Winning 11 games this season was only part of what Michigan needed to reach the Rose Bowl -- the Wolverines also had to endure the flight to Los Angeles.
Their charter plane suffered mechanical problems Friday, forcing them to sit on the tarmac for more than three hours, watching movies and trying to relax, before taking off.
Then they hit turbulence.
"Kind of crazy," linebacker Dave Harris said. "It was a bumpy ride. A long ride."
The team finally arrived at its Century City hotel at 8 p.m., almost four hours behind schedule, filing into a dining room for a late meeting.
"Quite a day," Coach Lloyd Carr said. "We're here and that's the main thing."
The trip was even rougher for several players who spent the last few days with family and were scheduled to arrive on separate flights.
