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Oh, nice! I checked a…

Oh, nice! I checked a handful of services, but somehow missed that YouTubeTV had a free trial. I just saw the $70+ monthly charge, and moved on to other options. Good to know.

Oo, nice. I remember…

Oo, nice. I remember listening to the recording of the radio broadcast for 2021 OSU win, which was Brandstatter and Dierdorf's last game. That was awesome to revisit.

I only have basic cable, so…

I only have basic cable, so no ESPN. For whatever reason, xfinity had the option to watch the ESPN video feed with the local radio announcers for both semi-final match-ups for free. I liked it, plus it saved me from having to pay for Sling or YouTubeTV or whatever. I'll try to hunt that down again, otherwise I'll probably re-up my Sling account for a $20 preview month.

One note: that local radio feed did not have any post game stuff. So if you're interested in things like post-game interviews or trophy presentation, I don't think this will cut it.

Doesn't he have a kid on the…

Doesn't he have a kid on the way? He better get those late mornings in while he can!

Same. But then after…

Same. But then after ignoring repeated discounts, I got an email basically saying, "ah, screw it, you can have Peacock back..."  Now I have another year or something for free with my Xfinity subscription. 

I'll say it: fuck DTE! I'm…

I'll say it: fuck DTE! I'm still without power.  Third multi-day outage in the past 12 months. Horrible service, high rates, and they want to raise them even higher. Fuck them.

This fall will be year 2 of…

This fall will be year 2 of what is likely a 3 year rebuild process (hard to overstate just how much Patricia and Quinn wrecked the roster). So they should be better, but I wouldn't expect them to seriously compete for anything. Personally, although they went 3-13-1, I thought they were a tough looking team last year (Elliott, a safety they signed from the Ravens this off season specifically said that part of his interest in playing for Detroit was how hard they played against Baltimore last season). They lacked talent but didn't lack effort or drive, which I think is a good sign for the coaching staff.

Their roster as of now has a legitimately good offensive line, a solid RB room, and WRs should be good once Williams is healthy. The defense has a lot of holes; they need to upgrade LBs and safeties, especially. Their pass rush last year was really bad, so hopefully Hutchinson improves that. Beyond that, the IDL, CBs, and TEs could all use some depth (or at least some health - a lot of defensive injury last season). Goff is a "depends on who you ask" kind of player, with some thinking he's fine, albeit not a long term answer, until Detroit finds a QB they really love with others thinking he needs replacing as soon as possible.

Short version: last season they played hard, but had a serious lack of talent; this coming season should see improvement, but don't expect anything for at least another year.

At this point, I wouldn't…

At this point, I wouldn't mind a Gattis promotion. He's been here a few years now, and I like the current make-up of the staff. Promoting him would (hopefully) keep most pieces in place. Promote Hart and Weiss to co-OCs, maybe.

My concern with Fickell, if he even took the job, is that he'd bounce as soon as OSU or ND came available. With all the rumors of Day drawing NFL interest and ND rolling the dice with a first time HC of their own, I could see one of those jobs becoming available within a few years.

Why MacDonald? He has to be…

Why MacDonald? He has to be one of the youngest and least experienced coaches on staff.

Today? Buddy I got some bad…

Today? Buddy I got some bad news for you about yesteryear. 

Doesn't the column always…

Doesn't the column always start with an "About last week" that features a brief reference to the previous opponent? That's the Dax pic at the top. Can't remember if it's always just a pic, but it definitely is not a summary like the rest. 

I'd jump to a higher…

I'd jump to a higher Kickstarter tier for a A2 City Council mag. I've moved back to Ann Arbor, and phew, that council is a mess.

That comeback was 90% Sara…

That comeback was 90% Sara just killing it in the speed round. 

Speaking of, the speed round felt like that Harry Potter game - earlier goals don't matter as long as you do the one thing at the end, you win. 

Absolutely. And I've heard…

Absolutely. And I've heard some advocates actually say that they prefer the term "victim" to "survivor," or at the very least giving individuals the right to choose their own terms.

This is pretty close to what…

This is pretty close to what I remember SAPAC's explanation being. "Victim" as a concept tends to strip individuals of their autonomy, whereas "survivor" is intended to empower individuals. This is seen as particularly important in recovering from assaults, dealing with trauma, and (if the individual so chooses) navigating what tends to be a very hostile criminal justice system.

It's common terminology when…

It's common terminology when discussing people who have experienced sexual assault / abuse. I first heard it during my volunteer training at SAPAC 20 years ago. RAINN has a "key terms and phrases" page that offers one distinction between the two terms, though I have heard various rationale over the years for preferring "survivor" over "victim."

The following email went out…

The following email went out from Schlissel Tuesday afternoon (emphasis mine):

To All Members of the Campus Community:

The University of Michigan offers its heartfelt apology for the abuse perpetrated by the late Robert Anderson (deceased in 2008). 

Today, we received WilmerHale’s 240-page report at the same time it was released publicly. The report is available on the U-M Board of Regents website.  We will thoughtfully and diligently review and assess the report’s findings, conclusions, and recommendations; and we will work to regain the trust of survivors and to assure that we foster a safe environment for our students, our employees, and our community. 

The University of Michigan Board of Regents
Mark S. Schlissel, President

So, depending on how big of an apology you mean, it seems like Schlissel has already issued at least one public apology on behalf of the University.

I would just say that "race"…

I would just say that "race" and "ethnicity" as they are defined by the dictionary are different things. Race is generally understood to refer to clusters of physical traits (e.g., skin color, hair texture) and ethnicity is generally understood to refer to cultural elements of identity. That's why you can have people of different races but the same ethnicity (e.g., there are both black and white Hispanics) or the same race and different ethnicities (e.g., black people of African descent and black people of West Indies descent). They are intertwined and overlapping social constructs, but they aren't necessarily synonymous or interchangeable.

Even though it hasn't…

Even though it hasn't existed for a long time, I will always be a Bells man.

My interest in the team is…

My interest in the team is very much tied to my feelings toward the University. And my feelings toward the University are certainly tied to what I see as its ability to carry out its mission as an educational institution, first and foremost (as well as a research institution and a general contributor to the public good). To that end, I absolutely would prefer the school maintain academic integrity when it comes to the education being offered to student athletes, yes.

I don't know that Michigan will ever compete with the likes of Bama or OSU without some pretty seismic changes to the landscape, but I also don't think have high quality athletes and high quality educational experiences for those athletes are mutually exclusive.

Folks here were on board…

Folks here were on board with Brown’s ouster but let’s take a step back and remember that he was handed DTs who folded like paper (if he had DTs at all) and CBs who can’t run.

Are you suggesting that Brown wasn't responsible for the state of the roster? Even if you set aside any kind of "the buck stops with the DC" type argument, maybe CB recruiting wasn't as much his fault but isn't it pretty well known that he's directly responsible for the state of the roster when it comes to DTs? That he explicitly kept the rest of the staff from recruiting players they wanted that he didn't like?

There's also the scandal…

There's also the scandal involving the actual basketball team under David Bliss from the early 2000's in which one player literally murdered a teammate.

When Baylor's athletic department does something shitty, they certainly go big.

Regardless of whether or not…

Regardless of whether or not you care about Baylor's football scandal in relation to their basketball team, what was going on under Briles is magnitudes worse than what happened with Gibbons under Hoke.

It already has happened in…

It already has happened in football. Texas, for instance, had multiple players opt out mid-season this past year to prep for the draft once they fell behind in the Big 12 title race. 

Robocop was filmed in Dallas…

Robocop was filmed in Dallas, not Houston.

It'd also be nice if he'd…

It'd also be nice if he'd stop clearing his throat directly into the mic when he's on WTKA. 

Not to mention distracting…

Not to mention distracting to the professor. If you, as a teacher, are even half-way engaged with your students during class, you're going to be distracted by kids constantly using their phones or clearly watching movies in your lecture.

I've never read the Exorcist…

I've never read the Exorcist, but I've heard the movie is better.

The show is definitely being written with Martin's input (whether he just supplied them with an outline of events or is hovering over their shoulders, I don't know), but I think there's a definite lack of quality when it comes to basic details compared to earlier seasons. The most glaring in my mind is when Daenerys saves them from the walkers when they were trapped beyond the wall - the whole timeline of that sequence does not add up even a little, when there are ways to write that so that Daenerys actually has time to get there, rather than just appearing.

That's not what Maslow said.

That's not what Maslow said.

Yeah, I wish Brian wouldn't…

Yeah, I wish Brian wouldn't just steamroll any topic he personally isn't interested in. For a guy who not only complains about rules but frequently specifies changes he'd like to see, I don't know why a discussion of how a different set of rules worked in practice seemed so ridiculous.

Because clearly putting…

Because clearly putting Briles in the NFL, an organization with a solid handle on issues related to violence against women, is a good idea.

Briles should never coach…

Briles should never coach again, anywhere, period. And Hopson is a scumbag for pulling this move.

Favorite moment from his…

Favorite moment from his Senate run is when I read some analysis of the primary, and the author said something along the lines of, "James has a name recognition issue, in that most voters don't know who he is and those that do don't like him."

Ben Mason seems to be the…

Ben Mason seems to be the obvious choice.

OU is the team I'm most…

OU is the team I'm most worried about jumping Michigan in the event that both win out and win their conferences.

That said, OU has zero top 25 wins (as of now, they have only two ranked opponents on their schedule: their loss to Texas and their upcoming game against WVU). In this situation, Michigan would have the better resume (more top 25 wins, better loss), but I'm still a little worried.

I find it hard to believe…

I find it hard to believe that they would give two SEC teams spots if ND is already taking up a spot. They'd be leaving out 3 conferences from the playoff, in that case, which I can't see happening.

Des shouting out Mediterrano…

Des shouting out Mediterrano? Unexpected answer, but it's definitely a good place.

Are their running styles…

Are their running styles that similar? I know Wilson's on the smaller side, but I don't think of him as a shifty big-play threat like I think of Evans as being. I guess I've kind of thought of Wilson as more Higdon-lite.

Regardless, I do kind of feel like Wilson needs plenty of snaps this weekend, as he does seem to be the best be pass protection out of any of the RBs.

Where in town do they set up?

Where in town do they set up?

Sure, any ranking in the…

Sure, any ranking in the first half of the season is a lot of guess work about which teams are good or bad, but right now both Texas and Florida have better resumes than Michigan and deserve to be ranked ahead of Michigan. But the quality of Michigan's opponents take a big step up over the next few weeks, which is when Michigan can build their resume. Assuming Michigan beats UW and PSU, then they should be ahead of Texas and Florida at that time.

Isn't that the exact…

Isn't that the exact opposite of the Lions' MO the past few years? I feel like usually they fall behind then have to mount big comebacks to have a shot at winning.

It's not a generational…

It's not a generational thing. You're crazy if you think people havent complained about coaches and players and teams and programs forever. The only different is their knee-jerk emotional complaints are being archived and documented, rather than just yelled at whatever eyerolling poor soul happens to be sitting next to them. 

I actually expect both Texas…

I actually expect both Texas and Florida to jump UM. Texas has beaten three ranked opponents (TCU, USC, and top ten OU), even if two of those three are not as good as initially thought. Florida has a similar resume to Michigan (one loss to a ranked opponent, granted Kentucky is no ND) but does have at least one huge win and their win against an MSU squad who just knocked off #8 Auburn is looking better.

At this point, Michigan just doesn't have the resume that the other two have, but that's just a function of scheduling. Michigan's chances for high profile wins ramp up significantly in the next month. Win and they'll move up.

I'd put MSU ahead of OSU…

I'd put MSU ahead of OSU. MSU's issues are systemic and have involved abuses committed within and/or by multiple units within the athletic department, not to mention the enabling that extends all the way through the top of the university administration. Plus, aside from Nassar going to jail, there is no real indication that anything at MSU is changing.

Then again, don't forget that OSU is also mired in another sexual abuse investigation involving their wrestling program.

Years ago I got stranded in…

Years ago I got stranded in Atlanta for three days. The whole ordeal was insane, including a temporary landing in Alabama. But the highlight was that in the seats next to me were two brothers (probably in their mid-30s), whose mother had given them multiple giant bags of homemade dinner leftovers and who were nice enough to share. So while we circled Atlanta and sat in Birmingham for hours, I got a massive meal with salmon, mashed potatoes, etc.

Could you elaborate on the…

Could you elaborate on the keeping people in the dark part?

Totally agree on the reader…

Totally agree on the reader-entitlement issue. I really hope it's just a very vocal minority who can't seem to not complain this whole off season.

The new site has some bugs and some less-than-perfect elements. Seth has been pretty responsive to complaints and feedback, and has outlined what's getting fixed when and what will take longer and why.

Also, as a recent returnee to Ann Arbor, I actually really appreciate these local politics posts. Helps me get oriented to what's going on in town, when actually wrapping your head around local issues can be a little difficult. For those that don't care or are somehow offended by these posts, it's beyond me why they just don't read them.

He threatened to rape her in…

He threatened to rape her in retaliation for reporting Gibbons's assault.

I've been meaning to ask,…

I've been meaning to ask, what school is in 5th place? The green and black logo with a chunk of Montana/Idaho, etc?

It's my understanding that…

It's my understanding that al-Sayed reached out to MGoBlog, and Brian says that he'd be happy to interview other candidates if they did the same.

I don't think it has as much to do with al-Sayed being a UM grad than al-Sayed's camp contacting MGoBlog. If Colbeck et al. contacted the blog to do an interview, Brian has said point blank that he'd interview them.