As a junior, Sword started 11 games at inside linebacker for the undefeated 1997 Michigan Wolverines football team that outscored opponents 322–144, won the Big Ten Conference championship, defeated Washington State in the 1998 Rose Bowl, and was ranked #1 in the final AP Poll. He had a career-high 13 solo tackles against Notre Dame and was the team's leading tackler (91 tackles, including 69 solo tackles) on a 1997 squad that led the country in both scoring defense (8.9 points per game) and total defense (206.9 yards per game). At the end of the season, he was selected by a Midwest media panel as a first-team linebacker on the 1997 All-Big Ten team.