Tom Kowalski Wins Pro Football Writers Award (My Tribute To Killer)

Submitted by MGoCooper on
http://mobile.mlive.com/advannarbor/pm_105108/contentdetail.htm?content… Although I wish very much that he'd have received this award while alive, the Pro Football Writers have finally honored Tom Kowalski. Having a military background, I'd grown accustomed to death, and the sudden loss of life, but this stuck with me. After the army, while at Michigan, I e-mailed Killer for advice on how to be successful in sports journalism. I was trying to decide between a future in writing or in accounting. Being the practical kid I was raised to be, I went with accounting. But before I made that decision, Tom and I exchanged many e-mails about writing and life in general. Years later, at a benefit for charity, I finally got to meet Tom. I was sure he wouldn't remember me, but when I told him who I was, he spent 30 minutes talking about how my life had gone since then. It was almost like reacquainting with a long lost friend, because that's the kind of guy he was. We spoke by e-mail a few more times after that, one exchange that happened 4 months before he passed. The last thing he told me was to "don't sweat the small stuff". I had a particularly hard week this week, and I re read those e-mails, and Killer was proved right. I didn't post any of this after he died, because I just am not that sappy or into public displays of emotion. But I realized the other day that people really needed to know what a decent human being he was. And if Killer could take time out of his busily schedule to help put a lost kid on the right road, then remembering him is the least I could do. Killer was the same way about letting pepple see his emotions, but he was a good man. At the end of the day, isn't that all any of us can hope to say about ourselves? RIP Killer, I miss you my friend. Maybe we'll get to finally have that burger and beer, if heaven has any places of any Merritt. Farewell.

Schmozerine

June 24th, 2012 at 9:26 PM ^

I really thought that you were TomVH but had to come up with this alter ego to be able to come back here and post without getting in trouble at your "real job."



Well whomever you are I really enjoy your posts and look forward to hearing from you in the future.

bdsisme

June 24th, 2012 at 3:35 PM ^

RollDamnTide was great while it lasted.  I just spent the last 15 minutes going back through RDT's and WolverineInABag's comment history, and they perfectly match up -- not to mention that each account refers to the other's comments/stories a whole lot more than normal.  This whole time I've thought that RDT was a creation of Brian/Ace/Seth/etc, and I can't help but feel a little vindicated.  Nonetheless, great job WolverineInABag -- really well played.

bdsisme

June 24th, 2012 at 4:50 PM ^

Well, as one user posted an example below, RDT has referenced WolverineInaBag a few times, and WIaB has posted in awe of RDT a few times as well (for example, he suggested RDT in the thread about "Favorite MGoUsers").  

 

Additionally, if you go back through their posting histories, you can kind of tell when the user signs out of one account, posts using the other account for a few days, and then signs out of that account and switches back to the first.  If you look at Wolverine's posting history, you'll see that he hardly has posted in the last 11 weeks, but RDT has.  Over 11 weeks ago, you see cases of WIAB posting a half dozen posts a day for a couple days, then RDT posting a half dozen posts a day for a couple days, etc.  If I wanted to act lawyeresque I could put together an argument that would convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt, but I don't think that's necessary.

 

I'm not going to start a separate thread because I don't think it's THAT big of a deal, and if RDT/WiaB wants to continue the charade, I say go for it.  It's kind of like Santa Claus -- we'll know what's up, but I'm not going to ruin it for the less-informed readers.

acnumber1

June 24th, 2012 at 4:29 PM ^

 

RollDamnTide's picture
Joined: 02/03/2012
MGoPoints: 374
 
 
OT: Saturday Night Open Discussion(What are you drinking?) Thread

Happy Saturday, boys. I'm putting down some Summer Shandy like a champ. 

 

I just want to send my personal grattitude to MGoUser Wolverineinabag for taking on Johnathan Vilma and the entire Saints fan base on twitter a few days back. He said what Vilma did was a disgrace to the game directly to Vilma, and he was 100% correct. Then he took a multitude of abuse from Saints fan and took them on head on. If I see you in Dallas for the game, your drinks are on me. Cheers.

Roll Tide.

bdsisme

June 24th, 2012 at 4:56 PM ^

 

How long have I been gone? (Score:1 Normal)
WolverineInABag's picture
Joined: 04/21/2011
MGoPoints: 1020
 
 

Haven't been gone for a week, and I come back to a guy named "Roll Damn Tide". Now it's a party.

 

I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word that I'm saying. -Oscar Wilde

bdsisme

June 24th, 2012 at 4:57 PM ^

 

My vote (Score:5 Normal)
WolverineInABag's picture
Joined: 04/21/2011
MGoPoints: 1020
 
 

My vote goes to RDT, I didn't know how I'd like a member of "Saban Nation" on MgoBlog, but the guy is hilarious.

 

I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word that I'm saying. -Oscar Wilde

 
February 10th, 2012 at 4:26 PM | Wasted vote (Score:5 Normal)
RollDamnTide's picture
Joined: 02/03/2012
MGoPoints: 374
 
 

I'll never make it through the primary. I don't poll very well in Ohio, California, or Tenneseee.

 

Roll Tide.

bdsisme

June 24th, 2012 at 4:58 PM ^

 

Like I've been saying (Score:5 Normal)
RollDamnTide's picture
Joined: 02/03/2012
MGoPoints: 374
 
 

He's going to Michigan. It's a great fit for the kid, with the education benefits, and the long history of great Michigan offensive linemen.

 

Roll Tide.

 
February 13th, 2012 at 11:19 AM | I think you said it best (Score:5 Normal)
WolverineInABag's picture
Joined: 04/21/2011
MGoPoints: 1020
 
 

That kid went into Saban's office, and walked away with Michigan still as his leader. If that doesn't tell everyone what they need to know, I don't know what will.

 

I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word that I'm saying. -Oscar Wilde

LSAClassOf2000

June 24th, 2012 at 4:57 PM ^

We need to make this into an episode of the old gameshow "To Tell The Truth":

On left: I am RollDamnTide.

Center: I am RollDamnTide.

On Right: I am RollDamnTide.

The guest panel will then ask deep,probing, sometimes personal questions to decide who the real RDT is.

hart20

June 24th, 2012 at 4:40 PM ^

I don't think most people thought that RDT was actually for real. He told the blog what the blog wanted to hear and the board adored him for that, ignoring the evidence and downvoting the people who said otherwise. There were a lot of red flags: the number of times he posted, his need for attention, the generalities of his predictions, and his lack of knowledge about Alabama football. Farewell, RDT.

M-Wolverine

June 24th, 2012 at 5:39 PM ^

I don't know....seemed like there were a lot of guys all "why are these people being a dick to RDT?" and "we still value another viewpoint RDT, keep posting please, don't quit for the fourth time." I mean, someone was up voting all his posts to 5. (Though now we know that at least one of every vote he got was himself)

OMG Shirtless

June 24th, 2012 at 4:43 PM ^

By the way, the next time someone (Aquaman) tells me I don't bring anything to the blog, I'm adding this to my MGoResume.

1.  Clickable panic button.

2.  Assisted in running The_Big_House_500th, Bouje, and several other MLivers off the board.

3. Uncovered the truth about RDT.

4. Terrible Gifs.