Hey, Nick Martens... here's your opportunity to ask why you keep getting benched instead of Cook. Red will be in CSTV chat at 1 PM.

Is up on Sunshine Preps. Hakes' recruitment is going to be an interesting one, as his older brother posts on both Buckeye Planet and the Wolverine as SHAKES2003 (and possibly other places I don't visit) and is quite frank about what's going on with Sean. Sean's originally from Ohio and was an OSU fan growing up, but now favors Michigan, according to SHAKES2003.

It'll be interesting to see where this one goes just for the peek inside the process SHAKES promises to provide.

More of a human interest story than anything, but a good one. Ba's life has been considerably more interesting than mine, in the bad way.

I found this little exchange pretty shocking:

Twenty-five college coaches filled Bridgton's Memorial Gymnasium on a September afternoon in 2001 to watch the team work out. Among them was Charles Ramsey, the Michigan assistant coach who needed a big man.

"I kind of like Amadou," Ramsey told Lesure afterward.

"You've got to be kidding me," Lesure said.

Ramsey left and Lesure figured that was the last he'd hear from Michigan. Amadou, who averaged seven points and seven rebounds per game at Grissom, was a borderline Division I prospect. But Ramsey called back. Then Lesure sat down with Amadou at his dorm's dining room table.

"If you want to be a three-year starter or a captain, Michigan ain't the place," Lesure said.

Lesure stopped for a minute. He knew Amadou's high school coaches were concerned the basketball at Michigan would be over his head.

"I want you to think about that," Lesure said.

The next day Amadou told Lesure he wanted to go to Michigan. Lesure told him to sign the letter of intent and mail it the same day, before Michigan changed its mind.

Um... nice to have a guy like Ba getting an education, but when his high school coach says "you've got to be kidding me" when you mention you think you might offer him, uh... well, uh. I'm just saying that's kind of disturbing. How much influence does Ramsey have here? We offered a marginal top-150 guy, Jerrett Smith, as a sophomore, and he accepted. I'm not saying that Smith doesn't deserve an offer, but he is not the kind of guy you offer after two years of high school. Better to wait and see how things develop. Compare that to the hockey program: when they offer and accept a commitment that early, it's someone like Jack Johnson or Tristin Llewellyn, the bluest of blue-chippahs.

Pro Football Weekly has posted their scouting reports for Michigan's NFL draft prospects. The catch: they're from last summer, before their senior years. Still an interesting read, though there's one thing that's just flagrantly wrong: in Jason Avant's profile they state he'll "make the tough catch but drop some easy ones," which has to be confused since Avant has the best hands I've ever seen a Michigan WR possess. Dude catches everything.

Also, there's this on Marlin: "Late to react at times in zone coverage and is best in one-on-one situations." Good to know we ignored that little limitation constantly.

Michigan's sweep of a decent BGSU team propelled them past Minnesota and Cornell into fourth in the latest pairwise rankings (3-2-1 bonus assumed). Take a picture, kids, because it probably won't last. Michigan managed to pass Minnesota because the Gophers played an 8-23-4 Michigan Tech team and murdered their RPI in the process, and now hold the #4 spot by the whispiest of whiskers, a .0005 RPI edge. Michigan also has 8 very precarious TUC wins: 4 against BGSU (RPI .5068), 2 against UNO (RPI .5009), and 2 against Miami (RPI .5024). If any of those teams should drop below .5000 RPI Michigan may lose the comparisons against Cornell and Minnesota.

At this point Michigan is locked in somewhere between #3 and #6. They will lose comparisons to CC and DU no matter what. They will win comparisons with just about everyone else except for three tossups: BC, Minnesota, and Cornell.

Michigan currently loses its BC comparison by the thinnest TUC margin. BC has a 14-5-3 record, Michigan a 14-6-3 record. BC has a solid RPI lead. Michigan takes the CoP category (largely because they got to waste ND four times this year and BC flukily lost to them). If Michigan wins the CCHA tournament and the tenously-TUC CCHA teams remain on the good side of the line they will probably pick up two TUC wins. If BC loses to a TUC in the HEA tournament, Michigan will pick up the comparison.

To win the Minnesota comparison Michigan has to stay ahead in RPI and hope that our TUC record stands up. Michigan cannot afford to have anyone drop below the TUC Mendoza line.

To win the Cornell comparison Michigan must stay ahead in the TUC battle and beat State should Michigan face them, as that would cost Michigan its Common Opponents category against Cornell.

With that in mind, your rooting guide for next weekend:

BC over Massachusetts- paradoxically, if BC blows this weekend they won't pick up a TUC loss and we can't pass them.

Minnesota State over Minnesota - Hurt that Gopher RPI and TUC record.

UNO over LSSU- UNO must remain a TUC.

BG over UAF- ditto.

Miami over MSU- ditto, though the fact that MSU played us five times makes this closer. If Miami can remain a TUC with one win that would be best, but who knows?

Michigan over ND- well, duh.

What about Cornell? I can't decide if I want them out now so they can't pick up TUC wins or in so they can pick up a loss. Michigan's fate against Cornell will depend more on the CCHA teams hovering around the RPI Mendoza line than anything Cornell does.

My prediction: we lose one of our TUC trio and thus all three comparisons, finish #6, and get swapped to #7 and into Grand Rapids.

Wow. AJ Thelen has been "dismissed" from the MSU team. Rumors abound on the internet that his dismissal was at his own choosing.

Thelen, of course, was easily State's best player last year, singlehandedly holding together a thin and inexperienced blueline as an accelerated freshman. He parlayed that performance into a top-10 NHL draft pick (Minnesota). Then... well he showed up out of shape and unmotivated and played like crap all year. And now he's gone, leaving Comley with exactly zero impact players in his recruiting classes.

Thelen had this to say (from the Minneapolis Star-Trib): "I feel the coach has double standards for certain players. I definitely was confident in my schooling and academics was not a problem. I've been eligible all season and would have been next season. He's set in his ways. I tried to work with him and he tried to work with me and it didn't work out."

Could Comley get Willinghammed? Probably not, unless Ash Goldie drags a cop down the street with his car. But he's driving State straight into the ground. It doesn't take a Michigan education to see he's not the man for the job.