Defense held strong after break

James Whitley said he was sick of people saying he was part of a "Tin-Man defense" (no heart).

DeWayne Patmon said he was annoyed with those who questioned the toughness of Michigan's defenders (Lee Corso, etc.).

Rob Renes said he knew his defensive line couldn't continue to give opposing quarterbacks time to pick apart the Wolverines' secondary.

Against Michigan State, finally, the defense came together.

It was still in question, even after Michigan beat Eastern Michigan last week. The Eagles scored 20 points and passed at will against the Wolverines.

"Every day when people are talking about how bad you are, saying how you gave up 400 yards or whatever - we took that personal," Patmon said. "I think the defense is really starting to come together now."

The Wolverines dug in on Saturday and stopped the Spartans - the same Spartans who ran up and down the field against Notre Dame two weeks ago.

Michigan State managed just 268 yards of total offense, 121 of which came via Sedrick Irvin's 21 carries on the ground. Bill Burke completed just 7 of his 20 attempts in the second half.

Michigan coaches and players were nearly unanimous in their assessment as to why the defense was more successful this past weekend.

"Our linemen were getting pressure on the quarterback, which made it easier for us against the receivers," Whitley said. Michigan State was faced with "a lot of third-and-long situations, and when that happens, our defense starts to click."

Michigan's defensive front put more pressure on Burke than they did on any other quarterback to this point. The lefty was sacked six times for 54 yards in losses. Senior Nate Miller had a pair of sacks by himself.

"Nate Miller is a fifth-year guy who just came up with a big game today," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. "He's a hard worker, and that's the kind of thing you like to see."

In addition to Miller, Sam Sword, James Hall, freshman Larry Foote and Josh Williams all got to Burke before he could get rid of the ball.

With the linemen and linebackers keeping Burke on his toes, the defensive backs were finally able to have themselves a decent game. And although Whitley was beaten early for a touchdown, he broke up three passes in the second half, and credited Michigan's pass rush for helping his cause.

"The line was getting great pressure and forcing (the Spartans) into third-and-long" situations, Whitley said. "That made it easier for us to cover their receivers."

One other possible factor in

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