Get Out Of My Cab
Warning: post rated PG-13 for f-bomb drop.
11/6/2009 – Michigan 1, Miami 3 – 4-3, 2-1 CCHA
11/7/2009 – Michigan 36, Purdue 38 - 5-5, 1-4 Big Ten
11/7/2009 – Michigan 1, Miami 5 – 4-4, 2-2 CCHA
In the aftermath of The Horror, my coping strategy was to shut off the blog—which was then still on Blogger and subject to the chaos of Haloscan's free-for-all—to avoid any emo suicides and watch The Big Lebowski. (Kittens would show up Monday.) Yes, I am one of those annoying people who thinks The Big Lebowski is the pinnacle achievement of western civilization. I haven't gone to a bowling alley dressed up like Saddam Hussein or the police chief of Malibu, at least.
I didn't do this for any reason related to football. I just like the movie. It makes me laugh to beat the band. I'd never thought there was any sort of overarching philosophy in the movie worth starting a religion over. I was in a mood to reflect on the underpinnings of my life, though.
As the movie unfolded I belatedly realized—or maybe it just seemed way more relevant given my mental state—that the Dude is a spectator throughout. At no point in the movie does the Dude actually take an action without being badgered into it by Walter.* Even the cabbie who likes the Eagles ends up taking a decisive action at the expense of our hero. By the end of the thing, Lebowski's rug is gone, apartment destroyed, car burned to a crisp, and friend dead because an inexplicable series of events he had almost nothing to do with.
My girlfriend says that the reason there is not an academic paper about the Dude's shocking lack of "agency," as the smart kids say, is that it is "too obvious to be interesting." So, too, are the parallels to Michigan fandom**.
I didn't intentionally configure my hair to match the Dude but it does and goddamn if big, incompetent misery factory Walter isn't a good stand-in for Michigan athletics at the moment:
(Sorry about the Turkish(?) subtitles. Woo inadvisable copyright claims.)
"Everything's such fucking travesty with you" was my weekend.
I'm worn out after the last two weeks of football and the fiasco at Yost this weekend; when Miami scored to make it 4-1 with maybe 15 minutes left in the third period I reached a breaking point and just left. Other scenes from earlier this week: some guy tells me not to swear so much in front of his kids at the Friday Miami game, I get in a verbal fight with some guy who wants Rodriguez fired and is complaining about Tate Forcier, cousin of mine gets in separate verbal fight after the game when a different guy is yelling "you suck" at Forcier as he runs off the field, and an adorable child in the row behind me at the Saturday Miami game screams "Mich-i-GAN" the whole game—which was cute the first 50 times.
I've got no real analysis of either team other than they're both worse than I thought. I'm burning out after two years of almost unrelenting misery, and looking forward to football season being over for the third straight year. I mean, when Michigan was down to Purdue in the second half, some fan ten or twenty rows behind me kept shouting "they've got no heart" over and over again as the guy in the row in front of me called for Rodriguez's firing. Having a conversation about Michigan football right now is trying to remember that episode of GI Joe where Destro finds a secret ninja manual in a volcano*** that allows him to kill people with precisely-applied touches: if you can just remember where the red dots are you can spare everyone a lot of pain.
I'll address the question I've gotten in a thousand different forms the past couple weeks—"when can we fire this guy?"—in a separate post. It's been that kind of era.
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*(The movie opens with a couple guys peeing on his rug because someone else's wife owes money to Jackie Treehorn. The Big Lebowski directs him to make a ransom drop. Walter screws up the drop despite the Dude screaming at Walter not to screw it up. Walter leads the Bay of Pigs invasion of Larry Sellers's home. Jackie Treehorn invites him to his beach party, so he goes. Maude directs him to show up at her place and directs him to sleep with her—"love me". When the nihilists confront the dude for his three dollars, Walter re-enacts Hill 368 as Lebowski attempts to throw money at Amie Mann's boyfriend.
About the only action Lebowski takes in the movie is telling Brandt that he can have a rug.)
**(Freudian slip: spelled that "fandoom.")
***(This may not be the right character, or even the right cartoon.)
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BULLETS
- I wonder if the gameplan on offense was specifically designed to piss Joe Tiller off. Probably not. But dang Roundtree is going hold onto his spot in the lineup when Odoms gets back. He is a Purdue wideout in all ways: physically limited but precise, fearless over the middle, and a guy the quarterback clearly trusts.
- Mouton got pulled for JB Fitzgerald after his (-3, cover –3) on Purdue's first drive but re-entered in the second half; Leach got yanked for Obi Ezeh late, too. So much for the hope that either of the two backups could prove clearly superior to the guys who started the season.
- Carlos Brown had one carry. Injured? Or doghouse after Illinois? Not that I mind: Minor is clearly superior when healthy.
- Omameh played RG the whole game and Dorrestein never came in. If guys like Brown and Dorrestein aren't even on the injury report, why bother having one? Not even "probable"?
- Related: it was really frustrating how many times it seemed that Purdue's offensive line had gotten blown back and Bolden would pop through a hole after taking a circuitous route around a mess. I bet there are some major minuses for the LB corps on the UFR.
- That damn rollout play was shades of the Toledo game. Surely there's an adjustment that can be made there, isn't there?
- Warren doesn't seem good enough to go to the NFL this year anymore. He was mostly a spectator as Purdue complete a ton of routes in front of him.
- With Banks out, Sagesse slid over to act as RVB's backup and Campbell got 20-30 snaps as Martin's backup. He seemed to do a little better.
- I would have gone for it on fourth and ten, too. Michigan had one, maybe two more possessions and needed eight points. Kicking a field goal there only helps you if you get the ball back and score a touchdown, events that seemed unlikely given the defense's performance to that point. It think it's a close decision because it was long yardage and a field goal is a defensible option, but I would have gone for it. That's a real gray area.
- I did have a problem with how much time Michigan took on their final touchdown drive. Scenarios there in the event of a touchdown:
You get two: If you hurried up, Purdue has three or so minutes on the block. If you didn't, Purdue has two. Either way they have an opportunity to drive for the win; the minute there doesn't make a big difference.
You don't get two: If you don't hurry, you've got one timeout and two minutes left and have to try an onside kick and get the ball back with 30 seconds when that fails. If you do, you can kick it deep and hypothetically get the ball back with 1:30 needing only a field goal.
Michigan should have been in jet tempo on the final series, and should have thought about throwing for the touchdown instead of running for it.
- Michigan breaks out the triple option—though I bet the dive is not a read yet—for the first time all year and gets a negative play and a crippling fumble out of it. Two initial thoughts: how is that fair when we haven't run that in the history of Rich Rodriguez, and if Purdue can defend it why the hell can't we?
- The Higgs boson theory from the Purdue preview might be publishable after Michigan lost to Purdue because the kicker missed an extra point in the same game he hit a 51-yard field goal.
ELSEWHERE
Danny Hope introduced Rich Rodriguez to Zack Reckman, the Purdue lineman who got suspended in the wake of the Jonas Mouton Suspension fiasco, in a pissy drama that promises to make future Purdue games more interesting. MVictors has the relevant audio clip from the post-game press conference where Rodriguez complains about the incident.
Obligatory "take" I will bring strong: short of slapping yourself, press conferences don't matter. People use them to support/hate a coach they already support or hate because of on-field events. Nothing from Rodriguez's press conferences has ever made me think he was more likely to succeed or fail at Michigan. It is just talking, and that's a skill that a lot of coaches don't have.
As for the act itself: bush league, but I like bush league. It makes things spicy.
MVictors also reproduces an interesting statement from the officials who did the game about what went down on the crazy Carlos Brown lateral review:
What was the interpretation on the fourth down review with the forward lateral? What was it that the replay official saw?
TODD GEERLINGS: “The replay official saw that the ball, when it left his hand to the point where it touched the receiver’s hand, was clearly forward from the 13 to the 12 yard line. That’s why we had an illegal forward pass from the spot of that pass.”
Who called for the review?
GEERLINGS: “The booth called for the review and I announced that on the field prior to. The coaches on the field were trying to but Purdue did not have a challenge left so they couldn’t have. They were trying to but just as I got the buzz on the pager, I just turned to Purdue and said ‘We got it’ but I think people thought they had challenged it. They were trying to, but they did not.”
This is great. I haven't seen it on tape yet but given the lack of bitching it's probably the right call, and having some clear explanations for what happened in the heat of a critical moment is a much better way to go about defusing potential controversy's than the SEC ham-handed—nay—Delany-esque handling of its ongoing and never-ending refereeing fiascoes.
There's a press conference torrent, too.
Only part I disagreed with in that whole post was 4th and 10. Yep, the defense sucks but you're down 8 points and you need two scores (you simply cannot count on the 2 point conversion). You take the points you're given.
This is my only complaint with Rich Rod. This is at least the third time this year (no I don't remember specific incidents) that he was within field goal range and came away with nothing because of a bad decision. Take the points you're given!
Idk how often this gets said, but Brain you are the man!
"I made cookies for 3, not 5!"
Batman: The Animated Series
epic show
GI Joe is pretty sweet, too, though
That's right, Dude. 100% certain.
"Other scenes from earlier this week...an adorable child in the row behind me at the Saturday Miami game screams "Mich-i-GAN" the whole game—which was cute the first 50 times."
Let me tell ya, Brian, it wasn't fun having to listen to the Miami students next to us in Section 2. "Go MIAMI!" seemingly every minute, cheers that were very original (if this were Yost circa 1991), getting hyped up about line changes and Reichard covering the puck, and not a damn thing that Michigan could do on the ice to shut them up.
I have come to find that their are two main groups in the Michigan fanbase at this time. Their is the group that loves Bo and Lloyd and want RichRod gone because he is not a traditional "Michigan Man" in their eyes. Then their is the rational fans who understand that Rich Rod needs more time and are willing to wait for him to build the team. Sadly their is going to be a lot of turmoil between these groups until either Michigan wins or Rich Rod is fired.
YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU FIND A STRANGER IN THE ALPS?
[redacted because the Reckman situation has gotten adequate attention on the boards]
ive been reading this blog for over a year now, and i havent seen an entry as despondent as the one today.
lloyd was better.
i dunno, more i think about it, third year is the year to judge
Last year:
Offense was a D
Defense was a C-
This year the offense is a B-/C+
Defense is a C-
I feel we're keeping on par or a little better with young guys and a new coordinator on D than we did with last year. That means we should expect a C+/B- or better defense next year and a B/B+ offense. but this year's team had too many flaws that were swept under the rug by 4-0 and then pissed on by a Chinamen (or the more preferred nomenclature Asian American, regardless on if he helped build the railroad).
part of me is just hoping this week's game is delayed for the fact too many players on Michigan are shomrei Shabbat and wish to properly observe the Shabbat.
Then I'd say for ranking among Big Ten teams: 1st/2nd = A, 3rd/4th = B, 5th-7th = C, 8th/9th = D, 10th/11th = F.
Last year was #8 scoring offense, #10 total offense, #10 scoring defense, #10 total defense. D for offense, F for defense.
This year so far is #6 scoring offense, #9 total offense, #11 scoring defense, #11 total defense. C- for offense, F for defense.
With two of the better defenses (#4, #1) in the conference yet to be played, and only one good offense (#1, #8) between Wisc/OSU, the defense rank might move up a bit and the offense rank might move down, by the end of the season.
Brian,
The show you are thinking of is Batman: The Animated Series. He fought the ninja on the exploding volcano.
And I don't no whether I should be grateful for helping me remember or shameful for knowing. I'll probably go with shame. It kinda fits lately.
...I have shown him...a man without hope...is a man without fear...
what you did there is impressive. demented and sad, but impressive.
I played golf Sunday with two Domers in the foursome. Their disgust with the Navy loss and resulting no BCS bowl game helped me mentally process our loss and it's implications. I was raised to "never take joy in someone else's sorrow" but in this case, it made me feel a whole lot better.
All In Worldwide
RR needs to stop trying to balance his playcalling against bad teams. Just run Minor up the middle and throw it to the slot (Roundtree/Odams) and sprinkle in a few run/pass rollouts to Matthews and sometimes Koger all game. Purdue is soft like M up the middle. Our defense is too bad to expect that they'll stop any offense. We just need to make sure we score on every possession we get. At least turnovers haven't been as bad as the last few games.
This game is like a microcosm of the season. You think with such a fast start that there's little chance of screwing it up in the end...
That onside kick was a fantastic call for Purdue.
As time has gone on, Kubler-Ross models of the five stages of grief have shown that the harder someone fights against acceptance, the longer they will stay in the Denial stage. I think right now you have a fan base that is in any number of the five stages. Some are in Denial (this would be the blindly loyal RR crowd), some are in Anger (which would be many, many, many fans), some are in Bargaining (OK, if we can just beat Wisconsin, we can still go to a bowl. That will work. That will work. We're playing two walk-ons on defense, it's still good, it's still good.) Some are in Depression (yo! I just stood there arms crossed for most of the third quarter, I couldn't even get mad. I was just sad. So sad.) and some are in acceptance (this is not a very good football team right now.)
The problem is, we cannot understand, from where we're standing, why other people have moved on, or haven't moved on. We can't do anything about it (as Brian said) and we're left to stand and watch as it happens.
The imperfection in the Kubler-Ross model is that not everyone goes through the stages. There's no evidence to suggest that they are as universal as we would care to believe. If this is the case, then we need new models for understanding grief, or failing that, we must realize that we are each mourning for our team in our own way, and while it may not make us happy, we genuinely believe that what we are doing is helping, if only ourselves. So, I guess what I am saying is, have a little patience with some fans who have not yet made it to where you are, because they're dealing with some stuff.
Craig Barker || The Hoover Street Rag || Twitter
"The Michigan fanbase: a cynical, Eeyorish bunch even in the best of times."--Doug Gillett
It's just a little wet, it's still good, it's still good!
It's just a little airborne, it's still good it's still good!
"Gentlemen, this is a football."
- Vince Lombardi
gazpacho for everyone!
- one medium onion, chopped
- two tablespoons of vegetable oil
- one clove of garlic, crushed
- one cup of carrots, chopped
- two sticks of celery, chopped
- half a cup of lentils
- one bay leaf
- one tablespoon of freshly-chopped parsley
- salt and freshly-ground pepper to taste
- two and a quarter cups of vegetable stock or water
(Sorry, just had to take this to its logical conclusion.)
Craig Barker || The Hoover Street Rag || Twitter
"The Michigan fanbase: a cynical, Eeyorish bunch even in the best of times."--Doug Gillett
"Tate misses a ton of reads in the zone read scheme." No kidding! He also seemed hesitant about when to scramble rather than continuing to look to pass. Not sure if that's due to all the physical punishment he's been taking.
My biggest issue with the play calling was the 2-point conversion. That needs to be a roll out with a run - pass option. Can't allow Purdue's only studd defender, Kerrigan, to bull rush and disrupt the entire play.
lager86
After the Oregon fiasco, and with even greater vehemence after losing in similar ugly fashion to Iowa later in the season. WTKA's airwaves were filled with indignant A2 Torch & Pitchfork customers declaring that losing to Oregon was "unacceptable" because we get "top five recruiting classes every year."
When I heard Debord's name being bandied about as the supposed candidate of some people close to the AD, my reaction was basically "say goodbye to the bowl streak and BCS relevance if he's hired." Life is ironic as hell. And no, I'm not saying MD should have ever gotten more than perfunctory consideration. It's just that life has a habit of throwing big monkey wrenches into well-crafted expectations.
This guy was a few seats down in my row, but sadly didn't even win the coveted Most Annoying Person in My Immediate Vicinity Award. The overwhelmingly winners were the couple behind me. At half time (when things were still going relatively well), I informed the limited universe of my Facebook friends that this couple were douchebags and represented the worst of Michigan fandom. To that point, they'd spend most of the half complaining about the yardage total and telling me and my friend to sit down. The man was also trying to provide Warren with coverage advice regarding the large cushion (which I also hate, but can live with, especially given the safety play over the last 5 years). Immediately following the fumble early in the third, they announced that the game was shaping up just like the Illinois game, which, although the outcome was vaguely similar, wasn't remotely true. For me, the no-heart guy was just gravy on the shit-turkey that the people behind were already serving. At the end of the game, I actually noticed Brian down front engaging someone behind him in somewhat heated conversation. Is section 44 particularly bad?
After nine years of undergrad and grad school with student tickets, I've managed to make it back to Ann Arbor for one game each year for the past five and I can't get used to sitting with "adults." Does the irritation ever pass? Do I turn into one of these people? Can I get a shirt that says "I Will Not Be Seated!" on the back?
If even a small portion of the petulant, whiny, "down-in-front" crowd gives up its tickets in indignant outrage over the unacceptable nature of the current team, that will be a blessing long-term.
i see it playing out thusly:
[scene begins with MGoUsers reviewing MGoBlog archives]
Brian: So what does it say? Brian has an attachment disorder? Fear of abandonment? Is that why I left the Miami game early?
MGoUsers: Didn't know you had. Wanna talk about it?
[Brian shakes his head, stares off]
MGoUsers: Brian, you see this, all this shit?
[Holds up print-outs of the last 6 UFRs]
MGoUsers: It's not your fault.
Brian: [Softly, still staring off] I know...
MGoUsers: No you don't. It's not your fault.
Brian: [Serious] I know.
MGoUsers: No. Listen to me son. It's not your fault.
Brian: I know that.
MGoUsers: It's not your fault.
[Brian is silent, eyes closed]
MGoUsers: It's not your fault.
Brian: [Brian's eyes open, misty already] Don't fuck with me MGoUsers. Not you.
MGoUsers: It's not your fault.
[Brian shoves MGoUsers back, and then, hands trembling, buries his face in his hands. Brian begins sobbing. MGoUsers puts his hands on Brian's shoulders, and Brian grabs him and holds him close, crying]
Brian: Oh my God! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry MGoUsers!
[Brian continues sobbing in MGoUsers's arms]
"Real n*gg*z do real things." -Braylon Edwards
about a football team.
is this implying Brian goes West and starts up a pro-Harbaugh GoCardinalBlog.com after driving cross-country in the car that his friends in Schembechler Hall bought him?
The game wasn't fun...but I have to admit that I've spent all weekend contemplating that damn Higgs Boson theory. It's far more compelling than any football.
Many thanks to Mgoblog for tossing that intellectual bone out there.
E-mailed Brian on this, but I'd like to get it out there on this thread.
Brian:
"Michigan breaks out the triple option—though I bet the dive is not a read yet—for the first time all year and gets a negative play and a crippling fumble out of it. Two initial thoughts: how is that fair when we haven't run that in the history of Rich Rodriguez, and if Purdue can defend it why the hell can't we?"
Purdue can defend it b/c the QB missed the read. Both times the DE was shuffling, not crashing. Tate should've handed it off on the dive both times. Tate misses a ton of reads in the zone read scheme, and these times were no different. We can't defend it b/c our defenders aren't sound in their assignments (e.g. Mike Williams trying to guess give or keep when he should simply take the QB as he was assigned). So, whether it's us on offense or us on defense, the simple matter is that we aren't doing what we're coached to do and the opponent is.
During my nine seasons at Milford, we always ran option. From 2000-2001, we ran a Paul Johnson-type offense w/inside veer (traditional triple), midline, speed, zone (not the same as spread zone read), trap/freeze, and G option. From 2002-2004, we were wing-T, but we still ran triple, midline, and G options. From 2005-2008 we ran the spread and had the zone read triple.
It doesn't make a difference what option it is, if you miss the first read (the give/pull) then bad things happen, especially if the QB pulls when he should've given. If the QB gives when he should've pulled, the dive gets tackled for no gain. If the QB pulls when he should've given, a negative yardage play is the best result. And then if the QB compounds this error by pitching off a defender who is not the pitch key, then that pitch key is free to attack the pitch player, with a turnover the not just possible but likely outcome.
When we were filing out and an older fan compared him to Gerry Faust, well, I took issue. A simple "Did Gerry Faust have anything like Rodriguez's track record?" turned off his 'complain' button.
Wanting something to be true does not make it true.
There are some deluded folks out there. He actually compared a guy whose only previous experience was as a high school coach, with a guy who coached bowl wins over Georgia, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma.
But Gerry Faust was a really nice guy, about whom no one had anything negative to say. He was big on "Family Values".
One of these clouds must have a Maize and Blue lining ...
to house a team like Purdue or Illinois.
We all know and expect some poor OL execution, a fumble and an INT from the freshmen QBs. That's just par.
But when I think about Wisconsin and Ohio State, I see two teams that aren't flashy in the passing game, but just wear opponents down to the ground with their OL and running game.
Michigan's defense can't stop this, nor the big plays on 3rd down. Ever.
Defensively Ohio State is the best team in the conference right now and Wisconsin, though it has demonstrated mental issues at times, has done just enough to overcome them to win key games.
It would be different if we saw Michigan starting out games by playing like crap but then gradually playing like a better team toward game's end. Over the last 5 losses, we've all observed the opposite:
Reasonably solid start followed by team disintegration that one could clock with an egg timer. Ironically, the disintegration usually starts with a turnover or execution error on offense, placing the defense on the field when they're already tired as hell. And so begins the snowball effect.
Markusr2007
http://www.maizenbrew.com/
That's mostly true. I do think that Wisconsin will just beat UM down over the course of the game, but if UM can get ahead a bit I think it puts some pressure on Wiscy to throw the ball and, who knows, maybe an INT. OSU will be a bear on defense, but Pryor and Co. do seem to struggle on offense more than the final scores then to show. Even against PSU, most of the scoring was on short fields or from a broken play.
The reason I have hope this week is that this defense is not really equipped to handle the spread-style offenses run by Illinois, Purdue, and even PSU. Because the LBs cannot tackle in space and everyone no named Warren cannot stay with his man on pass routes, the ninja hand-offs and short passing attacks are just murder. But against more "traditional" pro-style offenses like Iowa and MSU that like to run the ball from more traditional sets, UM has been reasonably competent at slowing them down (under 100 yards versus Iowa, and about 120 yards versus MSU if you throw out the Cousins scrambles). Of course, Clay and Wiscy are far better than either of these teams at running the ball, but at least UM has shown some ability to keep these types of running offenses in check. That might just mean Wiscy starts lobbing it down the field, but that really isn't their style and they might not be comfortable going to that well at least early on.
Now, this is probably all just my rationalization, but I honestly think UM will look better next week against Wiscy than people expect. Not saying it leads to a win, but you never know.
If we fire Rodriguez, can we also fire half the fan base?
Because when a serious amount of the last two recruting classes bolts after we can him, then we'll five five straight classes with deep attrition cuts that are more than twice the attrition rates of the teams we are competing against.
We wont be able to compete for at least a couple more seasons after that.
I just dont want the new coach to get destroyed by these uninformed Jackals who cant brag to their coworkers in the next cubicle over about their precious Michigan as he struggles just to get to .500 his first couple seasons.
Because that's exactly where will be in 2011. We'll be in the same spot, if not farther behind than we are today.
And, the same cry babbies calling for Lloyd's head for years, that are calling for Rodriguez;s head now will be all amped up again.
So, you can sway me with fire Rodriguez words, but only if we can exile half our fans as well. I have a list started of people we can cut.
The Winter Olympics at www.justcoverblog.com
God Bless Your Cotton Pickin' Maize & Blue Hearts
1. Those who love Michigan and will always support our coach, whoever he is.
2. Those who loved Bo/Mo/Lloyd and hate RR, thinking he's slimy b/c he wears modern sunglasses.
3. Those who hated the Bo/Mo/Lloyd style and love RR.
4. Rational, open-minded people who look at facts and all viewpoints before passing judgment.
I'd like to think I'm in group #4, and I'm sorry to say I don't think there are many people in this group, save some of the people in MGoBlogosphere and a few other places.
I liked Lloyd and was fine w/him as our HC, and respected the hell out of him as a leader, not as much as a strategist or tactician. I think I'm beginning to feel the opposite about Rodriguez: I respect the hell out of him as a strategist and tactician, but I'm still undecided about him as a leader.
Again, only if we're on the team in some capacity are we truly in a good place to judge.
I mostly agree, but the problem with comparing Lloyd to RR is that everyone has an incomplete picture of RR due to the relative brevity of his time at UM. Everyone remembers Carr as some great motivator and leader because he was coaching at UM for years, and inherited a reasonably talented team that he kept humming along for virtually his entire tenure. But I never thought of him as a great leader - he was a quiet guy who bristled at the media and wasn't particularly innovative on either side of the field. I still believe that the '97 team won because of Woodson's dominance, Griese's quietly-efficient play, and an underrated defense. I questioned him when he wavered between Henson and Brady, and always felt he was a much better recruiter (except maybe toward the end) than coach. He was a good coach, but I think history will view him as a good steward of the university who didn't really screw up the team but who failed to keep the team on pace with other elite programs.
Now, if RR ultimately wound up having the same record as Carr, then that would be amazing. But right now, it is simply too early to figure out if RR is a good "leader" for this team.
Carr was a very good coach. He averaged nine wins a year at a time when the Big Ten was really one of the better conferences. He won a national championship. I know that some of the players on the championship team were from the Moeller era, but 1997 was his third year and he had been on the staff prior to that; it's not like he had no role in their development.
I think it was time for Lloyd to retire, mainly because Lloyd thought it was time for Lloyd to retire.
I was impressed by the way his teams competed for the most part. I was impressed when they got up off the mat after the Horror and Oregon in 2007 to win their next 8 games, after, frankly, I had written them off.
None of this, by the way, has anything to do with RR. I'm not sure why so many people on this board act as if you can only like one or the other. I like RR and hope he gets 5 years to prove whether or not he can succeed here. I think he will.
By the way, every time I see you post I look at the date you joined and think, "11-22. That's my birthday." Then I think "11-22-2008. Worst birthday ever." You know why.
I guess I have a lower estimation of Carr than others. I thought Carr was a competent coach, but even that 1997 team relied far more on great players than great coaching. I think Carr recruited well, kept the team competitive in the Big 10, and never blew a season. That's fine, I guess.
But at that same time, there was a movement nationally that I feel he missed out on. There was real innovation taking place in places like Florida and USC, in the Big 12 and the SEC. Carr averaged 9 wins a year, but toward the end they were usually against the Big 10, (usually) ND, and whatever MAC teams showed up. Carr aspired to win the Big 10 and play in the Rose Bowl - if he did that, it was a successful season. I'm sure he wanted to win NCs and compete nationally, but where teams employed new systems and recruited different types of players, he seemed to remain focused purely on beating the teams in the Big 10. With his superior talent level compared to every team save OSU and maybe PSU, that was enough. But I watched too many games those last few years where dynamic teams like USC, Texas, and Oregon ran around, over, and through this team. Heck, during my four years at UM the best the team finished was the Orange Bowl win over Alabama, and even that was a mediocre season given who was on that team.
Listen, I respect what Carr did at UM - he maintained a strong tradition of excellence in the Big 10 and kept the program clean. But teams need to constantly evolve; college is no longer based purely on who has the best talent. You have to be willing to accept change, and I think Carr just held on too tight to the ethos that had guided Bo during his run. I'm not saying RR is going to be the answer for this team, but for once it is refreshing to see UM take a chance on something new.
one issue I do have though. You state that you were impressed by the way LC's teams "competed" for the most part. You see... this was exactly the problem.... they "competed" for the most part. LC's teams, outside of 1997, only competed. To me, none of LC's teams were truly National Championship Caliber, 1997 aside.
Maybe I have the issue. My expectation is for Michigan to be National Championship caliber, and not merely to "compete".
There are many people outside of the Michigan family that point to the fact that.... that is exactly what we were known for. We competed, but were NOT National Championship caliber.
I am with you though... I hope RR gets another five years, as I feel that is what it will truly take to dig out of the hole we are currently in.
Remember: Everyone rises to their own level of mediocrity.
Start with the guys who sit behind me.
"I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they choose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas."
- Jack Handey
I think that calling for LCs head and calling for RRs head are two completely different things. I'm not going to lie I was one of the ones who wanted Lloyd Carr gone and i still agree with that to this day and I think that the misopogen diaries prove that he should have been gone years ago.
But yes the people who called for Lloyds head and are now calling for RRs head are idiots. You wanted change well you got it and now you want to go back to the "Michigan Man".
But I wanted Lloyd gone because I felt like we were achieving mediocrity under his tutelage and that we would never get to "the next level"
"A house divided against itself cannot stand"
Kinda ironic considering your tagline, no?
...I have shown him...a man without hope...is a man without fear...
bouje must have hated michigan football during the lc years, just like those questioning rr "hate" michigan football now
lloyd was better.
If you fire the jackals that refuse to acknowledge that Rodriguez has some culpability in this debacle. Cut off the fringes on both ends.
I totally agree. It probably helps not living in Michigan right now, but I remember distinctly people calling for Lloyd's head after the OSU/USC finish in 2006, though it kicked into full gear after the Horror and Oregon. I get that it sucks to lose and it is foreign to most of the fan base, but as fans you have to expect there to be some down times. For some irrational reason, people figure that UM will always win even though the team has no depth on defense and a freshman-laden offense. I still think this team will be back to its winning ways soon, and it would be foolish to give up on RR just because some fair-weather fans can't make fun of their MSU/Big 10 co-workers every Monday.
I can no longer post to the board as I've been shunned but I feel your pain, Brian, and hope you continue. This is the best sports site out there and youve earned your pay and more.
Sometimes, need it or not, you must wander in the dessert.
And it's always much much much much longer than you ever supposed. (Sure hope neither one of us is Moses in this analogy given his death before reaching the promised land.)
Yes, we must all wander in Holiday Delight Cheesecake at some time or another.
that's Turkish all right.
İyi Günler, Cook bay.
("have a nice day, Mr. Cook" That and how to order a beer is about all I remember.)
michigan should go jet tempo all the time, it seems they are very affective doing this.
chart, anyone?
Here is my heart!
Take it and say, that we'll never part!
I'm just a slave, only a slave, to you!
And even huddling should be an option and is effective at the right time (see Illionis GL stand).
I think much of the fan base is like Smokey: emotional problems and about to enter a world of pain....
I've redeemed MGoPoints for valuable and exciting merchandise!