remains a Michigan single-game record. At the end of the season, he was selected by the Sporting News as a first-team defensive lineman on the 1987 All-America Team. He was also voted by his teammates as Michigan's defensive player of the year. 1988 season Prior to the 1988 season, the Sporting News featured a photograph of Messner and coach Schembechler on the cover of its preseason issue ranking Michigan #1 in the country. During the 1988 season, Messner started every game at defensive tackle for the fourth consecutive year. In all, he started 49 consecutive games for Michigan starting with the opening game of his redshirt freshman year. He was selected as a co-captain and Most Valuable Player on the 1988 Michigan team that lost its opening two games against #1-ranked Miami (by one point) and eventual national champion Notre Dame (by two points), then went undefeated for the remaining 10 games, and defeated USC in the 1989 Rose Bowl. Messner had eight sacks and set a Michigan record in 1988 with 26 tackles for loss. After the 1988 season, Messner was selected as a consensus first-team defensive lineman on the 1988 All-America Team. He was also selected to play in the Hula Bowl and the Japan Bowl post-season all-star games. Career overview and honors Messner was the first position player in the Big Ten Conference to be selected as a first-team all-conference player in four consecutive years. Only one other Michigan player, Chris Hutchinson (1989-1992), has matched the feat. In four years at Michigan, Messner totaled 248 tackles and five fumble recoveries. He remains Michigan's all-time career leader in tackles for loss (70), tackles for sack yardage (376 yards), sacks (36), and sack yardage (273 yards). He was also Michigan's sack leader each year from 1985 to 1987. In 2014, Messner was inducted into the University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor. He has also been included on the ballot for possible induction into the College Football Hall of Fame in both 2013 and 2014. Professional football Messner was drafted in the sixth round (161st overall pick) of the 1989 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He was drafted lower than had been anticipated, and an Associated Press story reported that NFL representatives believed his speed and size (6'3", 255 pounds) made him "too small for an NFL defensive tackle and too slow for a linebacker." Messner appeared