It is realy frustrating hearing people on this blog continually rip a lot of the moves David Brandon makes when many of them are aimed at making us more competitive. Pumping in music to elevate the crowd noise (making the Big House a more intimidating atmosphere), scheduling marquee games like the Bama and Florida games in Arlington to start the year, and alternate jereys are all things decisions that kids my age and younger really think are cool.
Recruits obviously love all these moves as well. Just look at the high number of visitors and commits we get at the UTL games, or check the reaction to these events and announcements on social media. The players love it, the recruits love it, and we as fans should embrace it too.
Listen, I I've been watching Michigan my entire life, and I love the tradition (my old man tells me all about old time greats from when he lived in Ann Arbor) but damnit, as much as being top-15 every year was awesome, it really sucked at the end of the Lloyd era to feel like we supported a prehistoric program. I'm sure many of the same people on this board who complain about Brandon's modernizing updates to the program are the same ones who bitched and moaned about Lloyd's prehistoric playcalling on offense (waggle every third play), or soft prevent defense, our quite ass stadium (the Big House was NOT very loud until the renovations and piped in music) and our overall decline in recruiting (LLoyd was pulling in classes ranked in the teens in his last five years or so).
With stadium renovations, scoreboards and music, primetime national television showdowns, alternate jerseys, and a new coach, Brandon has addressed many of these issue. As a guy who is locked in to being a lifelong Michigan fan, I appreciate these efforts, and I think the majority of young diehard fans do too.
Just as importantly, the recuits who will eventually lead these teams to the successes and Big Ten Titles that we all long for, eat this shit up. And for that, I thank Dave Brandon.
***Before posters give me grief for posting at 10 on a Friday, I'm in watching my buddy's first preseason NFL game with the Bucs online***
I think that if the interior of our d-line can take a step forward and Pip can return from that knee, our backers should be free to roam sideline to sideline and we could be a dominant defense against the run.
Magnus, maybe you can shed some light on this question...
In looking at that 2007 Roster, Terrence Taylor was quite the plug in the middle there, and was probably the second to last in a nice little string of above average 300 pounders (gabe Watson, Alan Branch, and finally Mike Martin) that were featured on out interioror D-Line. Do you see any of the guys on our current roster turning into that 300 pound, double team eating, run-stopping nightmare that became the norm during the early-mid 2000's?
I wonder what must have been going through his head (other than "I'm hungry") to think that no one would stare at the HEISMAN WINNER as he left a Florida Supermarket. I mean come on, there is no good way to hide crab legs!! There is absolutely something a little odd with his judgement.
It certainly isn't a promising O-line situation next year. On top of our inexperience, it seems that the guys in the trenches truly lack confidence.
It sucks to think about it this way, but if Hoke were to get canned after 2014 (its an especailly uphill battle considering @ND, MSU, and Ohio), whoever were to take over the job (possibly Les) would have a roster LOADED with 4 and 5 star upperclassmen, and a home schedule that would lend itself to a BCS berth season...could be great for momentum going forward.
I'm a senior at Harvard, and lifelong Michigan fan so it's been great to see what Amaker has done with the program.
His successes first and foremost come
From recruiting. Amaker is able to sell kids and their parents on playing competitive D1 basketball while getting a world class education (the Michigan of the east, as a shirt I wear reads). Our squad now plays almost solely 3 star players with offers to places such as Oregon, cal, vandy, northwestern, etc. He recently had signed a couple of 4 stars as well.
The results are both funny at times, and satisfying as a Michigan fan. Amaker runs a Princeton offense so he can limit possessions and hopefully get his team good shots. The strategy is crucial when trying to pull off huge upsets (like last year's first round tourney win vs New Mexico) as it gives teams with higher talent levels fewer opportunities to score in a slower game.
As a home fan, and one who roots for Ivy League titles, this strategy and Amaker's coaching style can be excruciating at times. With 3 and even 4 star talent on the court, our squad can look like the Monstars (space Jam reference) against a lot of lesser the Ivy League opponents. Yet Amaker's Princeton offense is sooo slow paced, and our team packs it in so much on defense, that games are usually won 59-52. Not exactly fun to watch.
I do really like Amaker for a number of reasons: 1. He is exceptionally nice towards students at the school (even sent over an appetizer when a a couple friends and I told him we were big fans of the team and loud as hell in the student section). 2. He didn't recruit spike (took another pg named Siani Chambers who is also very good...but no one is spike). 3. I only have to watch his Princeton offense at home games as away games aren't televised. 4. We landed probably the perfect hire at the time...all hail Coach B.
But Devin Garner just posted on his Instagram that he was working out on an assisted treadmill and that it was his first time running in 3 months. Clearly this was more than just turf toe.
Watching this football, and now basketball team is rough. Feels like I keep getting dumped by a girlfriend or something. Damn things seemed so bright in Michigan sports just a little while ago. Good news is this game means nothing, and this team can get better and make a deep run in March.
This win is fantastic for the sanity of Michigan fans everywhere. Obviously the majority of our happiness depends on what happens in Iowa City at noon, but win or lose, it will feel a lot better looking forward to clinching a tournament championship on Sunday night than despressingly forcing ourselves to half-ass watch an ESPN3 streamed 3rd place game while most NFL games are on.
Other than that, damn its fun to watch a stronger, more confident Stauskas tear up a much bigger, more athletic FSU defense.
Stauskas seems to be much improved and is a killer out there on the floor. He took it hard to the rack a number of times. McGary looked like Final Four Mitch, and Levert seems much improved as well. If GR3 could at make at least half of the major jump we all expected him to take between year 1 and year 2, this team could easily make another deep tourney run. There's tons of talent on this roster.
We are gonna have a really tough time making the playoff next year (not like it was a lock or anything anyhow).
It just kind of sucks looking at that schedule and seeing AT nd, AT ohio, and AT little brother (also at northwestern FWIW, but thats sort of like a home game).
But again, it sort of sucks to have a potentially stud 5th year senior DG led team, that is filled with 4 and 5 stars coming into thier own, have to go up against all of that.
I know this is looking really far ahead, but fingers crossed that either Speight or Shane can ball out in 2015 because our squad will be starting virtually all 4 and 5 star talent at that point.
I really like a lot of what David Brandon has done. Scheduling marquee matchups like the Cowboy Classic? Check. Playing a game under the lights? Check. Working to help create a louder atmosphere at te big house? Check. And even uniformZ?? Check.
While we have an amazon coach in Brady Hoke, his whole "this is Michigan" recruiting tactic would seem almost stale and outdated if we didn't have all of the cutting edge improvements that DB has installed.
I realize that traditionalists cringe at the thought of "game x sponsored by y," but in the grand scheme of things, I think we'd all take five extra 4 stars each year, more wins, and more national exposure over a less controversial, less active AD.
I like threads like these on slow days. Its just nuts that this is a legitmate best guess list. If you were to tell me 6 months ago that it wasn realistic for us to pull Harris, Mone, Hand, Peppers, McDowell, and another top flight reciever in the same class, I would call you nuts.
Although I know we can get more, I'd still be very VERY happy with even 2 of the four uncommited Michigan-leaning studs (Hand, Peppers, Mcdowell, and any one of those top 200ish recievers).
As someone who will always hate ND, and thinks that Teo 100% lied to some extent (What type of dude has a girlfriend he has never hooked up with, met, or even skyped for two seconds?!?!?!), I will continue to welcome Teo jokes. Especially ones made by his new hometown.
Don't show up for the first two/three hours. Its mostly Paperwork, height/weights, and then bench, 40's, verts, etc (gets boring withing 10 minutes). The more interesting stuff comes after (individuals drills, 1V1's, pass rush, etc).
That we get one last visit before he decides. I'd hate to have him sold on Stanford just because they were his most recent. Especailly because it seems like he loved Ann Arbor.
is just being superstitious. I normally agree with Kenpom too, but it rates us based upon the entire season, and clearly we are a different team with McGary in full beast mode. We're a team of destiny...Michigan by 3.
Its so cool to see our football legends like Desmond, Charles, and Denard embrace our basketball team. It helps both programs to have the other one kick ass on a national stage.
I might be in the minority here, but I generally like "cool story bro" types of posts because theyre usually pretty insightful as to what our Wolverines, or adversaries, are like off the court. Always worth the 30 or so seconds it takes to read.
Everything in my 21 years of Michigan fandom, and every lesson my Michigan father taught me tells me this post isn't right. This is the same man who texted me saying he was nervous we might blow it about two minutes before the walk-ons came in for the Florida game. Refuse to read! Save in drafts Brian!!!
I was drinking a lot to drown my sorrows, then we hit the shot and my buddies at the pregame dogpiled on me (as the only michigan fan there), then I drank a lot because we won. Needless to say, I got really really drunk.
You couldn't really ask for a better "face of the program" at least on the player level than DG. He seems like a hard worker and genuinely good dude. Was a 5 star who paid his dues and now it's his time to run the team.
I have to imagine this extension would be huge in the mind of recruits who had any doubt that either Hoke or Mattison would bolt to another job. Compare this type of stability to the Fickell (pun intended) staff at Ohio.
Recent Comments
BBQ- Heckys
Pizza-giggios
I'm hungry just typing that out.
Also, Denard with the 23 yard td run around the edge. Memories...
It is realy frustrating hearing people on this blog continually rip a lot of the moves David Brandon makes when many of them are aimed at making us more competitive. Pumping in music to elevate the crowd noise (making the Big House a more intimidating atmosphere), scheduling marquee games like the Bama and Florida games in Arlington to start the year, and alternate jereys are all things decisions that kids my age and younger really think are cool.
Recruits obviously love all these moves as well. Just look at the high number of visitors and commits we get at the UTL games, or check the reaction to these events and announcements on social media. The players love it, the recruits love it, and we as fans should embrace it too.
Listen, I I've been watching Michigan my entire life, and I love the tradition (my old man tells me all about old time greats from when he lived in Ann Arbor) but damnit, as much as being top-15 every year was awesome, it really sucked at the end of the Lloyd era to feel like we supported a prehistoric program. I'm sure many of the same people on this board who complain about Brandon's modernizing updates to the program are the same ones who bitched and moaned about Lloyd's prehistoric playcalling on offense (waggle every third play), or soft prevent defense, our quite ass stadium (the Big House was NOT very loud until the renovations and piped in music) and our overall decline in recruiting (LLoyd was pulling in classes ranked in the teens in his last five years or so).
With stadium renovations, scoreboards and music, primetime national television showdowns, alternate jerseys, and a new coach, Brandon has addressed many of these issue. As a guy who is locked in to being a lifelong Michigan fan, I appreciate these efforts, and I think the majority of young diehard fans do too.
Just as importantly, the recuits who will eventually lead these teams to the successes and Big Ten Titles that we all long for, eat this shit up. And for that, I thank Dave Brandon.
***Before posters give me grief for posting at 10 on a Friday, I'm in watching my buddy's first preseason NFL game with the Bucs online***
all around
Magnus, maybe you can shed some light on this question...
In looking at that 2007 Roster, Terrence Taylor was quite the plug in the middle there, and was probably the second to last in a nice little string of above average 300 pounders (gabe Watson, Alan Branch, and finally Mike Martin) that were featured on out interioror D-Line. Do you see any of the guys on our current roster turning into that 300 pound, double team eating, run-stopping nightmare that became the norm during the early-mid 2000's?
I wonder what must have been going through his head (other than "I'm hungry") to think that no one would stare at the HEISMAN WINNER as he left a Florida Supermarket. I mean come on, there is no good way to hide crab legs!! There is absolutely something a little odd with his judgement.
It certainly isn't a promising O-line situation next year. On top of our inexperience, it seems that the guys in the trenches truly lack confidence.
It sucks to think about it this way, but if Hoke were to get canned after 2014 (its an especailly uphill battle considering @ND, MSU, and Ohio), whoever were to take over the job (possibly Les) would have a roster LOADED with 4 and 5 star upperclassmen, and a home schedule that would lend itself to a BCS berth season...could be great for momentum going forward.
His successes first and foremost come
From recruiting. Amaker is able to sell kids and their parents on playing competitive D1 basketball while getting a world class education (the Michigan of the east, as a shirt I wear reads). Our squad now plays almost solely 3 star players with offers to places such as Oregon, cal, vandy, northwestern, etc. He recently had signed a couple of 4 stars as well.
The results are both funny at times, and satisfying as a Michigan fan. Amaker runs a Princeton offense so he can limit possessions and hopefully get his team good shots. The strategy is crucial when trying to pull off huge upsets (like last year's first round tourney win vs New Mexico) as it gives teams with higher talent levels fewer opportunities to score in a slower game.
As a home fan, and one who roots for Ivy League titles, this strategy and Amaker's coaching style can be excruciating at times. With 3 and even 4 star talent on the court, our squad can look like the Monstars (space Jam reference) against a lot of lesser the Ivy League opponents. Yet Amaker's Princeton offense is sooo slow paced, and our team packs it in so much on defense, that games are usually won 59-52. Not exactly fun to watch.
I do really like Amaker for a number of reasons: 1. He is exceptionally nice towards students at the school (even sent over an appetizer when a a couple friends and I told him we were big fans of the team and loud as hell in the student section). 2. He didn't recruit spike (took another pg named Siani Chambers who is also very good...but no one is spike). 3. I only have to watch his Princeton offense at home games as away games aren't televised. 4. We landed probably the perfect hire at the time...all hail Coach B.
Go blue
with the sack! Maybe we could have used him against OSU
Watching this football, and now basketball team is rough. Feels like I keep getting dumped by a girlfriend or something. Damn things seemed so bright in Michigan sports just a little while ago. Good news is this game means nothing, and this team can get better and make a deep run in March.
This win is fantastic for the sanity of Michigan fans everywhere. Obviously the majority of our happiness depends on what happens in Iowa City at noon, but win or lose, it will feel a lot better looking forward to clinching a tournament championship on Sunday night than despressingly forcing ourselves to half-ass watch an ESPN3 streamed 3rd place game while most NFL games are on.
Other than that, damn its fun to watch a stronger, more confident Stauskas tear up a much bigger, more athletic FSU defense.
Stauskas seems to be much improved and is a killer out there on the floor. He took it hard to the rack a number of times. McGary looked like Final Four Mitch, and Levert seems much improved as well. If GR3 could at make at least half of the major jump we all expected him to take between year 1 and year 2, this team could easily make another deep tourney run. There's tons of talent on this roster.
Mike Hart picks up a one hop fumble for a first down.
Also, Nick Sheridan sighting. If only I knew...
We are gonna have a really tough time making the playoff next year (not like it was a lock or anything anyhow).
It just kind of sucks looking at that schedule and seeing AT nd, AT ohio, and AT little brother (also at northwestern FWIW, but thats sort of like a home game).
But again, it sort of sucks to have a potentially stud 5th year senior DG led team, that is filled with 4 and 5 stars coming into thier own, have to go up against all of that.
I know this is looking really far ahead, but fingers crossed that either Speight or Shane can ball out in 2015 because our squad will be starting virtually all 4 and 5 star talent at that point.
While we have an amazon coach in Brady Hoke, his whole "this is Michigan" recruiting tactic would seem almost stale and outdated if we didn't have all of the cutting edge improvements that DB has installed.
I realize that traditionalists cringe at the thought of "game x sponsored by y," but in the grand scheme of things, I think we'd all take five extra 4 stars each year, more wins, and more national exposure over a less controversial, less active AD.
I like threads like these on slow days. Its just nuts that this is a legitmate best guess list. If you were to tell me 6 months ago that it wasn realistic for us to pull Harris, Mone, Hand, Peppers, McDowell, and another top flight reciever in the same class, I would call you nuts.
Although I know we can get more, I'd still be very VERY happy with even 2 of the four uncommited Michigan-leaning studs (Hand, Peppers, Mcdowell, and any one of those top 200ish recievers).
Is there some deeper meaning to this? Why was it written? I have so many questions!!!
As someone who will always hate ND, and thinks that Teo 100% lied to some extent (What type of dude has a girlfriend he has never hooked up with, met, or even skyped for two seconds?!?!?!), I will continue to welcome Teo jokes. Especially ones made by his new hometown.
Don't show up for the first two/three hours. Its mostly Paperwork, height/weights, and then bench, 40's, verts, etc (gets boring withing 10 minutes). The more interesting stuff comes after (individuals drills, 1V1's, pass rush, etc).
That we get one last visit before he decides. I'd hate to have him sold on Stanford just because they were his most recent. Especailly because it seems like he loved Ann Arbor.
DRAGON CITY BABY!
is just being superstitious. I normally agree with Kenpom too, but it rates us based upon the entire season, and clearly we are a different team with McGary in full beast mode. We're a team of destiny...Michigan by 3.
Its so cool to see our football legends like Desmond, Charles, and Denard embrace our basketball team. It helps both programs to have the other one kick ass on a national stage.
LEVERT ALERT!!!! GO BLUE FOREVER.
Summer Variety Pack. Saw it in the store and had to buy it. Go Blue!!
I might be in the minority here, but I generally like "cool story bro" types of posts because theyre usually pretty insightful as to what our Wolverines, or adversaries, are like off the court. Always worth the 30 or so seconds it takes to read.
I was drinking a lot to drown my sorrows, then we hit the shot and my buddies at the pregame dogpiled on me (as the only michigan fan there), then I drank a lot because we won. Needless to say, I got really really drunk.
is an incredible coach. Holy Spike!!!!! Go blue forever!!!
32 hours Til tip, Go Blue!
YES. Go blue!