Dear Diary Wishes There Were Roses Comment Count

Seth

Hokerb1.jpghokerb2.jpghokerb3.jpgA very happy Brady Hoke prepares to talk to members of the media following his introductory press conference as Michigan's new head football coach, Wednesday afternoon, January 12th at UM's Junge Family Champion's Center.<br />
Lon Horwedel | AnnArbor.com

      What's that?    | A starting tailback? |           For me?            |       You guys!      

Hey coach, they say it's your birthday. Brady Hoke yesterday turned a chipper 53. Born in 1958 in Dayton, Ohio, to a father who played along side Bo, from an early age Brady reportedly called for his bottle by raising a fist from his crib and crying "hail!" Other than that one running back he's always wanted, Brady gets the undying love and devotion of the Michigan fanbase, until such time as he loses to Ohio State, which cannot happen because Ohio State no longer exists. We'll come back to the board but first, diaries:Perry, Woodson and Woods with roses

The Mathlete's Mid-Week Metrics are all official now but this greatest diarist of all time can still put up a Diary of the Week on the side to weight the chances of various Big Ten Championship hopefuls. Michigan's less than a 10 to 1; we're rooting for MSU to lose out while the Spartans want Michigan to win out. Yeah, that's about as screwed up as dreaming about going to Indianapolis. Remember when you could beat Ohio State, stick a rose in your teeth, and book a flight to Pasadena? That will never happen again. Because Ohio State doesn't exist anymore.

The title was also the topic of some chalk talk on the boards by jamiemac. WINEx did something similar with the BCS.

BlueSeoul had another great Game Wrap, though I could have done without the characterization of Hoke and co. as a return to Lloydball:

And then I realized, it's not about da shoes.  The thing that changed was me.  I'm ready to go back to 9-3 season's again.  I'm willing to tolerate 8-4 years if they're balanced with 10-2.  I might even be able to stomach the very infrequent 7-5 year if it's offset with a couple 11-1's and 12-0's.  And I don't need last second comeback drives against Indiana to be entertained.  Saturday's stomping of Purdue was boring, and entertaining, and filled with more satisfaction than I've felt in years.

Let's not confuse late Carr and RR-era Grouchy Carr with three decades of Carr the D.C. and Carr the H.C. who put many roses in many Michigan mouths. He didn't break chairs and splatter goats in visitor's locker rooms after losses but this idea that Carr was not intense and hell-bent on winning championships needs to die. Also needs to die: Interceptions:

turnovers

That's from turnover analysis by Enjoy Life. Michigan has thrown 12 INTs and picked off six. Fortunately the arm punts don't hurt so much EJ explains. When ST3 went inside the box score, he pointed at Avery's pick as the play of the game.

Maize_in_spartyland handed out 3rd quarter grades across the Big Ten. They're starting to sound like Michigan 2009-ish:Iowa-wide

Iowa needs one more win to be bowl eligible, and they missed the potential to do that last weekend, with a loss to lowly Minnesota. Iowa finishes up with Michigan and Michigan State visiting Iowa City and visits to Purdue and Nebraska.

Iowa's still technically in the hunt for the Bo Division title, but they're also one bad trip to West Lafayette and three losses to Top 15 opponents away from their season ending in November. The pic above is Blue Indy's 'Marvel'ous wallpaper.

Recruiting is a thing again. Ace provides the weekly class rankings that haven't changed but for two JUCOs to Minnesota and Purdue. A scouting report on 2013 OLB prospect E.J. Levenberry was posted by austinte and bumped. The Virginia linebacker has a 5-star's offer sheet and is probably a WLB to Michigan. There's plenty of room available for this year's guys, finds airvipermb.

Etc.

Google has to be wondering what's up with stubob and the weekly pony image searches for Ugly Game of the Week. The guy probably can't type 'p' into his search box without "pretty prancing ponies" filling in. MiS's Upset Watch shows Michigan 7-1 against the spread this year but Iowa is 5-0 at home ATS this year and Ferentz is usually a good home dog, dammit. Yesman2221 previews WMU in hockey. Chris of Etc. moved the picture pages. Get your program.

Coming up, you were not imagining the imaginary Woodsons; they are everywhere. Also: Craig Roh dressed as a shepherd and Mike Martin's Smashing Pumpkins.

Best of the Board

WHAT MAKES PEOPLE IN HOSPITALS FEEL BETTER? MORE WOODSON!

When I had my operation as a kid I swore I saw Desmond Howard walk in and congratulate me for getting a Nintendo. People thought I was crazy or coming down from the anesthetic but LOOK MA, HEISMAN APPARITIONS DO WALK AROUND HOSPITALS! M-Wolverine passed on a report on a Mott app that makes Woodsons appear. Woodsons yo! The newly en-iPadded basketball team is so already there.

THEY'RE CUTE WHEN YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO BLOCK THEM

rohbabymartin

MGoBlue found pics of some of the current players in their childhood Halloween costumes. Mike Martin is all HULK SMASH on a pumpkin but is missing his keys when it comes to identifying Little Roh: "those eyebrows man, I didn't key into those eyebrows." Thanks to ILwolverine who posted it so fast I had to delete my own thread. Bonus: WLA can haz a new hero in Comrade Fitzgerald, the People's Devil!

jbfitzgerald

Speaking of costumes, will the parents of this child please come forward and claim your prize for awesomeist kid ever:

her favourite costume was a kid who was dressed up as a Denard.  He had the entire outfit including a helmet with dreads coming out and when he got the candy he got down on one knee like denard does when scores a touchdow

I feel sorry for the kids who came after the neighbors invariably emptied their entire bowl of Snickers into Tebow'ing Denard's pillowcase. He probably got all the UNICEF pennies too (do people still do that?)

In other costume wear, UMAmaizinBlue learned Koger's going as Mr. T and got a thread going as to suggestions for the rest of the guys. Also in the clothing department, A2Fan noticed the team changed shoes mid-way through the Purdue game. The UTL jerseys and the Bzzzz unis for MSU (HT: unWavering) are winning and losing, respectively, an ESPN poll. And soupsnake says Mammals, not Mammaries when it comes to how you dress on your avatar. I can't talk; I'm a hat.

BIG RON AND THE NOODLE SHOW

It's hard to get up the hate for Iowa when I love their bloggers. Here's a podcast that for a few minutes I wasn't sure wasn't an actual call-in to sports talk radio. It's probably more obvious to someone not in a listening radius of Valenti and co.

RATHER HAVE ROSES

There was a question from bama blue about the relative value of a Big Ten Championship Game versus an almost automatic BCS berth for a hypothetical 11-1 Michigan team. The board is pretty unanimous in "yes I want to go to Indy because that means MSU lost!"

WHAT IS WRONG WITH EVERYBODY?

dealwithit-seinfeld

You don't want to know. Kids drink too much, old people are too old and old and stuff, and what's the deal with Finger Guns?

Comments

Undefeated dre…

November 4th, 2011 at 11:04 AM ^

We moved to the Columbus-area last year, and keeping my kids in the spirit of the Blue is mission #1.

Anyhow, in school they're doing an exercise on common nouns and proper nouns. Worksheet lists out a common noun (e.g. city) and the student has to list a proper noun (e.g. Ann Arbor). So one of the common nouns is 'athlete', and my dear old daughter is precocious enough to write 'Denard Robinson'. Thank you, Denard!

Go Blue!

freernnur5

November 4th, 2011 at 11:11 AM ^

I prefer to call it Denarding

I feel sorry for the kids who came after the neighbors invariably emptied their entire bowl of Snickers into Tebow'ing Denard's pillowcase. He probably got all the UNICEF pennies too (do people still do that?)

 

M-Wolverine

November 4th, 2011 at 11:23 AM ^

Creative playcalling, the kind of EA Sports stuff fans always wish for in jest, but are actually getting.  And a big win with lots of points featuring no more or less running than a QB running spread would do.  And we were tearing off some big runs, not just 3 yards and a cloud of dust. That game might have been like "old Michigan" in results, but I'm not sure it was in style at all. We ran a lot, but frankly with a West Coast guy, we're probably headed to what people always used to ask for...which was more passing than running ("to set up", as it were). Rich ran more of a running team than we will now (something I liked, that it was a spread leaning towards the run).

I'm not sure BlueSeoul was taking about coaching expectations as much as tempering fan expectations, but you're right.  People shouldn't make philosophical distinctions desire distinctions.  It can certainly be argued that be overly conservative was not the best way to win games (or big games), but it wasn't because of some "settling" for less. Lloyd certainly believed that was the best way to win games, and as many as possible. Frankly, offensively, in 1997 it was sound strategy. Playing Tennessee in a bowl game? Not so much. But much like no on disliked 3-9 as much as Rich, no one disliked 7-5 as much as Lloyd, and the staff and players.

Wolverine vs. Hawkeye made my day.  That's why this post is so valuable. Sometimes you just miss stuff.

And while I'm not going to Vegas, Iowa is more than "in" the Bo race. They're technically the only other team than Nebraska who controls their own destiny in the division.

I'm glad someone else got a kick out of virtual Woodson. That one died on the vine.  And when I saw the Halloween segment on Inside Michigan Football this week it became the frontrunner for MGoBlue.com segment of the year.

jmblue

November 4th, 2011 at 12:48 PM ^

Well technically, we could still beat OSU to go to the Rose Bowl, but it will have to be in Indianapolis.  It'll never happen again in Ann Arbor, which is sad.

M-Wolverine

November 4th, 2011 at 3:54 PM ^

at home venues, no one will ever play anybody for a Rose Bowl birth at home.  Not just the last home game even (because there have been times the Rose Bowl has been clinched before the last game). That's just having a championship game.  The money won out, but the lament is hardly specific to Michigan-OSU. But never pulling out a rose at Michigan Stadium is sad. That's "progress", I guess.