This is also the first game in which a certain celebrated defensive back was on the field for Michigan and made a subtle but important impact as I remember.
When I heard about Sleeping Bear being on the list I immediately thought Munising Bay was prettier and I had completely forgot about the pictured rocks being there.
No, I don't really plan on following Brady Hoke. It's the players that need to follow and Brady Hoke's job to lead them. Not me, I am proud to be a MICH fan. My role is to support MICH. Thats what fans do. Maybe your more than that. Whatever that means.
Am I skeptical about him being the best man for the job, sure. But he has the job and me spending hours analyzing his past acimpishments, or lack of them, or worrying about his lack of them; isn't going to change that. Nor is it going to lead to any constructive or positive outcome.
Yes, I seek reasons for hope rather than reasons for more despair in somethng I have no real stake in, other than the stake I choose to put in it. That does not make me a sheep.
Looking through Michigan stats there was one year which the 4th leading ball carrier had over 250 yards on over 60 carries. His name was Chris Floyd. If I remeber right UM did alright that year.
If I was going to try to explain to someone where the tradition of the #1 jersy at Michigan came from and what it means, this is the play I would show them.
For me it was a 20th birthday present listening to MICHigan football with my Dad after I had jumped on the UM bandwagon when I was about 10.
-Have mandatory physical training as punishment during a time of the year that no mandatory training is allowed?--
The football coaches were making sure the players were going to class and making them run when they didn't and now UM is being punished for it.
Can you imagine the explosion if that happened to Bo.
Damn those family values.
No, a restraining order would not have kept her safe. A restraining order would give documentation that this woman had a reason to fear this man and would be justified in defending herself. This I believe is the real value of a restraining order.
Atwan was a good college player. He was not quick enough or have the range for an NBA guard. Nor was he big enough for the 3 spot. He was pretty deadly at an open 15 footer and often could get off an runna, especially if he was being guarded by a smaller player as he was 6'5". Much like Jalen of the fab 5, he was not the best player on the team, but often the glue that kept things from flying apart.
Agreed. But its only a 4 year contract, right? So only 2 years remaining. Unless things go south again next year he will have his full 4 years. But after that who knows.
I think the advantage UM had over the other schools is that RichRod said he would give Denard the chance to compete at the qb position. He is being given that. I suspect both of them know Denard has to much talent to waste it on being a 3rd string qb.
You don't think its just possible that a college football coach might be enhancing a story a bit about how he made room for a Heisman trophy winner by sacrificing another highly rated player. Especially when there is no real way to prove him wrong.
If the freep had done their research to start with they don't have a story and they knew it. First they write a story where its obvious that UM is guilty. Then months later they give out information the mitigates the first story, but by now everyone already "knows" UM is guilty. If they would have wanted to research the story from the beginning the could of. They didn't because they knew it wold hurt their case.
Right now they are probably trying to soften the blow for when the NCAA report comes out basically says the story was crap.
Some of the offensive players we already have will move to defense. I believe James Rogers already has, he just isn't ready to play yet. RR seems to like to recruit a lot of offense and and let them compete for positions. When it becomes apparent to some players they are not going to get the playing time they would like they will move to positions where they can get on the field. Its a process and it takes time. I also think it makes a lot of sense in this day and age and the explosiveness of the spread.
The problem with basing the 4th down decision on historical data is that it none of the historical data takes into account 4th and 2 from your own 28 with a 6 point lead and 2 min left. Unless this situation has been played out before which I seriously doubt.
In football little details change the strategy significantly. It would be interesting to see, historically, how many of those 4th down attempts where runs and passes and the conversion rates of each.
I think Belichick is a great coach who probably made a bad decision. Like a great coach, I doubt he evaluated the aggregate generalized historical data as much as he focused on the factors involving his specific situation. Many of the factors we fans watching the game on TV know little about.
I don't think Tate can compare to Chad's robo demeanor and stature.
Going with Brian's descriptions of Tate's magic he might be more like "the Wizard."
"The backlash has included threats against Rosenberg and Snyder. One gem from the fanatical fringe: 'I'm a person of strong moral conviction ... however, I wish nothing but pain and death to you.'"
Whether or not the death threats were made does not support or disparage the "journalist" allegations. Nor is it a signification portion of the backlash. If the editor had real issues with the "backlash", how about commenting on a ABC announcer calling the allegations a "witch hunt" during the game Saturday. Seems like the editor was hoping this kind of "backlash" goes unnoticed.
Also: "Rosenberg is primarily a sports columnist but, like many columnists, is also an excellent reporter. In columns, he's been critical of Rodriguez, as some cyberspace conspiracy theorists point out."
I think it is fairly obvious the second point is directed towards this statement by Brian:
allowing a columnist with such a strong viewpoint to write an anonymously-sourced investigative news article on the same topic of his obsession is improper.
The Free Press has been trying the marginalize blogs and Brian in particular. As Brian pointed out they previously had implied Brain was some anonymous writer who nobody could identify and could not be contacted, instead of a guest of several radio talk shows this past week including being interviewed by Mitch Albom. There is little doubt they see the internet and Brain as a competitor.
I didn't really care for it. Seemed like artificial excitement. I would have rather heard the band. I was up high in section 21. Everyone there seem pretty indifferent to it.
I would not be surprised to see Sheridan run the first series or two against WMU. The first series is likley to start around our 20. Rodriguez is not going to have a freshman throw down field in that situation; first series, first game. WMU knows that. If we can get 2 or 3 first downs, use Zolton to trade up field position, then bring in the freshmen.
God, guess I watched Bo to many years.
Thanks for the reminder. Sept. 5 is the first game I have ever attended. I am lucky enough to have a spouse that is also excited to be going and I am thinking that is something she would be interested in also. When does it take place and where does is start.
I really think their skills complement rather than grate against each other. It is not like Tate can't run or Dennard can't pass, just that each has there own strengths. They both can run the same plays just the mix will be different. So the rest of the offense will be running the same plays from the same formations they did in practice.
I have seen instances where offenses had to completely switch gears because of a qb change and it wasn't very pretty. See tOSU last year before Pryor took over for good. I suspect that is part of the reason they had to decide on one or the other.
The biggest apples and oranges comparison is that Colt was playing for a team coming off 2 consecutive appearances in the BCS title game and UM was 3-9 last year. I think there is a good chance Tate will lead us to a 10 win season but I highly doubt it will be next year.
I had heard the comparison before but it seems after reading your post the main differences is them being young and small.
I post so infrequently that I know what posts are being voted up and down but I am usually unsure why. So its still aggravating for me. Especially the down votes.
Needing to have 20 points to write diaries is one of my 2 biggest problems with the point system and by far the easiest one to fix. Not only do we get bad diaries but there have been some diaries that were posted as diaries instead of board topics just because the poster lacked the necessary points.
I am surprised that with Arkansas on the list of possibilities nobody has mentioned that they would in all likelihood be led by a certain ex UM qb. Is this a good thing or a bad thing. I am also very curious- as if anyone could possibility know - would the situation make it more likely or less likely to happen.
Slatton was indeed kicking our ass in '04. He kept killing us running that qb wrap play where he fakes a hand off and runs off tackle. It is not a wonder he ended up getting hurt. I admire him on his guts. I also think he has more guts than sense and that would have eventually caught up with him one way or another.
I do not see MSU as a true rivalry because they almost always are rated and finish far behind UM. It is a big game that I hate seeing UM lose, but that is the point. UM gains little by winning. It is not like beating tOSU or Norte Dame or even Penn State for that matter. This years game is shaping up as an exception to the rule. It should be interesting.
Yes, I posting more and having less to say just so I can get to 20 in case I want to start a board post. I am getting close so someone with like 500 points will probably feel the need to take me down a couple notches. I am thinking about starting a discussion of the points system.
They finished 24th in both polls last year (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/rankingsindex). I would think 31 would be a disappointment for a program with such a bright future as the Spartans. I realize they have a new qb but many Spartan fans think this will be addition by subtraction. I think if I was a Spartan fan I would be looking forward to at least breaking into the top 25 for the second straight year. Of course doing that would mean UM is pretty much a must win game. It might be interesting with the pressure clearly on Sparty this year.
The article seems biased to me but why let it get to you.
1) All the argument about who is recruiting better and which program is on the rise will eventually get settled on the field. All this hoopla now doesn't amount to a hill of beans.
2) This is obliviously an article written specifically for overly giddy Sparty fans to further their journey into fanatically unrealistic expectations. They are no more going to replace Michigan in the ranks of college football than we are going to replace Sparty as perennial big ten favorites in basketball. Unfortunately in a world where internet hits and magazine sales are how many sports writers make a living, these rabid fan bait articles have become a good way to pay the bills. Lets not encourage them. I feel a little dirty myself for checking the article out.
I don't think there will be so much controversy but there will be competition. Tate has a big advantage being here for spring this year. By next spring that advantage will all but disappear. I think Gardner redshirts and almost assures himself as the starter his junior and senior years. The competition for playing time will continue to be between Denard and Tate.
I was impressed with the accuracy of JG's passes. If things get tight this year at qb maybe he could be an option? Just thinking of ways to make sure the qb of Death never sees the field.
People should keep in mind that all this reporting about who has offers and who don't, who has given a verbal and who wants too; does not necessarily give a clear picture of what is happening between RR and recruits. I am sure there is a lot more communication going on between the coaching staff and these young men that we don't know about. Maybe before freak we out or try to over analyze the situation we should just let things play out and see what happens.
I too will be attending my first game against WMU on 9/7 and was wondering about what time I needed to arrive to find decent parking and where to park it being a 3:30 and all. I thought the best place would be AA Pio but I see some people think not. Was wondering why.
The above sounds about right to me. He is not going to go around saying how much easier it is to recruit at UM than WVA all the time. I think if you look at the recruits he has got so far it about proves it. Even if the 2010 class doesn't get much better I think it out ranks his WVA classes. I think so far the biggest difference is the OL recruits he has been able to get. This is an area a believe the UM name makes a big difference.
From the Article- "King was asked if people should believe that he and the other players took no money."
This is really some bad journalism. Much of the article seems to try to lump the fab five together when there is no evidence to do so. You have to believe if there was any out there someone would have found it by now. I am sure there is a lot of people that would like too.
One thing the article does not mention is that Webber was dirty long before coming to AA. Like in 8th grade. That doesn't make Michigan blameless but I wonder how many schools would have turned Webber away. UM's main crime was letting Ed Martin any where near the program, much less providing him with tickets and hotel rooms.
when cheering for Chris Webber at UM I always thought that to be a great NBA player he was going to need a jump shot. His body and jumping ability just wasn't that rare an NBA commodity. At the height of his career he got to the NBA finals playing what was basically Point Forward, and why was he able to do that? He had developed a jump shot.
I have been amazed at Stu's ball handling development during the season. I was thinking there was possibility of him playing point next year if other options didn't work out but didn't think about LLP being out there with him. Their abilities complement each other nicely. I think LLP still could have a huge upside, he just needs some coaching and some time to get his head straight. Sometimes ability needs some time to mature.
for rebounds. I thought at one point I heard the announcers make a comment about him not liking the physical part of the game which seemed to ring true. He does seem to be good at shooting over people from 3 feet or shouldering them out of the way when he has the ball. But I didn't think he played all that strong compared to a lot of NBA guys. To really be a great NBA player he should work on his short range jumper.
CJ Lee taking over at point guard really helped our mid season slide and was key in beating the press and still running a decent half court offense and playing defense against Clemson. In Coach B's offense the point guard is key in disturbing the ball. Until I see someone run the point effectively I going to be a little nervous.
Another viable option upfront is key for this team to go to the next level but that doesn't do them any good without a good point guard.
Key quote from the article on breaking Alabama's spring game attendance record.
If we have a decent season this year and have Devon Gardner in the spring next year the spring game will be a much bigger draw.
Rick Leach is pretty much my all time favorite player. I wonder if he is going to be there.
I have nothing against Belien but I often wish this team had a little more Jalen Rose or even Jimmy King in them. Weber and others took money and disgraced the university and it was on Fishers guard so it's also on him. Other than that I don't see anything intrinsically wrong about the way Fisher and Freider won -when they were able to win. Those freshmen didn't get to the final game without some good coaching. People forget the next best recruiting class ever was in their 3rd year at North Carolina when we played them for the NC. They also had the highest rated point guard from the fab 5 class. I have never understood the - "didn't play up to their ability" argument for the fab 5- they where sophomores and yes, they often played like it. They also often played much older than their years.
I think RichRod sees it as another thing to use in recruiting. And yes, we do often compete with Alabama, a team ranked in the top 5 all last year and probably next year for recruits.
As for making the game a fan draw, Forcer, D Robinson and Devon Gardner all competing in next years game would be a lot more interesting. This year watching Forcer with the first teamers would be greater interest for me. If they split up the offense we are probably not going to see that.
I suspect he was told he would get the same chance to compete for playing time as the 2 other qbs. It seems evident at this stage of the game that is all RR ever promises. RR may have even told him that he sees a good chance of Denard Robinson playing as a change up option. That leaves Threet very possibly looking like the 3rd stringer. Even if Threet would have somehow won the job he always would have been hearing the boos, calls for Forcer, and people reading how he got a pink slip from some guy on MGOBLOG.
Yes, it has been a bad 10 years. But has far as being a perennial national championship contender, I don't think that has been the case either. I started following UM basketball in about 75. If you saw the 76 reunion against Indiana, those was the players I remember. But there were a lot of years we were middle of the road at best. Some years even bad. That is one of the reasons we got the fab 5. We were so bad the year before.
But mostly we were competitive. Most games you thought we had at least a chance. That is what was so disheartening about the Ellerabe and Amamker years. Many times you knew we just didn't. Yes, and the Harris elbow and then ejection, you just knew after that we were done. But I still think in past years we would have been done way before that.
I would rather read about Glen Rice's stellar college career than his mediocre pro career. One curious thing to note is that as a sophomore he averaged 16 points and 9 rebounds (I think this lead the big ten) while making only 3 3ptrs for the season. We was really Michigan's only effective interior player during that year.
I was rooting for the Pacers that year in the NBA finals as Jalen was playing the best basketball of his career.
In the case of Hoyer at MSU I think it will be addition by subtraction. I know a lot of Spartan fans that agree. Ringer will be another problem but they also had some good blocking this year. Spartan fans have to be upset with those odds.
If I was Manny I would think that if Beilien can help me improve my game this much in a year, I should give him another and I might be a lottery pick. Hopefully he feels the same way.
I have been really impressed with the improvement in Manny and Sims. I think it should give reason to kids in HS with similar talent to consider coming to UM.
Recent Comments
A new pass friendly offense that probably seemed designed for a certain #4 to step into a few years later.
When I heard about Sleeping Bear being on the list I immediately thought Munising Bay was prettier and I had completely forgot about the pictured rocks being there.
No, I don't really plan on following Brady Hoke. It's the players that need to follow and Brady Hoke's job to lead them. Not me, I am proud to be a MICH fan. My role is to support MICH. Thats what fans do. Maybe your more than that. Whatever that means.
Am I skeptical about him being the best man for the job, sure. But he has the job and me spending hours analyzing his past acimpishments, or lack of them, or worrying about his lack of them; isn't going to change that. Nor is it going to lead to any constructive or positive outcome.
Yes, I seek reasons for hope rather than reasons for more despair in somethng I have no real stake in, other than the stake I choose to put in it. That does not make me a sheep.
GO BLUE
Looking through Michigan stats there was one year which the 4th leading ball carrier had over 250 yards on over 60 carries. His name was Chris Floyd. If I remeber right UM did alright that year.
The "Joe, Just Shut Up and Deal With it" Division
Don't you see. That's exactly what is not happening.
If I was going to try to explain to someone where the tradition of the #1 jersy at Michigan came from and what it means, this is the play I would show them.
For me it was a 20th birthday present listening to MICHigan football with my Dad after I had jumped on the UM bandwagon when I was about 10.