Member for

14 years 6 months
Points
5.00

Recent Comments

Date Title Body
My dad plays in the band...

and I feel terribly for him.  The alumni pep band has fewer than 100 people, and they put in a lot of time for practice and travel, say nothing about the time spent at games.  Over the years my dad has played at hockey games at Yost and the Joe, played for men and women's basketball, baseball, and softball.  Participation is a great source of pride for my dad.  I just spoke to him to get the full story, and he confirmed that he received an email last night from the marching band director which supported the athletic department and recommended that fighting the decision puts all the athletic bands in a precarious position with the AD.  What someone seems to have forgotten is these men and women are alumni...DONATING alumni.  Tell them they are uninvited to play at an event, sell the 100 seats to students, alienate a small and highly dedicated group of donors, and watch their donations head south.  Think that DB had his gaggle of MBA's do a cost benefit analysis on this one?  I'll take the alumni pep band blowing the roof off any day over a DJ.  Once again, the AD shows poor form.  Shame on you DB!

My favorite too

Mitch's was far and away my favorite bar back then too. I graduated in '96, so I guess that makes me an old fart too. For me and my B-School buddies, we watched Seinfeld and then ran to Mitch's so we could try to beat the line on Thursday nights. Back then you could go to Mitch's and actually see Mitch and his wife! Don't know how long he kept doing that. I'll never forget doing shots of grappa with him one night. That guy was great, and so was his bar.

She was dressed up as

She was dressed up as Superman's secret crystal lair.

a little help please?

Beyer isn't listed on the recruiting board here, or on the one at Scout. Please forgive me for being so wrapped up in this year of recruiting that I'm not up to speed on future recruits. Can someone provide some vitals? School, position, measurables? In advance, thanks for sharing the knowledge!

Great website with demonstrations

Plyometrics came up a couple of weeks ago when talking about Barwis workouts. I found this website, and it's got a list of exercises, with explanations, as well as video demonstrations of how to perform the exercises.

http://www.exrx.net/Lists/PowerExercises.html

Knock yourself out, and get some ups. Good luck!

agreed too

Just a couple of thoughts on the running back situation I'd like to float out there. First, I think so many backs got touches because no one player separated himself from the rest of the pack, whether because of age and experience or because of injury. No brainer, right?

But going back further in our recent history, I wonder if having a stellar back like Mike Hart kept some really good backs away. If you accept that theory, then I think you can spread it across other positions on the team too, which could help explain why the team was left weak when guys like Henne, Hart, Long, Woodley, Hall, Branch, Harris and Manningham all left within a few years of one another. Running back isn't the only position that has seen a lot of players get time when you think about it. Other than BG, the Space Emperor and Warren, is there anyone on the team that has been a two year starter at the same position for both full seasons?

Detroit sports radio...

...has been spiraling downward ever since 1130am WDFN imploded a year ago, firing almost all of their local hosts and going with more national sport programming. Even though some of the old WDFN employees have migrated over (Matt Derry, Mike Stone), they still stink. WDFN realized their shortsightedness and went back, but they haven't regained their old magic.

Valenti's problem isn't that he's an MSU blowhard, it's that he is the bad stereotype of a know-it-all, arrogant, cocky, New York jerk. He berates other Detroit team fan bases too, especially Tigers and Pistons fans. His contrarian positions always rile up the faithful. And while he is a MSU honk, he criticizes Spartan fan all the time too. He plays his "bad guy" role very well. I can't stand listening to him. I want Stoney & Wojo back for the ride home!

bring your suntan lotion...

...because that corner of the stadium gets the most sun. My folks are up high in 43 and like it. And you should hear the band real well there, unlike my seats in section 18.

Thanks for a great line. I

Thanks for a great line. I fully intend to borrow it and use it liberally throughout the day. The Vikings should have known the risks of using a double edged Favre.

Beilein's players

Tim, when can we hope to see improvement in the team's performance based on Beilein's players? Do any of our recruits for next year have the potential to come in and make major contributions to help fill the void with our top two players leaving for the NBA (assuming Manny leaves)? After watching the game yesterday, I'm afraid that it was a preview of what's to come. Is there hope in the near term, and who is bringing it? Please whip up a batch of kool-aid and start distributing ASAP!

further clarification

Wikipedia has a thorough explanation:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plyometrics

Also found a list of plyometric and Olympic style weightlifting movements:
http://www.exrx.net/Lists/PowerExercises.html

easy?

Jen, Jonny, was it easy like UMWest assumes, or was it one of those sneak up and bite you type classes? Sounds like a great class. Wish I could have taken it while I was there.

Thinking of building

The Inge family has been thinking of building a house for sometime now. I hate being "that guy" but I know this because a friend of mine is very close friends with Brandon's wife. They like the area, and will more than likely maintain a residence here even when his playing days are over.

Baxter visiting Oregon?

TomVH tweeted this about an hour ago, with the caveat he hasn't confirmed the source. A blogger at The Oregonian reported today that Baxter will be visiting the Ducks this weekend.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/ducks/2010/01/dillon_baxter_to_visit_this_we…

NFL coach Jeff Fisher

couldn't express his lack of interest in the job fast enough. Peter King reported Saturday afternoon, "that Jeff Fisher is uninterested in USC right now especially with the university's football program facing continuing questions about inducements made available to players, including an upcoming civil trial on the Reggie Bush issue."

http://gridironfans.com/forums/latest-nfl-headlines/119628-jeff-fisher-…

So it's gotta be bad when a former player won't consider coming back to coach the alma mater. His remaining 2 years and $16M probably has something to do with it too. But NFL coaches aren't dummies (except maybe for past Lions coaches), and they aren't going to leave their big NFL contracts and head to a school facing the spectre NCAA sanctions.

Virgil, if you can only go to

Virgil, if you can only go to a few games each year, I wouldn't even think of going for a full season ticket package. Even if you have to pay through the nose for a big game like OSU, you are way ahead of the game. Trying to sell your extra tickets when you can't make it for a game (like Delaware St.) will make you cringe. I literally could not give my tickets away for one of the games last year. Of course, this all changes when we start winning again. Then you can actually sell your tickets at face for the ho-hum games.

Sounds about right

My season tickets are $800 and I am in the non-seat license area of the stadium. Sounds like he's just asking you for face value. Are there really people out there that think they can ask for a premium for a pair of season tickets after the last two years? Especially with such a poor schedule of home games coming up.

Uncapped year?

I am surprised that no one has brought up that the coming year will likely be the last draft without some sort if rookie salary cap. You better believe all the agents are calling up the juniors to explain how much money they stand to lose if they don't come out early, or how the NFL could have a lockout the following year and they may have to wait even longer for their NFL dream to become a reality. Many, many juniors who would benefit from another year of school will take their chances and their lower round money this year and avoid the chances of smaller contracts next year, if there even is a next year.

Not so fast my friend

I am pretty sure Brady came back to Ann Arbor and attended a football game the year after the Pats won Superbowl XXXVI. If I remember right, he was introduced to the crowd before the game, walked across the field and under the M banner, and got a standing O.

Practice, practice, practice

I would think that after a season of watching linebackers hit the wrong hole, and watching corners and safeties let receivers run free, their problems aren't of the physical variety, but the mental variety. Lifting more weights isn't going to educate them about fundamentals, technique, or schemes.

Punchline missing

I too kept reading and reading, wondering when I was going to get that fulfilling dose of sarcasm, and was left hanging. Booo! Luckily I didn't bother to finish the post once I realized it wasn't coming, thus minimizing the amount of life sucked away.

Volume

After talking to friends in different locations around the stadium, I think there are wildly different opinions on how loud the stadium has become. As for me, I'm up near the top of the stadium in section 18, which puts me in the last section covered by the new structures. I think the crowd noise was much louder than in years past. However, friends that sit in the south end zone felt there was no change in volume. Could it be that folks in the end zone won't notice much of a difference? Or could it be that folks down low aren't hearing an increase because the sound is being deflected above them? This is the first time I've heard the band much at all since they moved to the student section, albeit I was hearing their echo bouncing off the new east side suites. Coming from my perspective, that's better than not hearing them at all. Can't wait to hear how loud we can make the place against the Irish!