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I love Mikey but I can’t see…

I love Mikey but I can’t see the Lions taking him in the first. They already have a good slot CB in Brian Branch, they need a boundary corner, edge, IOL or DT. Holmes has shown he’s a ‘best available’ drafter though so you never know!

The bar is much lower, as a…

The bar is much lower, as a former transfer 😉

I was born in '97, so…

I was born in '97, so admittedly I have less to pull from. The first season I can remember watching all the way through was '05, so with that in mind here's the top 10 from my memory:

1. '23 OSU

2. '21 OSU

3. '22 OSU

4. '24 Bama (Rose Bowl)

5. '11 OSU

6. '24 Washington (NCG)

7. '04 MSU

8. '11 ND (UTL I)

9. '06 ND

10. '13 ND (UTL II)

HMs: '06, '08 and '16 Wisconsin, '18 and '21-'23 PSU, '18-'19 and '23 MSU, '07, '09-'10 and '19 ND, '12 VT (Sugar Bowl)

 

I'm with you, unfortunately…

I'm with you, unfortunately. I hate picking them too but they had multiple guys who were mocked as first rounders return.

Vegas gave them the 2nd highest odds behind Georgia. It will very much come down to how Howard plays at QB and if they can improve their OLine... outside of that they have extremely talented upperclassmen at just about every position.

While I think UM has had their number schematically the last few years, between what they've lost compared to what OSU has retained, I'm afraid to say that it'll be an uphill battle next year in Columbus.

Fortunately have many re-watches of '21-'23 for the next year to keep me company!

Checking back into the…

Checking back into the program for the first time this year - IIRC the last two years were talent high points for the program whose key contributors have graduated. I also remember the narrative being that the program was doing pretty well in recruiting/transfers to fill in gaps, but appears they haven't plugged everything yet.

Is the start to this season a disappointment, or a natural rebuild after reaching the apex of the program (a-la 2015 Men's hoops team)? Should I still be excited about a potential tourney run, as the team may be young and have a good chance at in-season improvement?

With the start to both the M/W's hoops teams this year, and the abnormal experience of having an excuse to still be fully locked in on both M and Detroit football, I have admittedly not paid as much attention to either team as I normally do, so thanks for the answers in advance!

What a roller coaster ride…

What a roller coaster ride the Howard era has been. I've given him a massive benefit of the doubt, I believe the 2021 team was the best in program history. They have a real shot at a national title if Livers doesn't get hurt. That team was the most organized team I've ever seen, and their chemistry was amazing. While it had a lot of Beilein pieces (Livers, Brooks, Davis, Wagner-ish), Juwan filled in the holes of that team masterfully with transfers (Smith/Chaundee) and recruiting (Dickinson).

My rope's run out after the last two years. Honestly, my initial reaction to the Wisconsin incident was that he should be fired as I saw it as a Knight anomaly (a problem that doesn't seem to have improved all that much). Now, for basketball reasons as well, I think he should be left go.

Loved the idea of a Fab 5 member being the figurehead of the program, and I'll always appreciate his commitment to the school and his past contributions (as well as the good-looking class he has coming in), but the time has come IMO.

People forget the 49/49 '11…

People forget the 49/49 '11 season! They also never forget the multiple heart attacks he induced

Juwan 'Valverde' Howard

Juwan 'Valverde' Howard

#1 Haskins hurdle @ Nebraska…

#1 Haskins hurdle @ Nebraska ‘21

#2 All GW TD @ Penn state ‘21

#3 Edwards 8 broken tackles TD vs Purdue ‘22

If I CANT pick OSU games (of…

If I CANT pick OSU games (of which 2022 was the most fun, 2021 the most meaningful, but 2023 was the best)…

#1 2021 @ Nebraska

This truly felt like a turning point in the Harbaugh era. Cade said it after the game and it was accurate, “Past Michigan teams don’t win this game.” Also had the greatest Haskins hurdle.

#2 2023 @ Penn State

Was the definition of an eff-you game and a top 10 road win.

#3 2021 vs. Iowa (B1G CG)

That Iowa team was still terrible offensively, and it was an ugly game, but the two long plays saved it and got UM it’s first chip in 17 years.

I've gotten to the point…

I've gotten to the point where I really don't care at all about rankings as far as UM is concerned. Graham, Grant, Hutch, and Ojabo were all outside the top 100. We seem to always have at least one Day 1 or 2 picks at one position on the line - I think UM has gotten so good at identifying the athletic traits that they desire and teach prospects the technique to overshoot their rankings. Now, if our entire class was full of unranked 2 or 3 stars, as it seemingly was under Don Brown, I'd start getting worried. But it seems UM mostly pulls guys in from the 100-750 range who become 4-5 year players (which I prefer) and then fill in the gaps with great portal players.

I first started reading this blog because of recruiting, it was the only hope to become a better program for a while in the Hoke era. Now it feels like what I imagine the pre-recruiting industry era felt like: I know the big names but the rest I'll find out about after I see them in the spring game or on the field (also by reading the summer recruiting profiles that Brian/Seth produce that seem to offer a much better projection than many recruiting analysts).

I was a junior in '17 - we…

I was a junior in '17 - we sang it every home game that year (Brian wrote about it I think in the Cincinnati game recap) but that game just reached a different level. IIRC UM was still undefeated and ranked in the top 10 - but was already down Speight. That game, football wise, was so terrible. Absolute classic Dantonio game, but it was a one score game basically the whole way. At a certain point in the 3Q it began raining harder than I've ever seen in Michigan before, and there was no way anyone was leaving before the 4Q. Only thing left to do in the student section was to belt that song and try to lift the team in any way.

Even though both the actual game and results sucked, that was probably my favorite game I attended in my time at UM. I remember walking back to my house on Division St. and taking my shoes off and realizing they were completely full of water. Good times.

QB - '23 JJ

RB - '22 Corum

QB - '23 JJ

RB - '22 Corum / '21 Haskins

WR - '23 Wilson / '22 Bell / '23 Johnson

TE - '23 Loveland / '23 Barner

OL - '23 Henderson / '22 Keegan / '22 Olu / '22 Zinter / '22 Stueber

DL - '21 Hutch / '23 Graham / '22 Mazi / '23 Jenkins / '21 Ojabo

LB - '23 Barrett / '23 Colson

CB - '23 Johnson / '22 Turner

NB - '23 Sainristil

S - '21 Hill / '23 Moore

K - '22 Moody

P - '23 Doman

KR/PR - '21 Henning

Unpopular opinion but I don…

Unpopular opinion but I don't think these sites are necessarily entirely biased by one school or another, their slant is towards sensationalism as it will draw the largest amount of clicks/attention to each story. AND, to be fair, this is a really interesting story as it has captured the national conversation for multiple weeks.

There is fair criticism as to the standard of reporting that both sites have accepted, but I believe that they would apply this to any school if the story were potentially big enough. For example, I remember the Bernie Fine story at Syracuse basketball about 10 years back in the wake of the Sandusky scandal, and how that ended up being a false accusation.

These aren't the only news outlets that operate this way... and once you recognize that it makes their content slightly more palatable IMO.

I don't know enough about…

I don't know enough about the Klatt/Franklin history but agree that the comment on Saturday was unfair and it was right for Joel to apologize. I admittedly got caught up with the quote until I saw the rest of the press conference and the context it was in. I think if anything, Franklin was complimenting UM for good scheduling strategy, not throwing shade.

I don't think so, as an in…

I don't think so, as an in-state alum this game means and should mean a great deal to the two schools. The two best public universities in one of the biggest states in America going head-to-head.

The toxicity is at an all time high but the onus should always be on the fanbases to act responsibly, not for the schools to opt-out of decades of history and tradition. After all, that's what separates college sports from the pros, right?

Thanks for clarifying, HM!…

Thanks for clarifying, HM! Agreed that the situation has been a convoluted mess...

We should be putting…

We should be putting football fandom aside in this situation and hope that the rest of the disciplinary process for Tucker is done thoroughly and leads to an indisputable decision (as it stands, it looks like it's headed towards his dismissal). While it's clear that more needs to be done to make MSU a LOT better at dealing with sexual misconduct, I don't typically root for large public resources doling out tons of settlement money that may impact its ability to provide the people/state it serves with a quality and (semi-)affordable education.

That said, I must admit as a UM/MSU alum that they may need a large kick in the pants to drive the point that they still have a very broken culture when it comes to these issues. Their president is currently in her position because the BoT went after the former president for being a stickler about mandatory reporting of inappropriate occurrences. They then shuffled the professor at the root of the incident that was reported off to another school. They brought back Dantonio after the sketchy history he has with dealing with these kinds of offenses from his players. During my time as a student at MSU, many classmates expressed anger at ESPN for shining light on some of these cases, and looked at players such as Adrien Payne positively despite additional information made available by those reports. It's clear from Tucker's statements about the cases that some of these ideas are likely being echoed in their AD. It's all extremely, extremely frustrating, and continually causes embarrassment to the school and its alumni.

Agree with you completely on…

Agree with you completely on finding the best lines, and your great point on over unders! Will definitely look to selectively capitalize on that these opening weeks, as I think it will take the gambling public a minute to adjust as well.

If I can provide a bit of snark back on the Illinois comment - remember that Leonhard was hired as a 'defensive analyst', not a DC. I believe that doesn't allow for on-field coaching so that may limit his impact a bit. Nonetheless they have had great defenses in recent years, the strength of their team is typically in the secondary but they just lost Weatherspoon and their safety to the draft. Walters, IIRC, was the DBs coach as well and clearly did well with that.

I don't think it reduces…

I don't think it reduces incentive for Harbaugh to go to the NFL because of NCAA bullshit. In the sentence you typed, he could easily substitute 'NCAA' for 'Warde' or 'UM Athletic Department' and feel the same way since he clearly believes he shouldn't be punished at all.

Replying to say this is the…

Replying to say this is the best way forward! Love the idea of including more small schools, so that maybe a Stanford, Cal, WSU, Oregon State are not permanently shut out when they relocate to another conference. Also agree that SEC/B1G 2nd placers don't need an auto-bid.

I'm sure the format will change though because I'm not sure any matchup involving UTSA-adjacent team will generate much money, but the purist in me wants them to have a shot! Unlike the hoops tournament though, the gap between the small/big schools I think is much larger, with the exception of the Tulane/Boise State/UCF caliber teams of past years. Usually there's only 1-2 of those each year and it's 50/50 they're actually as good as they're ranked.

I think it's logical to re…

I think it's logical to re-evaluate the CFP structure in light of recent changes. IIRC, weren't each of the P5 conference champs guaranteed a spot? Now one of those conferences virtually doesn't exist past this season.

The B1G will surely want to secure a more favorable structure to place more of its teams too. Maybe a rule that if your (power) conference has 16+ teams then the top 2 finishers in the conference are guaranteed a spot, but the conference champs are given a first-round bye? This may incentivize the ACC/Big 12 to add teams though, and not sure the SEC plans to do away with divisions after adding Texas/OU.

We're here for you Seth!…

We're here for you Seth! Keep up the positive attitude, wishing your son and your family healing!

As many have said, he's…

Speaking of disasters...

The Pistons also have…

The Pistons also have Captain Hook (Zavier Simpson) coming off the bench as well, so 4 wolverines were on screen for this one

Dude grew up in a tough part…

Dude grew up in a tough part of Detroit, was raised by a single mother with an NBA father who didn't have a relationship with him, balled out at UM for 3 years, had a 10+ year NBA career while to my knowledge never got into any legal trouble whatsoever, then in retirement founded a public charter school that routinely graduates kids at much higher rates to great schools (while he fundraises for them), produced an incredible 30 for 30 about the Fab 5 that was somewhat correlative to a recruiting spike for our program, and is generally an extremely well-spoken and fun-loving individual.

 

I think Jalen is an excellent, excellent representative of the University of Michigan.

I think they have the talent…

I think they have the talent level to do it this year though, and it seems as I'm not the only one as most pre-season rankings and oddsmakers have UM in the top 3-4 teams. Obviously they're not the favorites but there is plenty of blue-chip talent to get the job done, IMO.

Another thing about recruiting rankings: I have so much trust in the coaching staff at this point that I've completely checked out on most recruiting news. Someone just posted the re-rank of the class of 2019, where UM finished with the 3rd best class in those rankings but a bit lower in the at the time rankings. I think we have a few years of data now to show that this staff is really good at scouting guys with less attention on them from less notable recruiting regions (Midwest, Northeast as opposed to Southeast) and getting the most out of them. UM was behind only Bama and UGA for most draft picks this year, granted Bama and UGA had bunches of 1-2 round guys.

I've done about a million…

I've done about a million mocks using the PFN simulator, here are my thoughts (that nobody asked for):

1.6 (round.pick): Carter or Anderson is the dream here, but one of the top 2 CBs wouldn't be too shabby either. If 3 QBs go top 5 (as is projected, but who knows?), it's nice to be guaranteed one of Carter, Anderson, Tyree Wilson, or the CBs. I wouldn't like QB here but trust the front office enough to give them the benefit of the doubt. Tough spot to trade down from, I think, but maybe Holmes considers trading up to 3 to get Anderson?

1.18: Obviously a lot depends on the pick at 6. If Carter or (somehow) Anderson is the pick there, then I really like Deonte Banks, CB out of Maryland at this spot. I don't HATE Bijan here if he's available, but I don't like 1st round RBs. If a CB or Wilson is the pick at 6, then I like one of the DTs like Breese or Kancey at this spot as well, and can be talked into Alabama S Brian Branch. This is a deep TE class, so I don't love the idea of picking Mayer here because there's value later on.

2.48: Once again, dependent on the other picks, but I hope Georgia TE Darnell Washington is available here. If not, other CBs to look out for could include DJ Turner or Emmanuel Forbes. Not as favorable to the idea of Alabama RB Jahmyr Gibbs or a LB here, LB value is also questionable in the first couple of rounds. The Lions also seem to recognize they have a long-term need on the OLine, so maybe a guard like TCU's Steve Avila could make sense.

Stopping here because there's just so many contingencies after the 2nd round that mocking past that doesn't make sense in my view haha.

Agree with you on this point…

Agree with you on this point. If the Lions take him at 6, I have enough trust in the organization at this point that I will support the pick, as the talent/production is evident. If they choose not to take him and he's still on the board (I don't think he will be btw, my prediction is that the top 5 includes 3 QBs, Anderson, and Carter), then I'll trust that they've done enough research to justify that decision.

 

Holmes has proven that he's a draft wizard (albeit through just 2 drafts), I've never had this much trust in the Lions' front office as I do now! I'd even trust them if they took one of the top QBs, although I'd be a bit more reluctant to support it if they chose Richardson or Levis.

I think Wisconsin is up 3-2…

I think Wisconsin is up 3-2 in 'super lucky shots that decide/nearly decided this game':

 

Wisconsin:

-Brust half-courter

-Gasser banked-3 buzzer beater in Crisler

-Essegian banked-3 on Sunday

 

Michigan:

-Stauskas step-back 3 in Trohl Center

-Dickinson on Sunday

 

I think Michigan is still owed one for next year 😉.

 

I almost started a thread on this, but to me Wisconsin has become our 2nd biggest basketball rival. I think I'd rather beat them than OSU at this point in hoops.

1. MSU

2. Wisconsin

3. OSU

Am I crazy?

It might be generational,…

It might be generational, but 21 Jump Street is a comedy classic to me. Easily my favorite comedy of the 2010s. This Is The End and Hot Rod also come to mind for the time period you mentioned. Editing again because I just remembered that every Jackass movie gets me dying laughing, but totally understandable if that's not your cup of tea.

1000%. Sleeping bear dunes…

1000%. Sleeping bear dunes is one of the most beautiful beaches in the US, in my opinion. I've been to California, Florida, and Hawaii, it's probably above all of them in terms of scenery and ease of access, but the water is a little cold (but it's fresh!). If you do choose to go to sleeping bear, my advice is to park at the maritime museum next to the park entrance - there's an access to the beach that you can walk down to the left from that gets you to a much more private section of the dunes that are right on the water. Obviously you can still climb the dunes if you want from there!

At the beginning of the year…

At the beginning of the year I said 6-7 wins for the team, happy that they went well beyond that. It took a minute for the fury of that Rams-Seahawks refshow to wear off, but after it did I was rooting for the Lions to send a message tonight and they did resoundingly. They should be the favorites to win the division next year, and have legitimate hopes for a playoff run for the first time in my life (I'm 25).

During the game I couldn't stop thinking of the close moments that kept the team out of the playoffs:

-Not getting stops against the Eagles and Seahawks when the offense was on fire

-Botched FG decision @Minnesota

-Tight, winnable games against Miami and Buffalo

But looking back at that list, that's 5 playoff teams and 2 prime contenders that they went toe-to-toe with and easily could have beaten for a team whose core is mostly comprised of first and second year players. I have full faith that another Brad Holmes offseason will take this franchise to the next level. BNL!

No chance for 2 reasons:

1…

No chance for 2 reasons:

1. Won't start next year (as many have covered)

2. Since he's a RS SO and our admissions department will only take 60 credits, he would be set back an academic year

Haven't read the whole…

Haven't read the whole thread, but I think I saw the guy running toward the camera is a high-level MSU football staffer? With that in mind, I think he spotted the person recording the incident and ran at them to block the view of it, instead of trying to break it up. Speaks volumes IMO

Minnesota may not be out of…

Minnesota may not be out of it on record, but I think they're out of it because they own 2 losses to the likely other top finishers in the division (Purdue and Illinois)

I think the comp is Dwight…

I think the comp is Dwight Howard. Not even sure I would say nickel and dime, playstyle and build are eerily similar

Greg's Kitchen and Taphouse…

Greg's Kitchen and Taphouse is a more low-key Michigan bar in the Sloan's Lake area of Denver. Usually they have the game on a big TV on their outdoor patio and there's normally 4-5 tables of UM fans

Never the same Vick again?…

Never the same Vick again? Sure. But Vick walked the walk. He paid the punishment for his crime by spending years in prison, upon release worked with numerous animal protection non-profits, and has kept his nose squeaky clean ever since. To me, when I think of Vick I do still think of the dogfighting, but the primary memory is his rehabilitation and incredible football talent.

Watson has ducked all forms of punishment, and stands to make hundreds of millions over the next few years. It's a fair comparison in terms of how fans will treat them, but IMO the fans were wrong to treat Vick the way they did when he was with the Eagles.

1. Illmatic - Nas: for all…

1. Illmatic - Nas: for all the reasons stated before.

2. It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back - Public Enemy: much like the OP said, made the genre infinitely more substantive and made many future artists more comfortable exploring what they could do with hip-hop.

3. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - Kanye West: I had to read through the thread twice to make sure no one said it, and I'm shocked it's been omitted up to this point. Every. Single. Track is a banger, with 'Runaway' being one of my favorite songs ever.

4. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill - Lauryn Hill

5. The Blueprint - Jay-Z

6. The Low-End Theory - A Tribe Called Quest

7. 36 Chambers - Wu Tang Clan

8. Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem

9. Late Registration - Kanye West

10. Be - Common

Side note - I was born in '97

Edit: realizing I left out To Pimp a Butterfly (should be 6)

The deal continues to give…

The deal continues to give Detroit financial flexibility. It's become clear that theyre punting on using their cap space this summer, and because both Noel and Burks have team options after this season, they could both be off the books a year from now. It's a smart way to add picks, and they can even opt-in to both of the twos' contracts after next year because the clock to use their cap space doesn't stop until Saddiq Bey, Killian Hayes, and Isaiah Stewart (assuming the FO wants to bring them back) are up for extensions in Summer 2024.

I think you answered your…

I think you answered your own question for why we emphasize slavery/Jim Crow in education in your post. “Extreme violence where rigid social systems are put into place.”

We should teach these things in American schools because those rigid social systems still exist here. It might help to teach about other historical examples to emphasize the point you’re talking about but if we followed your advice in education we’d have a flawed understanding of America’s past and present.

Honestly though, the Lions…

Honestly though, the Lions and Pistons are looking really promising. Obviously those in the know still have our guards up but I would think both will be in the playoffs but 2024-2025.

They just drafted James…

They just drafted James Mitchell in the 4th round from VA Tech, but he’s out with an ACL injury for a while still. Beyond that they only have just-a-guys Zylstra and Wright.

I always had a rule about…

I always had a rule about rooting for a city’s teams if you’re not from there: as long as they’re not rivals with your OG teams it’s cool. I’m moving to Denver too and this will be hard haha, although I must admit I’m not a big pro hockey fan (I only watch the wings when they are in the playoffs) so I might make an exception.

If only the Rox could have kept the early momentum going, Denver would quietly be one of the best sports cities right now!

I think it's okay to both…

I think it's okay to both recognize that the old system was unfair towards the players but that the new system is clearly less entertaining. I'm 24, and I was sick of social media recruiting graphics, uniformz, aircraft carrier basketball games, and yes, many players not building any attachment to their schools/communities and only going to play for the highest bidder a long time ago.

Not to hijack but thanks…

Not to hijack but thanks everyone for the suggestions as someone who is moving there in a couple months haha

Last night was a top 10…

Last night was a top 10 episode in the Breaking Bad universe

It should be mentioned that …

It should be mentioned that .518 was his 2P%, not his FG% (which was .436), but I agree with the rest of your post. Jordan was frustrating as a player because it was easy to see the talent he had, at least from my POV, but the fact he wasn't clearly our best player was due to inconsistency. It's just tough to see that inconsistency manifest itself in some of the shots Poole would take that you don't normally see in college (step back 3s, namely). Additionally, he seemed like a great finisher from the get-go but I thought he had a tendency to shy away from the basket/contact.

I told my M family/friends after 2018 that I thought he was going to win B1G player of the year and be an all american in 2019 (although idk if I posted that here), and even said that he had the potential to go top 5 in the draft and be the best pro we had produced in the new era of UM hoops. It was a little tough for me that he was probably the 3rd or 4th best player on that 2019 team haha, but I'm glad I planted my flag that early in hindsight.

We have reached the NBA… https://twitter.com/GlobalScouting_/status/1518440210945744897