Eric Upchurch (original)

So that's what beating Ohio State feels like, in case you forgot or something. Apparently it involves lots of hugging, and not the cool Ace-meets-Stranger DAP hug kind. I'm talking about the the kind where you grab on like you're sharing a parachute and then hop up and down a few times to simulate a freefall, because you're not entirely sure gravity really applies right now and you should really find that out.

It was the counter clock, but also that they spent the last 10 years spitting in the face of the NCAA (discussion by michelin) and this completely worked for them because in college football winning makes you saints and angels (MGauxBleu) and if you do get caught it's okay because you can just fire accept the resignation of that coach and bring in a savior (SixZero). There was only one thing we could do in return: beat them at football.

That was pretty awesome. Also awesome: Denard Robinson:

So all Denard did was go out and play one of the single greatest games this rivalry has seen. Commanding an offense that heretofore this rivalry had maybe never seen. Beating back the undeservedly arrogant and smug naysayers, who for so long had relished his and his team's failures. This Saturday was not theirs. This Saturday was Denard's.

That's an afterglow diary from My name … is Tim. (Aftergloat from THE_KNOWLEDGE is here).

Airvipermb looked into Robinson's passing stats for this year and found steady improvement. And bwgrudt1484 put Denard's career numbers against M's career leaders. Robinson needs to average about 351 yards and 4 TDs per game the rest of his career to best Henne (unlikely) but 131 yards and 1.5 TDs be our best rusher ever. This is the first time I believe I've seen "Tacopants" referenced as a last name, kind of like how MaGuyver's first name finally came out in his 7th (and final) season. Both of those links are quick reads and worth it.

Not as worth it: the new hockeybear:

In the deep, frozen reaches of space there is a hockey puck. This puck electrifies and floats into the deleted hockey scene from A Scanner Darkly. Meanwhile a polar bear puts on a glove and transforms into a Power Ranger. Summoning his hockey stick from the ice planet of Hoth, Hockeybear stands atop the hockey puck, roars, electrifies, and cuts to a Science Channel special on volcanoes. Its most redeeming feature is the summoned hockey stick destroying the International Space Station while en route to Hockeybear, which (the destroying) is either the sole remaining nod to Hockeybear's ship-, world-, and Michigan's rivals-annihilating ways, or an important public service message about collateral damage when summoning objects through space (Voltron, Silverhawks et al. take heed!).

Michigan makes its final CCHA trip to Alaska-Fairbanks this weekend. Preview? Yesman2221 has you covered.

In etc. Eye of the Tiger examines the SEC Myth for cracks. See if you can guess which two of these three outstanding names are 2013 recruits that Ace interviewed:

Logan Tuley-Tillman • Ladynasty Galette • Jake Butt

And this link is 100% OT but did anyone else with a "Kovacs, Michigan" Google Alert feed accidentally end up reading the most Daily article ever this week?

Jump, weeklies, best of the board.

This Week in Things That Are Weekly (Final 2011 edition):

I forgot to put Lordfoul's 'Hoke for Tomorrow' in last week's so he gets the lead. He also gets the lead for being my favorite new weekly diary this year.

Then, after Gibbons nailed his career long, that point was just sitting there, ready to tear out our hearts again and leave us clutching our dreams as the turned to ashes.  It seemed predestined.  But the gods had mercy on Michigan fans everywhere, and did not allow the zebras their triumph.

And lo, the highlight package from 2003 was laid to rest for all eternity.  May we never be forced to view them again during The Game.

ST3 found good things inside the box score and out. His piece has been growing all year and is like wow at the offensive numbers Michigan put up: 277 rushing, 444 yards, 23 first downs. He also notes the defensive captainship will probably be in good hands with Kovacs.

You are so already reading mfan_in_ohio's rooting guide for BCS standings. He wants you to root for Michigan State but please trust me when I say that rooting for them while Dantonio is still there is something you will regret much more than missing out on the Sugar Bowl.

Bowl projections by oriental andrew is in almost perfect agreement until they get to the Minekitty Car Care Bowl of Texas Which Used to Be the Houston Bowl but Not the Bluebonnet Bowl Although it Kind of Replaced the Bluebonnet Bowl, and is Not to Be Confused with the Old Neineke Care Bear Bowl of Charlotte which was the Incontinental Tire Bowl and is Now the Blech Bowl. Sometime this month I plan to Museday my thoughts on what to call bowls who sell out their names for less than Terrelle Pryor made at Ohio State but the short advice is if it didn't have that name before 1990 use the city (for multi-bowl towns, the second one is [City] II, etc.) Anyone out there who wants to submit sponsorless bowl logos gets a points bump.

In case you've been skipping Enjoy Life's turnover analysis, now's your opportunity to catch up, and to understand the "expected points" section. Final 2011 chart:

And of course Maize_in_Spartyland's Upset Watch is sure to to have Wisconsin over … wait, honoring our servicemen and women? Is this a valid excuse?

Best of the Board

LET'S GIF THE TUCK OUT OF THE GAME!

We've got Lloyd Brady as Ringo, a post of epic Chunkums glory, and Denard, Brady Hoke, and Brady Hoke's pet viking accompanying the president.

Also giffed is OSU's safeties skipping the part about breaking up the pass and going right to the chest bump, while Odoms be like "I'll just be in the endzone fellas."

PICK YOUR PLAYOFF

A thread by gajensen has some interesting ideas shared by the board, going from 4 teams in the current bowls to 32 teams and FCS inclusion.

WHO CAN MEET THE DOUCHIEST BUCKEYE FAN CHALLENGE 2011

Last week we paid tribute to all the really classy Nebraska fans we met at the game. This week strangely there is no such thread, but there's one about the bad. Wendy's story:

Ten minutes ago, my son came home from school with his friend, who is an OSU fan. He's never been to a game, and no one in his family went there, but they're from OH, so yada, yada, yada. Anyway, I'm on MgoBlog and he sees the screen and says, "Oh, MgoBlow." Now, if I had been a dad, and not a nice mom who has to interact with his mom, I would have said, "You're going to say that in my house? YOU'RE GOING TO SAY THAT IN MY HOUSE??? GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!"  But instead, I just said, "We're back. Whaddaya know?" And that kid put his head down and said, "I know."

They read our blog!

THE DIRTY LETTER TO COACH WILCHER

Some people who follow high school football are bile-spewing creepizoids who don't know what a magnet school is. Others are completely mortified when some of their school's fans act like that and do whatever they can to make sure their program is represented well. These threads got a ton of looksies but basically it comes down to there might be a world class asshole out there who might have gone to Catholic Central. I mean other than whoever that guy was on your hockey team in '97-'98 – no, no, it's hockey, I'm over it, but I still…rrrrrrrrrrrh.

In other news about assholes: David Boston is one, is representative of his school.

BULLETING THE REST BECAUSE I'M LAZY AND SO CAN YOU:

• 'How do you feel' about Hoke now, you whiny bastards of last winter?*
• Is there a night game on the 2012 schedule? Again, next year's home schedule is Air Force, UMass, Illinois, MSU, Northwestern, Iowa. DB said no but he's also a (-n extraordinarily competent) sociopath when it comes to these things so a 2 a.m. on Tuesday matchup versus Air Force where every player is in an F-15 is >1% happening.
• That Sparty we like with the melon-capped kitty pic recaps the year that was in the B1G and asks if we're happy with divisional life so far. We all like this guy but c'mon: MSU game is now functionally more important to Michigan than Ohio State, Indiana-MSU is an annual rivalry, the divisions have stupid corporate poster names that only State fans find preferable to the obvious names, and the divisional championship rules mean MSU's 2-loss team is going to Indianapolis instead of the 2-loss team who lost to better teams.** OFFUCKING COURSE you're happy.
• The Game is still more important than an intra-podunk-state SEC rivalry that nobody cares about except when they're good: True.
• You didn't imagine this. It actually happened. NCAA says so! The WMU game is back in the record books. Denard stat-heads and Brandon Herron's family members can rejoice.
• Turn the Big House Red for a Day? NHL considering Michigan Stadium for a night game. If they play the Blues I'm going to be very confused. I was all for this years ago but how can the Red Wings beat the Big Chill? Plus they play that game on Jan 1 and until the Hoke machine has Michigan playing a week later, that date is booked.
• Seatfiller was a Hoax: Read Orson Swindle's epic email uncover of the great perpetrators. We've got mud on our faces too.
• All Hail JT Floyd: He saved the day.

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* Says the whiny bastard who went with a "Like a Rolling Stone" theme for the Hoke hire.

** I am not at all saying Michigan should go. You won, you deserve it. I just mean that other legit BCS games (read: ND) should matter, both because it would encourage teams to schedule more BCS opponents, and because those games are relevant information that would be useful. I should mention that under the old rules MSU would already have ticket to Pasadena, and they played all the big teams but Penn State to get there so maybe not so happy?