Between the new coaching staff and many returning starters, the Wolverines, led by third year starting quarterback Chad Henne, expected to compete for the Big Ten title and associated BCS bowl bid.

Later in the first, Michigan thought they had a touchdown pass from junior quarterback Chad Henne to true sophomore receiver Mario Manningham.

But after reviewing the play, it was ruled that Manningham dropped the ball, and Michigan settled for a 33-yard field-goal by senior kicker Garrett Rivas.

Ecker made a leaping catch with his arms stretched out in the air, and he managed to haul it down with one foot in the end zone.

Vanderbilt wasn't out of it yet, and they advanced to the Michigan 27 yard-line with under 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, and a great chance to cut its deficit to one score.

Michigan put the game away for good with 2:11 left, as Manningham redeemed himself with a 27-yard bomb of a touchdown catch on 3rd and 10, setting the final score at 27–7.

It was Hart's first touchdown-running or receiving-since midway through the 2005 season, when he scored a third-quarter touchdown run in a 27–25 win over Penn State.

The Chippewas marched to the U-M 14 yard line directly following Hart's touchdown run, but All-American senior defensive end LaMarr Woodley sacked sensational redshirt freshmen quarterback Dan LeFevour and caused a fumble, which he recovered.

The Chippweas got the ball to start the third quarter, and they advanced to the Michigan 34 yard line, but a LeFevour pass on 4th and 7 fell incomplete, and the Wolverines all but put the game away on the ensuing possession.

Breaston made a brilliant 26 yard run on a wide receiver reverse, and Hart finished off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run-his third score of the day.

Rivas added his second field goal of the day with 1:22 remaining to give Michigan a 34–10 lead going into the fourth quarter.

With 11:41 left in the game, junior outside linebacker Max Pollack intercepted a bad pass by LeFevour and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown and a 41–10 lead.

At this point, Michigan had all their backups on the field, and CMU scored one more touchdown: a 3-yard pass from LeFevour to senior receiver Damien Linson.

Breaston had 6 touches for 109 all purpose yards, and All-American senior middle linebacker David Harris led the Wolverines with 6 tackles.

The Wolverines gave Coach Lloyd Carr a Gatorade bath after the huge victory which boosted them in the rankings and put them in contention for a national title.

Hart shared carries with both Kevin Grady and Brandon Minor, and the latter, a true freshman, broke a 40-yard run for the first touchdown of his career.

Leon Hall and Jamar Adams both intercepted passes from Drew Stanton, and Burgess had eight tackles, including the Wolverines' only sack of the afternoon.

Michigan's defensive front seven was the story of the game, collecting seven sacks and holding the Nittany Lions to −14 net rushing yards.

With Manningham not playing due to a knee injury suffered against Michigan State, Arrington and Breaston caught the bulk of Henne's passes, each collecting five receptions.

Henne spread the ball out amongst his receivers with Manningham out, including Arrington, Breaston, and true freshman Greg Mathews.

Offensive linemen Rueben Riley was injured in the second half, but was ably replaced by Justin Boren in the first meaningful time of the true freshman's career.

On a cold, windy day, with Manningham still out, Michigan stuck with a conservative game plan against the Wildcats, throwing the ball only 20 times against 46 rushes.

The Wolverines' offense uncharacteristically gave up a quick nine points to the Cardinals, coached by future Michigan head coach Brady Hoke, with Hart fumbling out of the Michigan end zone for a safety and Henne throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown to give Ball State an early 9–7 lead.

However, the Michigan second-string defenders struggled to stop the Cardinal offense, and the first-string defense was forced to return late in the game to stave off a final Ball State drive.

In addition, actor Patrick Stewart directed the Michigan Marching Band during their halftime performance in a salute to old-time television shows.

Stewart was part of the Royal Shakespeare Company's fall 2006 residency at the University of Michigan, and directed the band to the theme from Star Trek.

Upon being asked if he had any advice for the Wolverines for their upcoming Ohio State game, Stewart replied, "Boldly go and beat the Buckeyes.

Indiana allowed five sacks, and Michigan cornerback Leon Hall broke the school record for most deflected passes in a career.

On November 17, 2006, Bo Schembechler, the esteemed former coach of the Michigan Wolverines football program, died at the age of 77.

However, top-ranked Ohio State answered with a touchdown on its own initial drive, and dominated the rest of the half to take a 28–14 lead into intermission.