Unverified Voracity Is Good After All Comment Count

Brian

Sponsor note. This here blog is an S Corp, because of this aspect of US tax law as related by wikipedia:

As is the case for any other corporation, the FICA tax is imposed only with respect to employee wages and not on distributive shares of shareholders. Although FICA tax is not owed on distributive shares, the IRS and equivalent state revenue agencies may recategorize distributions paid to shareholder-employees as wages if shareholder-employees are not paid a reasonable wage for the services they perform in their positions within the company.

This saves me a few thousand dollars a year in taxes, and is a Good Idea for anyone with a small business. There are many things like this, because there are many laws and more loopholes, and boy howdy it would be nice to have someone point them out for you. You are sensing that a logo is coming.

hoeglaw

Rick Hoeg hung out his own shingle recently after working in big law for a decade, and specializes in helping people start, organize, operate, fund, and expand their businesses. His small firm has clients including a national pizza chain and a major video game publisher, plus an array of university professors, entrepreneurs, and licensees. Hit up hoeglaw.com or Rick himself at [email protected], or read his blog(!) Rules of the Game.

Maybe he's good. Show this to your local Ohio State or Michigan State fan the next time they foam at the mouth about Jabrill Peppers:

More importantly for your purposes this video offers some clear explanations of how Michigan's defense is structured. Editor Brett Kollman makes an assumptions about why Don Brown put Peppers where he is that are incorrect—it's not because Ben Gedeon is slow, it's because that's how he's run his defense forever—but otherwise it's a definitive assessment of Peppers. Spoiler: he's good at football.

I got dibs on the swooping motions. Basketball is looking to fill its 13th scholarship spot with somebody, whether it's Mo Bamba or a transfer or an out-of-nowhere late recruit. Transfer options keep popping up, with former Wright State PG Mark Alstork currently the hot name. Alstork's going somewhere, whether it's the NBA or a grad transfer. He says he's mostly focused on the NBA...

“I’m really taking it as I’m going to the NBA draft and NBA team workouts and potentially get signed or get drafted that’s what I’m going to do,” he told the Free Press Tuesday. “But if not, I just want to have my options open and that’s why I got my release papers.”

...but he's evidently keeping college options open, as a guy with a sub 100 ORTG should. Michigan is one of them.

Michigan is an option because Billy Donlon was Alstork's head coach a year ago. Here's a surprisingly comprehensive and informative highlight reel for a guy from Wright State:

Not bad, and the ORTG is easily explained away: Alstork shouldered huge usage this year. His 34.7% usage rate was seventh nationally, so there's a lot of Dion Harris "oh shit, there's no more shotclock and my teammates are bad" shots in there. This is why he has a post-like 23 TO rate and shot just 41% inside the arc this year. Those numbers were 13 and 48 the previous year when Alstork had a still-heavy but not absurd 25% usage rate.

Upsides seem considerable: he's 6'5" and should be plug and play in Donlon's defense. He shot 84% from the line and 38% from three, so he's clearly got Beilein-level shooting chops. He had a Waltonesque DREB rate, and got to the line a bunch. I'd take him in a second.

Another name that recently popped up for Michigan's 13th slot is Shakwon Barrett, a 6'3" point guard out of Canada who will be on campus this weekend.

Barrett is a MAAR-style late riser currently with just one D-I offer in hand, that from Tulane. Beilein's done well with guys like that recently, but with Simpson and Eli Brooks already young PG sorts it seems like a grad transfer is a better fit than a freshman. Barrett spent a couple years at Findlay Prep, one of those basketball factories, before a grad-year transfer to Montverde Academy, another one of those basketball factories, so he's no doubt been scouted up and down and passed over by everyone. That's not great; by contrast MAAR just hung out at his high school getting ignored.

That's good, but that's uh what? ESPN puts Michigan in their early top 25 at #22. That's good. The thing I've seen people mutter about on the internet after they read this article is not:

Forward D.J. Wilson's game flourished down the stretch to the point that the NBA seems like a foregone conclusion, and that's a heavy blow, at least relative to the opportunity cost of a fully realized Wilson back on a college floor for one more season.

FWIW, I don't think that's any inside information of Eamonn Brennan has, but rather an assumption—"seems like a foregone conclusion."  I haven't heard anything's changed. The status quo is that Michigan expects both Wilson and Wagner back but they'll submit their names to the NBA, as one does.

One mitigating factor. This is a quibble in a Jourdan Lewis scouting report I otherwise almost entirely agree with, but cumong man:

Struggles with bigger receivers. Gave up 109 yards on seven catches to Michigan State’s Aaron Burbridge in 2015.

On 19 targets. Struggling is a bit much. It is true that NFL QBs are going to be able to hit the windows Lewis's lack of size provides more frequently and he'll probably be best as a nickel guy. I just have to defend the man's honor for that game.

Slims down to... 360. If you immediately thought "Michael Onwenu," sorry we're talking about your mom:

The 6-foot-3 sophomore from Cass Tech High School amazed Michigan's staff with how quick his feet were and how well Onwenu was able to use his weight and power without grinding to a halt. Jim Harbaugh and company were focused on letting Onwenu adjust to the college game, get his feet wet, learn the ropes. The weight, surprisingly, wasn't a concern.

It's still not, really. But that didn't stop Onwenu from dropping 15 pounds this offseason -- down to around 360 -- to help him polish up some of that footwork. He moved extremely well for a 375-pounder. Imagine what he might be able to do at 360 -- or less?

"I think I want to get lower, just for my health. I don't really have a target, but just want to get lower," Onwenu said last week. "I move better."

Good news, though: your mom is probably the starting RG.

Don't do this, also don't have a roofing business. Kentucky fans did not like the refereeing in their loss to UNC, so they harassed one of the refs at his place of business:

Business at Weatherguard Inc., has become somewhat more normal since phone calls with a Kentucky area code were blocked. Little business got done last week after around 25,000 contacts were made through social media after Higgins officiated the Kentucky-North Carolina game, which the Wildcats lost by two points.

He’s still dealing with the fallout from those thousands of negative emails and phone calls and the reviews on Weatherguard’s Facebook page that dropped its rating from 4.8 to 1.2. It’s back up to 3.0, but that’s still not good when weighed against the competition, Higgins said.

He’s also got the unseen victims to take care of — his wife and family, some of whom wanted him to stop officiating after 28 years, and his employees. They were nervous and a little shaky, Higgins said, driving around the Omaha area in company trucks after everything they’d heard.

False reports were even filed with the Better Business Bureau, using names such as Adolph Rupp, the legendary former Kentucky coach, and Calipari John, a reversal of the current Kentucky coach’s name.

1) It's a miracle this has not happened to TV Teddy. 2) It was always going to be Kentucky fans. 3) Why does a ref who worked the Final Four have to have a side hustle? Or, rather, why is refereeing a side hustle for a guy working a billion-dollar tournament? 

Since said refs destroyed the final game of said tournament I think this is relevant.

Etc.: Incoming C Josh Norris lands at #21 on ISS's latest rankings. Doris Burke is moving to men's basketball exclusively. Indiana G James Blackmon puts name in draft sans agent. I don't know how I feel about this basketball change. Partridge on recruiting.

Comments

Venom7541

April 7th, 2017 at 8:34 AM ^

When I talk about how much I hate UK after I moved to Lexington, this is a prime example of why. My heirarchy of basketball hate; UK>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Duke, UNC > Louisville

CTG

April 6th, 2017 at 1:14 PM ^

I never saw the replay on the Collins foul but that was ridiculous.   Second half....that was number 4 on Collins.  There were a number of those whistles in the championship game where I think the refs had their eyes closed.   I'm not sure what the ref saw there....

MI Expat NY

April 6th, 2017 at 1:26 PM ^

I think I like that proposal for the end of basketball games.  One of those "it's so crazy it might actually work" ideas.  I would miss buzzer beaters, and the potential unnecessary extension of blowouts could be annoying, but on the whole, it makes some sense.  

MI Expat NY

April 6th, 2017 at 4:53 PM ^

This is true, and is a definite plus of the system.  However, it's not the same drama as a team having the ball with a few seconds left to get up a shot, seeing the shot go up, and having the whole place hold their breath as the fate of that shot decides the game.  The proposal would make for more of a tennis match-point situation.  Yes, there is drama, but it's not quite the same as a buzzer beater attempt down 1.  

mgobleu

April 6th, 2017 at 1:51 PM ^

I don't know...i mean the ref was totally out of position to make a judgment on the hand out of bounds. It's legitimately 3-4 feet in front of him, which is far too great a distance to make that determination.

/Lulz

 

alum96

April 6th, 2017 at 1:51 PM ^

I clicked on the link to help Mr. Yost in his pending defamation lawsuit that UMBIG is about to launch Yost's way and this is what I got:

The owner of hoeglaw.com has configured their website improperly. To protect your information from being stolen, Firefox has not connected to this website.

copacetic

April 6th, 2017 at 2:28 PM ^

Looks like they need to get their CORS fixed, however as long as you don't need to login and enter a password, enter credit card info, etc. you should be fine to just browse. 

That said, it's important to be extra careful with sites that aren't encrypted properly, especially in light of  *no politics* a certain ISP law that recently passed. Plus hax0rz

HoegLaw

April 6th, 2017 at 3:35 PM ^

Hi Alum96,
 
This is Rick (in case the username didn't give it away).  I can't get that warning to trigger through my Firefox and I haven't had any other issues.  The site is built off GoDaddy's standard website builder so I don't know what the problem would be, but I'm sorry to hear of you getting a notice.  That said, I don't collect any personal or credit card information or anything like that. I will definitely look into it.
 
-Rick
 

copacetic

April 6th, 2017 at 3:50 PM ^

Hey Rick, 
I saw it on chrome as well. I believe the issue is that something called an "avvo attorney badge" is coming from an https source (https://www.avvo.com), and your site is in http, the cross site discrepancy is causing the warning. 

Here's the error I saw:
 

XMLHttpRequest cannot load https://www.avvo.com/attorney-badges/v3/lawyers/avvo-rating/743117. The 'Access-Control-Allow-Origin' header has a value 'http://www.hoeglaw.com' that is not equal to the supplied origin. Origin 'https://www.hoeglaw.com' is therefore not allowed access.

 

Hope that helps.

HoegLaw

April 6th, 2017 at 8:20 PM ^

Okay, thanks everybody.  Looks like my security certificate had expired without my realizing it. Should be an https site now, and hopefully you won't get any more warnings.

Don't worry, though, if there are still problems I promise to only steal between 3-9 pieces of your personal information.  (But seriously, no, I won't do that.)

-Rick

ST3

April 6th, 2017 at 4:03 PM ^

Does Brian have to pay social security taxes for the wages he pays Ace in Bolivars? P.S. What is this about "shareholders?" Can I buy some MGoStock? If it works for the Packers, why not the blog?

champswest

April 6th, 2017 at 4:36 PM ^

based on zero inside information. Both Wagner and Wilson return next season, Bamba goes elsewhere (probably Texas) and we use the 13th scholarship on a grad transfer (probably Alstock) and we have an excellent season.

DenardPeppers

April 6th, 2017 at 6:03 PM ^

if the big vuy doesnt come then I would rather have a grad transfer then a freshmen that isn't elite. The guy from Wright State isn't bad but his asst to turnovers is horrendous. Also would love to get those brothers from Memphis. 20 and 10 for one of them other is pretty dam good also PLUS there younger brother is top 50 guy they sag

DenardPeppers

April 6th, 2017 at 6:03 PM ^

if the big vuy doesnt come then I would rather have a grad transfer then a freshmen that isn't elite. The guy from Wright State isn't bad but his asst to turnovers is horrendous. Also would love to get those brothers from Memphis. 20 and 10 for one of them other is pretty dam good also PLUS there younger brother is top 50 guy they sag

DenardPeppers

April 6th, 2017 at 6:03 PM ^

if the big vuy doesnt come then I would rather have a grad transfer then a freshmen that isn't elite. The guy from Wright State isn't bad but his asst to turnovers is horrendous. Also would love to get those brothers from Memphis. 20 and 10 for one of them other is pretty dam good also PLUS there younger brother is top 50 guy they sag

DenardPeppers

April 6th, 2017 at 6:03 PM ^

if the big vuy doesnt come then I would rather have a grad transfer then a freshmen that isn't elite. The guy from Wright State isn't bad but his asst to turnovers is horrendous. Also would love to get those brothers from Memphis. 20 and 10 for one of them other is pretty dam good also PLUS there younger brother is top 50 guy they sag

socrking

April 6th, 2017 at 5:29 PM ^

Brian, do you really expect me to bring this video out next time I'm with my osu-loving in-law's? How do you really see that conversation playing out? "F Michigan. We've won 11 out of the last 12." But peppers is good. "But we won the game." "but peppers is a first round pick." The fact that he is so good and M had a ton of NFL talent makes me feel worse, not better. Dressing up a loss is something MSU does. Remember the losing with dignity headline?

steve sharik

April 6th, 2017 at 5:32 PM ^

I despise when scouts criticize a player's technique b/c (as this dude from The Film Room found out), that player could very well be doing exactly what he's coached to do. Different coaches have different assignments and reads within the exact same basic scheme; e.g. the way Bob Stoops taught Cover 2 back in the 90s (when everyone in college football was playing Under Cover 2) was not the same as what most other guys did.

CoverZero

April 6th, 2017 at 7:31 PM ^

My company is also an S-Corp.  Another advantage to this corporate structure is that my Obamacare (a high premium / high deductible health policy) is paid for by the S-Corp.  

The health insurance premium is considered taxable income, however it is exempt from FICA and SS taxes since I am more than a 2% shareholder in the company.   On my personal return, it is deducted as self-employed health insurance.   Win Win.

 

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/s-corpora…

FGB

April 6th, 2017 at 11:57 PM ^

in all this S corp talk, you MUST pay yourself a reasonable wage that IS subject to FICA, before you start skipping the FICA taxes.  So basically you better be making a good amount of money off the venture to actually see the benefit of not paying the FICA taxes.

In sum, Brian must be doing pretty well to actually be seeing several thousands of dollars worth of savings in company distributions as opposed to W-2 income. 

Goggles Paisano

April 7th, 2017 at 6:03 AM ^

It doesn't take a lot of income to generate a decent amount of tax savings when the SE tax rate is 15.3%,  If your 'before owner wages' profit is $80,000 and you pay yourself $40,000 of it as wages, you are saving 15.3% on the other $40,000 of profit.  $5,200 of tax savings by virtue of being an S-corp as opposed to an LLC or a sole-propietor is a no-brainer for many small businesses.  

Esterhaus

April 6th, 2017 at 6:04 PM ^

If MGoBlog is a formally organized business entity, you should place a legend in an arguably conspicuous location, say at the page bottom or "About" statement section, which provides notice of the entity's existence, for example, "MGoBlog Inc." (the company name exactly as listed with the sexcretary of state where registered) You also might wish to post a copyright/proprietary rights notice in that space. Rick can tell you why this is a really good idea. Gotta protect the blog we all appreciate so much.

In reply to by lbpeley

Esterhaus

April 7th, 2017 at 2:01 PM ^


I once had a truly wonderful professional relationship with a much older woman, a deadringer for Betty White, who was my administrative assistant. Invariably up to mischief she joked in private that I lusted after her and therefore she was my "sexcretary." I've borrowed that label and routinely apply it under circumstances where it won't hurt feelings or denigrate someone. So now you know.

MadtownMaize

April 9th, 2017 at 10:33 AM ^

always wins championships. Check the results. When Duke, UNC, UK or Louisville make the final game, the refs job the opponent. The pattern has been there for a long time. It is highly predictable.