Dame went 83 yards on 10 plays.

Notre Dame 7, Michigan 0: Notre Dame, taking advantage of good field position on its opening drive, went 57 yards in seven plays. The Irish scored when quarterback Tommy Rees found Theo Riddick for a 7-yard touchdown pass.

PREGAME

Get ready for an attendance record, a national television audience, the sight of 100,000 pompoms and a night football game at Michigan Stadium.

And be ready for an interesting matchup of Notre Dame (0-1) at Michigan (1-0). Notre Dame is coming off a 23-20 upset loss to South Florida. Michigan played three-quarters of a game before accepting a weather-shortened 34-10 victory against Western Michigan. Fans cheered loudly when his punt return and Heisman Trophy-posing moment was shown.

At 7:12, the announcement, "Ladies and gentlemen, the game will start in one hour," was met with a cheer from fans, who have already filled about a quarter of the stadium.

We'll update the action throughout the 8 p.m. game in this post.

Injured: Michigan cornerback Troy Woolfolk has a large cast or covering on his right hand. Receiver Martavious Odoms continues to wear a protective forearm cast. Cam Gordon is out, too, with a back injury. Linebacker Marell Evans remains academically ineligible. Reports also say that linebacker Brandon Herron, who scored twice against Western Michigan, is injured.

Starting: Michael Shaw will start at running back for Michigan.

Honored: The College Football Hall of Fame honored former Michigan wide receiver and Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard at midfield before the game. Howard posed with his official Hall of Fame plaque and highlights of his career at Michigan were shown on the scoreboards.

Michigan didn't retire Howard's No. 21, but they've made the No. 21 locker in the Michigan football locker room special to honor him and he's been designated as a "Michigan football legend." Any player who wears No. 21 will also wear a patch honoring Howard.

Howard, wiping away tears, spoke to the crowd. "This is something I will cherish every day of my life."

In the meantime, check out:

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A Michigan fan boos from behind the gates Saturday as the Notre Dame football team enters Michigan Stadium.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Comments

Blu-dogg97

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:24 a.m.

That was a football game.. No excuses ! Catholic's vs Kovacs .. What a Game ! the four letter network dropped the ball... Put a cowboy hat on Coach Mattison and you have John Wayne.. TiM GO BLUE..

Tru2Blu76

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 6:49 a.m.

Totally agree about Mattison: it's very clear that this coach is bringing great improvements compared to what we saw and will only bring better results in coming years. And - tx for the compliment - you're no slouch yourself. ;-)

Tru2Blu76

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:18 a.m.

The second half of this game is legend-making material. I've seen only a couple of games that match this one for killer mood swings and brilliant come back play by any past Michigan team. This is Brady Hoke's and Denard Robinson's water shed game. No more doubts: both men are the Real Deal and are true Michigan heroes. Announcer Brent Musberger kept referring to Denard as the most exciting college quarterback in the country - a tag I'm sure will stick. He sure left me breathless in the fourth quarter. Here comes another Heisman for another Michigan player. A win seemed out of the question even in the middle of the third quarter - I still can't quite believe what I saw. Hail to the Victors: Brady Hoke, the Wolverines and Denard Robinson!

Blu-dogg97

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:27 a.m.

Another Great Post by Tru2Blu76...

RJ12688

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:12 a.m.

What a crazy game. Way to keep on fighting

Kai Petainen

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 3:45 a.m.

Wow. Awesome game.

Kai Petainen

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 7:12 p.m.

as much as I want one team to win more than the other, I'd prefer a game that is close, exciting and entertaining. in that manner, close games can be quite awesome. If ND had scored in the last seconds like that, then it would have been an awesome game nonetheless.

Smart Logic

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 11:35 a.m.

You are rare, then.

Kai Petainen

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 3:56 a.m.

in the spirit of sportsmanship, yes.

Smart Logic

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 3:48 a.m.

Would awesome still be the adjective of choice if UM lost?

umgoblue47

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 3:39 a.m.

hey bruce! what did you say about DR not being a good QB?????????????????????????????

umgoblue47

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 2:58 a.m.

good call superbuck, i'am shure fickell and his coaching staff are worried after that poor performance against TOLEDO! GO BLUE!!!

A2Susie

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 2:26 a.m.

That is a great photo of Junior Hemingway catching the touchdown pass. Ms Maxwell is good!

umgoblue47

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 2:02 a.m.

thanks superduck and earlbruce for cominig in here and supporting everything MICHIGAN! GO BLUE!!!

bruce

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 1:02 a.m.

Robinson is a TERRIBLE QB

NoSUVforMe

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:23 a.m.

Terrible? Why are the announcers calling him the most exciting player in college football? You really should go away. Far away. East Lansing, Columbus, or wherever.

bruce

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 1:01 a.m.

Irish owning the wolf-puppies

1st Down

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 5:55 a.m.

idiocy owning bruce...as usual

Blu-dogg97

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:31 a.m.

Too bad you can't erase that post..

Kai Petainen

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 12:52 a.m.

some photos from the sunset tonight. <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahknaten/sets/72157627641204090/" rel='nofollow'>http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahknaten/sets/72157627641204090/</a> here's the moon tonight <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahknaten/6134256683/in/set-72157627641204090" rel='nofollow'>http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahknaten/6134256683/in/set-72157627641204090</a>

superbuck

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 12:51 a.m.

Huh imagine that. how many people will be asking for the coaching staffs heads if this keeps up.

1st Down

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 5:54 a.m.

You mean Fickell? lol whatever dude stay in Ohio with the rest of the clueless truckers

GoblueinNE_PA

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:44 a.m.

Beating Michigan, so tough OSU hired a cheater to do it.

RJ12688

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:24 a.m.

Huh, now you look kinda dumb... go troll else where.

NoSUVforMe

Sun, Sep 11, 2011 : 4:21 a.m.

Too bad you don't pay attention.