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09/26/2009 9:38 PM EDT
Forcier leads No. 23 Michigan past Indiana late
MICHIGAN 36, INDIANA 33

By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer

ANN ARBOR, Mich.(AP) -- Tate Forcier seemed to have no trouble
shrugging off an injured shoulder to throw another game-winning
touchdown pass.

What really hurt was the celebration.

After Forcier threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Martavious Odoms
with 2:29 left to give the 23rd-ranked Wolverines a 36-33 win
over Indiana on Saturday, he got a congratulatory slap on the
right shoulder.

Yeeeouch!

Forcier winced and twisted his body away, but by then, Michigan
wouldn't need him to do anything more than kneel the ball after
Donovan Warren's interception on Indiana's next snap let
Michigan (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) seal its fourth straight win

"It's a bruised shoulder," Forcier said, not specifying which
one was hurt. "We'll take a look at it and see what we have and
we'll go from there."

The freshman quarterback led another fourth-quarter touchdown
drive two weeks after his pass with 11 seconds left beat
then-No. 18 Notre Dame.

He actually led two on Saturday, leaping for a go-ahead TD and a
2-point conversion to put Michigan ahead 29-26 with 9 minutes
left. But Indiana immediately answered with Darius Willis'
85-yard touchdown run to go back on top.

So Forcier had to do it again. He was hurt on the pivotal
possession, but came back in time to connect with Odoms in the
end zone on 3rd-and-7.

"We had a play called and checked into a different play," Odoms
said.

The hookup prevented Indiana from winning in Ann Arbor for the
first time since 1967 - before Bo Schembechler coached Michigan.

Indiana got the ball back for one last try, but Ben Chappell's
pass to Damarlo Belcher was ripped away by Warren on a play that
stood after video review with 2:14 left.

"We both rolled over on the ground and I outtugged him for it,"
Warren said. "I just read the route, broke on the ball, read the
quarterback's eyes and made the play."

Instead, the Wolverines are 4-0 and rapidly putting the memories
of last season's dismal 3-9 effort behind them - though there
were a few moments that resembled 2008.

Rich Rodriguez said earlier in the week he'd like the Wolverines
to be good enough to play poorly and still win. He got his wish.

The Hoosiers (3-1, 0-1) had four go-ahead scores - including
with 8:57 left on Willis' long run - and easily outgained
Michigan with 467 yards of offense.

"I thought about what a big win this would have been for our
football team," coach Bill Lynch said.

Forcier had one costly mistake, throwing an interception on an
ill-advised pass after doing a 360-degree spin in the pocket.
Fellow freshman quarterback Denard Robinson was stripped of the
ball late in the second quarter, leading to a field goal that
sent Indiana into halftime up 23-21.

Settling for field goals was costly for Indiana.

Nick Freeland tied a school record with four of them, but was
wide left on a 42-yard kick early in the fourth quarter.

"That's the big difference," Lynch said. "But you've got to give
Michigan's defense some credit, they loaded up and kept us out
of the end zone."

After running for 69 yards in his first two games, Willis had
152 yards rushing and a score on 16 carries. Tandon Doss had
five catches for 104 yards and Chappell was 21 of 38 for 270
yards.

Carlos Brown turned one of Forcier's short passes into a 61-yard
score - a week after he ran for a 90-yard TD - and had a 41-yard
score on the ground against Indiana. Brandon Minor had 50 yards
rushing and a TD, and converted a third down with a run to allow
Michigan to drain the clock.

That sealed the Wolverines' perfect record heading into their
first road game against Michigan State (1-3, 0-1), which is
desperately hoping to salvage some pride in what has been a
disappointing season.

"I'm leery of a rivalry game - every time," said Rodriguez, who
lost to the Spartans at home last year. "It doesn't matter the
records, it doesn't matter the venue, it's going to be intense."

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