All right. Enough about the 1994 Colorado game for a while.
According to Colorado and Michigan, the Hail Mary is a has been - having been discussed to death and developed into an annoyance for both. Well, finally, it will be over.
The banter and bitter bickering about the past will stop at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow, when the Wolverines and Buffaloes cut off the questions by strapping on their helmets.
And when they do - Hail Mary or not - good God, it's going to be one interesting football game.
It's No. 11 Michigan vs. No. 5 Colorado.
It's the biggest game in the nation tomorrow.
It's in Boulder, Colo.
It's a proven quarterback against a proven defense.
It's a relatively green quarterback against a risky defense.
It's a lot of fun for the Wolverines.
"This is the type of game you come to Michigan to play," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. "Any time you play an intersectional game against a nationally-ranked team, it's big."
It's a lot of fun for the Buffaloes, too.
"We're certainly excited about playing Michigan," Colorado coach Rick Neuheisel said. "They're in the who's who list of football powers. There's a lot at stake."
At stake for the Buffaloes is the national championship. They play what is arguably the toughest schedule in the nation this year, facing teams such as Texas A&M, Texas and Nebraska week after week in the anything-but-weak Big 12.
One loss hurts a lot.
That makes the Michigan game almost a must-win.
"I know this, from a national picture, it's a college football Saturday where the nation's attention is going to be focused on Boulder," Neuheisel said. "We're excited about that, and we're going to have to play well.
"This is a (Michigan) team that I haven't found any weaknesses in. It comes down to execution for us."
At stake for Michigan is the fans' pride and the team's confidence. That play that happened a couple of years ago that no one wants to discuss - the one where a certain Buffalo launched a certain 64-yard pass to a certain receiver to win a certain game - it's a big deal to Michigan fans.
To the Wolverines themselves, the big deal is national ranking and victories. If the Wolverines can upset the Buffaloes, they will likely sneak into the top 10, and they will surely gain some momentum for their Rose Bowl run.
"We're Michigan, and we have to win games against the best," Michigan linebacker Jarrett Irons said.
To win, Irons said, the formula is relatively simple.
"It starts with (Colorado quarterback) Koy Detmer," he said. "He's the fire that keeps that offense together. He's a great quarterback, and he has the enthusiasm that keeps them going. He's got good speedy receivers, and they have a lot of threats."
Detmer completed 31-of-42 passes for 364 yards and two touchdowns last week against Colorado State, hitting a vast array of receivers.
Ouch.
Detmer is coming back from a nasty knee injury, and if he can do that to Colorado State, chances are he can make things tough on Michigan's secondary.
"He's got a gift in this game, and he understands that," Neuheisel said.
Thus, the hope for the Wolverines lies in allowing Detmer to inflict less-than-fatal damage and in playing well on offense. With all of Detmer's heroics throwing the ball, he can't intercept it or stop the run. The Buffaloes gave up a whopping 34 points to Colorado State, and Michigan quarterback Scott Dreisbach has got to be warming up his arm already.
"They've been trying to take the running game away, and that just leads to big pass plays," Dreisbach said. "We've been struggling with big pass plays, but we've had two weeks to work on it."
Two weeks to work out the kinks, and two weeks to work with persistent media questions about the thing no one wants to talk about.
Sorry, but The Play can't be avoided for long.
Dreisbach said he can recall exactly where he was when the thing happened. Irons said he doesn't think about it, but that he's asked about it every day.
Neuheisel admits it may be a factor, and he also admits he doesn't mind remembering.
Even though he was just a quarterbacks coach at Colorado in 1994, he cherishes the moment. After all, it was his quarterback who threw the pass - against, ironically, a Michigan defense coached by none other than Carr.
Neuheisel had a little tape machine made up of the game's broadcast. All he has to do is press a button, and he hears the play-by-play of The Play.
"It's something that Colorado history will remember," Neuheisel said. "I still get goose bumps when I hear it."
But Neuheisel, like his counterpart, Carr, is quick to dismiss its relevence.
"I'm glad it's part of Colorado lore," he said. "But I know this: That play has nothing to do with this game."
FILE PHOTO/Daily
The image no Wolverine wants to see: Colorado's Michael Westbrook hauling in the Hail Mary pass over Ty Law in 1994.