Williams, Thomas demolish No. 1 rushing defense

During practice last week, the starting tailback and his lineman - Clarence Williams and Jon Jansen - looked ahead toward the conclusion of their careers in Michigan Stadium.

"Jon Jansen said to me, 'Clarence, have a great game - it's our last one,'" Williams said.

Jansen couldn't have guessed how prophetic his words were.

Going into Saturday's game, Wisconsin had the No. 1 rushing defense in the country, having held opponents to an average of 62.7 yards per game.

Consider that stat outdated.

WARREN ZINN/Daily Michigan's ground game - led by Clarence Williams and Anthony Thomas - ran all over the nation's top defense against the run, rushing for 257 yards.

"I was shocked that they would rush the ball on us like that," Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez said.

Jansen, the offensive linemen and the running backs all had great games. Michigan's running attack - highly criticized for the past two weeks - ran roughshod all over the Wisconsin defensive unit. The Wolverines racked up 257 yards on the ground. On average, that's more than what the Badgers yield over four games.

"Any time we have two running backs running for over 100 yards, it is a good Michigan game," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said.

Tailbacks Clarence Williams and Anthony Thomas each scampered over, around and through the Badgers' formerly top-ranked defense. Williams, the starter, finished with 121 yards on 22 carries for a 5.5 average.

Thomas compiled 102 yards on only 13 carries, averaging 7.8 per carry. The sophomore also scored the two rushing touchdowns of the game.

"We made some good blocks and ran the ball well again this week," Carr said.

In particular, Thomas took advantage of the gaping holes provided by the offensive line. On his first carry of the game early in the second quarter, Thomas took advantage of a truck-sized hole on the left side of the line.

After hitting the hole, Thomas threw it into fifth gear and raced untouched to end zone 59 yards away.

"It's been a long time since we had a long touchdown run like that," Thomas said. "It was supposed to be a sweep, but Wisconsin over-pursued so I cut inside. The line made a lot of good things happen."

Michigan's offensive line and blocking back dominated the Badgers up front. Williams was not dropped for a loss a single time on Saturday, and Thomas only lost three yards.

That's a far cry from two weeks ago when the running game finished with minus-23 yards against Minnesota.

A big part of the running game's success was Aaron Shea. The junior fullback sprung the running backs on numerous occasions, including blocking three guys on one play at the end of the first half. Thomas waltzed 15 yards into the end zone.

"I've never blocked three guys at once before," Shea said. "But that's my job, to go out there and to block a linebacker or whoever."

Shea didn't carry the ball once on Saturday, so essentially he was relegated to the role of lineman. And because he is a converted tight end, Shea's 249 pounds gave Michigan a formidable blocking advantage.

"The offensive line did a great job," Williams said. "That is a great defense. You can't judge them on one performance."

Williams is no stranger to being judged too quickly. After seeing significant playing time two seasons ago as a sophomore and last season before suffering a groin injury, Williams was written off early this season. The senior tailback suffered from a serious case of the fumbles.

But following the debacle against the Golden Gophers, Carr turned to his senior tailback against Penn State. Although he fumbled once in that game, Carr stuck with Williams.

Against Wisconsin, the move paid huge dividends. Not only did Williams hold on to the ball, he also romped for a 44-yard gain. The run was the longest of his career.

Sitting out three games "was a tough moment of my life, to tell you the truth," Williams said. "I'm happy because I believe in myself and I prayed. I was happy for hanging in and having my teammates believe in me."

11-16-98