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Crosby's memoir is the most…

Crosby's memoir is the most harrowing of all the rockers. He performed for years while so addicted to freebasing that he was taking hits between songs. When he finally got pulled over in Texas with guns as well as drugs, it was off to prison. He got out in 86. I was at a Neil Young show just after and Crosby came on stage looking nothing like himself, mostly due to a Texas prison haircut. Neil presented him with an Arab headdress, to great hilarity, and then they did Only Love Can Break Your Heart. I later saw CSNY a couple times and they really were great shows. It is astounding that Crosby lasted this long. He did some good stuff in his last years, mostly playing with his son. He also got into bridge-burning rifts with Neil and Nash. There were times when he just couldn't help being an asshole, and he sometimes acknowledged that. At his best he was one of the greatest singers of his time.

This diary has been the go…

This diary has been the go-to click for perspective, a must read after every game but especially bad losses. It's been the best antidote to BPONE around these parts and has left me feeling less bad countless times. I'll miss the weekly editions but will be glad when you pop up.  Michigan football always leads the nation in both quantity and especially quality of words written about it. This diary has been a big part of that. Thanks for the ride!

On procrastination, yes the…

On procrastination, yes the early bird gets the worm – but the early worm gets eaten by the bird.

Also: procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday. – Fran Leibowitz

Terrific job! The only thing…

Terrific job! The only thing better is the event that provided your inspiration. Here's hoping you would turn out to be as prescient as you are poetic!

Man that really hit home. I…

Man that really hit home. I'm a third-generation double legacy. Both my grandfathers graduated in 1924. One was on the faculty for 30 years. My dad had three Michigan degrees before he moved out of the house. My mom didn't go to Michigan but her brothers did and that's how she met my dad. My grandfather had season tickets for 50 years. He had great stories, like trying to drive to Columbus for the infamous Snow Bowl game in the 50s. I went to my first game in diapers. The first one I remember is when I was 13, the 1973 10-10 tie with Ohio State. We had a big tailgating setup at the golf course throughout those years. Even after I became disabled and unable to travel in 1980, I followed Michigan football as closely as I could from home in NY. 

No matter how dark the Dark Ages got, I couldn't pull away. I floundered through various feats of mental gymnastics to keep my soul from getting crushed. In the depths of BPONE I kept thinking, of course Michigan will beat Ohio State. I just hope it happens before I die. Last year was ecstasy. This year was something deeper, a feeling that we are back to something like we were in the 70s, only maybe even better. For my dad and my uncles, Michigan football winning was the natural order of the universe. They took little joy from all but the biggest wins. They were appalled by any loss. I know better. I will never take winning for granted. I'll appreciate years like last year and this year for all they are worth. Living through the Dark Ages of Michigan football made me a better fan. The Glory Days are back! Long may they last! Go Blue!!!

Fascinating and enlightening…

Fascinating and enlightening, as usual. Michigan always leads the nation in quantity and especially quality of words written about it, and it's really nice see the team reaching the same level.

HAPPINESS IS CRUSHED BUCKEYE…

HAPPINESS IS CRUSHED BUCKEYE NUTS – bumpersticker I saw in Ann Arbor during the 70s.

Level of concern that…

Level of concern that Opponent Watch will somehow fail to get EVEN BETTER than its insanely high quality: 0.0. This was the most fun one yet.

I wish my singing and guitar chops for Edmund Fitzgerald hadn't withered away. It would be great fun to go to College Park and perform this version at some open mic night.

It gets complicated when…

It gets complicated when guys switch numbers. Elvis wore 15 when he did what we remember him for so I give him that (over Steve Breaston and Chase Winovich).

Right, Ricky Powers and Roy…

Right, Ricky Powers and Roy Roundtree are the only 12s that come to mind and what Cade accomplished last year is greater than either of those did in their careers.

I should say that my jersey numerology memory doesn't go further back then early 70s Bo-era. Seth has a vastly more comprehensive list and I don't recall who his 12 is.

Best #12 in Michigan…

Best #12 in Michigan football history (admittedly, the competition is not stiff) even if he never plays here again. He deserved so much better than the crap he had to go through this year. Not so much being passed by JJ, but getting repeatedly clobbered until he was knocked out for the season.

These posts are great. Keep…

These posts are great. Keep sustaining the advance!

Thanks for this and I look…

Thanks for this and I look forward further editions. Don't know why I've always been a roster geek… It comes in handy when I'm stuck waiting in line somewhere and I try to count in my head how many freshmen have burned their redshirts or some such thing.

I was at that game. I…

I was at that game. I remember watching Archie's brother Ray Griffin (#44) intercepting Leach to seal it. So disappointing… I was at the 73 tie game and the narrow loss in 79 (my sophomore year). Never got to see them beat Ohio in person. But I've watched plenty of them on YouTube, some several times. Leach was so fun to watch running the option. And he eventually got to be a good passer, outdoing Joe Montana at Notre Dame in 78.

Many worthy candidates for…

Many worthy candidates for best post. This would get my vote for best title. Ace, I believe it was, had gone to a high school game with Jake Butt's team against Taco Charlton's. The title of his writeup:

In Rare Reversal, Butt Defeats Taco

I was 16 and remember that…

I was 16 and remember that all too well. I was listening to the game on the radio while driving across the Whitestone Bridge in NY with a vintage sailing dinghy strapped to the top of the car. The racing had been canceled because of too much wind and ice (winter dinghy racing is known as frostbiting, for good reason) so we were heading back from Long Island to Westchester and home. A big blast of wind was blowing the boat on top so much it started to slide and we had to stop mid-bridge to tie it down more securely. Meanwhile I had the game on the radio and was screaming at the refs… A very memorable New Year's Day.

Jerry Meter was a super hard-hitting inside backer. Those defenses were really fun to watch.

Yes! The "Shawn Springs fell…

Yes! The "Shawn Springs fell down!" game. That and the previous year's Touchdown Timmy upset over OSU are the best back to back games in the history of the rivalry, IMHO.

I enjoyed a Michigan…

I enjoyed a Michigan basketball game for the first time in weeks. They played hard and a bit more cohesively, though that is still a big weakness. The defensive effort was better than any game so far. And they were changing up with zones I couldn't recognize and that I don't think they've run before. To be that well-prepared with little practice time is impressive – by the standards of a heretofore extremely unimpressive season.

And they fixed the uniforms! No more mismatched numbers. 2022, making Michigan basketball (look) great again!

Same here. I was a third…

Same here. I was a third-generation double legacy: both my grandfathers graduated in 1924 (unbeknownst to each other!), one of them was faculty for 30 years, my dad got three Michigan degrees living at home, all my uncles went undergrad… My mom is the sister of two of the uncles, but she went to Duke. In 75 or 76 we had a family reunion based around a game against Duke where Michigan blew them out. My poor mom! The lesson: go to Michigan.

I applied early, got accepted before Thanksgiving and never applied anywhere else.

A fine post commemorating…

A fine post commemorating the unfortunate end of a terrific season. One thing that's always dismaying at season's end is no more content like this and Opponent Watch and all the other great writing here that has sucked me ever deeper into Michigan football even as the team has regularly disappointed. This year is worse, but only in that the team was winning and fun and it's too bad that has to end. I'll look forward to your season recap and a more enjoyable than usual off-season. Thanks for all your effort helping to keep perspective whatever the circumstances. Go Blue!

I've been thinking how much…

I've been thinking how much this must mean to folks here who have been contributing for years: primarily Brian and Seth, and also Bronx (and a couple others). This diary has been the single best thing for resisting BPONE and keeping at least some perspective for me, as I'm sure it has for others. One of the innumerable joys of last week was reading and watching Seth's exultant delight. But here, it's the same steady thing, and that's been so invaluable in the dark times. Thanks so much for the sanity you've done your best to salvage. And enjoy this great ride!

Best column of the week, and…

Best column of the week, and I hate to see it go. Thanks for getting me through the dark times and ramping up my revelry in good times… which I really hope we get a bunch of in the next month and a half!

Thanks for posting. That…

Thanks for posting. That locker room video is so fantastic! Culture is the trendy term in college football and basketball these days and Harbaugh looks to have built a tremendous culture this season. Certainly hasn't been that way some years in the past.

On the MASH front, Henning…

On the MASH front, Henning limped off with what looked to be a less severe ankle than Corum. Green had a dangling arm and looked to be in a lot of pain. If he plays on Saturday, he'll prove Harbaugh right about the Green brothers and their miraculous healing ability.

My sophomore year. My…

My sophomore year. My roommate had smuggled a 12 pack of Stroh's into the stadium, which was surprisingly easy to do back then. We were pretty well sloshed but not feeling it. When Indiana scored to go ahead right in front of us the whole place was so bummed.

There was a 10-cent deposit on cans and that was meaningful money to us, so I started rooting around our feet collecting the empties and stuffing them into the box. I think I saw the Ricks play but I figured there was no chance with six seconds left and everybody was about to stampede out of there, plus the play was heading for the opposite end zone and I couldn't see all that much anyway. So I was grabbing the last cans when everything exploded. I didn't see the play until Michigan Replay the next morning. I missed arguably the greatest play in Michigan Stadium history for $1.20.

I got that cover along with…

I got that cover along with other photos from the article beautifully framed as a Christmas present from my then-new and still current girlfriend. It's been featured on my bedroom wall ever since. 97 was the best year of my life: I landed her and Michigan won the national championship.

Nicely done! I especially…

Nicely done! I especially like Willy Wonka.

"In Rotel requiescat, Penn…

"In Rotel requiescat, Penn State." Whatever football lacks in entertainment value, this column more than makes up for it.

I won't pretend to have the…

I won't pretend to have the knowledge to judge this either way, but +2 for entertainment value. If the level of football played was anywhere near the level of writing at this blog, we'd be Alabama.

Another great writeup,…

Another great writeup, especially the first paragraph. I am trying really hard to emulate that spirit and you're helping me avoid the temptation of BPONE (come to think of it, I haven't come across that acronym in a couple of weeks).

One thing I think you missed: on the joint-possession fumble recovery, I'm pretty sure the Michigan half was German Green (33 not 22). You had the right surname but the wrong twin.

Seth (+3) for the mad…

Seth (+3) for the mad Scotsman WWII reference. Winning or losing in football, when it comes to quantity and especially quality of words written about football, nobody's got it better than us!

These writeups hit my sweet…

These writeups hit my sweet spot: explaining really interesting things without getting too deep into the complicated weeds. This one in particular adds that wonderful part about the 69 OSU game and how Michigan avoided Jack Tatum. Keep these coming, they are the best new thing going here these days.

44 for Schoonmaker and 33…

44 for Schoonmaker and 33 for All is a surprise, and maybe not a welcome one. All seems to have the most talent and upside at TE, especially receiving. The UFR will tell about blocking but All has been good so far.

These writeups are always…

These writeups are always useful and this one especially so. I am not immune to susceptibility to BPONE and this was a bracing vaccine. Let's hope that upcoming editions won't have to be boosters, but if necessary it's good to know they'll be available. Keep up the good work.

I know it's impossible for…

I know it's impossible for Michigan fans to believe, but at some point OSU's epic run of good luck is likely to regress to the mean. As regressions go, this one isn't nearly mean enough. But maybe it won't be the only regression they have this season, or maybe it'll be next season, or the one after that…nah, it'll be first one after I die.

Thanks for doing this. I'm a…

Thanks for doing this. I'm a depth chart obsessive (though apparently not to the extent you are :-) and this is by far the best thing of its kind I've ever seen.

I also noticed that about Henning getting five snaps. I hope that increases, for obvious reasons. My guess is what's holding him back is that he's a poor blocker. There's no other plausible explanation.

With Dennis Franklin (e.g…

With Dennis Franklin (e.g. Ohio State 73, I was there) or Rick Leach, yup. Other QB's like Wangler, nope.

That's a terrific piece that…

That's a terrific piece that fits right into this blog, which in recent times has been the best thing about following Michigan football. I look forward to future posts and especially the book when completed. Best of luck with your project and welcome aboard!

Whatever happens on the…

Whatever happens on the football field, Michigan is always number one in both the quality and quantity of words written about football, thanks mostly to this blog. There is, however, an inherent downside with Punt/Counterpunt: the possibility that reading this post will be the highlight of the day, and it's all downhill from here. If so, so be it. Damn the BPONE! Go Blue!

My sophomore year. I…

My sophomore year. I remember those stubs. Sure wish I had kept mine. That season was fun. I had discovered the year before that if you sent in a bunch of student ticket applications in the same envelope, all those seats would be together. So I rounded up the applications from a bunch of my degenerate friends and we had us a blast. Great for us, but not so much for one guy who bought a ticket from one of us for the Ohio State game. He had his girlfriend with him and they wanted to sit together so she sat on his lap, surrounded by us passing various libations and other substance delivery devices. That poor girl… That game was a terrible loss, but we were there for Wangler to Carter a few weeks earlier. I missed that play completely because I was scrounging all the empty Stroh's cans we had smuggled in so I could return them for the $0.10 deposit. The first time I saw the play was on Michigan Replay the following morning. Glory days!

I was at that game (16 at…

I was at that game (16 at the time). A fun thing about blowouts in those days is the stadium would start to clear out in the fourth quarter and we could go down all the way to the wall near the end zone. It was fun to watch the Michigan third stringers and the Navy guys going at it close enough to hear the pads popping. Then after the game we were free to walk around the field as the band played. The Astroturf was just like a carpet, somewhat threadbare and hard as a rock underneath. I would hate to have played on that stuff.

I remember enjoying that…

I remember enjoying that game more than any other Michigan hoops game. That Florida blowout was two hours of sheer bliss. Getting back to the final four for the first time in so long, in such a dominant fashion, was just ecstatic. By the end I was hoarse from yelling with joy. There have been lots of other compelling games, football and basketball, but that one really sticks.

John Beilein was my favorite…

John Beilein was my favorite coach at Michigan ever in any sport. To think that he could suddenly depart and be replaced by a coach who has a great chance to be even better is mind-boggling. Juwan has passed every test with flying maize and blue colors.

I keep thinking how frustrating it was when Tressel flamed out at OSU, only for Urban Meyer to fall into their lap. This could be our analog to that, minus the sleazy scandal part and plus the tremendously high character of both the departing coach and his replacement. Optimism doesn't come easily to Michigan fans these days, but how can you not be optimistic about Juwan and the basketball program? He is the antidote to BPONE. 

Beilein was my favorite…

Beilein was my favorite coach at Michigan football/basketball of all time. Howard is on a course to usurp Beilein, which is absolutely astounding. It's somewhat analogous to what happened at OSU when Tressel flamed out and Meyer fell into their lap. Subtract the sleaze factor and the fact that Meyer was already a double national champion, and you have a situation where a longtime great coach unexpectedly left and was replaced by one who has the potential to be even better – but in all the right cultural ways. Michigan football has been cursed over the last decade or so, but basketball could turn out to be charmed.

Amid the winless first…

Amid the winless first season of the Tampa Bay Bucs franchise, their coach John McKay was asked what he thought of his team's execution. He replied, "I'm in favor of it." My all-time favorite post game presser answer.

One of the many frustrating…

One of the many frustrating elements of Michigan fandom over recent years is how things always seem to work out splendidly for Ohio State, the prime example being Urban Meyer falling into their lap when Tressell flamed out. Going from Beilein unexpectedly leaving to Juwan being primed for the job has a similar feel, minus the scandal. Yeah, Juwan is a first-time HC without a couple of national championships… but man the guy can coach, and do it The Right Way. He's the best piece of luck around these parts since we got Harb… nope, since we got…Beilein, my favorite Michigan coach in any sport. Let's hope the good parts of the Urban analogy hold up.

Fourth-generation, that's…

Fourth-generation, that's impressive. I was a third-generation double legacy (both grandfathers graduated in 1924, unbeknownst to each other). Neither of them built the stadium, and as a freshman in 1978 I couldn't have made an intramural team as a walk-on. This kid puts me to shame. Good for him. Go Blue!

I think that was supposed to…

I think that was supposed to be DMZ, Demilitarized Zone, from the Vietnam War.

Michigan sucks at football,…

Michigan sucks at football, but we lead the nation in both the number and quality of words written about football. Especially with the quality. Reading content like this column is the most enjoyable element of Michigan fandom these days, and I am thankful for it.

I watch and read the news (I…

I watch and read the news (I know, it's stupid), fight off despair knowing that I am much better off than the vast majority of humans on this godforsaken planet, and head off existential dread by blasting Warren Zevon ("Send lawyers guns and money/ The shit has hit the fan…")… And then this post comes long and lets me feel for 20 minutes and maybe longer that everything outside of Columbus, Ohio is going to be okay. Thanks as always. I mean:

"Michigan can sleep soundly about: According to SP+, Rutgers would be about a 10 point underdog to the late 17th century British Navy on a neutral ocean."

Balm for troubled times and then some.