Member for

15 years 8 months
Points
119.00

Recent Comments

Date Title Body
Heresy! This is the best…

Heresy! This is the best MGoWeek of the year. I look forward to it for months!

Black = Streets

Tai Streets, 6-3' or 6-4'. Not a blazer but caught everything. Great route runner. Won a national championship while at Michigan. That's is exactly what Tarik Black will be at  Michigan.

depending on where you are

depending on where you are Little Havana in North Miami is really good. La Carreta is a good suggestion. Versailles is the most popular and famous

Miami Resident and Native

I'm from Miami and live here now. What you should do depends on where you stay -- the traffic is real and the driving is as terrible as others have suggested.

If you're staying in Dade then hit up Wynwood, eat at Zak the Baker (or Kush I guess) and walk around. Then uber down a couple of miles and go to La Carreta in Little Havana for cuban coffee and food. All the other touristy stuff (Everglades, Zoo, Fairchild Gardens) is too far away or lame so just be like everyone else and relax at the beach. And while South Beach may sound played out, the girls (and guys I guess) really are phenomenal to look at...better in the summer once all the tourists leave but still pretty nice. If you're into clubs do your research first.

If you're staying in Broward then Ft Lauderdale is all there is (except Sawgrass Mills outlet mall I guess). Somewhat of a more chill hangout than Miami just far whiter and not as hip. I suggest Tom Jenkins for BBQ and Jaxson's ice cream.

If you're staying in North Dade or South Broward then all you can do is hang out at the beach, go to the Aventura mall, or play golf.

Oh, and if you're into strip clubs ignore that massive list from the poster above and just go to Tootsie's.

Duel Threat QB

It scares and excites me that the BYU QB is a "duel" threat. Who do you think he'll challenge? Will he just walk over to Harbaugh and slap him in the face with his glove? I bet Harbaugh would be 100% prepared for this and immediately pull out a dueling pistol from his trousers and begin counting the paces.

The Beilein Factor

I think putting us in the "Lock" category for a tourney invite is showing true faith that Beilein's magic will allow one of the current freshmen to make a Stauskas/Burke-level leap. Now that may be justified given it's happened two years in a row...but I think it may better to hope for it than expect it. Right now -- even with Beilein working his magic -- I think it's fairer to put us in the bubble category.

The Breaks

Ace - with a headline like that you should have thrown in the word "Blow" (and made sure to capitalize it) somewhere in the post. And remember breaks can make you a superstar.

break it up, break it up, break it up!

Something Supposedly Fun...

I was sure Brian was going to make the theme of this post Something Supposedly Fun That I'll Never Do Again:).

34-12 Michigan
182 rushing

34-12 Michigan

182 rushing yards

Michigan 34 -- Illinois 12

Michigan 34 -- Illinois 12

Ummmmmm......

Brian, aren't you pretty close to being a "middle aged white dude"?

Tommy Reese Thought Process

You left out the most likely thing running through Reese's head when he's under significant pressure: "Throw to Michael Floyd! Throw to Michael Floyd!" The real problem is that Floyd is in the NFL now...things were bound to fall apart for Reese, his binky is gone.

But....

But Dave Brandon has to be smart, he's tall and white.

Agreed

I think you'll see lots of situations that Morgan & McGary share the floor. I wouldn't be surprised to see a (huge) starting lineup of: 1-Burke, 2-Hardaway, 3-Smotrycz, 4-McGary, 5-Morgan.

Hex Colors

Most seem to agree that Blue = 002147

But if Maize 116 = RGB of 255,210,0 then I think Maize in Hex = FFD200

Pollack's Sneakers

Seriously Pollack, Nikes with your suit?!? Given that he went to Georgia I guess I should just be glad he was wearing pants.

Orange Bowl?

http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7283732/urban-meyer-ohio-state-buckeyes-overshadow-rivalry-michigan

This article from ESPN makes a passing reference to Michigan ending up in the Orange.

Not sure about slot -- given

Not sure about slot -- given he lacks juke moves -- but outside WR seems like it would be an option. He's ~6ft, has fantastic straight line speed and "natural hands" (per ESPN), to me all that adds up to outside WR. Especially given the need at the position.

He's probably a lock to redshirt, so depending on how the rest of the class fills up he may end up at WR (if Dunn comes on) or RB (if Darboh/Madaris come on). I'm always a fan when we take on local kids.

Adjustments

I think "adjustments" is being used as a synonym for "coaching". Our coaches may not have needed to make many adjustments during halftime. But they sure did a great job coaching their kids to do better execute their assignments.

I was getting pumped up...

until the bolded Lewan quote...then I just sighed. And then I closed my eyes real tight and remembered that we are going to go undefeated and win the national title. And I was happy again.

The cropped sleeves

The cropped sleeves definitely make it better...they're pretty sweet looking.

And as a bonus I can't wait until 100 years from now, when someone digs up a photo of this game and uses it at justification to have Li Ning (or another Chinese athletic company that has our rights) have an all striped "throwback" jersey b/c THAT'S WHAT THEY DID IN 2011 WHEN WE WON A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!

Good points

Also, I imagine coaches would even put more pressure on recruits to sign early so their spot doesn't get "taken". So recruits who are sitting on some mid-level offers, waiting for the one high-level offer they really crave, will be pressured into signing early and they'll miss out on the offer they truly crave that might not have come til later in the process. Making high school kids figure out their risk-tolerance at such an early age doesn't seem like a good idea.

Perspective

I remember finding this blog back in 2005 (on a random blogspot search for Michigan blogs) and being stoked that there was this incredibly well-written/hilarious/insightful site on which I would doubtless waste countless hours (which I proudly have). I wasn't necessarily as anti-late-era-Carr as Brian...but damn did he make a compelling case, and it was always entertaining. He went a bit insane during the first coaching search, but it was always entertaining. I wasn't always as pro-RRod as Brian...but again his points were really compelling and the posts were almost always entertaining. Throughout all of the past six years I come on to the site near every day (and will continue to do so as long as Brian keeps posting) because I get to read funny, well-researched, insightful posts on my favorite topic in the world -- Michigan athletics.

I don't get all the posters who get pissy when Brian doesn't see things the exact way you do. If he's skeptical about Hoke, I want to hear about it (just like I did five years ago when he was skeptical about Carr). If he is interested in comparing the public treatment of Hoke to that of RRod, then what he writes will at least be thought-provoking and worth hearing about. The best posts are always about the topic that the writer himself has an interest in. If I wanted to only read stuff about the "news" I'll go to Rivals/ESPN; mgoblog is all about opinion...and as long as it's well-written and funny then Brian can post whatever he damn well pleases. I'll read regardless.

That said, Brian's most recent posts have been a bit down; you can sense that's where he's at. If this wasn't his actual job my guess he'd take a bit of time away from Michigan-stuff for a bit. But it is his job, so we're going to watch his progression back to normalcy post-by-post. Brian, if you're reading, keep up the great work...and don't forget the humor whenever you can manage it:).

I will now go back into my hole where I couldn't care less how many points I have b/c I don't often post.

Hoke = Obvious Seinfeld Fan

Clearly the #1 benefit of this hire is that every time Montogomery signs a recruit Hoke (and me) get to shout: "that's gold Jerry! GOLD!"

Senior Denard

Senior Denard is going to be laughing at their puny option/QB-run-based offense as he puts up 300+ passing and 50+ running yards in the pro-style offense he has mastered.

The Bama, ND, Air Force non-conference schedule will be the most difficult since...ND, Syracuse, Hawaii in 98?

EDIT: In 2002 we played Washington & Utah at home (won by 2 & 3), and ND away (lost by 2). That was a tough opening to the season (w/ Western thrown in).

Wisconsin

Pretty crazy how this past Wisconsin team that went to the Rose Bowl never had a recruiting class higher than 4th in the Big Ten and 26th nationally.

Good Luck Tate!

I put Tate in the Matt Guttierez camp of Michigan transfers that I root for to succeed...as opposed to the Justin Boren camp of Michigan transfers that I root for to fail spectacularly and publicly (and catch a mean case of herpes)...or the Dan O'Neil camp that I will forget about quickly.

Phone conversation

The timing of Crawford's announcement (this morning) isn't a good thing given that Hoke said he would be calling each recruit last night. I'm sure Dallas was one of his first calls. How did that conversation go?

Hoke: Dallas, I love Michigan. Love it to death. This is greatest university in the world and we are building a TEAM worthy of this institution. So tell me, do you want to be part of that team?

Crawford: Is your name Rich Rodriguez?

Hoke: No

Crawford: Then I'm going to the U.

[scene]

Al Golden

I think the worst part about waiting until after the Gator Bowl to fire RRod is missing out on Al Golden. Turning around Temple was the most impressive thing done by any coach in a while...probably even more so than reviving Stanford with Andrew Luck. Also, with his Midwest ties he probably would have been a good candidate to come to Ann Arbor rather than U of Miami. Just seems like he would have been the perfect coach for us, and much more valuable than "sticking to a plan" or having consistency through the bowl game. It also would have pissed the hell out of Penn St!

I saw them a few times this year...

and the play reminded me of Carr-era Michigan. Just like back then for Michigan, people (read: TV analysts) called the offense "pro-style" or "smash-mouth", but actually it racked up yards through the air. Though both offenses really struggled passing when the running backs couldn't get it going. The QB (Lindley) is a big kid that throws it all over the field (to multiple receivers) but can be a bit inaccurate/error-prone. The ground game is dominated by Hillman (not a power back -- think Shaw not Hopkins) who blew up in the Navy game but was also huge against Mizzou (a game I saw).

Hoke is definitely a defense-guy, so it makes sense that we over-react and go that way given our putrid performance the past few years. One thing that struck me about watching their D is that they seemed to play faster than their talent would have allowed, and they didn't seem to be nearly as prone to giving up huge plays as our D was. (Though if memory serves they gave up a big pass in the 4th qtr against Mizzou).

Overall, Hoke would definitely not be my top choice as Michigan's coach; he comes off as so...blah. Especially juxtaposed against a fiery character like Harbaugh. Though I grew up in Miami as a Hurricane fan, so I'm a sucker for flashy and trash-talking. I was really excited about the South Florida-direction RRod was taking the program, but it just doesn't seem like it was destined to work out.

EDIT: Just looked back at some their games and maybe they were more prone to giving up big plays then I thought. Against Utah they gave up three huge TDs. Also, another similarity to Carr-era Michigan; almost their games against non-terrible opponents are close -- win or lose. (Which doesn't sound nearly as bad as it did four years ago!)

Threet or Robinson

Who has a longer run against Wisconsin, Threet in '08 or Robinson in '10? That Threet run might have been the most surprising/exciting moment from the past three years.

Latwan Anderson

Latwan Anderson - the high-rated safety out of Glenville last year - has just quit Miami's football team. Any chance he looks to Michigan as a transfer? I know the Glenville thing isn't a good sign, but he did vaguely consider us (and WVU fwiw) last year. Also, since he's on a track scholarship at the U he can actually football for another school starting next year.

Celebration!

Ok, beating Celebration really doesn't count. That's the city one minute outside of Disney World that was a master-planned community by the Walt Disney Corporation. What's their nickname, the Mice? 

Hello Michigan Fans!

With all the optimism going around the last month I was wondering if I was still part of the same fanbase that has been moping around for the past 50 years. We lost one game. In OT. It doesn't mean that beating Purdue is going to be any more of a struggle than it did last week.

I think we learned after Notre Dame that this team can beat anyone and lose to anyone on any given week. We don't need to beat Iowa, Penn State, and Ohio State in a best out of five series. We just need the once. And when you "live by the sword" anything is possible during that one game.

Agreed!!!

The play-by-play is the greatest thing ever. EVER!!!

Seriously, there is no more useful post by any blogger out there than Brian's UFR play-by-play. Every casual/slightly-to-moderately-obsessed fan of other teams must be insanely jealous they don't have someone doing this for them.

Fitzgerald vs. Ezeh

Is it a bad sign that Fitzgerald isn't seeing the field even with Ezeh's performance to date? On defense is having two MIKE like having zero MIKE, akin to adage about QBs?

Also, watching Mouton struggle is where we insert curses to the clearinghouse re: Witherspoon.

I can't believe

I can't believe I just went online with the sole purpose of hoping to see singing muppets. Thank you for obliging Brian.

Go Blue!

Striped Jerseys

It's a great to see the team back on the field, but those adidas striped home unis just aren't doing it for me.

The Old Comments Software

If you were still using the old comment software the thread on this (inflammatory) post would top 500k comments.

Kickoff Classic Rematch?

We could try to go for UVA. IIRC we scheduled the '95 game less than 15 months prior to the game. They will also be no better than Western as long as Groh is running the team. In limited googling it looks like they already have Southern Cal on the docket for 10-11, but who knows.

South Carolina? It looks like they have one open date left, and the three they have scheduled (Troy, UNC and Furman) are all at home. Also, our chances of winning are > 60%, and it's Spurrier!

Texas A&M? They have an as yet to be scheduled game with Lousiana Tech they could probably push back.

I liked the Colorado suggestion made earlier but it doesn't look like their schedule will accommodate with away games at Cal and Colorado St.

M's 2nd team defense >= Eastern's 1st team defense

Assuming our second and third team defenses are equal to or greater than Eastern's, Delaware St's, Indiana's, and, maybe, Western's, our offense should rock in at least four games this year!

Sims = Haslem - 2

If Sims was willing to grow two inches taller he could be Udonis Haslem. Who btw was a perfect fit on the Heat when Shaq was there, was overwhelmed (even in the East) when he was being relied on to play the 5, and has a sweet fifteen-footer.

Get In indeed.

Reverse Jinx

Was that entire post made to be a reverse jinx to help the three-pointers starts falling? Because one thing this team has proven is that if the shots fall it can beat anyone. And since shots tend to fall (and not fall) in streaks, I don't see why a mini-run in the latter part of the schedule is impossible.

It's like playing blackjack, which you could easily write an entire post about destroying as the game with the worst odds in the casino. Once you hit a "good" shoe you press your bets and suddenly your up a couple of grand. Sure this team has so many holes it will fail in the long term, just like you'll probably lose at Blackjack over the long-term unless your counting, but it has already had one nice run early in the season and I don't think it is outlandish to hope for one five-game stretch over the next ten games.

Ummmmm....

I'm not sure you guys fully grasped the original comment.

Shades of a Kirk Ferentz post 13 months ago

Last December was a dark dark time for the Michigan program and mgoblog. Let's try not to repeat. I better not see any references to FAA flight schedules in the coming days.

Online Scrabble

Literati rules...I just hope it doesn't end up destroying my life.

Jelani Jenkins

Any thoughts on Jelani Jenkins? I'm thinking USC, but alot of the criteria in his matrix seems favor us.

2009 caution

Totally agree with everything said, but I don't have near the excitement for 2009 as everyone else has. I have no faith that Threet is anything but a bandaid QB (worst bandaid EVER), which means we have to start from scratch again next year with a new QB (Forcer or The Beav). Sure everyone else will be more experienced so we can only improve, but if people are dreaming of a Saban-Meyer-Tressel type turnaround, I just can't see it.

Now I still think we win 3 nat'l championships every 2 years, while also having 150% of players graduate and Rodriguez is the first coach to win the Heisman, starting in 2010...but it's going to take some time.

Devonte Holloman

No mention of Devonte Holloman? He was high on M before commiting to Clemson, and has completely dropped them b/c of the Bowden situation. We could sure use a five-star (or any competent) Safey!

We don't suck

We're just average. The only unit we have that is above average is the D-Line, and when they are not applying pressure then our poor linebacker and safety play is  exposed.

Threet is a below average talent for a Michigan QB. The talent on our OL is average at best for the Big Ten; the marginal guys we hoped would never have to see the field are starting (outside Schilling who is not yet at expectations). Our WR and RBs are above average in talent, but that is moot with a poor OL. With the QB, since it is only one person, you can expect games that fall significantly above (Wiscy 2nd half) or below (ND) the mean in terms of performance. But with the OL it is unlikely that all five will have games above their average at the same time. So we can fare well against poor defensive teams, but will be dominated by average and good teams.

Average teams fight to finish 6-6. With a couple of good bounces maybe even 8-4. Every freakin' bounce has gone against us this year...maybe we're just saving the good karma for next year.