Brian

[press release]

Michigan Athletics Announces Ticket Prices for 2012 Football Season

ANN ARBOR – The University of Michigan Athletic Department announced Friday (March 30) the ticket pricing levels for the 2012 football season. The six-game home slate will cost $390 per ticket.

“We appreciate the contribution our fans make to our football program and Michigan Athletics through their commitment every Saturday at the Big House,” said Dave Brandon, the Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics. “The financial support we receive from our fans provides us with critical resources we need to create outstanding academic and athletic experiences for our student-athletes across all of our 29 sports. Our fans passion for Michigan Football is unparalleled.”

Individual game tickets will be priced at $75 per ticket for games against Air Force (Sept. 8), Massachusetts (Sept. 15), Illinois (Oct. 13), Northwestern (Nov. 10) and Iowa (Nov. 17). The Michigan State game on Oct. 20 has been designated as a premium game and individual tickets for that contest will be priced at $95 per seat.

This is the second straight year that Michigan has moderately increased season ticket prices after keeping prices constant for the seven years prior to the 2011 season.

“We benchmarked our ticket prices against our peers and other comparable football venues and we have concluded that these prices will bring us closer to current industry standards,” said Brandon.

The athletic department will also offer ticket packs to accommodate fan interest in partial season ticket packages. Ticket packs and individual game tickets will go on sale in July.

To purchase a wheelchair accessible football season ticket, please email the ticket office at mtickets@umich.edu or call (734) 764-0247 or (866) 296-MTIX (6849).

Season ticket renewal packages will be available in early April.

Beilein getting in on that Hoke swag

THE MODERATOR: Coach, an opening statement.

COACH BEILEIN: It's hard to believe that it's been already five years to have the privilege of coaching at Michigan. We love practicing with this team right now.

We have an incredible team-first attitude that's been very healthy so far. And now we're a couple of weeks away from the start of the season. So we love the young men on our team.

The most difficult thing will be replacing Darius Morris and all the intangibles that we had last year as a team that was really playing with a chip on their shoulder. So we're working hard at that. And I like the progress so far.

THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. How close to the start of the season do you think you'll choose a starter for the point guard position to replace Darius Morris?

COACH BEILEIN: You know, we have a scrimmage coming up. We have an exhibition game coming up. That will be a big part of it. And then every practice there's an opportunity for me to evaluate.

So I would think about that, the three or four days before our first game with Ferris State on a Friday night, we'll probably choose that just the week of that game.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about the improvements to Crisler Arena, what that's meant both in terms of recruiting and just the players you have right now and also the play itself on the court, I think (Michigan women’s head) coach Kevin Borseth talked about the painting of the roof, making it seem a little brighter in there?

COACH BEILEIN: Yes, there's been two things going on. First of all, the Chrisler improvements are striking. There's just -- you just walk into it, you feel like it's a brand new arena.

And it had aged quite a bit. It's a wonderful building for Michigan basketball for a long time. But Cazzie Russell being inducted into the NCAA Hall of Fame, that's the last time it was probably updated was when they built it.

So it's been really nice for our kids. I think they feel good about themselves when they're out there. The other thing, with our player development center, our practice facility, is all but completed. It's two weeks away. We've actually moved into the offices. That's going to lead into so much more efficiency how we operate every day.

So it's a very -- it's a good environment right now to grow as a basketball program.

Q. How do you think (Tim) Hardaway (Jr.) is going to react to defenses really keying in on him this season as him being the focal point of the Michigan offense?

COACH BEILEIN: You know, we had an early answer on that the other day. We just had a scrimmage where he was so unselfish he had seven assists and no turnovers in a scrimmage.

And just he sees the open people almost sometimes to a fault, where if they're putting extra men on him or guarding him a certain way, this is a team-first guy now.

So he's been really -- he's fairly comfortable in that. I think obviously he's still young. He's 19 years old. He's still young. His body is developing. But, still, he's going to have a lot of bumps in the road, because you have to guard him.

But he realized that's part of the journey himself to reach his goals of being a great Michigan basketball player and then playing afterwards.

Q. Two years ago there were more expectations in the program with Manny Harris and additional players coming back, how is this year different than those expectations and how that season turned out?

COACH BEILEIN: I think that one of the things that happened in that season was injury to Manny Harris earlier in that season. The expectations were very high, but Manny never really got to 100 percent, we felt, the entire year.

And we were probably more dependent on he and DeShawn (Sims) and the rest of the pieces were not complete yet. I think that we can -- if those two did not have a good game, we had a very difficult chance of winning.

This team, I think, has where the talent, those two are extremely talented players, this team may have a few more pieces, and I think we have a great team chemistry on the team as well, that hopefully a lot of intangibles going into winning. We hope we possess as many as you would need.

Q. Where does Trey (Burke) rank among the other freshmen in the Big Ten as far as being able to play right away, with (Indiana’s Cody) Zeller and those other big-time freshmen?

COACH BEILEIN: I have no idea about the other freshmen. I just look at my team -- you have to look at the rotation and how many veterans they have coming back. He's walked into a great situation with Darius Morris leaving, as far as him personally.

At the same time, there's a lot that goes on from going from a high school guard to a college guard. So after two weeks of practice, he's shown a lot of moxie, some great poise. And yesterday, the other day, in particular, a lot of toughness.

Those are three things you'd like to have a freshman have. Usually that takes a few years for them to accumulate some of those traits. He showed last week some really positive things in those areas that are beyond his ability to make a jump shot or make a play.

And so we're hopeful he'll continue that trend.

[Ed: MGoWife got this in the inbox and forwarded it along to me for obvious reasons. A good cause and a good way to get your recipes in the lore of Michigan tailgating.]

Hi, everyone --
 
Just received this email from Alpha House, which helps the homeless in Washtenaw County, and thought some of you might like to submit recipes to them.
 
" ... we would love to include you in a tailgate project to raise money to support Alpha House, a local shelter for homeless children and families in Washtenaw County (www.alphahouse-ihn.org). Over the next three weeks we will be collecting your favorite tailgate recipes, memories, and photos to be published in a cookbook celebrating the long tradition of Michigan tailgating.
 
Please consider sharing your favorite recipes, the history of your tailgate and/or any tailgate photos. Any and all recipes from appetizers to bbq to dessert are welcome and desired. We will compile the recipes, stories, and photos into a beautiful (and delicious) tribute to UM tailgating. If you would like to share with us please email recipes (you can use the attached
form or another format that works for you), pictures and/or tailgate remembrances to Helen Starman (hstarman@alphahouse-ihn.org) or Kelly Pearson (kpears@umich.edu). If you have any questions at all please feel free to email or call Helen or Kelly (734.822.0220).
 
A shelter in East Lansing very similar to Alpha House has had a lot of success with a similar project the last two football seasons. We of course expect to show them who reigns supreme in all football matters in the state of Michigan.
 
GO BLUE!!
 
Sincerely,
 
Kelly Pearson
Intern, IHN @ Alpha House
MSW Candidate, 2012
University of Michigan School of Social Work
kpears@umich.edu

MGoBlog is trying to start creating photos, not just using them, and will have a guy on the road with Ace this fall getting pictures of recruits and etc. These will be Creative Commons licensed, so anyone can use them as long as they attribute them and don't use them for commercial purposes.

We've set up a flickr account to help us with this. I thought as long as I was doing this I would create an MGoBlog flickr pool.

The goal of the pool is to extend this pool of guilt-free photos to anyone who'd like to contribute. Photos for the pool should be:

1. About Michigan sports or tangents (band, gameday things like tailgating)
2. Creative Commons licensed. We are doing attrib-nocommercial but any flavor will do.

Unfortunately flickr does not have any mechanism via which I can enforce this latter requirement, so I'm looking for a few people to moderate the photopool to make sure. I'm not going to have a lot of time to monitor it during the season, so this might fall flat if no one cares to contribute. Email me at mgoblog@gmail.com if you'd like to moderate the pool.

If you're interested in contributing but don't know how to set this license on your pictures, go here for a rundown of what the various options are and to the licensing page to set your default license to some flavor of CC.

The UM Club of Greater Detroit has a few seats left for the following event featuring yrs truly, Greg Dooley of MVictors, and Angelique Chengelis. Mike Khomutin has strongly encouraged anyone who wants to go to 1) use email and 2) a credit card, because he can't hold seats without payment.

2011 FOOTBALL KICKOFF DINNER

Celebrate the opening of Michigan Football’s 132nd season and kick off the Brady Hoke era with the University of Michigan Club of Greater Detroit!

On Monday, August 29, the Club will present the annual Football Kickoff Dinner at Park Place Catering in Dearborn, located at 23400 Park Street, near Michigan Avenue and Outer Drive.

You’re invited to wear your Maize and Blue as we prepare for each game of the 2011 season – from the season opener versus Western Michigan through the home finale against “that school in Ohio,” as Coach Hoke has so routinely called Michigan’s greatest rival since his first day back in Ann Arbor.

The event will begin at 5:30 p.m. with cocktails, wine, and a Club favorite, Ann Arbor’s own Wolverine Beer! The evening will continue with dinner at 6, followed by the speaking program and drawings at approximately 7:30.

Guest speakers scheduled to attend include: Detroit News beat reporter Angelique Chengelis, one of Detroit’s long-standing and most reliable voices on the University of Michigan and Detroit sporting scenes; Brian Cook, the owner and primary editor of the immensely popular MGoBlog.com, the Web’s go-to home for Michigan athletics analysis; and Greg Dooley, who, as the editor of MVictors.com, brings a leading historical perspective to Michigan’s generations of athletics tradition.

The three speakers will discuss their outlooks for the 2011 season, answer questions from the Club, and provide their analysis for where Michigan has been and where Michigan can go.

The cost to attend the Kickoff Dinner remains $35 this season. As always, the Club will hold a raffle for Michigan memorabilia, with proceeds going to the Club’s scholarship fund.

Please use the reservation form below and respond by Friday, August 19. Please note that space is limited, and remember that last year’s event sold out before the deadline. No reservations will be accepted without advance payment.

Tickets will not be mailed; registered guests will check in upon arrival. Those making credit card orders will see their accounts charged after the completion of the event.

For more information, please contact Mike Khomutin at khomutin@umich.edu.

We’ll fill Michigan Stadium on September 3 for the season opener, so let’s do the same at Park Place five days earlier and prepare for a fantastic 2011 Michigan season!

Go Blue! Your Kickoff Chairs: Mike Khomutin, Heidi Haite, Bill Wenzell, Kurt O’Keefe, and Griffin Hickman

Name _____________________________ Dinner Tickets Requested ($35 each) __________

Phone _____________________________ Email Address ____________________________

_________ My check for $ _______ payable to the U of M Club of Greater Detroit is enclosed.

_________ OR Please bill my MasterCard or Visa for $ ________

Card No. ________ ________ ________ ________ 3-Digit Security Code _______

Expires _____ / _____ ZIP Code ____________

Signature ________________________________________________

Mail Reservations to: Mike Khomutin, 1625 Chapleau, Ann Arbor, MI 48103, or Email Reservations to: khomutin@umich.edu

[ed: press release. dump all your "he's not working out!" hopes]

May 4, 2011

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan sophomore guard Darius Morris (Los Angeles, Calif./Windward HS) has decided to forego the remainder of his college eligibility and remain as an early entry for the 2011 NBA Draft.

"There have been long discussions with my family, friends and my Michigan coaches," said Morris. "After gathering all the information possible, I have decided to stay in the NBA Draft and pursue my dream of playing professional basketball.

"This was a difficult decision; however, in the end I decided to go with my heart. Playing professional basketball has always been a dream for me. I feel this is the right time for me to pursue that goal. It will be hard to leave the University of Michigan; however, I truly believe the basketball program is moving in a very positive direction.

"First of all I want to thank everyone at the University of Michigan and all its great fans. I would not be in the position I am today without the guidance of Coach (John) Beilein and his staff. I appreciate all the support I have received from all my teammates and everyone involved with the program. I will forever be a Michigan Wolverine. Lastly, and most importantly, I must thank God for blessing me with this opportunity."

"We, as a staff, have watched Darius grow as a person and as a player these past two years," said U-M head coach John Beilein. "His improvement on the court has been the result of his God-given talent and his intense desire to become the best player he can be. His work habits, especially in our individual skill development time, have been outstanding, and we all witnessed the results of his efforts this season.

"Over the past month, we have worked with the NBA advisory committee and several NBA teams by gathering information to assist Darius and his family in exploring his options. We know they put a lot of thought into this important decision.

"Darius has been a catalyst in the continued growth of our program and we wish him nothing but the best in his professional basketball career and beyond. He will always be a Michigan Wolverine."

Morris, who was an All-Big Ten Conference third team selection by both the coaches and media, helped the Wolverines to a 21-14 record and a trip to the NCAA Tournament third round in 2010-11. He recorded the largest margin of improvement in scoring in the Big Ten, jumping from 4.4 points per game as a freshman to a team-best 15.0 points per game this past season.

Morris broke the U-M season record for assists with 235, becoming just the third Wolverine to record 200-plus assists in a season. He recorded the third triple-double in U-M history with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists against Iowa (Jan. 30). Morris tallied seven double-digit assist games, including a career-best 12 helpers against Concordia (Dec. 6) and Bryant (Dec. 20). Overall, Morris led the Big Ten with 6.71 assists per game, putting him fifth in the nation.

In two seasons in Ann Arbor, Morris started 53 of 67 career games, compiling 666 career points (9.9 ppg), 197 rebounds (2.9 rpg) and 319 assists (4.76 apg).

The NBA Draft, comprised of two rounds and 60 total selections, will be held Thursday, June 23, at The Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.