wow, happy this turned out to be true, or looking that way at the very least. The original source on that radio station was beyond shaky, happy to see it turn out good.
Mason NEEDS this, Pistons, after all you've put him through
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Michigan-Alabama In Dallas In 2012
You probably dismissed the idea of Michigan playing a huge nonconference game against Alabama in two years in Jerryworld as crackpot rumor-mongering of the sort the internet specializes in. Michigan's on the road against ND, leaving a maximum of six home games, it's transparently silly to play a college football game thousands of miles from either college, and Michigan hasn't played a neutral-site OOC game basically ever. It seemed instantly implausible.
But apparently it is happening. The contract is being signed Monday. Which is tomorrow.
The following details are unconfirmed but of interest since they come from an established source:
- Game is happening because a desperate Jerry Jones "overpaid."
- Michigan will be the nominal home team (important mostly for TV rights) and receive more money.
- There's no additional game scheduled and there may not be.
- Jones might be well-positioned to provide some advice on HD scoreboards.
This comes with a set of crazy conflicting emotions. Hurray awesome nonconference game, boo that it's in fricking Dallas in a corporate death star of an NFL stadium and not a home-and-home in Ann Arbor and Tuscaloosa. I guess that's what it takes for a lot of actual nonconference games to get done these days, but awesomeness of trip to Dallas to see M play 'Bama <<<<<< awesomeness of M-Bama home-and-home. On the other hand, awesomeness of M-Bama Dallas >>>>>>> awesomeness of M-BGSU anywhere.
[Note on sourcing: in this case I am going with one source, but he is a very established one.]
August 8th, 2010 at 1:36 PM
#102
wow, happy this turned out to
August 8th, 2010 at 1:38 PM
#103
I trust Brian and all
But I'll wait for the official announcement before I fully believe it.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:10 PM
#104
ND vs Texas
I was happy to see that get announced. It's always nice to see traditional powers facing each other.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:50 PM
#105
Confidence
It is difficult for me to imagine this happening without serious conversations between the head coach and the AD. If this actually gets scheduled, it shows a tremendous amount of confidence by the AD in his head coach, and a tremendous amount of confidence of the head coach in his future teams.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:09 PM
#106
Concur
I don't think Brandon schedules this game without at least letting RR know what is going on and whether he likes the idea or not. I don't know if RR had veto power but I'd like to think Brandon would want to make sure RR is in support of the idea.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:44 PM
#107
I just don't see Bama taking
I just don't see Bama taking less money than Michigan.Alabama has already played a few of these neutral site games and its always a 50/50 split.Also Bama has been rumored to have a opponent for 2012 in Dallas ,the rumor has been texas Tech untill this latest rumor.I feel pretty comfortable in saying Bama will be playing someone in Dallas in 2012.I hope its you guys but the reality is Bama isnt going to take less money to play anyone right now.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:53 PM
#108
Let's be honest here, 'Bama
Let's be honest here, 'Bama is lucky we're giving them any money at all.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:05 PM
#109
didn't know about the texas
didn't know about the texas tech rumor. I know Jerry and Bama were both talking to ND not that long ago. I don't know if they were talking together or not, but ND originally turned down Bama because ND wanted a home and home and bama only wanted ND to visit.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:18 PM
#110
My understanding Bama and ND
My understanding Bama and ND were tring to set up a neutral site game.As far as the Home and Home to my understanding its not dead just the years they can make it happen.Coach Saban has been pushing a Home and Home with Notre Dame so I dont think the admin wouldnt turn in it down unless it was a conflict with a current future opponent.
August 8th, 2010 at 7:55 PM
#111
yeah I hope so, as far as ND
yeah I hope so, as far as ND fans know, at least that I talk to 2013 has a lot of potential openings still in it but after that there isn't any big openings till around 2017+. Hope it doesn't take that long to get hooked up with bama.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:18 PM
#112
Hey BigBamaFan,
Can you
Hey BigBamaFan,
Can you link me to a popular Alabama blog/message board? I'm curious as to what their reaction is to this news.
Thanks
August 8th, 2010 at 4:19 PM
#113
Bama's probably not getting
Bama's probably not getting less than they were expecting - Jerry probably had to pony up a bit more to get Michigan than Texas Tech. Besides, the reason MICH might get more is as the home team it'll be a ESPN/ABC game then and not a CBS game (SEC first game rights are CBS aren't they?) I'm sure any cash difference is like $100k, not multiple millions.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:52 PM
#114
This should also help
This should also help recruiting in the area. We've gotten some kids from Texas in the last few years, and getting some extra exposure around there is always a good thing.
Thanks David Brandon, the Don Draper of college football.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:55 PM
#115
Yes. I'll definitely be at
Yes. I'll definitely be at this game since I'll be living in Texas then.
August 8th, 2010 at 1:58 PM
#116
is this a done deal??
is this a done deal??
August 8th, 2010 at 2:02 PM
#117
Did you even read the post?
Did you even read the post?
August 8th, 2010 at 2:05 PM
#120
tickets for game
I wonder how they will do tickets for the game. Will they give x amount of tickets to both schools to offer to their season ticket holders and then put the rest on sale to the public?
August 8th, 2010 at 2:26 PM
#121
It'll probably be like a bowl
It'll probably be like a bowl game. Each team will have an allotment they agree to sell as part of the deal. The rest will be available to the general public.
Just a guess.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:07 PM
#122
please be right because this
please be right because this would be beyond awesome.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:17 PM
#123
Michigan is adopting the
Michigan is adopting the Fresno State attitude of "anyone, anywhere, anytime"
August 8th, 2010 at 2:35 PM
#124
We don't know what the BigTen
We don't know what the BigTen schedule will be in 2012 with Nebraska's entry. However, we could end up playing Notre Dame, Alabama, Ohio State, Nebraska, Penn State, Iowa and Wisconsin...we might have a top 10 strength of schedule in 2012.
It will be Tate and Denard's senior year...the offense should be firing on all cylinders.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:47 PM
#125
If all goes to plan,
by that time even more cylinders will have been added. And they will be firing as well.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:53 PM
#126
top ten try the hardest.
top ten try the hardest.
August 8th, 2010 at 5:15 PM
#127
dear god
dear god
August 8th, 2010 at 2:43 PM
#128
Well then...
I guess I better dust off my old Nick Saban voodoo dolls.
Or, perhaps more likely, I have 2 years to swap Brutus out for an elephant in this image:
And hey, the world probably needed a picture of a wolverine devouring an elephant anyway... y'know, just to drive home the points that 1.) Nothing is safe, and 2.) You are alive when they begin to eat you.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:44 PM
#129
It'll be nice to see a
It'll be nice to see a rematch of the 2012 BCS National Championship game.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:49 PM
#130
Sounds nice
Sounds nice. But the program better be back to it's winning form by then. Hopefully much, much sooner.
I think this may be the first neutral site (out of state) non-bowl game for a Big Ten team since the Buckeyes got crushed by Miami in 1999.
I just hope our fans aren't outnumbered to an insane degree like most of the bowl games we played in this past decade.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:53 PM
#131
ND in 2012: vs Mich (sep 22), vs MiamiFl in Chi, @ Okla, @ USC
Plus vs Navy in Dublin (TBC)
Miami just added in the past couple weeks.
Might UM and ND mutually agree to unplug for two games earlier than later? I believe Brandon in announcing the ND night game at Big House next year said there would be a two-year break in the M-ND series, I believe in '18-19.
But last I looked a few months ago, almost every traditional major power topping fans' polls is locked up in one or both years:
2018 pairings: Tenn-OSU; Ark-TA&M, Okla-LSU, USC-Tex.
2019 pairings: Tenn-OSU; Ark-TA&M, Okla-LSU. (USC-Tex first game of HAH in '17)
(BTW: Neither Fla nor FSU is in the market to add yet another dfficult non-conf game, I believe I read somewhere, so don't suggest either of them.)
Is it too much of a coincidence that both M and ND are adding another likely difficult opponent to their respective '12 schedules, weeks apart? And why would Brandon load up the '12 schedule just a few weeks before finding out how difficult the '12 conference slate might be? Who knows if M will be playing OSU, Neb, PSU, Wisc, Iowa that year?
Maybe the M-ND break is coming earlier than anyone knows. Because this latest M-ND uninterrupted streak of games began at ND Stadium in 2002, one would think the next break would come after a game in Ann Arbor ('11).
Or not. Either way, interesting......
August 8th, 2010 at 3:00 PM
#132
Really Good Points
But I don't think it's out of the question for M to play a middle/bottom tier BCS team as a replacement for ND if we feel we have enough alumni in the area.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:51 PM
#133
ND
I think the whole contract is up in the air at this point. I definitely want to hear Brandon comment on this, hopefully he'll be at the media event Monday. Last I heard Brandon said as much, but I figure it was just a matter of sorting out the changes. We'll see in light of the Big Ten division talks/9 conference game schedule.
August 8th, 2010 at 4:52 PM
#134
M-ND Break
This is an excellent point about Michigan-Notre Dame, especially if the Big Ten goes to a 9-game schedule. If there is a 9-game conference schedule, Michigan could have 5 road games in-conference in 2012, in addition to a road game with Notre Dame and this neutral-site game against Alabama. That leaves only 5 home games--something Michigan hasn't done since the 1960s. I don't see that happening again, ever.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if Nonnair is right, and the Michigan-Notre Dame series takes a break in 2012.
August 8th, 2010 at 6:41 PM
#135
M-ND
I wouldn't be surprised to see M petition the big ten to allow them to have their 5 home-game year when they play ND on the road, so then they can try and keep 7 home games in those years.
Not sure how much influence they would have, but if Michigan is going to be scheduling ND every year and big games like this on occcasion, they need to find a way to make their home-road #'s consistent.
M with less than 6 home games in 2012 would be so weird.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:55 PM
#136
I have a man crush on David
I have a man crush on David Brandon. This is great news!
August 8th, 2010 at 2:56 PM
#137
Ann Arbor News is citing
Ann Arbor News is citing Brian for the Alabama story: http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/michigan-football-to-play-ala...
August 8th, 2010 at 3:11 PM
#138
Oil up your servers, Brian.
Oil up your servers, Brian. The deluge is headed your way.
August 8th, 2010 at 7:04 PM
#139
We probably do more traffic
We probably do more traffic than AnnArbor.com.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:15 PM
#140
Only Rothstein is getting it very wrong
"The report says the Wolverines will travel to Dallas in 2010 to face defending national champion Alabama in a non-conference game at the new Cowboys Stadium"
That's gonna confuse some people until he gets it corrected.
August 8th, 2010 at 2:56 PM
#141
HELL YEAH!
To watch a
HELL YEAH!
To watch a Michigan team in my own backyard will be amazing. I hope season ticket holders have first pick of tickets!
August 8th, 2010 at 3:01 PM
#142
Regardless of all of the
Regardless of all of the details....this game, on its face, is just awesome. I think we're going to have to descend on Dallas with our hard-consonant talking, pasty skin, and dorky Midwestern charm en masse, Michigan Brethren. And hopefully open a can on 'Bama.
No matter what, though, how about that for a roadtrip/destination game? Bama, in Texas? Decent, I say. Decent.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:13 PM
#143
sorry wrong
thread. I will most certainly be at that game just got off the phone with family in Austin we already got plans for rooms and transportation all we need is tickets
August 8th, 2010 at 3:21 PM
#144
Some people may call this classic Michigan Arrogance,
but I don't know of any school that can go through what we have the last 2 seasons and still get these kinds of offers for marquee games.
RR 's offense will be a machine by then and the defense will (finally) have some experienced depth.
Im so pumped
August 8th, 2010 at 3:31 PM
#145
That Alabama ass is on the
That Alabama ass is on the line in 2012! Man, I'm gonna be a freshman in college then. Really weird to think about.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:40 PM
#146
Wait a minute
So you were like 15 years old when you joined MGoBlog?
Awesome.
August 8th, 2010 at 3:44 PM
#147
Yep
That is correct
August 8th, 2010 at 4:25 PM
#148
I wish this blog was around
I wish this blog was around when I was 15... Of course I'd have to figure out how to hook up a typewriter to the internet.
August 8th, 2010 at 9:22 PM
#151
Same
Wow same with me, except I just made an account, glad to see I'm not the youngest
