It certainly wasn"t pretty, but it still counts as a "W."

This oft-used sports axiom is one that the Michigan football team might be reciting to itself after last Saturday"s less-than-impressive 38-21 victory over Western Michigan. Paced by three touchdowns two of them rushing by B.J. Askew, the Wolverines completed their nonconference schedule with a 2-1 record.

Still, Saturday"s victory left a lot to be desired, a fact Michigan coach Lloyd Carr was all too willing to point out after the game.

"If the nonconference schedule is supposed to prepare you for the Big Ten schedule, then we"ve got a lot of work to do," Carr said.

Western Michigan"s first possession of the game should have been an indication that this was going to be a bumpy day for the Wolverines. Led by quarterback Jeff Welsh, the Broncos" spread offense caused all sorts of problems for Michigan"s pass defense.

Starting at his own 26-yard line, Welsh completed four of five passes for 52 yards as Western Michigan methodically drove into Michigan territory. But Victor Hobson"s sack of Welsh on a third-and-two play from the Michigan 20-yard line the first of Michigan"s seven sacks on the day forced the Broncos" Robert Menchinger to attempt a 44-yard field goal, which he left a good five yards short.

Michigan"s offense which rolled up 472 yards on the day took advantage of the missed opportunity by driving 73 yards in nine plays. With the ball at Western"s 41-yard line, Michigan quarterback John Navarre tossed a screen pass to Askew, who raced untouched down the left sideline for the touchdown.

"You never know exactly what I"m going to do back there," Askew said. "Every time I was out there, they were yelling "Screen! Screen!", but I was running and the blocking was awesome."

Michigan extended its lead to 10-0 before Western Michigan got on the board. Following a Michigan punt, Western Michigan tailback Phillip Reed took a handoff on a seemingly simple draw play, cut to his left and rumbled 37 yards. On the next play, Welsh hit wideout Micah Zuhl for a 17-yard touchdown, cutting the Broncos" deficit to 10-7.

But the Wolverines snuffed out any possible momentum the Broncos might have had by driving 78 yards in five plays on the ensuing possession. The big play came when Navarre connected with Calvin Bell for a 47-yard gain down to the Broncos" 13-yard line. Three plays later, Askew took a sweep around the left end and ran eight yards for his second touchdown, extending Michigan"s lead to 17-7.

If Western Michigan could"ve gone into the lockerroom only down 10 at halftime, the Broncos would have been satisfied. But Welsh committed a critical error when he was intercepted by Todd Howard at the Michigan 35-yard line with just over a minute to play in the half.

Navarre wasted little time capitalizing on the turnover. One the third play of the possession, Navarre lofted a 40-yard bomb to Marquise Walker, who made a fingertip catch in the endzone that broke the Broncos" backs.

"I thought the biggest play of the game was Todd Howard"s interception before the half," Carr said. "We hit a big play there. John made a great throw, and Marquise caught the ball for a touchdown."

Despite holding a 24-7 lead at halftime, Michigan couldn"t be too proud of itself. The biggest problem for the Wolverines one that continued in the second half was penalties.

Michigan was whistled for 13 penalties in the game, nine in the first half alone. Six of those nine penalties were either offsides or false start violations.

"That"s ridiculous," Carr said about the penalties. "This is the third game of the year. You should have 13 penalties in three games. It"s just unacceptable."

With the game essentially over by halftime, the second half was devoid of any drama. The Wolverines and Broncos traded touchdowns in both the third and fourth quarters, although Western Michigan"s final touchdown came with no time left on the clock and most of the remaining fans itching for the game to end.