Woodson getting offensive but wants the ball even more

Exhibit One: Charles Woodson was named a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, given annually to college football's top receiver, even though he caught only 13 passes last season.

Exhibit Two: In its preview of the Michigan-Baylor game, ESPN ran a 30-second commercial where college football analyst Lee Corso called Woodson an "All-American, two ways."

Exhibit Three: Woodson caught only two passes in Michigan's 38-3 stomping of Baylor on Saturday, but both were huge catches that confirm that, although he probably won't win the Biletnikoff or be named an All-American at two positions, Woodson is a world-class wide receiver.

"We need for him to come in more," Michigan quarterback Brian Griese said. "If the offense dictates, it would be nice to use him more."

WARREN ZINN/Daily This Charles Woodson touchdown catch was called back because he lined up in the wrong place. The All-American said he'd like to see the ball more on offense.

Woodson was only in on offense for about half a dozen plays, but caught a quick slant and wove through the Baylor defense for a touchdown. His other catch was a spectacular leaping 35-yard grab.

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said before the season that he wanted to use Woodson on the offensive side of the ball now that teams knew he was a viable weapon.

Woodson has seen some time on offense, but not much more than he did last year. He pulls triple-duty as a punt returner, so some argue that Woodson might get fatigued playing more at receiver. But the All-American cornerback disagrees.

"I'd love to see more balls thrown my way," Woodson said. "Whenever they want to give me the ball, then I'll step up and I'll take it.

"I would like to play more, but when you're winning, you're happy to be winning. You know, I don't want to cause any problems on the offense."

As if he needed more to help his argument, Woodson also caught a nifty 29-yard pass from Griese in the back corner of the end zone early in the fourth quarter that was called back because of an illegal formation penalty.

"That was my fault," Woodson said. "I wasn't on the line of scrimmage."

And as always, Woodson played spectacular defense, making five tackles, including three for losses. Per the usual routine, Baylor quarterback Jeff Watson didn't throw to Woodson's side of the field.

"It's a sign of respect," Woodson said. "I worked hard to earn that respect."

Back to basics: During fall practice, the Wolverines' biggest question mark was in the punting game. But junior walk-on Jason Vinson averaged almost 42 yards per kick last weekend. Vinson nailed punts of 50 and 51 yards in Saturday's win.

But Vinson's most impressive play came when long snapper Jeff Holtry messed up. After one bad snap in the first half, Holtry followed that performance with a hike about 10-yards over Vinson's head.

Vinson tracked the ball back 25 yards and somehow got off a pretty decent kick. If Vinson didn't punt the ball away, the Bears would have had a first down at the Michigan 10-yard line.

"Baylor used a little bit of a stunt on the punt rush, so I think Jeff was thinking about the man he had to block," Carr said. "Vinson made an absolutely tremendous play. That's something you like to see. he turned a real negative play into something a little bit better field-position wise."

Getting experience: Michigan's large margin of victory gave Carr the opportunity to play a lot of freshmen and other backups that otherwise wouldn't have seen as much playing time. Anthony Thomas got 21 carries and rushed for 122 yards to lead the Wolverines.

Freshman fullbacks Demetrius Smith and Ray Jackson gained valuable experience playing for starter Chris Floyd, who was serving a one-game suspension for violating team rules.

J.R. Ford, Patrick McCall and Tate Schanski all got carries and Schanski scored the game's final touchdown.

Zach is back: Senior offensive lineman Zach Adami, who didn't play in Michigan's 27-3 win over Colorado returned for Saturday's win over Baylor.

Adami, who started all 11 games at guard last season, started Saturday at center. This year, he is expected to anchor an offensive line that starts two freshmen and a sophomore.

Michigan runningback Clarence Williams threw a lot of the credit for the Wolverines' successful ground game Adami's way.

"He's an experienced guy coming in, so you know he was going to make the right calls," Williams said. "We missed a few calls last week, but the communication was a lot better and I think that's a direct result of him being in there."

Disappearing act: Maybe Griese went to the well too many times last week, throwing five times to tight end Jerame Tuman for 152 yards. Griese completed just one pass to a tight end - a 23 yarder to Tuman in the second quarter - against Baylor.

Injury update: Defensive end Glen Steele dressed but did not play against Baylor because of an ankle injury. Center Steve Frazier sat out with a pinched nerve in his neck.

Free safety Daydrion Taylor returned after sitting out last week with an ankle injury.

Stat line: Total blowout? You be the judge:

First downs: Michigan 33, Baylor 9.

Yards rushing: Michigan 344, Baylor 92.

Total Yards: Michigan 532, Baylor 154.

Third-down conversions: Michigan 8-for-14, Baylor 3-for-14.

Time of Possession: Michigan 35:25, Baylor 24:35.

09-22-97