THIS IS NOT MICHIGAN Comment Count

Brian

9/27/2014 – Michigan 14, Minnesota 30 – 2-3, 0-1 Big Ten

Brady Hoke is too incompetent to be Michigan's coach. He's too incompetent to be responsible for 85 kids who might get badly hurt at any moment. Hell, he's too incompetent to run a Hooters. Do not eat the chicken at Brady Hoke Hooters. That's not chicken.

And that's the nice way to interpret the information presented to us. It's one thing when Michigan is sending out ten guys in their dinosaur punt formation, one thing when they have the country's worst offense relative to available hyped recruits two years running. It's one thing when Michigan is pretending to try by getting Devin Funchess's ankle mangled in the waning moments of a 31-0 game. These are all fireable offenses, but year-end fireable offenses.

It's another thing when the Yakety Sax chaos that has come to symbolize the Hoke regime puts one of Hoke's "115 sons" in danger, as it did Saturday.

Shane Morris had just taken a headshot from a defensive end. He momentarily lost the ability to use his limbs. There was no real reason for him to be in the game anyway, what with his 49 passing yards and air of being totally overwhelmed. And Hoke threw him out there, because he "didn't see" his quarterback stagger onto one of his offensive linemen.

Even if that implausible excuse is true, somebody did. The announcers did. Doug Nussmeier—who was desperately trying to get his quarterback to fall on the ground—did. There were 80,000 people still in the stadium looking at the quarterback, and

EVERY

GODDAMNED

ONE

OF

THEM

knew Shane Morris had just had a very bad thing happen to his brain. When he was left in, they booed vociferously. This is where we're at: the guys booing in the stands are doing so because they fear for the players' health.

This is a long, long way from the "they ain't got no heart" guys from the Rodriguez era. Booing is now the only agency you have when something reprehensible is going on in front of your face. It's gone from childish to necessary.

Brady Hoke had no idea, and even more damningly nobody on his sideline had the sense to overrule the guy who purports to be the head coach. Some guys started yelling at Russell Bellomy to get his helmet on when Gardner lost his a couple plays after entering; Bellomy tried about 50 because he never dreamed he'd go in a game again. Morris re-entered the game. Did he have a concussion?

"Shane's a pretty competitive, tough kid. Shane wanted to be the quarterback. Believe me, if he didn't want to be, he would've come to the sideline, or stayed down."

That is unacceptable. Brady Hoke should have been fired walking off the field.

-------------------------------------

Dave Brandon is too stupid to be Michigan's athletic director. After a day-long lambasting culminating in ABC's World News Tonight slamming the program, they released a breathtakingly tone-deaf statement that is a flat-out lie.

We generally never discuss the specifics of a student-athlete's medical care, but Shane Morris was removed from yesterday's game against Minnesota after further aggravating an injury to his leg that he sustained earlier in the contest

This is how Shane Morris aggravated his leg injury.

Who are you going to believe, Dave Brandon and his lawyers or your lying eyes?

It does not matter whether Morris was concussed or not. What matters is that Shane Morris showed obvious signs of a concussion immediately after taking a wicked head shot and was permitted to stay in the game, then re-entered some 90 seconds after departing, well before any serious concussion check could be completed. The NFL's process takes 8-12 minutes. The NHL requires players suspected to have sustained a concussion to be removed from the ice and taken to a quiet place for evaluation.

Michigan was flagrantly negligent about Shane Morris's safety. Period.

And then they lied about it. To your face. Because they think you're too fucking dumb to do anything about it.

Michigan's athletic department has been insulting the intelligence of their fans for years with offended statements about how they weren't really going to do the thing they said they were going to do and the thing you're mad about definitely is your fault, not theirs. That was bad enough for petty things like noodles; this is the athletic department lying to the nation about a matter of real import.

This opinion is universal outside a small corps of true believers who have inexplicable faith in the people who are just in charge of the Michigan athletic department.  Hoke has been condemned by the ESPN announcers, Deadspin, Business Insider, Yahoo, Andy Staples, Nick Baumgardner, Wojo, Bruce Feldman and Stewart Mandel, USA Today's Nicole Auerbach, CBS, CBS again, USA Today's George Schroeder and virtually every other person to offer an opinion about college football this year. Hell, a news program aimed at olds did a segment on it, just after they talked about ISIS.

The die has been cast. Until Brady Hoke and Dave Brandon are removed from this program, This Is Michigan: incompetent liars.

I can't stand by and watch this anymore.

----------------------------

This program is broken. The coach is too dumb to be in charge of other people. The athletic director is so loathed that when the remainder of the student section started to chant something after the concussion fiasco, they went with "FIRE BRANDON." Tickets go for two cokes, and that's too expensive.

Stephen Ross is defending Brandon, and I feel helpless. The thing I love most in the world has been held hostage by unacceptable people. So I'm going to do two things.

I'M NOT GOING TO THE MARYLAND GAME. (Unless Hoke and Brandon are gone.) This is going to break a home attendance streak dating back to the 1997 opener, when I was a freshman, but it's the only thing I can do to show my disgust at the state of the program. I'm not selling my ticket—not that I could sell it for anything. I am eating it. I urge you to do the same. Yeah, it sucks for the players. I am more concerned about sending a message about the program as a whole than making anyone feel bad.

#boycottmaryland

Do it for all of us. I hate it with the fury of a thousand suns, but this is the only thing we have left.

I'M RUNNING FOR REGENT IN 2016. I don't know how or with who yet, but the  board of regents is a broken institution that privately conspires to vote unanimously in favor of everything, in violation of the law. They accepted the presence of Dave Brandon; they run the worst FOIA office in the country; they are supposed to be the check on an increasingly overpaid and unaccountable administrative class at Michigan. They are failures.

Leaders and best. I still believe that. Goddammit, I do. I started the Every Three Weekly with Amol Parulekar and Mike Chu and Paul Malewitz and Michigan allowed that to happen despite it being an obviously not-great idea for them. I learned how to code; I didn't go to my discrete math class for the entire semester and that was cool; I got my brain rearranged by Stephen Kaplan in an immensely productive way. Michigan is awesome. It is awesome in spite of the people in charge of the university's front door.

I love this place, which gave me my education, livelihood, and wife. I am going to do the thing I can to try to help it.

morris-cart

Because this is not Michigan.

[After THE JUMP: more reasons to fire Brady Hoke.]

GAME STUFF

There's not much point to going over what happened in the usual way Michigan sucks so hard that it doesn't matter anymore. Michigan was comprehensively outgained and blown out by a team that lost 30-7 to TCU. A bowl game is unlikely, to say the least.

But here's some more stuff about why Hoke should be fired.

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[Bryan Fuller]

Giving your players the best chance to win: fail. When Sam Webb said he thought Morris would start during our Thursday roundtable on WTKA, Craig, Ed, and I all involuntarily groaned at the same time. Morris had given no indication he was anywhere near ready, and that played out as Michigan's starting quarterback managed 49 yards passing while being just as turnover-prone as Devin Gardner.

By halftime Michigan had just over 100 yards of offense and it was obvious Gardner should be re-inserted; Hoke refused. Morris started hobbling around on one leg; Hoke refused to take him out even then. Morris fumbled without being touched by an opponent; Hoke still did not take him out. Without the Morris injury, Gardner would not have shown up at all.

That is a slap in the face to a guy who was a warrior last year in the face of horrendous pass protection. Michigan was prepared to lose this game to teach Devin Gardner a lesson, because "uh, Shane Morris was our quarterback." Brady Hoke was willing to throw the entire team under the bus to make a point.

Clueless tempo item of the week. Near the end of the first half, Michigan called timeout just before Minnesota spiked the ball. This was because they were trying to substitute while the opponent was in an extreme two-minute mode and got stuck with twelve guys on the field.

The reason they called timeout doesn't really matter; the mere fact that Michigan had no ability to project what would happen after a Gopher first down in that situation is yet more gross incompetence. It feels like nobody on this staff has ever watched the end of a half of football, weekly.

15375416585_061c4e90e3_z

[Bryan Fuller]

"I quit" of the week. Hoke once again quit when victory was still distantly possible. After Gardner drove the team to a touchdown, he kicked an extra point instead of going for two to find out whether he was 2.5 or 3 possessions down, then kicked deep. "I quit," he said. Then facing fourth and ten down 16 with 4 minutes left, he punted. "I quit," he said again.

This has been a pattern in every one of Michigan's blowout losses: offenses that huddle and run the clock down to nothing while trailing by multiple scores in the second half, coupled with starters still on the field. Brady Hoke quits when down, but he wants to keep up the appearance of trying. This is why Devin Funchess is going to spend the year nursing an ankle sprain.

I get why he quits—I also want the games to be over as fast as possible. It's still embarrassing to the program.

Shoe-throwin' quote of the week not related to Shane Morris. Oy.

I think field position was a part of the game. We've got to do a better job. A couple of punt returns went for way too much yardage.

You don't say. Michigan was lucky to only be down three points at halftime; their first two punts should have been brought back 20+ yards but for the incompetence of the Gopher returner, who let one of the punts drop and fumbled the other.

On the severity of the Morris incident. This is the only place on the internet other than the Pravda-like Wolverine where you will find people defending Michigan's actions in the aftermath of the helmet-to-helmet hit on Morris, some even going so far as to assert that the problem might have been with his leg even before the athletic department asserted so.

I cannot fathom why a certain subset of posters insists on reminding us that Brady Hoke didn't intentionally put Shane Morris in harm's way, as if that matters. A major argument they bring is that "X isn't stupid/incompetent," which… why would you be certain about that at this point? They seem to want a standard of evidence that is beyond a reasonable doubt and extend the benefit of the doubt to people who have long since lost that privilege. I tell you what, guys: it's just 99 bucks a year for a Rivals subscription.

There is always a faction that wants to downplay everything that people get mad at; the Aggressively Reasonable people spend their entire posting lives clucking at other people that they shouldn't be mad about the thing they're mad about. That combined with a desire to see Brady Hoke as a good guy causes people to say this isn't as big of a deal as everyone here is making it out to be.

Bullshit. The Michigan brand now: send your child to play for a guy who can't tell you've just been hit in the head really hard. Whether it was malice or stunning incompetence doesn't matter: either is grounds for immediate termination.

Toxic. ESPN is clowning Hoke now.

So there's that. 

Toxic Part II. I heard only "Fire Brandon" from the students, and multiple reports that have filtered back to me from the student section say that they were all "Fire Brandon" chants, not "Fire Brady," except for scattered dudes who didn't get the idea. Someone even sent me some video:

There's your future season ticket base. Keeping this guy is impossible even if he wasn't running a confederacy of dunces.

WELL TROLLED, SIR. Is Special K joining the resistance? He played "Numb" by Linkin Park before the game, which is way not on message, and then as I'm exiting I hear "this is it, the apocalypse" from that Imagine Dragons song. Either Special K is a clueless dillweed or he's just as pissed as everyone else.

HERE

Inside The Box Score:

I'm left scratching my head wondering what Brady Hoke was trying to do in this game. In Schembechler's account of his first game against Minnesota, he admits this:

Let me tell you the God's honest truth: Even if we got beat up there in Minnesota, I would still have felt better about taking the squad I took than I would have if we'd won that game with a bunch of guys who hadn't practiced all week, guys who let their teammates down, guys who didn't take my word seriously.

So it's obvious Schembechler had a larger goal in mind; it was a "lose the battle but win the war" mentality. Oh to be a fly on the wall in Schembechler Hall so that I might understand what Brady Hoke was trying to prove with this stunt. He sat a 5th year quarterback with significant playing experience, a player so distinguished, with so much ability, talent, and skills that he was given the honor of wearing the Tom Harmon Legends jersey, for a 2nd year quarterback with one start under his belt in college. I thought maybe, just maybe, Gardner was injured. That's the only way this makes sense to me, if the objective was to win the football game. However, when Russell Bellomy couldn't find his helmet to sub in for a play, the truth was revealed. Gardner was not injured, for if he was, Bellomy would have practiced all week and would have the slightest clue where his helmet was. No, Gardner was sat to teach some sort of lesson.

Best And Worst:

I know last week I described the death of my optimism about this season, so this might sound a bit hypocritical to then attack others for voicing their own displeasure, but I am profoundly, mind-numbingly tired of people questioning the desire of college players and the people who have dedicated their lives to making them better.  Now, I'm not defending the results so far on the scoreboard, nor am I saying that I believe guys like Hoke, Funk, Ferrigno, etc. are the best choices for the jobs the currently inhabit.  I still believe that Hoke should be gone, as the number of boneheaded decisions (the punting formation fiasco and the lack of anything resembling tempo or urgency on offense being prime examples) has only increased since he's been at the helm.  But I absolutely believe that he cares about Michigan football and is trying his best to make it a winner, just like everyone else involved with the program; to question the effort and desire put forth by the players and coaches is asinine.

From The Student Section:

…toward the end of the game two things happened on the sidelines near the student section:

  1. A dramatic increase in police and event staff presence.
  2. A rope being held along the sideline and end zone, presumably to prevent a field rush (??).

Did either of these things directly impact my, or really any other students’ lives? Not really. Nevertheless, the symbolism remains. One needs look little further than this to get a good grasp on why the students are so upset with the athletic department. Is the department so distrustful of the students that they want to keep them in line by show of force? Are they so delusional to think that the students would rush the field after a loss? After even a win over Minnesota? over Utah? over literally any home game this season? They’ve taken our water bottles so that they can sell water for $5; they’ve prohibited numerous innocuous items from entering the stadium; three separate event staff members tried to tell me I wouldn’t be allowed to bring a cowbell into the stadium; you can’t bring bags; you can’t bring food. And yet after all of this, they expect us to keep paying such exorbitant prices for tickets? To keep showing up? Don’t get me wrong, I love Michigan Football, I love the Michigan Stadium experience; it’s just that, under Dave Brandon I have yet to really experience either at the Big House.

ELSEWHERE

Bombs away in the Michigan blogosphere. MZone:

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 Maize Pages:

In Michigan’s 67-65, 3-OT thriller over Illinois in 2010, Rodriguez pulled Robinson after a hard hit during the 3rd quarter. “He was dizzy and had a headache,” explained Rodriguez, extra cautious his star player might have a concussion. The context is even more important. Rodriguez entered that game 5-3 after 3 consecutive losses to #17 Michigan State, #15 Iowa and at Penn State. Under fire by the media before the season and intense scrutiny by Brandon during the season, Rodriguez pulled the most electric player in college football for his safety in a must-win game. He recruited Robinson, developed him, and above all protected him over his job. If only he was a Michigan Man too.

Genuinely Sarcastic:

I now call on all Michigan fans to stomach the unthinkable: boycott this obscenity until it collapses in on itself. If you have tickets, don't use them. Don't sell them to someone who will. Don't give them away to someone who will. Do not buy tickets, no matter how cheap they become, or how many Cokes you get with them. If someone offers you tickets for free, politely decline. I understand how reprehensible that will sound to some. Many will say that it is still a fan's obligation to support these players. I implore you to reconsider. I beg of you to support these players by putting pressure on those who are destroying them. These players are having their careers derailed by people who are in painfully over their heads, and one of them was put at grave physical risk by the man he trusted with his future today. Shane Morris didn't even walk off the field after the game today; he had to be carted off because he couldn't put weight on his ankle; that's not even considering the concussion he took and then continued to play with.

Maize N Brew:

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For starters, Morris never should have been in this huddle. But look at the play clock in the graphic above. THERE ARE A FULL 25 SECONDS ON THE PLAY CLOCK. That is plenty of time for Hoke to either: (1) call Morris back to the sideline and sub in Bellomy, who now has a helmet; (2) call a timeout, which still remains an option every second until the ball is snapped; or (3) PUT IN ANY PLAYER -- WILTON SPEIGHT, BRIAN CLEARY, ALEX SWIECA, LINEBACKER JAKE RYAN, DEFENSIVE TACKLE WILLIE HENRY, ETC. -- THAT IS NOT CONCUSSED.

Even the umpire looks over to Michigan's sideline and asks Hoke if he wants to take a timeout, to which Hoke declines, before starting the play clock.

Maize And Blue Nation:

Then Michigan's coaches failed Shane Morris. It's the coach's job to know whats going on at all times with the players on the field. Hoke admitted to not seeing Shane Morris visibly wobbling back to the huddle after that hit. How you miss that it beyond me. He could barely stand up. How could Doug Nussmeier, the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach not pull his guy immediately after seeing that. Shane probably shouldn't have been in the game at that point anyway. He was limping very badly.

I don't even know what to say abut this series of events other than its easily the most concerning thing that happened on a day when there was a lot to be concerned about. But this goes beyond football and x's and o's. This is a blatant disregard for player safety, plain and simple.

Aw man play 60 kid this is a major burn

but you're just the major burn of all major burns so ok.

And this was just a random post on the Scout message board from A1Portable but it's too good to let die with two responses:

We Are Michigan! ...


... and Brady Hoke is a MICHIGAN MAN!

That is all you need to know ... except perhaps ...

...  that Michigan's Athletic Director is a former CEO of a big company that sells pizzas.  Yes, that's right, Michigan's Athletic Director is a former CEO of a big company that sells pizzas! 

So naturally, he is qualified to be Michigan's Athletic Director.  In fact, he is more qualified than any other kind of athletic director, especially the kind who have experience running college athletic departments and hiring coaches.  That is not the kind of experience that prepares a man to be a master of public relations flim-flam, which is what a Michigan Athletic Director must be a master at!

Do you know how hard it is to persuade 100,000 folks to spend more than $1,000 to buy season tickets to college football games when they could have picked up some tickets at 7-11 just by buying a couple liters of Coca-Cola?  I'm telling you, that is not easy, nosiree!  Don't think that any old ordinary athletic director is capable of doing stuff like that.  No, it takes an athletic director who is a genuine former CEO of a big company that sells pizzas to pull off something like that.  Do not try that at home!  

What's that?  You don't understand?  That is because you are just ignorant peons who are incapable of understanding the depths of  the twisted genius of the Michigan Athletic Director.

Do not question the Michigan Athletic Director!  To question the Michigan Athletic Director is to admit, ipso facto, that you are not qualified, or worthy, to question the Michigan Athletic Director!  You know enough about the Michigan Athletic Director not to question the Michigan Athletic Director, but you question the Michigan Athletic Director.  Therefore, you do not know enough about the Michigan Athletic Director not to question the Michigan Athletic Director.

If you are an ignorant peon and continue to question the Michigan Athletic Director, you will be ignored, and then a way will be found for the experience of going to a football game to become so unpleasant that you will "voluntarily" give up your season tickets, which you could have gotten at 7-11 for buying a couple liters of Coca-Cola.

... and one more thing, WE ARE MICHIGAN!  Seriously, we are.

orsonwellesclap.gif

The Penn State game is going to be epic.

Comments

gsimmons85

September 29th, 2014 at 12:10 PM ^

Im probably the original appologist and passively agressive "sky is not falling" dude  that brian loathes so much.

 

But in this instance, i actually agree and can understand the frustration and the anger.

 

Saturday was a joke,  i can remove myself from it and go on with my other football avenues,  but for those that have to cover the games,  are season ticket owners,students and alumni taht  have  real stock invested in this team beyond it just being a fun obsession, i can absolutely understand the call for imediate changes.

 

there were so many fails in the handling of the QB sitution, and it all falls back to Hoke..  from the dr.s and assistant coaches that didnt bother to do anything, to the head coach that was clueless as to what was going on.  or how about the officals that didnt call targeting, and allowed the qb to stay in the game.  

although i feel like if he wasnt being such a bad qb prior to the injury that people probably wouldnt have booed so hard that he came back in.    I've Been to many many games where qbs got hurt that were playing great and were met with huge ovations when they returned to the game.    I think the boos were probably more at what was obviously dumb coaching and frustartion at the fact that even when this bad playing qb was hurt the dumb football coach still put him in.

So at least in this instance, i 100% feel like last saturday WAS as bad as people think.

 

 

 

 

Vice President…

September 29th, 2014 at 12:19 PM ^

This place needs serious, major change. It's almost impossible to screw up a place like Michigan, yet they are doing just that. Across the board.

As bad as we feel as fans/alums/minor stakeholders, let's not forget these poor players. They have way more at risk. They come here trusting the coaches to not only keep them safe, but to help them achieve their life goals. For most of them that probably means a shot to play football at the next level. They only get a brief window - one shot to make it - but these coaches/adminstrators are robbing them of that chance. And they sure as hell aren't getting a chance to score touchdowns, play in a rocking stadium, weave their way into Michigan legend, and compete for championships.

If my kid were a scholarship level football player I would be encouraging him to talk to anyone but this current staff. As a lifelong Michigan fan that makes me sad.

Amutnal

September 29th, 2014 at 12:31 PM ^

Hoke has done more damage to Michigan than Jerry Sandusky did to Penn State. Let that sink in for a bit. How stupid and epically terrible at your job do you have to be to fail so miserably on so many levels...after having been given your dream job nonetheless. He's likely TRYING his best and these are the results. Under qualified and never should have been offered the job. Brian was right the first time.

Amutnal

September 29th, 2014 at 6:43 PM ^

Clearly, I was exaggerating on some level. What I poorly was referring to - and basically omitted - was that Michigan's record is worse than Penn State's since the Sandusky saga. Upon re-reading my initial post, I agree that it was a bit overboard and easily interpreted in a way I did not intend as I was writing in haste and my brain short-circuited, as you so elegantly pointed out.

west2

September 29th, 2014 at 12:32 PM ^

The following are some comments exerpted from a national sports outlet: http://www.foxsports.com/college-football/story/michigan-loses-minnesot…

"With a 30-14 rout at the Big House, Minnesota handed the Wolverines their third loss Saturday, the first time in 135 years of Michigan football it’s sustained three defeats before Oct. 1."

"Hoke’s days are numbered. It’s fait accompli. Saturday may have been the final straw -- and not just because Michigan lost."

"The fourth-year coach made some stupefying postgame comments -- particularly in regards to his questionable management of Morris’ health."

STUPEFYING INDEED! CONTINUING WITH THIS IS EQUALLY STUPEFYING.

jvallen

September 29th, 2014 at 12:42 PM ^

During a BTN broadcast over the weekend, Glen Mason shared a story about Bo.  He said that  he once asked the Michigan coach what was the big difference between OSU and Michigan, and he stated that coaching at Michigan was more like a country club than OSU.  As a devoted Ohio State fan, I have always noticed the same difference.  Ohio State fans don't provide much room for error.  I saw this recently when Urban's honeymoon abruptly ended when the Buckeyes lost to VT.  Immediately thereafter, he was on the hot seat.  Our own "Ohio State Man" wasn't seriously considered for the HC job because fans did'nt like what  they saw during his dismal season as interim.  The Hoke/Brandon displeasure on this blog is raw fandom at its best--and is required to keep a program high on the pecking order.  These attitudes have clearly elevated the SEC while the Big Ten huddles in its country club mentality.  You got likable Brady, and we got  ruthless Urban.  And you Jim Tressel tried to be both, got caught, fired. Ironically, OSU is currently trying to be like Michigan:  academic and football powerhouse.  And with good blogs like this one, university PR no longer shapes the culture.  You do.  And, as a result, Michigan football will ressurect because those who love it most will no longer loyally accept a mediocre product at pro football prices.  I feel your pain.  The pain is required, though, to produce the joy which real fans on messageboards express with such intense authenticity.

UofM Die Hard …

September 29th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^

I want to watch them but I dont.  I want to care but I am finding it hard to.  I want them to fire Brandon and Hoke right now, but I know it wont happen.  

We all agree we need to support the players, and we all do.  We want them to succeed but for them to do that, this coaching staff cant be in place. So if my part is not watching the games, not doing this and not doing that, than so be it.  I will show my support for the players by not doing those things..I am only one person and that doesnt mean much but I cant support any of this leadership right now.

 

 

I love Michigan so this is hard to do, but it has to be done.  

MGOBOOB

September 29th, 2014 at 1:05 PM ^

if you are so passionate about this university and the football program then grow a set of balls and attend a news conference and air your issues to the coaches face. until then, just continue being the arrogant hack that we all heard put down ed feng for no reason last week.

biakabutuka ex…

September 29th, 2014 at 1:15 PM ^

As a confessed aggressively reasonable person, I still don't get why, as I was reminded on twitter this morning, the coaching staff hid Taylor Lewan's helmet from him last year to keep him off the field after a head injury but they didn't use anything approaching a decision flowchart here. I think the only explanation is the pressure has gotten to Hoke and his decision making is suffering for it (see: holding Morris in too long just purely on a performance level).

plamonge

September 29th, 2014 at 1:33 PM ^

I always give people the benefit of the doubt. Lots of things happen that I just don't know about. and in the fog of war it's hard to second guess what's happening in real time.

However, the Morris thing is beyond the pale. And the fact that we've been blown out for three mediocre teams is just crazy. 

They need to be fired ASAP. 

Fans should boycott games until that happens, period. 

 

MGoBoz

September 29th, 2014 at 1:51 PM ^

Something just popped into my head. If Nuss had a designated QB coach and didn't take those duties on himself, that person would be more in tune with Shane's mental state and whether or not he had a concussion, no?

echism19

September 29th, 2014 at 1:54 PM ^

I'm dying of bone cancer and don't have another season in me. My question is do I take my nephew to his first Michigan game, so I can be there with him or stay home? Do I want his first game to be a half full Big House? Do I want to miss his first Big House game? What would you do?

HHW

September 29th, 2014 at 2:04 PM ^

Dude, take him to the game. That's what he'll remember, not that Michigan won or lost the game. Some people's lives hinge on M football. I feel bad for them, M sucks right now, but there are more important things in life and giving your nephew that memory is infinitely more important. Take care and hang tough. #chadtough



Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad

YoOoBoMoLloRoHo

September 29th, 2014 at 2:07 PM ^

Some of the best experiences with my son are the "neutral" games that we've attended. Auburn getting roped by Georgia, Pitt at Navy, Kansas at Georgia Tech, Arkansas at Rutgers, etc - none of those games meant anything beyond our time together and embracing the spirit of guys playing a great sport in a Saturday afternoon. Getting the junk food, laughing at goofy fans, watching the band, talking about random stuff ... nothing better in my opinion.

Best of luck and hope you miraculously beat the cancer.

Bossman23

September 29th, 2014 at 2:47 PM ^

Damn first of all I'm sorry about what you have to deal with on a day to day basis. I see people on here who are nuts who take this a little too seriously and forget about real problems. But you should defly take your nephew he will remember for the rest of his life that time his uncle took him to his 1st big house game. Who cares about the score just hang out and have a blast.

MGrether

September 29th, 2014 at 3:12 PM ^

Life is too, too, too short. We just lost a student at my school today. Do not miss the opportunity. Heck, take him to EVERY game, if the tickets are 18 bucks or a bottle of Coke. Time with loved one at places that have strong emotional attachment cannot be spoiled or replaced. I still value the games I went with my dad to Ohio Stadium, even though Michigan lost because of the quality time with a loved one.

AaronStark19

September 29th, 2014 at 3:59 PM ^

First I feel very bad for you and your family but you should take him.My uncle took me to my first game in 2011 I was 12. It was one of the best days I've ever had.it didn't matter that we only saw 67 percent all I remember was the stadium and the experience, and that's all he will remember.

BayWolves

September 29th, 2014 at 2:38 PM ^

Time for you to to go. We just can't take it anymore and it is abundantly clear you should be replaced. I believed in you in your first year but now understand that you and nearly the entire coaching staff were saved by the likes of Denard Robinson who pretty much was the entire offense. You are holding this team back. They are too talented and you are not using their talent in any way shape or form.

Feat of Clay

September 29th, 2014 at 3:18 PM ^

I agree with a lot of this.

But do remember that not all administrators deserve to be tarred with the same brush.  Those crazy-ass extra payments went to a minority of administators here.  

Some of the Regents are straight-up batshit crazy as near as I can tell, and that crosses party lines, but I'm not dumb enough to spill that kind of thing here.

I think, however, you would find the job of Regent pretty boring.

 

Mr. Yost

September 29th, 2014 at 3:52 PM ^

It's what I was yelling about, screaming about, crying about on Saturday.

And it's NOT an excuse for Hoke to be fired. It's simply the excuse for him to be fired TODAY. I was more than okay with waiting out the year. He deserved an honorable and respectful exit.

Not anymore.

I can't even watch Michigan right now...not because I'm boycotting anything or I'm trying to send some message. No. Only because every time I think about this team that I love I'm embarrassed and ashamed. Then I think about Shane and it makes me sick to my stomach.

I'm going to DVR Saturday's game and every game moving forward...until I can come to grips with WTF is going on. Football or a blog isn't worth me getting that upset over ever again, so I'm just going to avoid it until I can see that winged helmet and feel pride no matter the final score.

When that day comes, maybe I'll go back and watch...maybe I'll just delete and try to remove this period from my Michigan existence.

I'll work on me, but in the meantime, best of luck to you all as you work on Brandon and Hoke. It's time both are gone and I'm saddened that it hasn't happened yet.

Bradon I don't worry about, Hoke...I was behind him literally until that game. I was on the fence, but I wasn't pushing him out the door just yet. As that game went along, I finally said those two words (Fire Hoke). And then the Morris thing happened and it turned to three words (Fire Hoke Now).

Good riddance.

MIRuss

September 29th, 2014 at 4:50 PM ^

I remember my gut reaction to the Groban thing at the banquet and I knew than that Rich Rod was done.  

This...This is so much worse.  And after hearing and reading the presser...The actual words on paper look so bad and sound so wrong.  Brandon needs to act and by not acting, he loses what little credibility he has left.  

This is beyond anything I've ever seen from this Univeristy.  Boycott the game, stand with my back to the action for the entire first quarter, a planned exodus when they announce the attendance...whatever.  

Count me in.  

rfdoane

September 29th, 2014 at 7:26 PM ^

"I would assume, yes. Because they do every other time.

But I don't know because I still haven't asked them. I mean, who would have guessed that you guys would ask me questions about this? I sure didn't see it coming. Which is a real shame, because I felt like I had a really great day of practice on Sunday for this press conference. I was answering all of Mattison's questions really well, and he said that I showed a lot of heart as I gave my answers. But I'm not going to give up. My goal of winning next week's press conference is still out there, and I believe at the end of the day that I can still win all of the remaining press conferences. I really do."

GBW365

September 29th, 2014 at 7:32 PM ^

I've been reading this blog since 2006, but never really take the time to comment.

But this...this is just something else. I found myself gravitating to this site for the insightful commentary, for the detailed breakdowns like the UFR that made me a more knowledgable fan.

I grew up 30 miles from Pasadena. I went to more Rose Bowls before I was 16 than most fans of other B1G schools will go to in a lifetime. I, along with the rest of the fanbase suffered through the RR years, certain it would just be a matter of time before we turned it around.

After this weekend though, the problem has become apparent. Michigan is too arrogant....The "This is Michigan," mantra leaks through all levels of the program. This blog has become a prime example...we eat our own. RR was torpedoed from the get go. Hoke was great until he started losing. Did he mismanage the Morris situation...Yes. Was he trying to put a guy in that he knew was concussed...No. Do we even know if he was concussed yet?

The state of this blog and the program overall is just sad. I would have thought that the trauma of the RR years would have tempered us all to realize the program is broken and will take a long time to fix. Getting a new coach every 4 years is not going to speed up the process.

If Hoke is gone, which by all appearances he will be, whomever is doing the hiring better open up the checkbook and promise a long tenure. If I were a top notch HC I wouldn't touch this job with a hazmat suit right now....