jackrobert

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3 years 49 weeks

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Recent Comments

Date	Title	Body
10 weeks 6 hours ago	Well said	The first half was the most exciting and interesting first half of basketball I've ever seen, and the second half was a great display of college basketball as well.   Even if I were a neutral observer, I'd be viscerally pissed about the foul on Burke's clean block (I was viscerally pissed at the quick jump ball whistle at the end of the UL-Wichita St. game because it robbed fans of a potentially great finish).   Although I think Louisville was the more complete and therefore better team, that call changed the complexion of the last 5 minutes and might have robbed college basketball of an all-time great finish.  Both teams were playing at such a high level and the game was so interesting in multiple respects--I would have liked to have seen Trey Burke with the ball and Michigan down 2 points with 30 seconds left. That said, my two emotions today are sadness that I'll probably never see Burke play for Michigan again--and pride for my alma mater.  Go Blue.
12 weeks 23 hours ago	English major correction	As an English major (LSA '1993), I have a correction to your thread title, which should read: "Michigan has an 81.45 percent chance of winning the NCAA tournament."  But your maths look perfect to me--that's the important part.
17 weeks 4 days ago	Bo Ryan is the grinch who stole basketball	As a Google search on "Bo Ryan looks like . . ." reveals, I'm not the first to point this out:
17 weeks 5 days ago	Agreed	I said this when the Freeh Report came out and the NCAA imposed its sanctions: even if the Freeh Report had 100% vindicated Joe Paterno (which obviously it did not), Penn State should still get massively sanctioned because the fucking President, AD, and a high-ranking VP of the university clearly made a decision not to report credible allegations of child sex abuse to the proper law enforcement authorities. The fact that the President, AD, and a high-ranking VP failed to report McQuery's allegations shows a greater lack of institutional control than if Paterno was solely responsible for the cover up--a university's adminstrators are supposed to be a check on the football coach, not his protector or (if you think JoePa was in on the conspiracy, which I do) his enabler.  As someone who worked in academic adminstration at another Big Ten University (not UM or PSU), I actually find the actions of the President, AD, and the VP more shocking and appalling than anything JoePa might have done. This is why all the PSU apologists need to STFU.  Even if JoePa was an angel, your school's administration was completely corrupted by the football-first culture.
18 weeks 8 hours ago	Fear the turtle?	Adding Maryland to the BIG makes even less sense now. I thought I read somewhere that after losses, Woody would hold court with the press in the locker room wearing nothing (except perhaps a snapping turtle).
19 weeks 6 days ago	My last sentence wasn't clear	I was operating on the assumption that class cert would be denied (which is most probably the right ruling), at which point the NCAA would already be on record saying some players create value and some don't.   My take is that class cert should be denied due to the problem of allocating damages among the class members (there are probably additional reasons for this ruluing).  But California courts - even the federal ones - are notorious for liberally certifying classes. Even if the class is not certified, however, I think there are enough high value former NCAA athletes to incentivize plaintiffs' attorneys to bring individual suits.  The class action mechanism is there so when we all get overcharged $3 on our ComEd bill for a year, we can bring 1 lawsuit to recover. Either way, I look forward to the NCAA going down in flames on this one.
19 weeks 6 days ago	Class action	The plaintiffs are limited to MBB and football players because that is the only plausible way to define the plaintiff class with any hope of getting the case certified as a class action. Even then, it is going to be difficult to get class cert because the class will consist of players of varying skills, marketability, and accomplishments, and thus arguably the class will not be able to satisfy the legal standard for being granted class treatment. The present motion appears to be a motion to strike some new allegations that I assume O'Bannon et al. added in an amended complaint.  There are procedural rules about whether and when you can add new allegations, and the NCAA was hoping to strike the new allegations so the plaintiffs would be limited to recovering money only for rebroadcasts, not live broadcasts.  It's a big win for plaintiffs because the potential damages just increased several fold, but the real battle is going to be over class cert. The NCAA's position against class cert is interesting because I assume they will have to argue that it requires an individualized inquiry to determine each player's value.  If that is true, which certainly seems the case, class treatment is probably not proper because there is not an efficient way to allocate damages between the walk-on benchwarmers (who deserve very little $) and the superstars (who deserve lots).  In arguing this, the NCAA will be conceding that players create value, which is probably not a position they want to be taking post-class cert.
20 weeks 1 day ago	We should add them to the BIG	and put them in the same division with Maryland.  Then Delaney can name the divisions Debtors and Creditors.
31 weeks 4 days ago	Pathological state of denial	It's really amazing to see such denial.  Franco Harris has convinced himself that because McQuery didn't see "intercourse," therefore what McQuery did see was not a sexual assault.  Because, you know, there is nothing sexually inappropriate about a grown man pressing his naked body against a naked prepubescent boy in a shower at 9 p.m. on a Friday night.  I wish they had gotten the death penalty for 4 years.
36 weeks 4 hours ago	You recall correctly	Alexander's injury opened the door for Desmond to be the go-to receiver - which resulted in Hello Heisman!
44 weeks 4 days ago	One of my favorite adages	"Luck is the residue of design." --John Milton
44 weeks 5 days ago	Be careful what you wish for, BOT	I hope this appeal progresses because it is going to bring to light only more bad facts for JoePa and the PSU administration who conspired to cover up Sandusky's crimes.  I'd love to be the prosecutor handling this case. JoePa’s handwritten notes on Sandusky's retirement contract are probably the most damning piece of evidence in the Report.  They show that as early as 1999, Paterno was sufficiently aware of Sandusky’s status as a likely pedophile to jot down a note to this effect while reviewing Sandusky’s retirement contract.  Think about this scenario for a minute—JoePa is reading a longtime colleague’s retirement contract and the salient fact that occupies his mind when reading the clause about ongoing facility access is: “Hey, this guy may try to abuse Second Mile kids in our facilities, so we better not let him bring the kids here.”  This concern is so significant to JoePa that he actually writes it down in the margin of the contract.  This is a remarkable fact that would have been the centerpiece of any criminal prosecution of, or civil trial against, JoePa. Anyone who doesn’t recognize the damning import of JoePa’s note is delusional.  When you combine this fact with McQueary’s eyewitness report to JoePa in February 2001, no rational person could conclude that JoePa did not have a reasonable basis to report Sandusky as a possible pedophile in 2001.  Despite the apparently commonly held belief among PSU fans that the evidence against JoePa was miniscule, rest assured that the evidence Freeh found would have been sufficient to uphold a criminal conviction of Paterno for failure to report likely child abuse.  It's a shame JoePa didn't live long enough to be cross-examined under oath about his notations and the other undisputed facts in the record.
45 weeks 4 days ago	JoePa's estate's recourse is probably to sue PSU, not NCAA	The NCAA is not a state actor, so there is no constitutional basis for JoePa's estate to bring a cause of action against the NCAA based on a due process violation.  PSU is of course a state actor, so the estate could theoretically sue them for violating procedural due process.  The estate's best basis for suing  PSU probably lies in contract--but I suspect PSU can argue that JoePa breached some provision of the contract by participating in the cover-up.  Should be interesting to see how this plays out.
46 weeks 3 days ago	Anyone old enough to remember Bill Bonds	spoiling the 1980 miracle on ice for those watching the tape-delayed broadcast in Detroit?  What a jackass.  OP should have his avatar changed to a pic of Bill.
46 weeks 6 days ago	Why did the PSU Administration decide not to report?	I agree the NCAA's decision had nothing to do with any supposed competitive advantage (see my comment above).  However, I disagree with your statement that this "entire action was based on moral outrage at the non-action of PSU, not on anything at all to do with football." The NCAA punished PSU because the school allowed its culture to reach such a point that the President, AD, and Sr. VP of the university chose to protect the PR image of the football program over the welfare of boys whom, they had very strong reasons to suspect, were at grave risk of being abused by a former assistant football coach.  If the accused pedophile was a physics professor with the same track record as Sandusky, do you think Spanier, Curley, and Schultz would have behaved the same way?  Hello no! That's why this whole scandal was all about the warped culture that had grown up around PSU football.  The football-first culture is what corrupted the university's highest ranking leaders.  And for this massive and reprehensible failure of leadership, the NCAA was warranted in punishing PSU's football program.
47 weeks 2 hours ago	I agree	The competitive advantage argument is pretty tenuous, but I think the sanctions are justified for the reason you give (LOIC). If a PSU fan ever complains to me about the sanctions, I'm going to pose this hypothetical: Suppose the Freeh Report completely absolved Paterno of any responsibility (e.g., McQuery went to the AD instead of JoePa and JoePa never knew anything at any time), but the report still leveled the same charges against Spanier, Schultz, and Curley with respect to failing to report someone whom they had very strong reason to believe was a pedophile.  Would anyone have any problem with the sanctions handed down yesterday?  I would not. Under this hypothetical, the only sanction that seems dubious is vacating the wins, particularly from 1998-2001.  All of the other sanctions would be justified because PSU's President, AD, and Sr. VP chose to prioritize the football program's and school's PR image over the safety and welfare of children whom, they knew, were at grave risk of being abused by a pedophile.  Setting aside JoePa's involvement in the cover up, this is a textbook case of lack of institutional control - protecting the football program was dictating the decisions made by the school's purported academic leaders. Having worked in the central administration of another Big Ten school - not Michigan and not PSU (thank god) - I cannot imagine the president of a university making a decision as morally bankrupt as the one Spanier did.  It just goes to show you that the tail was completely wagging the dog at PSU (congrats, Pres. Gee, you are no longer the worst school president ever in this category).  For that, PSU has to pay a massive price regardless of Joe Paterno's role in the cover up. So I wonder if you remove JoePa from equation, would more PSU fans be able to recognize why the NCAA was warranted in handing down a very severe punishment?  I don't hear many PSU fans defending Spanier, Schultz, and Curley, probably because you'd have to attack McQuery's credibility to make this argument. Note: based on the evidence in the Freeh Report, I personally believe JoePa played an instrumental role in the cover up and find the JoePa apologists' attempts to deconstruct the Freeh Report idiotic.
48 weeks 1 day ago	Creepy behavior by Sandusky was probably well known before 1998	I've heard (admittedly second-hand but from two different people who are close friends) interesting stories relayed by two different former PSU players dating from the mid-1990s.  One said that a nude Sandusky would come up behind nude players in the shower and give them "bear hugs."  Sandusky would also work out in just a jock strap, peddling away at his workout bike while the players were working out.  This behavior was characterized by the former player as weird if not creepy but obviously this was a far cry from serial child molestation. The other former player, whose dad was a high school football coach in Pa., said that it was something of an open secret among Pa. high school coaches that Sandusky had a weird thing for boys.  I don't think people suspected at this time that he was a serial pedophile, but clearly Sandusky was engaging in behavior that struck lots of folks as highly unusual and at least a little suspicious. If anyone read the Sally Jenkins article, she dropped a line about it being a running joke among PSU administrators that you didn't want to drop your soap when Jerry was in the shower.  I suspect she heard stories similar to the one relayed to my buddy by former PSU player #1 re Sandusky's bear hugs.  Perhaps this behavior was discussed in the Freeh Report (I read only portions of it). At any rate, take these second-hand anecdotes for what they're worth.
48 weeks 2 days ago	I agree with Costas	If this had happened at Michigan, I would have already written a letter to the university President saying we should voluntarily put football on hiatus for a year, maybe longer.  It's the most appropriate way to show remorse.  This shameful cover-up  happened because football was king at PSU.  Show that something matters more than football by voluntarily suspending the program for a year (or more).
1 year 3 weeks ago	Elvis Grbac	Why did Bob include Elvis among the most memorable people he dealt with?  I graduated in '93 and knew some guys on the team then.  Based on what I heard from them, I would not be surprised if Elvis was not among Bob's favorite people.  Are you at liberty to confirm this speculation?
1 year 4 weeks ago	Still holding a candle for RR	For the record, I agree Snyder and Rosenberg authored a hatchet job that significantly harmed the program and our already unfairly beleaguered coach at the time, and the Freep's editors committed journalistic malpractice in allowing their "expose" to be published. But every time I read one of Section 1's open letters, I have two thoughts: If/when Michigan wins the MNC sometime in the next decade with Hoke as its head coach, Section 1 will write yet another MGoPost in which he asserts RR was wrongfully fired by Dave Brandon.   Section 1 must have been one of those Michigan fans who was convinced RR would without doubt transform Michigan into a football superpower akin to USC under Pete Carroll (except without the cheating)--and Section 1 broadcast this belief to anyone and everyone within earshot.  I say this because amongst my Michigan fan friends, I have found that there is a direct relationship between the degree to which one still (!!) laments the "wrongfulness" of RR's firing and the vociferousness with which one proclaimed RR's preordained success upon his hiring.  Section 1 is just one example of this peculiar strain of Michigan arrogance.  To some extent, I fell into the same trap, and I've found that the best way to let go of the bitterness is to approach the Extended Horror that was Sept. 1, 2007-Jan. 1, 2011 with humility and humor.  It also helped that I was at a wedding with an open bar when the Horror happened.
1 year 8 weeks ago	I hope	our fearless leader Brian Cook doesn't get any ideas from this.
1 year 8 weeks ago	That's	The Michigan Difference.
1 year 9 weeks ago	You are poorly informed in many respects	As the posts below show, your understanding of Chris Webber's role in the Ed Martin scandal is poorly informed.  And your argument that the NCAA rules don't proscribe a booster from paying a student-athlete's family members is simply wrong.  See, e.g., the Reggie Bush scandal.  I blame Steve Fisher as much as I blame Chris Webber; Fisher let Ed Martin get close to the program despite Perry Watson telling Fisher that Martin was bad news. Also, off the top of my head, I can think of at least 3 teams that have gone to back-to-back championship games since the Fab Five did it--and one that went to 3 straight title games: Arkansas 1994 and 1995 Kentucky 1996, 1997 and 1998 Florida 2006 and 2007 Butler 2010 and 2011 The Fab Five's two Final Four runs occurred during my junior and senior years at Michigan.  I went to the Sweet Sixteen games in Lexington in 1992 and the Final Four games in New Orleans in 1993.  Those were two of the most memorable weekends of my 4 years at Michigan.  Unfortunately, those banners should never be displayed due to Steve Fisher's and Chris Webber's misconduct.  You can cherish your individual memories of the Fab Five and still recognize that those banners should never be hung in Crisler.
1 year 17 weeks ago	Brother Rice	For whatever reason, Brother Rice recruits tend to go to MSU more often than Michigan.  There was a period in the late 1980s/early 1990s when Rice sent some guys to UM (most notably, Paul Jokish (sp?) and Steve Morrison - but even Jokish arrived as a basketball player, IIRC).  But I bet the MSU:UM ratio for Rice recruits has been 3:1 over the last 35 years.  As a Rice and UM grad, it kind of hurts to point this out.  I don't think Coach Fracasa's MSU connection is the driving force behind this, by the way.
1 year 17 weeks ago	Love the Six Clips reference	They did rock.  That is all.
1 year 20 weeks ago	How refreshing . . .	to have someone connected with the Penn State story express appropriate remorse.
1 year 20 weeks ago	A Train didn't drop the ball	Everyone always says Thomas simply dropped the ball without being touched.  Just as Thomas was bursting through the hole, a Northwestern player who was engaged with a blocker reached in and got a couple fingers on the ball.  He barely got a hand on it, but it was enough because Thomas wasn't expecting anyone to reach in.  I think Thomas might have been adjusting the ball too as he accelerated into all-out sprint mode. I was at the game and based on the way the play looked from the south endzone, I thought Thomas must have simply dropped the ball.  When I got home, replays showed otherwise.  I just tried to find a good replay on YouTube but no dice.  I think NU #44 is the guy who got a finger or two on the ball.  Brutal loss.
1 year 20 weeks ago	Another over/under still in play	Whatever it is, I'll take the under for some genius to explicate Brian's Star Wars allusion.
1 year 33 weeks ago	Rosenberg's rendition of Brian Cook "berating" him	"What's a countable hour!?!  You Dolphin puncher!!"
1 year 33 weeks ago	If Hoke was a done deal . . .	A good reason no one seems to be mentioning is that Hoke was a done deal in DB's mind, so he didn't have to worry about finding a new coach.  Bacon's story about former Carr players saying, at a golf outing in May 2010, that Hoke would be the coach in 2011 offers some support for this theory. If you have the new coach already in hand, waiting until after the bowl to fire RR is probably the best option because: it prevents RR from siphoning off players (although a mass exodus seems unlikely for the reason noted by Brian below); it enables Hoke to coach SD State's bowl game, thus avoiding a repeat of the media shit storm that occurred when RR left WVU before its bowl; it allows DB to flirt with Harbaugh and Miles to appease their constituencies without creating additional media shitstorms; it saves the athletic dep't a little cash on RR's buyout. The only negatives are: potential pro-RR outcry if RR wins the bowl game (which seems like a minimal risk even if UM had won); potential hit to recruiting if Hoke gets a couple less weeks to salvage the 2011 recruiting class; alienating current players who felt rudderless while RR was dangling in the wind. None of these 3 came to pass, so maybe the pimp hand was extant in this case.

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