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Good luck Max. I hope he does

Good luck Max. I hope he does well, but when he plays Michigan, I hope he plays relatively poorly. He's played for us for 4 years and did his time. Thanks Max.

Thank you so much for your

Thank you so much for your service. And thank your brothers for their service. Thanks for sharing the article with us. It helps give me a small, small taste of what it was like for you and others who fight for us. Have a great Memorial Day and I hope things keep going well for you and your brothers in life after Afghanistan.

At Sapori Trattoria, an

At Sapori Trattoria, an Italian restaurant in Lakeview Chicago. It's a delicious place. Was on a date and convinced my date to watch the comeback at the little bar there. Bartender was a Kansas fan. I remember telling him I was skeptical we could come back down 10, but he said he wasn't confident with any Kansas lead. He was right. I watched overtime on the screen over my dates shoulder. It was a wonderful night.

Or maybe he decided the sure

Or maybe he decided the sure thing was better than holding a spot open for Brown. There's a difference between recruiting Brown, a theoretical one and done, and passing on talented players at the risk of coming up empty with Brown. If they locked Brown down earlier, he would have taken the spot. Just because a player is a 5 star talent-aka one and done-doesn't mean you pass on other possibilities out there. He recruited both Brown and Wagner with hopes of getting or or both, depending on how the situation plays out. We have one, Wagner. Beilein went outside his typecast mold by recruiting Brown, but made a judgment call to take Wagner. Probably for good reason.

When you're rookie of the

When you're rookie of the year and then follow that up with two back to back all star seasons, with one season being an MVP season, one can see how he could be arrogant. But I guess his humility, combined with his trying childhood home environment make him an easy target for fan ridicule. Sorry his knees aren't holding up. I'm sure he loves the fact that his knees can't hold up in the last couple seasons.

Thank you Brady Hoke. Your

Thank you Brady Hoke. Your commitment and dedication to the University and the players has been unparalleled. I thank you for your time and shouldering the burden of leading this Team for the last four years. Lord knows it was not easy. I wish you the best going forward. Good luck with all your endeavors.

It was a bad joke.

It was a bad joke.

Great story. Thanks for

Great story. Thanks for sharing. Rooting for him even more.

WOOHOO!

Congrats for Glenn. Great news! Hope he kicks ass, has a fun time, and makes Michigan proud.

It will be interesting to see

It will be interesting to see if Michigan coaches use Bunting this year as a purely pass catching TE. At 6'7, it would seem he might be useful on third downs. Given his experience at WR, Michigan could flank him out and use him as a big target. Then again, we have a lot more pass catching options than before. Then again, he is 6'7.

Couple things

Does he know that Thomas Gordon was Michigan's other starting safety last season (or at least started most of the games)? Also, he conveniently forgets that Wilson was dropped in and out of the S lineup just as much as any of the other starters at S. That being said, I think we can be excited about Wilson too. He has improved each year and hopefully will put together an impressive season as an upperclassman. Also, I am not fully buying the Lewis supplanting Countess hype until we see more from Lewis in fall. Both Taylor and Countess have really good speed and, although smaller, are impressive athletes. I am slightly confused as to questioning their athleticism. Any attacks over the top had to do more with them getting beat on WR routes or moves, play calls, or just height issues rather than just any old WR with decent speed blowing right past them. Additionally, Countess rarely got beat during the season. It wasn't until Locket served him (and the other corners) up on a platter in the bowl game that we could say someone was blowing past Countess. Okay article and Nick generally does a solid job, but seems more like off-season speculation than anything particularly insightful.

Gotcha. Yeah Randle is a

Gotcha. Yeah Randle is a ridiculous player and athletic specimen. He was definitely bulling his way right to the basket. Going right through GRIII or around any of our bigger players we tried to match up with him. 

Agree with mostly everything

Agree with mostly everything you said, but in regards to the UK game, so much of being bullied by them was an inability to keep their perimeter players in front of us on the defensive end. When UK's perimeter players blew past our defenders that requires Morgan or someone else to come over and defend. That allowed several UK forwards to have wide open dunk or put back attempts as the person guarding them was forced to rotate. It was a problem all year long.

Hopefully defensive improvements from Caris, Irvin, and Walton on the perimeter will help keep more of the opposing team's perimeter players in front of them. That would help mitigate the defensive drop-off at the position. However, as you are apt to point out, Morgan was running the defense from his position, which Donnal will probably not be able to do this year. Might make it tougher for Caris, Irvin, and Walton to handle switches and the like. I guess we will see how it plays out. Morgan is a major loss. Hopefully Donnal can fill the void.

Although, to be fair, doesn't

Although, to be fair, doesn't ESPN have the most accurate rankings and evaluations for basketball?

You can tell Jake Ryan has

You can tell Jake Ryan has spent a lot of time under Hoke's tutelage.

No problem amigo. Good luck

No problem amigo. Good luck with the transition. I hope it goes well and you get to do some cool stuff.

Sorry, figured I would change

Sorry, figured I would change it myself. Didn't think you would be on the mistake so quickly. And I concur. It would be cool to be able to keep tabs on fellow Michigan alums and what they are doing in the Metro Detroit area. Hopefully, it is something we will continue to see grow.

Oops. Forgot to make the link

Oops. Forgot to make the link accessible. Try this: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/lsa/ci.indetroitlsaisonthemap_ci.detail

Tried that. Doesn't work.

Tried that. Doesn't work.

Functionally, I think Isaac

Functionally, I think Isaac is a 2014 recruit at this point if he gets the RS. Nonetheless, probably means we are only taking 1 RB in this class, which is fine.

Irving? I believe he is

Irving? I believe he is already on the Cavs.

As the other posters said, we

As the other posters said, we have a better chance with Roseboro. Additionally, the coaches had Roseboro ticketed as a SDE from the get go but expected Cornell to be a WDE. Once Cornell started growing into more of a SDE, maybe that changed the coaches perspective on Cornell and his abilities. It's better to focus on a guy we have a chance with versus a guy who doesn't seem to interested anymore. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Roseboro plays FB/RB on his team too which would indicate he has decent athleticism and mobility. Plus, I am sure much of Roseboro's weight isn't good weight and he will shed plenty of pounds when he enters a college strengthening and conditioning program. 

Michigan's depth chart, when

Michigan's depth chart, when Weber would step on campus, will (most likely) read:

Junior: Green, Smith, Johnson

Sophomore: Isaac and Douglas

That's 5 RB's with no seniors. Granted, Michigan will probably only be taking one RB in this class whereas MSU seems to be taking two and MSU has several other RB's on it's roster too, so the numbers look relatively even. I would just hesitate to say that this development is what puts us over the top in winning the recruiting battle for Weber. It will most certainly help and might help lessen MSU's focus on Weber, but how Michigan continues to rebuild its relationship with Weber will be more important.

I wouldn't say that's the

I wouldn't say that's the most likely scenario. MSU landing Scott probably does help Michigan, but I think Michigan continuing to develop a relationship with Weber is more important. I think the effect of a school landing another recruit at the same position is overstated, depending on what the depth chart looks like and depending on whether the recruit has specifically expressed a desire to be the only recruit in his class. If we end up landing Weber, this is probably only a minor reason it happens. If Weber is feeling MSU, I wouldn't put it past him to commit there even though MSU already landed Scott.

Shitty recruiting?

Have you been following Hoke's recruiting? Patience. Hoke's first full recruiting class is just hitting maturation. We should see that bounce back year you are referring to.

Slight correction: Devin

Slight correction: Devin would have been a RS FR in 2011. Regardless, we played really well that year as you are correct to point out.

As others have mentioned, it

As others have mentioned, it seemed like we were losing a lot of ground on most of our QB recruits. There seemed to be a lot of general interest in the 2015 class but no one seemed like they wanted to jump on board. Do you think patience and some more targetted interest at some of the remaining targets would have led to success with another recruit?

The DeWeaver offer is the one that seems too soon. He seems like he has a lot of potential but with a prospect that seems to still be developing, it would seem prudent to see how he continues to develop. Maybe the situation resembles Beilein with recruits where the coaches are looking at kids who are still developing and trying to project talent and physical skills a couple years down the road. Obviously basketball recruiting is very different. Magnus, has there been any word on whether the coaches have stopped recruiting other 2016 QB's? All the general recruiting evaluations seem to keep mentioning Costello, Henry, and a few others. Does the strategy seem lock DeWeaver down early so we have a QB in the 2016 class and then swing for the fences with a higher rated prospect who could come in and not need to RS?  Then we could RS DeWeaver and give him more time to develop. Just a thought.

Seth, so sorry to hear this.

Seth, so sorry to hear this. You and your family have my thoughts and condolences.

Additionally

He also struggled a lot in pass coverage, particularly covering TE's. I cannot remember where I was reading it, but someone in the Michigan blogosphere was writing about how offenses learned to take advantage of Ross' aggressiveness. Building on his experience from last season, hopefully he can make fewer mistakes, make a few more big plays, and continue making the necessary and boring plays that he does.

Everybody. But seriously,

Everybody. But seriously, probably Henry, Lewis, Wilson, Magnuson, and Glasgow. Any of Ross, RJS, or Bolden could too. It will be interesting to see how Pipkins, Darboh, and Butt come back from injury. With the 2012 recruiting class finally becoming upperclassmen, we could see a lot. Going to be interesting.

You're exactly right about

You're exactly right about the transfer situation. I doubt Michigan would take a transfer like this situation. I would hope Hoke and all future coaches don't look to capitalize on tough situations like this. However, for players that the coaches already know and who are already in the program, the coaches will probably strive to give them as many chances as reasonably possible. All in all, I hope the situation has gotten DBG to recognize how he can change for the better. But we will see how it plays out.

Although he is 20 and not 14,

Although he is 20 and not 14, he is still a young man, making plenty of mistakes. Plenty of young men make mistakes at that age. I believe most males don't fully mature until their mid-twenties (and even then plenty of people make really dumb decisions). Lots of kids his age who grew up in as bad of, if not worse, environments end up in far worse situtations or doing far worse things. 

You're right that life does have consequences. However, he has already had to face some of those in being dismissed from his team of choice and university of choice in Missouri. As for screwing up over and over again, he has two marijuana possession charges that were dropped (with one being someone else claiming owernship-granted they could have just been falling on the sword) and a forced entry and battery. Yes those actions constitute breaking the law and are bad rather than good; however, the first two do not really shed that much light on his character (emphasize the that). Marijuana use and possession is quite prevelant in the United States, especially in Ann Arbor which includes the Michigan athletics. The vast majority of the time it is recreational and non-violent in nature, much like general alcoholic consumption. To draw a comparison, would you be as mad if he was caught possessing a 6-pack of beer or with beer in the car (without having drank any of it because DUI's are a whole other story). 

Now, the forceful entry and battery situation represents a whole other story. It does tend to show a sense of entitlement or possible tendency towards violence. However, if we start condeming people based on one incident of that nature, we are going to have even more people in prison than we already do (which is a lot). As noted above, he was punished by Missouri by being kicked off the football team and losing his scholarship. Granted OU swooping in and offering him a scholarship tends to negate the punishment, but he still has to make a transition to a whole new school with people he does not know. If any of us had to transition to a whole new school as we entered our junior year, that would probably throw off our educational progress and thoroughly damper the college experience. Does that amount to sufficient or proper punishment? Probably not. However, DBG sounds like a kid who could use a degree and the stability of a college degree. I also hope that his time at OU helps provide him a little better direction. Edit: after reading the entire incident report, it does seem like battery/assault might not have been the first time something like this happened. As such, I am really hoping OU gets proactive in getting him into some other rehabilitative activities like counseling, community service, or other activities to get him to understand more about the consequences of violence against women, rather than just throwing him back out on the field.

All that being said, it seems a lot of the negativity really comes from the fact that Stoops and OU probably are not doing this out of altruistic notions but rather because they want an elite WR. Applying for the waiver doesn't sound like they really have DBG's best interests at heart but OU football's, which is quite frustrating. No reason to apply for the waiver. Give DBG a year to stay out of trouble, practice with the team, make new friends, and get back on track with school (obviously I'm assuming he is interested in this part, but I like to be optimistic). If Stoops gets him on the right track, then we really shouldn't be mad that OU gets the benefit of him at WR. After all, isn't this whole college football supposed to be a mechanism to allow kids to create better futures for themselves. I also hope DBG does well and avoids causing any more harm.

Some other type of

Some other type of rehabilitative activities would definitely be in order. Counseling, community service, attending seminars on the effects of violence against women, or maybe even some type of probation (would entail a criminal conviction which could further hasten his decline). Something to get him to wake up to his immaturity and thoughtless actions. You're probably right in that a switch to OU isn't going to do the trick, especially if he gets the waiver.

Sidenote: props to Missouri for being willing to take some action at the expense of the quality of football team it puts out this season.

Michigan does and has had

Michigan does and has had numerous players that use and possess marijuana. I can't think of Michigan accepting any transfers like this, but Michigan makes plenty of compromises to get talent out on the field. Need I remind you that Frank Clark was arrested and charged with second degree home invasion for stealing a laptop between his freshman and sophomore year. If I recall, the case was lingering in court, almost went to trial, and then was dismissed. Since then, I think Frank Clark has done a great job avoiding any other trouble and has been a great contributor to the Michigan football team.

Granted Michigan doesn't accept a lot of transfers so my comparisons is slightly different. Also, I think your biggest frustration is that it seems Stoops is just trying to boost the quality of his football team without really caring whether DBG is actually making progress towards refraining from any criminal activity. I think it would be properly stated that I hope Michigan doesn't make such a blatant talent grab without any care or consideration for whether it is the right move to make for the team, the university, and the Ann Arbor community. It will also be doubly frustrating and unfair if he gets the waiver and Ty doesn't.

Magnus, do foresee the

Magnus, do foresee the transition being a permanent one, or just until Mattison and Hoke have more personnel that better fit the 4-3 Under?

That might be overstated

That might be overstated depending on how much he was impacted by the core injury for which he had surgery recently(ish). Hoke also have him the number 2 jersey which tends to indicate confidence that he will be a big contributor. The 2 jersey doesn't have the same expectation as the 1 jersey, but it is positive Hoke has confidence in him. As for his on field play last season, he appeared good but not great. Will be interesting to see how he develops this season, especially now that he has had an offseason not filled with knee rehab.

Maybe you're less sensitive

Maybe you're less sensitive about these things than others, although I hypersensitive is incorrect. Regardless, the context is completely different. Obviously Polish people have faced (and maybe still do face; I don't know) bias and prejudice in this country, but it is different than the Native American experience. Beyond the fact that the above poster has just linked a newspaper offering state bounties for killing Native Americans while referring to them as "red-skins" and then claims the killing the collective population of Native Americans is worth less than $200, the US has a long history of killing (intentionally or unintentionally) and displacing Native American populations, under a variety of broken treaties, all under the collective mindset of them being "redskins" or inferior people. 

Furthermore, your argument isn't a good one. Your reasoning reads: because you, personally, don't mind Washington using a biased and offensive term about your country of origin or ancestors, then Native American population should be fine with Washington using the term "Redskin." If they aren't, then they are hypersensitive. Well, your subjective feelings that Native Americans should tolerate the name because you could tolerate the hypothetical situation where the Washington renames its team to the Polacks have little to no bearing on whether the term is offensive and should be changed. If Native Americans want the name changed because of its derogatory reference to their history and culture, a valid defense to keeping the name isn't we could change it to another offensive term, with an entirely different history and context, and some people affected by the offensive term wouldn't mind. 

Additionally, I'm sure some people of Polish descent or who are Polish would not like the name "Polack."

Finally, if it seems an unnecessary change to you or it seems unfair the Washington fans have to change their team name, ask why is it so essential that Washington keeps the name Redskins? Because of the franchise history of a professional football team? First off, the history and tradition of the team comes from the players, fans, and coaches. Obviously the name Redskins is a placeholder symbolizing that, but the larger placeholder is that it is the Washington professional football team, not the Redskins. Second, are we really willing to continue using an offensive term with centuries or racism and oppression behind it and that completely ignores the tradition and heritage of a people indigenous to this country just to allow a professional football team to keep its name? It would seem more important to change the name to respect the Native American population's history and remember Washington football's history as the moments its players excelled and its fans showed their loyalty.

I believe Phil Steele picked

I believe Phil Steele picked Praeter for his All-Big Ten 2nd Team. Might be the time to snap him up before he slips away.

Another funny post. Great job. These are a joy to read.

I second this. I only took

I second this. I only took Great Works of Literature with the focus on Primo Levi my last semester, but I wish I had taken some classes with him earlier. Although some of the other comments about his repetition are true, his knowledge and passion were generally unrivaled. I thoroughly enjoyed how he challenged us to delve deeper into the material and think differently about it.

Dumb ligaments.

Dumb ligaments.

I think his point wasn't to

I think his point wasn't to bemoan losing the next Nick Stauskas to Ohio, but to highlight how we keep hearing some good tibits or insight from recruiting that certain "X" recruit likes Michigan and good things might happen and then suddenly the recruit is going elsewhere with little to no heads-up (probably for just the lay recruiting followers). I think he was commenting more on the uncertainty of recruiting. The Grandstaff to Stauskas comparison is meant to highlight how people thought he was high on Michigan, would fit well in Michigan's system, and that Michigan might have another Stauskas in Grandstaff (implying we are in really good position for him), only to have the rug pulled out from under us. Not piling on about Grandstaff but using him, among other recruits, as examples for how unpredicable this is (once again, for the lay recruiting followers).

I think we can expect all

I think we can expect all three to take steps forward defensively. They will know the system better, be stronger and in better shape, and have a year of experience playing together. I imagine the communication will be better and Walton and Irvin will see a big sophomore year jump. After all, they were just freshman last season, and Levert is pretty young for his age. I don't know if any of them will be elite defenders, but Walton and Irvin were recruits that presented a lot of defensive upside so hopefully they can make a jump this year.

It's probably a combination

It's probably a combination of both. Minutes are useless if you aren't being given opportunities to make plays. Also, Morgan and McGary are very different players than Horford. Morgan and McGary were far more mobile and Morgan thrived in a pick-and-roll offense. Horford does well enough with Beilein's kind of offense but does a lot better when he is being given the opportunity to post-up. Beilein doesn't incorporate much of that into the offense. Thus, the relevance of Morgan and McGary's success is less applicable to Horford. Just because one player has success doesn't mean that another player will have success. Horford needs an offense that allows him to feature his skills. Florida offers much more of that and Donovan has graduated several talented big men. It makes sense. Beilein won't utilize Horford the same way that Donovan will and thus minutes in Florida will mean more than they will here at Michigan. Also, just because Horford's trainer and friend disapproves of his minutes allocation doesn't mean Horford shares the same belief. To an extent, he probably does, but he might also want more opportunities rather than just minutes. MHoops post on the transfer indicates that Synergy Sports found that Michigan posted up 2.7% of their offensive possessions whereas Florida posted up 10.8%. Florida offers him a system where he can show a more unique skill set that can distinguish him from other big men and hopefully get him drafted. I hope it works out and good luck to him.

To an extent, you're probably

To an extent, you're probably right. I don't know if he can be an NBA player in a system that suits him. But we won't know until he tries. I wouldn't hold his explanation for leaving against him because he's right. If he wants a shot at the NBA, he needs a system that allows him to do what he is good at. Michigan might not be the best place for that. McGary is going pro because he has the physical tools and abilities that Horford lacks. Thus, Mitch could play in Michigan's system and still be an NBA player. Horford needs a system that shows he has developed into more than a 2-3 star recruit and can offer NBA or other pro teams something other players dont' offer.

"Hurt big man recruiting."

"Hurt big man recruiting." What are you basing that off of? Just because he said he wanted to go somewhere else and show off his abilities? Has any big man recruit actually said that Jon Horford's statements are negatively impacted their perception of Michigan? It would seem to be baseless speculation that it will actually impact any recruit. I really doubt it makes much of a difference. I think Mitch McGary's draft position is going to be far more important for our big man recruiting efforts.

Plus, it's pretty well known that Beilein's offense doesn't feature big men posting up. He has really embraced new offensive schemes. So what if he wants to go to an offense that features more opportunities for big men. Horford is more of a back to the basket player. According to MHoops front page post on the transfer, Michigan only featured 2.7% of the offense to post-up changes whereas Florida had about 10.8% (citing Synergy Sports, and yes that is contingent on both Donovan's and Beilein's evaluations of their talent on the team and who can actually post-up). 

Jordan Morgan was great and it was a great story that he came back. I will always appreciate him that much more for it. But he is not going to get drafted in the NBA (could sign as a free agent though). Additionally, his style fit the Michigan offensive and defensive scheme much better than Horford's: he was a more mobile pick-and-roll type player than thrived with our various PG's/Stauskas. He didn't post-up much. Also, just because Morgan made the decision to come back doesn't mean we should value Horford's dedication to the team over the last four years any less. You can appreciate Morgan more but don't castigate Horford for making a decision that he thought and honestly might be the best decision for himself. He doesn't need to give up his chances for our fan allegiances. 

Unless the student to alum

Unless the student to alum policies have changed, your logic doesn't really apply to students. Whereas there is value in keeping your tickets in your name, for students who are only eligible for students tickets for 4 years (generally), there is less value because they aren't getting an interest in keeping the tickets in their name. As soon as they graduate, they will join the alum pool and have to buy from it. Thus, a student who is or might be struggling with money might now want to shell out 300 to watch Michigan beat up on some MAC teams or, alternatively, struggle to beat MAC teams. Just because it's a privilege doesn't mean students have to buy tickets. And I'm sure they know the tickets will be sold to alums. But if we're talking loyalty, maybe the alums the tickets get sold to should not sell them to Ohio fans whenever the team looks like it's going to get easily beat by ohio.

Fox tore his acl about

Fox tore his acl about halfway(ish) through his senior season. Came in weighing around 340 and still rehabbing his knee. I would imagine that limits your ability to participate in weight lifting and conditioning. He is going to probably need another year before he is ready to play much at all, besides garbage time.

Morgan redefines a fucking

Morgan redefines a fucking mismatch. Go Blue!

Although you're quite right

Although you're quite right that not all recruits care about relationships, some recruits do. Two recent examples: Robinson and Mitch. Although it's most certainly depressing, there will be other recruits.

He and his family will be in

He and his family will be in my thoughts and prayers. Hopefully he can kick the tumor's ass. In this case I will full heartedly support Iowa and the McCaffrey family.