InSight Bowl Opponent
Between ESPN & CBS, there are 3 possibilities for the opponent (yes, this assumes nothing strange happens and Michigan goes to the Gator Bowl):
Missouri
Nebraska
Oklahoma State
http://espn.go.com/college-football/bowls/projections?season=2010&week=…
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/bowls/predictions
Not much hope for an easy opponent among those 3, but certainly 3 different styles.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:17 PM ^
On the ESPN bowl bound app it has us facing Florida in the Gator Bowl, fwiw.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:31 PM ^
Please be UF in Gator Bowl.
(1) A chance to extend the winning streak against Florida and Urban Legend; (2) Florida recruiting could be given a boost (home game for Denard et al.); (3) New Years Day bowl game in Florida--you know, just like Sparty has.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:05 PM ^
The day I want anything for Michigan "because it's just like what Sparty has" is the day I turn in my fan card and throw away my Michigan gear.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:18 PM ^
No, to read what I said like that is to make the tail wag the dog. (1) to beat Florida, (2) recruiting, and (3) because even in the year of Sparty's dreams, their best year since the mid-sixties, their Sparty Super Bowl is a Florida NYE bowl game against an SEC opponent, which is what Michigan gets in a rebuilding year. I.E., even the exception proves the rule.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:03 AM ^
Which is a Sparty line of thinking: silly, arcane semantics designed to make us feel better about the fact that we went 7-5 and lost to them while they went 11-1 and won a share of the Big Ten championship. You know if they tried to pull that stunt on us we'd point to the rings and say "scoreboard."
I don't want to get a "New Year's bowl" just so we can compare ourselves to Sparty, that's how we turn into Sparty.
November 29th, 2010 at 6:11 PM ^
Pretty sure that Sparty line of thinking would be glorify objective (3), without more important objectives, like playing a national power and potentially boosting recruiting. Just so that we are clear, the best reasons to be stoked about a Gator bowl have nothing to do with Sparty.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:16 AM ^
I like the competitive fire, but your post has the stench of "WE MAY SUCK BUT YOUR SEASON ISN'T AN UNMITIGATED SUCCESS! HAW-HAW!" reasoning. In other words, the calling card of MSU fans. Their team was more succesful than ours this year, and while they didn't get a Rose Bowl berth, we don't get to gloat about it, because they beat us and we're not above .500 in the Big Ten.
Smack talk when we've reclaimed our scepter, but for now, bide your time.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:16 PM ^
or a close competitive game.
Fair or not this year, knocking off Florida will carry much more weight than knocking off Miss St or Mizz or OK St.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:28 PM ^
but it's still silly.
On the flip side, I'm sure teams like Missouri would much rather say "we beat Michigan" than "we beat Northwestern".
November 29th, 2010 at 3:06 AM ^
I hope Michigan plays a SEC team, Florida maybe a stretch to win, honestly I would love to see us play Georgia in the gator bowl. I would be seriously worried about playing the aforementioned Big 12 teams. I think the SEC would be a better match up for us. The recruiting possibilities are a nice plus too.
FWIW we play Nebraska next year, lets not get a head of ourselves for the bowl game, and take someone we don't play often, and one we are favored in :)
November 29th, 2010 at 9:42 AM ^
Florida a stretch to win? Have you watched their offense? It is brutal
November 28th, 2010 at 10:20 PM ^
Is Bowling Green bowl eligible? I wouldn't mind another go at the Falcons.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:28 PM ^
November 29th, 2010 at 8:16 AM ^
as a likely win.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:27 PM ^
What will happen to the conference picks after the re alignment? Does the Big Ten get a bump and the Big 12 drop in terms of strength? I understand it's not the conference finish, but the choice of the bowl comittee. Does this swaparooing change the value of the Big Ten #3 now versus the Big Ten #3 next year? (for example)
November 28th, 2010 at 10:27 PM ^
Give us Nebraska. It would at least give Brandon another bit of data regarding how we stack up against Big 10 conference opponents (if our status wasn't already obvious).
November 28th, 2010 at 10:33 PM ^
If Brandon waits until after the bowl game to announce a RR decision, one way or the other, he's made a serious mistake. It would set Michigan back in recruiting either way and, god forbid, in a coaching search.
A datapoint for a 2011 evaluation, maybe.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:35 PM ^
Well, it seems clear that he is going to wait. He's said so multiple times.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:37 PM ^
I've heard him say "wait until the season is over," but never anything specifically about a bowl. What he's said so far is ambiguous enough to give him wiggle room.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:40 PM ^
He was asked that again after OSU and said "when the season is over" so I can only assume he means the season is not over.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:46 PM ^
If you are referring to the Chengelis piece in the DetNews, I read the same comment, but I am not sure that he means "after the bowl," not sure what the precise context of his words were, and I do not think it necessarily settles this question. At any rate, I still think he needs to be decisive, and not use the bowl opponent as another data point.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:01 PM ^
that it will be after the bowl. it's been repeated secondhand enough - i don't have time to find it on the Google
November 28th, 2010 at 11:32 PM ^
If he decided to keep RR (which I think he should). DB needs to come out ASAP and say RR has met the criteria to continue as our HC through his contract. If he decided on a new coach, I stil think he should announce it ASAP. What worries me and many other RR supporters is that he may have struck a deal with Harbaugh and promised him he would not announce until after Stanford's bowl game. I hope this is not the case but I not sure why DB would not announce to keep RR this weekend? Such a delay in deciding on your coach will cost us some on recruiting.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:46 AM ^
...what a horrifying thought, and one consistent with events so far. Horrifying even if you're a Harbaugh fan, because it means a recruiting class quite possibly down the drain. Surely Harbaugh knows this too...? Probably just a rumor... right?
November 29th, 2010 at 8:24 AM ^
The other thing to consider is that hiring Harbaugh on or around January 1 with a full month to recruit might be plenty of time. He could represent stability with a fresh contract where it is likely Rich will get the women's volleyball coach treatment of the year to year evaluation.
Also we are assuming that the on the fence recruits who we would like to come to Michigan would be less likely to come with Rich gone. Maybe Harbaugh and all that he brings attracts them and others we thought we had already lost?
Harbaugh probably already has a comprehensive list of kids nationally from his current job and he would be able to cast a wider net than at Stanford.
November 29th, 2010 at 3:22 AM ^
November 28th, 2010 at 10:47 PM ^
If Rodriguez isn't gone by mid-week, he'll be Michigan's coach next season. Recruiting is the lifeblood of college football teams, and it would be a serious mistake to not get a staff in place ASAP to try and salvage a recruiting class.
IMO, Michigan would have to get seriously crushed in the bowl game and have the team openly quit to result in a head coaching change. Defensive staff is probably another matter, if recent coaching changes are indicative of how a hypothetical one would go down at Michigan.
On another note, when do the lower bowl selections actually happen? I'm assuming it's right after the BCS selections and then proceeds quickly down the line to the mid-December games.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:58 PM ^
aren't quitting on RR because they like and supporting RR. If they quit on RR this season, RR would be fired by now, but it's not the case.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:10 PM ^
I think it's very unlikely too. The guys that play seem to really be "all in."
November 28th, 2010 at 11:26 PM ^
I agree that the players haven't quit on RR - but players rarely quit on any coach, hot seat or not. Bill Lynch was a dead man walking on Saturday and IU still won its rivalry game. Bobby Williams-style team meltdowns aren't common.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:30 PM ^
just look at Minnesota.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:11 AM ^
Brewster has been fired for awhile; he didn't get to finish out the season.
November 29th, 2010 at 11:24 AM ^
exactly - but Minny still beat Iowa on Saturday.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:14 PM ^
100% agree that if he's not gone by mid-week, he's Michigan's coach. (In interests of full disclosure, I am 100% hoping that he's Michigan's coach next year, but if we have to make a change, I hope it's done very, very soon.)
Seems to me that RR will not make staff changes until his status is certain. Otherwise, it may look like he's trying to pass the buck. Speaking of passing the buck, did anyone read L. Kiffin's comments throwing Ronald Johnson under the bus for dropping the pass in the 4th quarter against ND (i.e., he singled him out, said the team and Trojan nation was suffering because of one mistake)? That is how NOT to lead team.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:36 AM ^
If he's not going to be gone, what reason is there to prevent an announcement of such? Only good can come from making the decision public. If they haven't said "Rich will be back in 2011", the only reason not to is because he won't be.
November 29th, 2010 at 8:10 AM ^
1. He's either on the fence. Which seems highly unlikely given all the work he has already put into the evaluation. He is waiting on the bowl game to tip it either way. Also doesn't seem likely since the more relevant games to evaluate are league games. We play them every year after all.
Or
2. There are time frames and logistics that need to be observed in communicating with and hiring a replacement. Harbaugh would be the only candidate out there that has serious entanglements as he is coaching the number 4 BCS team and apparently wants to coach that team free of distractions. If the replacement falls through during that process, Brandon will bring back Rodriguez as Plan B.
Or
3. There will be actually be a decision announced publicly earlier than the bowl game regarding Rich's future. This doesn't seem likely because Brandon has stayed pretty consistent on holding to what he says publicly. Don't forget though that he played it cool for a while on the Ohio State scheduling issue for the new alignment, preparing everyone for the possibility that the game would be earlier in the season.
November 29th, 2010 at 12:26 AM ^
It'll all be announced after the BCS show on Sunday, but it'll be leaked out before then.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:30 PM ^
The only thing strange that is happening is that everyone is predicting that the coin flip determines that Michigan goes to the Insight Bowl instead of the Gator Bowl.
Nebraska and Oklahoma will be selections 1 and 2. They draw the largest crowds. Probably, Missouri next and Oklahoma State after that.
If we play in the Gator Bowl, Mississippi State should be the team we would face, but it could be Florida as well.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:31 PM ^
Coin flip??
November 28th, 2010 at 10:38 PM ^
The Gator Bowl and the Insight Bowl share the 4 and 5 picks. They both submit their choice and if both select the same team then a coin flip is used to determine who gets that team. So, they are either assuming that the Insight will select us while the Gator selects another team, or they are assuming that the coin flip is going to always put us in the Insight Bowl.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:51 PM ^
I agree. It might not even come to a coin flip. If Gator likes us (and we would obviously have a major draw, both in person and on TV) and Insight picks PSU, then no coin flip is needed and we go to the Gator Bowl.
However, I don't think it will be MS St. It's the number 5 SEC team, and now that LSU lost, there might not be 2 SEC teams in the BCS. But there probably will be.
So, the top 5 are, not necessarily in order, Auburn, Alabama, LSU, Arkansas, and South Carolina. Very little doubt there. So, the Gator Bowl likely gets the best SEC team left, and I doubt they pick Mississippi State over Florida. If UF gets picked over one of the 5 I listed above, then the one that drops will get picked by the Gator Bowl. MS St is possible, but not probable at all.
November 29th, 2010 at 10:48 AM ^
My thought is that if one is going to pick Michigan and the other is going to pick PSU, then it's pretty much a coin flip which bowl picks which team. It all evens out to 50/50. Plus, if one has reasons to pick Michigan, those reasons probably apply to the other bowl as well.
I was just saying that MSU has a better record and won the head-to-head with Florida. MSU also played in the division that looks like it was thought up by Jigsaw himself. Their only losses came by 4 teams in the top 16. Florida could steal the bid, but I don't think it's as cut and dry as you are making it out to be.
November 29th, 2010 at 11:20 AM ^
The reasons you name just aren't that compelling. The Gator Bowl doesn't necessarily want the "best" two teams, they want the teams that will make them the most money. Realistically, only 2 things make them money - how many people buy tickets, and how many people watch on TV. Who will buy more tickets - Mississippi State fans, or Florida fans, who have to go almost nowhere to get to Jacksonville? And who has the much larger national fanbase? Also, regardless of who the opponent is, bowl watchers unaffiliated with either school will more likely tune in to see UF than MSU.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:40 PM ^
The Outback Bowl has a poll on its website on who you want to see in the Outback Bowl. I know it probably doesn't meet anything but it wouldn't hurt if they saw a lot of people vote for Michigan.
Poll is on the right: http://www.outbackbowl.com/
November 28th, 2010 at 10:50 PM ^
I cast a vote for Blue, but Iowa appears to be running away with this. I think the poll needs to make it clear what Iowa team is at issue here: the team that lost to Minne-ha-ha and Northwestern, or the one that waxed Sparty and hung tough with Wisconsin and Ohio State.
November 28th, 2010 at 10:51 PM ^
Where?
November 28th, 2010 at 11:12 PM ^
Click the link I posted, and it's on the far right, middle of the page, below a couple of advertisements.
November 29th, 2010 at 9:27 AM ^
Ah...Got caught in the ad blocker.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:06 PM ^
Of the three teams you list, I would like to us play Nebraska the most, Mizzou the second most, and OKSt the least. Take a look at team passing stats - NU passes for 155 yards per game, and we don't even know if their starting QB will be able to play. Mizzou passes for 238 yards per game, pretty average, he'd probably go for 300 against us, but hasn't lit the world on fire against average Big 12 defenses. OKSt. averages 354 yards per game through the air. They would do whatever they wanted to us. I'd hate to see a very potent passing attack.
I think OK State is a poor match-up for us, so I'm hoping for Nebraska, but Mizzou is the most likely.
November 28th, 2010 at 11:13 PM ^
I assume that Nebraska is mentioned in the event that they lose in the B12 championship game. What if Oklahoma loses, why not them?
(BTW, it sucks to be the B12. The teams listed are some quality teams that get demoted all the way down to playing, um, us.)