To me the fact that we can't get minimally competent QB play despite having two 5-star QBs on the roster is a pretty serious failure on the part of the coaching staff.
I really don't understand how people can argue against Dave Brandon's philosophy for running the athletic department and then celebrate the purest and most visible result of it.
Every time you say "UTLIII" Dave Brandon smiles and thinks about what a great job he's doing.
Not to distract from the coolness of the band performance but can we all stop it with the "UTL" stuff? It's just a night game. For all the complaining on the board about Dave Brandon's various marketing/branding initiatives, it's amazing to me how many people have internalized the biggest and most obvious one.
I think he does understand it, but that's not how he operates. If he keeps the things we love intact, then he's not responsible for the AD's success. All the guys who came before him are. I just don't think he's interested in any success he can't personally take credit for. His giant ego is the reason we're in this mess.
Let me clarify, I was talking about the description of what happened on Saturday.
I would say that "Unfortunately, there was inadequate communication between our physicians and medical staff and Coach Hoke was not provided the updated diagnosis before making a public statement on Monday." is obvious and total bullshit.
The actual description of what happened seems reasonable and believable. At least to me. It also seems to me that there was no reason this statement couldn't have been released Sunday afternoon. If everyone had just been open and honest from the start we'd be in a much better place. Too bad that seems to be the last resort for the athletic department.
Let's all indulge ourselves and assume this is true.
What would be the timeframe on hiring a new AD? Even if the regents have already decided to fire Brandon, what's the process for officially terminating him? And even if Brandon is fired tomorrow, is that enough time to have Bates/Manuel in place by the end of the season to lead a coaching search? Would they be able to just bolt their current jobs at a moment's notice or is it more complicated than that?
I don't know where people get this idea that the Wolves traded up for GRIII. They got that pick from the Pelicans as part of the Darius Songaila/Antonio Daniels trade they made five years ago.
It can get tiresome, granted. But given that the trial is happening right now and that schedule posters just like this one have been discussed at length and entered into evidence, I think it's a relevant point to make.
The problem wasn't the playcall, it was not changing the playcall during the timeout. OSU knew exactly what was coming and that play had no chance. But that's Al "I don't want to get into a chess match" Borges for you.
The reason they don't want that system is that there's a lot less certainty in 18-year-olds than 21-year-olds. They'd waste a lot of money on Kelly Baraka types and they'd need to set up a minor league. Right now the NCAA provides everything they need for free. This is the same logic that led to the NBA age limit.
But make no mistake, if some external force made high school players eligible for the NFL draft, then Leonard Fournette et al. would be first round picks.
Delany's trying to make the pay-for-play issue an NFL PR problem instead of an NCAA PR problem.
The last thing Delany or anyone in college football wants is an MLB-style minor league system. He's only mentioning it because he knows it'll never happen. Think we'd be talking about Jabrill Peppers and Da'Shawn Hand if they were in a position to sign 7-figure draft bonuses?
How about this then: I'm in favor of any rule that eliminates the Wisconsin style of basketball as a practical game strategy. Increasing the number of possessions, allowing guards to not be constantly fouled on the perimeter, ending manipulation of block/charge by defenses, etc.
I'd be in favor of college basketball adopting just about any NBA rule they could.
Three point line, shot clock, game length, handchecking, timeouts, etc. Too many college games are borderline unwatchable and the rules are a big part of it.
How would JHU share in conference revenue if this happened? I've also been thinking about this as it relates to hockey, maybe someone here knows how it works.
Is revenue from hockey/lacrosse broadcasts split evenly between every conference member, or just those who sponsor the sport? Seems unfair that non-hockey/lacrosse schools would get money from the BTN broadcasting those games.
To me it would be common sense to just give JHU 1/6 of the lacrosse revenue (and the B1G might be able to sign its own ESPNU contract with JHU on board), but I suspect it's more complicated than that.
They should just set up a field on a soundstage with the bands on the sidelines. These empty stadiums are embarrassing for everyone involved. Just makes it obvious that it's nothing more than a TV event.
It's a testament to the team's talent that they can go into a hostile environment against a team making crazy shots, play like shit for a half, and still be ahead.
They need to settle down, tighten things up, and come out and blow Bradley out of the gym.
Better to punt one game than put yourself at a disadvantage in four different games. And as it's been said they almost won anyway. Pop knows what he's doing.
Does NIU have a shot to move up to 16th? If UCLA and Texas both lose, they'd only need to jump Boise and us. How big a bump will they get from the computers for a win tonight?
Although I guess they might not jump UCLA regardless. It'll be interesting to see.
I've read that Stern doesn't want the Spurs to set a precedent that makes resting players commonplace. But what kind of precedent does this set? Will the league start combing boxscores for suspicious DNP-CD's? Will players have to get approval from an independent doctor to sit out with an injury? All this does is make David Stern look like an ass.
Plus, fan reaction is overwhelmingly on the Spurs' side. My guess is Stern thought fans would be applauding him for this. Just a huge miscalculation. Can't wait for him to retire.
The Spurs have done this several times over the last couple years. The only reason Stern is saying anything now is because they're playing Miami and it's a national TV game. If the Spurs were playing the Bobcats and it was on Fox Sports Southwest or whatever no one would care.
Well obviously cash isn't the only thing you need, but it gives you a big head start. M can afford to pay its coaches as much or more than anyone else in the country. That being the case, why shouldn't our assistants be the best we can find?
Granted. But don't underestimate the cash factor. Hoke should spend a lot of time watching tape and making a lot of phone calls to identify the best offensive assistant out there. Then he should offer him a giant raise to be our OC. This is the perfect way to spend Delany's millions.
Mattison was our third defensive coordinator in four years and that worked out pretty well.
We broke the bank to hire him because he was an established defensive genius. I'm not plugged in enough to have names at the ready, but I'm sure there are established offensive geniuses out there. I don't see why we couldn't or shouldn't hire one.
Losing Lewan would hurt, but the other guys we're losing haven't exactly played well this year. By all accounts Kalis, Magnuson, et al. are talented players. Maybe after a year in the program they'll be an upgrade.
At least that's what I'm telling myself.
I realize this is a factor, but why couldn't you do the same thing with academics independently of sports? Call up Berkeley, Stanford, Virginia, etc. I don't think they'd turn down membership in an elite CIC-style organization because we don't play them in football.
Of course it's all hypothetical since this will never happen.
I give up.
At this point a conference is little more than a group of partners in a cable TV network/rights contract. It's hard for me to feel as attached now to the B1G as I always have been.
If I were Mary Sue, I'd be working the phones trying to form a new superconference. Us, Ohio, USC, Florida, Texas, etc. Academics and geography be damned. If the only reason to have a conference is to provide attractive cable TV programming, why half-ass it? Let's go all the way.
If the B1G Network is a cash cow, imagine the Superconference Network featuring twelve national powerhouses. And imagine a home football schedule featuring four awesome conference games every year and never featuring Maryland or Rutgers.
I don't think there's any reasonable scenario where the owners win in court. Even the Supreme Court shot them down 9-0 in the American Needle case last year. That's why Goodell's public statements have all been pushing for new negotiations. The players called the owners' bluff.
1) There aren't any crappy/mediocre BCS teams in next year's field. They're all good to great teams (unless Tennessee collapses).
2) Marquee mid-majors that have already made a reputation for themselves don't need the preseason tournaments to get games. It's the VCUs and Richmonds of the world that do.
I thought Ta-Nehisi Coates of the Atlantic Monthly had a good series of posts on this also. His blog is also one of the only I've come across with an insightful comment section:
I believe Washington was favored over New Mexico last year in a 3-11 matchup. I'd trust Vegas over the tournament committee when it comes to picking winners.
Recent Comments
To me the fact that we can't get minimally competent QB play despite having two 5-star QBs on the roster is a pretty serious failure on the part of the coaching staff.
I really don't understand how people can argue against Dave Brandon's philosophy for running the athletic department and then celebrate the purest and most visible result of it.
Every time you say "UTLIII" Dave Brandon smiles and thinks about what a great job he's doing.
Not to distract from the coolness of the band performance but can we all stop it with the "UTL" stuff? It's just a night game. For all the complaining on the board about Dave Brandon's various marketing/branding initiatives, it's amazing to me how many people have internalized the biggest and most obvious one.
I think he does understand it, but that's not how he operates. If he keeps the things we love intact, then he's not responsible for the AD's success. All the guys who came before him are. I just don't think he's interested in any success he can't personally take credit for. His giant ego is the reason we're in this mess.
The "benefit" to LeBatard is that we're talking about him, which I'm sure pleases him a great deal.
Let me clarify, I was talking about the description of what happened on Saturday.
I would say that "Unfortunately, there was inadequate communication between our physicians and medical staff and Coach Hoke was not provided the updated diagnosis before making a public statement on Monday." is obvious and total bullshit.
The actual description of what happened seems reasonable and believable. At least to me. It also seems to me that there was no reason this statement couldn't have been released Sunday afternoon. If everyone had just been open and honest from the start we'd be in a much better place. Too bad that seems to be the last resort for the athletic department.
Let's all indulge ourselves and assume this is true.
What would be the timeframe on hiring a new AD? Even if the regents have already decided to fire Brandon, what's the process for officially terminating him? And even if Brandon is fired tomorrow, is that enough time to have Bates/Manuel in place by the end of the season to lead a coaching search? Would they be able to just bolt their current jobs at a moment's notice or is it more complicated than that?
Only two Michigan players within 30 yards of the punt returner as he catches the ball. Wow.
Athletic directors don't hire assistant basketball coaches.
Yikes. That hoodie looks like something Andre Agassi would have worn circa 1992.
I don't know where people get this idea that the Wolves traded up for GRIII. They got that pick from the Pelicans as part of the Darius Songaila/Antonio Daniels trade they made five years ago.
http://www.prosportstransactions.com/basketball/DraftTrades/Years/2014…
It can get tiresome, granted. But given that the trial is happening right now and that schedule posters just like this one have been discussed at length and entered into evidence, I think it's a relevant point to make.
The problem wasn't the playcall, it was not changing the playcall during the timeout. OSU knew exactly what was coming and that play had no chance. But that's Al "I don't want to get into a chess match" Borges for you.
The
Of course they would.
The reason they don't want that system is that there's a lot less certainty in 18-year-olds than 21-year-olds. They'd waste a lot of money on Kelly Baraka types and they'd need to set up a minor league. Right now the NCAA provides everything they need for free. This is the same logic that led to the NBA age limit.
But make no mistake, if some external force made high school players eligible for the NFL draft, then Leonard Fournette et al. would be first round picks.
Delany's trying to make the pay-for-play issue an NFL PR problem instead of an NCAA PR problem.
The last thing Delany or anyone in college football wants is an MLB-style minor league system. He's only mentioning it because he knows it'll never happen. Think we'd be talking about Jabrill Peppers and Da'Shawn Hand if they were in a position to sign 7-figure draft bonuses?
Jamal Crawford
There are PITCHf/x cameras in every stadium. Time to do away with umpires calling balls and strikes.
How about this then: I'm in favor of any rule that eliminates the Wisconsin style of basketball as a practical game strategy. Increasing the number of possessions, allowing guards to not be constantly fouled on the perimeter, ending manipulation of block/charge by defenses, etc.
It's the same thing really.
I'd be in favor of college basketball adopting just about any NBA rule they could.
Three point line, shot clock, game length, handchecking, timeouts, etc. Too many college games are borderline unwatchable and the rules are a big part of it.
How would JHU share in conference revenue if this happened? I've also been thinking about this as it relates to hockey, maybe someone here knows how it works.
Is revenue from hockey/lacrosse broadcasts split evenly between every conference member, or just those who sponsor the sport? Seems unfair that non-hockey/lacrosse schools would get money from the BTN broadcasting those games.
To me it would be common sense to just give JHU 1/6 of the lacrosse revenue (and the B1G might be able to sign its own ESPNU contract with JHU on board), but I suspect it's more complicated than that.
No chance of this happening. Just the Freep trolling for clicks.
They should just set up a field on a soundstage with the bands on the sidelines. These empty stadiums are embarrassing for everyone involved. Just makes it obvious that it's nothing more than a TV event.
It's a testament to the team's talent that they can go into a hostile environment against a team making crazy shots, play like shit for a half, and still be ahead.
They need to settle down, tighten things up, and come out and blow Bradley out of the gym.
It's hard to run a motion offense or the like with a 24-second clock. Pick and rolls and pindowns are set plays too.
Better to punt one game than put yourself at a disadvantage in four different games. And as it's been said they almost won anyway. Pop knows what he's doing.
Does NIU have a shot to move up to 16th? If UCLA and Texas both lose, they'd only need to jump Boise and us. How big a bump will they get from the computers for a win tonight?
Although I guess they might not jump UCLA regardless. It'll be interesting to see.
I've read that Stern doesn't want the Spurs to set a precedent that makes resting players commonplace. But what kind of precedent does this set? Will the league start combing boxscores for suspicious DNP-CD's? Will players have to get approval from an independent doctor to sit out with an injury? All this does is make David Stern look like an ass.
Plus, fan reaction is overwhelmingly on the Spurs' side. My guess is Stern thought fans would be applauding him for this. Just a huge miscalculation. Can't wait for him to retire.
The Spurs have done this several times over the last couple years. The only reason Stern is saying anything now is because they're playing Miami and it's a national TV game. If the Spurs were playing the Bobcats and it was on Fox Sports Southwest or whatever no one would care.
I really hope we don't win the B1G. We'd have to give out Championship rings, just think of the potential violations!
/sarcasm
I don't think there's any reasonable scenario where the owners win in court. Even the Supreme Court shot them down 9-0 in the American Needle case last year. That's why Goodell's public statements have all been pushing for new negotiations. The players called the owners' bluff.
Is Jerry still going at the Coach and Four? That place was the best.
1) There aren't any crappy/mediocre BCS teams in next year's field. They're all good to great teams (unless Tennessee collapses).
2) Marquee mid-majors that have already made a reputation for themselves don't need the preseason tournaments to get games. It's the VCUs and Richmonds of the world that do.
These tournaments aren't exactly open to anyone who wants to enter. Why would ESPN let a mid-major in when they can fill the field with big TV draws?
I thought Ta-Nehisi Coates of the Atlantic Monthly had a good series of posts on this also. His blog is also one of the only I've come across with an insightful comment section:
http://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2011/03/jalen-roses-uncle-to…
http://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2011/03/on-duke-hatred/72537/
http://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2011/03/granted/72602/
I believe Washington was favored over New Mexico last year in a 3-11 matchup. I'd trust Vegas over the tournament committee when it comes to picking winners.
is nearby in International Falls, if you're counting CC's.