I Just Can't Do Anything: One fan's tale of watching The Game '10
[Ed-M: Interesting stream of consciousness post that captures one fan's emo experience watching the Ohio State game. Knocked to board from diaries, but not a bad read if you get through it]
I get to Miami Mike's, a local sports bar at about noon. Yes, I didn't miss kickoff. I'm expecting a loss, but I still have some optimism. You never quite know, do you. But on Saturday we did. We all did. We all knew deep down, even if we felt like we could win, that we were going to get our asses kicked by Ohio State. I make some conversation with the Buckeye behind me. He doesn't seem like the average buckeye, he was kind of an okay guy. He doesn't fully know what he's talking about, but I have nobody else to talk to. Anyway, after the first two drives, I've lost all hope. I knew that there was no way it was going to be close after the two failed redzone attempts.
After the kickoff return, I put my head down. It's not going to be like last year, where it was somewhat respectable, we are going to get killed this time. Then, the buckeye behind me starts to get annoying. He has his parents with him, which made things worse, because they kept asking stupid questions like "Are we at home or not." I then had to listen to him answer. But, they all know the words to the fight song, nevertheless, I have to listen to it. He starts taking shots of tequilla, and then he really starts to say some annoying things. "That's what seperates the good recievers from the shitty ones, right there." "His names Boom because he knocks people over." "Dammit, we couldn't sack that bastard, that slippery bastard." He said that after Denard escaped a couple of sacks, and ran for five, on like third and fifteen.
At this point, I'm thinking to myself "We went three and out, shut the fuck up, why are you getting so pissed for god sakes." He also continuously bitched about the holding call on the ninety yard run. I keep thinking "Jesus Christ, you're killing us what's the difference between first down at the twenty and a touchdown. There's no way we're coming back." But then I realized, I can't do anything. There's nothing I can do to change it. I can watch the game every Saturday, and cheer or sulk, but it won't make our players better. I can't do anything to improve Michigan football, as much as I want too, I can't. I can't play, or coach, or do anything. Whether I like it or not, or like the guy behind me or not, we got our asses handed to us on a platter on Saturday, and there's nothing I can do about it.
December 1st, 2010 at 7:36 PM ^
Yes, this is exactly how I feel... this explains my experience, only i was in athens ga, with a couple of SEC fans and an ohio state fan... it was brutal. Brutal because I know more about either team, than anyone in the house. Also brutal because I invested 45x more time on M/College football than these bozo's... and yet i'm the miserable one.
All that said... i still just pull up some highlights of ND games or Denard plays, and I smile... because our future, despite what anyone has been saying recently, is very very bright.
December 1st, 2010 at 7:37 PM ^
I didn't waste my time reading this but whatever your ranting about clearly deserves to be ridiculed under the mgoboard, not the diaries
December 1st, 2010 at 7:41 PM ^
Man up.
December 1st, 2010 at 7:54 PM ^
The thing to remember is that we were well on our way to mediocrity in the last three years of Carr's and this is not all on RR's shoulders. In the interim tOSU has $pent lavi$hy on their football facilitie$ and high school networking, as well as wooing their alumni into donatin$. At this point the gulf is huge but I don't think they can go much further than they have already, unless the Ohio legislature passes a law to seal the borders to not let HS kids go elsewhere. We, however, can do something about this off field business, though unlike tOSU OUR tUM will always be an educational system first, THEN a sports mecca. I don't think the whole state of Ohio gives a rat's rectum about tOSU's academicsas long as they beat us yearly.
December 1st, 2010 at 8:01 PM ^
the first 10-straight-win season since '97 in 2006 + a bowl victory over Urban Meyer's Gators helmed by the Heisman winner in 2007 were REALLY signs of decline.
Guys like Hart, Manningham, and Henne on offense and Woodley/Hall/Branch on defense were really showing the decline of the program.
GTFO.
December 1st, 2010 at 11:16 PM ^
In the interim tOSU has $pent lavi$hy on their football facilitie$
You're right, we can't compete. We'd never be one of those schools that say, spends $200 million on renovations to the football stadium.
December 1st, 2010 at 8:00 PM ^
I could do in 1972 when Bo went for it on fourth and goal at the OSU one and it appeared Ed Shuttlesworth scored but the refs said he didn't.
There was nothing I could do when my favorite Wolverine of all time, Dennis Franklin scored on fourth and one from the OSU one yard line but was denied a trip to the Rose Bowl the next day when Big 10 AD's voted 6-4 to send OSU to Pasadena. This is why I do not feel sorry for MSU not making a BCS bowl this year. Screw you Bert Smith! What goes around...comes around.
There was nothing I could do in 1974 when Mike Lantry's field goal sailed wide of the upright when many said it was good.
There was nothing I could do in 1975 when freshman Rick Leach threw a late interception to Ray Griffin who returned it to the Michigan two yard line only to have Pete Johnson score to wrap up a come from behind 21-14 victory.
I can tell you from my 1975 game experience that our time is coming. Our coach may be Rich Rod or someone else, but we are close to breaking the seven year curse. If you are a fan then this is what you have to believe.
GO BLUE!
December 1st, 2010 at 8:22 PM ^
December 1st, 2010 at 7:58 PM ^
(1) NO DESPAIR!
(2) You cheer for the Maize and Blue. Like all meaningful relationships, there are good times and there are hard times. But you are cheering for the winningest and greatest program in collegiate football history. One day in the future, when the time comes that the scoreboard reads 0:00 and we are shrieking with joy, roaring the fight song, and maybe even tearing up at having finally made it to the promised land again after so many years...
Moments like this Saturday will let you truly savor the joy of it, and know what it is to be FER MEEEEECHIGAN!
December 1st, 2010 at 7:59 PM ^
Good lord man (and I think i'm using that term somewhat loosely here) stop with the "woe is us my football team sucks" emo-rant. Did you bust out in tears after Denard's fumble or just wimper to yourself?
I can almost see your shoulders shaking as the tears run down your cheeks.
December 1st, 2010 at 8:03 PM ^
this is definitely over-the-top.
December 1st, 2010 at 8:31 PM ^
Whether we win or lose, we get to decide whether we are winners or losers.
December 1st, 2010 at 8:56 PM ^
A subtle distinction to draw.
You're right to draw it.
+1
December 1st, 2010 at 8:45 PM ^
First off you have to man up and quit being a Ken doll. I have sat back and let Buckeye fans have their moment in the sun. It will make it all the more enjoyable when we beat them next year which I fully expect us to do.
December 1st, 2010 at 9:14 PM ^
At least UM kept the Buckeyes sober this year for the game:
http://www.thelantern.com/opinion/are-struggling-wolverines-sobering-up…
December 1st, 2010 at 9:15 PM ^
but I have nobody else too talk too
If you want me to read through multiple paragraphs, don't make mistakes like this. Their not that hard two prevent.
December 2nd, 2010 at 5:45 PM ^
Yep, you got me there, I usually don't confuse things like that, but grammer really wasn't the goal of that rant/essay or whatever. By the way, nice pun.
Their not that hard two prevent.
December 1st, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
Great things like this only happen for the first time once.
December 1st, 2010 at 11:37 PM ^
not take Michigan football so seriously.
I hate to watch UM lose to OSU as much as any of us, but it doesn't ruin more than maybe one day and I move on with life.
As for complaining about people being belligerent idiots in the Horseshoe......
December 2nd, 2010 at 5:26 PM ^
Ummmm, yeah that was kind of an emo rant, but that was my first time trying to write a diary or anything on the blog, so it was kind of an experiment to see what people would say and what not. That was just the way I felt on Saturday, but in the end, you have to listen to the fight song, remember the good times, and look towards the future.