It's UConn
Stupid being correct:
UConn has reached an agreement with Michigan on a home-and-home series that will see the Huskies travel to Ann Arbor in 2010 and the Wolverines head to Rentschler Field in 2013, according to sources with knowledge of the negotiations.
Well, at least it's not a MAC school, but if Michigan was going to give up a home game I'd rather seem them play someone more interesting.
(That's Henri, The Otter of Ennui, by the way. Wave all you want: he doesn't care.)
as I've said a few times, is that they are a better team than their reputation. In reality, UConn is a quality BCS opponent. However, the casual fan will think "UConn, who are they?" So I can't call this a win, but I can't quite call it a loss.
Guess it all depends on how they do over the next few years, and if their reputation improves.
Them being a better team than given credit for is true, but that makes it even more of a lose-lose situation..... We beat them, and no one give's a shit.... we lose, and then the world erupts because we lost to UConn... and my damn season tickets are going to cost the same amount of money with one less game because we're over in Connecticut
about what a casual fan thinks? jesus crappin crist, BMs primary concern is NOT whether or not you, as a M fan/alum, can brag to your moronic friends or aquaintences (sp?) about M having a tougher schedule than team X.
If the casual fan doesn't know who UConn is, then chances are they're in a fucking coma.
Never underestimate stupid people....
A-fucking-men.
The situation is a "grand opening" of the "new" Michigan Stadium with an opportunity to showcase the stadium, the team, and the program. 2010 is pegged by many to be an opportunity for a breakout year, a chance to truly compete for a B10 title and make some noise nationally. To get Michigan mentioned in the same breath as tosu, PSU, USC, Texas etc, you have to play quality opponents.
UConn is not THAT quality opponent. UConn may be on the rise and an up-and-comer, but didn't they move into Div 1 just four or five years ago? This is Appy State all over again. The best team in 1AA is not a true BCS school. Just because they are in the Big East doesn't make this a quality matchup.
College Sports, especially football is about money. This stadium upgrade cost upwards of $250,000,000. Games against UConn, EMU and the MAC aren't going to cut it. Bring a decent SEC or B12 team every couple of years. TV doesn't care about UConn, bring Arkansas, Tennessee or an upper level SEC opponent in and ESPN will be all over it. Exposure is key as we rebuild this program.
In fact, I think you yourself mentioned that. If Notre Dame is going to be M's "A" opponent in the OOC schedule, then you can't compare UConn to an SEC or a Big 12 school, because that's never going to happen.
As long as ND is on the schedule, then the top half of the SEC and the Big 12 are basically off-limits.
BM is the one who said it would be something special. I think people are right to be a little disappointed with this.
When Martin said it would be something "special", he was still trying to schedule Minnesota into that first week - he was describing an additional, non-big 10 game for the Little Brown Jug. That fell through. Shit happens.
...but UConn does have a couple of potential All-Americans who will be seniors then. As a Connecticut resident living here in A2, this is pretty exiciting.
Thank you Brian,
That's why it feels like a kick in the nuts.
Because after everything we've heard about how we can't give up a precious home game because it would give up too much money -
-When we hear that we're actually opening up the schedule for a home and home you'd think it'd be against a team that would give a game that would draw national appeal.
Does anyone on the south or west coasts give two shits about Michigan/Uconn?? (obviously alums/fans excluded)
Now, when OSU plays Texas or USC, the nation sits down and talks about it for a week and a half.
You'd figure that if we give up a home and home it's be for a bigger name, but obviously BM has some info that I don't, I mean, the guy doesn't have anything to prove.
It still feels like a kick in the balls though.
Nail on the Head. Thank you Brian, that's why it feels like a kick in the nuts.
First, let's get one thing straight- M was looking for another quality OOC opponent besides Notre Dame, and a couple days ago we found out it was going to be a BCS opponent. Now, it seems like some people heard "BCS opponent" and thought "OMG perennial Top 15 team," but that was a ridiculous delusion and I don't think Martin should be faulted for this.
Because after everything we've heard about how we can't give up a precious home game because it would give up too much money
By the time M returns to UConn, it will be in a stadium of 50,000 people, and I guarantee will be on ESPN. So, it's a sizable gate, with a national TV viewing audience. There will be little to no financial hit here.
When we hear that we're actually opening up the schedule for a home and home you'd think it'd be against a team that would draw national appeal.
Why would you think that? Seriously, what led you to this presumption? Again: M was looking for a quality opponent not named Notre Dame in 2010. In terms of "national" teams, there were precisely ZERO teams that had the scheduling flexibility to work with M. There was nothing to suggest that USC, Texas, Florida, FSU, Miami or Oklahoma was coming in 2010. Past those teams, I'm not sure any team really qualifies as having a "national" appeal. Not even Georgia, who was also NEVER coming to M in 2010.
Does anyone on the south or west coasts give two shits about Michigan/Uconn?? (obviously alums/fans excluded)
Does anyone in the South or on the West Coast give two shits about Pitt, Virginia, or Oklahoma State (obviously alums/fans excluded)? Does anyone in the South or on the West Coast give two shits about Michigan/Notre Dame (obviously alums/fans excluded)?
Newsflash: M is not the center of the college football galaxy. Very few if any M games receive two shits by people in the South or on the West Coast.
Now, when OSU plays Texas or USC, the nation sits down and talks about it for a week and a half.
Here, let me rephrase so that we can all understand the context of that statement: "Now, when a Top 10 program plays another Top 10 program, the nation sits down and talks about it for a week and a half." Hmm, yes, I see your point there.
You'd figure that if we give up a home and home it'd be for a bigger name, but obviously BM has some info that I don't, I mean, the guy doesn't have anything to prove.
He absolutely has some information that you apparently don't have. I have it too. Here's the information you apparently need to know: the home game for M had to be in 2010. There were no "top notch" "national" "6* on the Playstation" programs that had an open date in 2010. The expectations for this game were low, until somebody said "BCS opponent."
And bringing it all home again, "BCS opponent" is a marginally meaningful phrase. Duke, Baylor, Mississippi State, and Washington are BCS opponents, so there was never a guarantee of a marquee game. I'm sorry if you and others ate too many paint chips when you were kids, thus rendering you unable to process that there are bad teams in BCS conferences, but there you go.
What would you be willing to bet on that faller?
eom.
I would bet all the money in my bank account on Michigan vs UConn in 2010 being a national tv game. Good grief, are you kidding me? In the noon EST time slot, do you think the abc/espn mirror will have a better game on? It's the 1st or 2nd highest fan base school vs the 1st or 2nd team in the big east.
I had to find two games last year on the interwebs, Purdue and Toledo. I would take all your money and donate it to my local high school debate club. Those kids think before they make junk up.
Almost as good as the Playstation reference
Are personal attacks typically a part of what you consider logical arguments?
Where'd you go to school again?
I'm sure that paint seemed real tasty at the time, but it's kind of holding you back now, isn't it?
Not only did the AD say it would be a BCS opponent, but he said we would schedule "something special" for the 2010 opener. How is this "special"?
"Special" is a subjective term, and for me "BCS team that doesn't completely suck" is special enough. Would you rather the 2010 opener be against Northern Illinois or a directional instate school? I wouldn't.
Some people got their expectations waaaaaaay out of whack when the phrases "something special" and "BCS team" were uttered. That's not my problem, though, and that's not Bill Martin's fault. Quit bitching.
Maybe this could warm up Billy to possibly scheduling actual big time home and homes in the future. If he agreed to UConn, how could he say no to a home and home with an Oregon or Auburn?
Auburn would have been sweet
Stay off the drugs, son.
How our perception of something is the only reality that matters whether you like it or not?
Michigan v. Auburn would have the country glued to their television.
Imagine the impact that has on future revenue/recruiting and stop looking at the small picture.
And I'll keep my drugs thank you very much.
Michigan vs ANYONE will get enough viewers to make it worth some big, old fashion stacks of money. How is accpeting a home-and-home vs UConn looking at the small picture?
Allow me to clear that up -
Accepting a home and home vs. UConn is not looking at the small picture.
Strongly defending UConn as a great opponent for that available slot because they happen to be a good football program is.
And you're right, M v. anyone will bring in old fashioned money, however on that fateful day in 2013, when we're saddling up for an instant classic on the east coast-
I can't help but believe that Bill Martin will be thinking about how much MORE money he could be making that second if he either:
A. Was playing prerequisite marshmallow in front of 110,000 paying fans in A2 or...
B. Was in the middle of a national media blitz because we were playing someone with a premium name.
Once again, I conclude my thoughts by saying that BM has nothing to prove and he surely knows quite a few things that I don't that have led him to this decision.
I just wish I knew what those extra things are - I can't help it, I'm a fan - and I'd be more excited if we announced Auburn.
In 2013, if you had to pick between UConn and Auburn for which team would be their conference champs or runner-ups, would you really say Auburn? I know UConn doesn't have the centuries of history, and I know that I'm making an assumption based on their last two years, but Auburn is a marque matchup in name only. In 2013 I could see Michigan vs Uconn be the defending big ten and big east teams.
And again, UConn isn't the highlight of the non-conference games. ND is. ND + UConn + one low sugar cupcake = better non-conference games then 95% of D1 schools.
A Michigan-Auburn (using that example) game in early Sept. would be appointment viewing for any and all college football fans. You are talking Game Day, an ABC National Night game for the visit to Auburn, etc.
Michigan-UConn, is a nice game on ESPN and ABC Regional. It is no different than Michigan-Utah. Not a POS 1-AA game but not exactly compelling either.
A Michigan-Auburn (using that example) game in early Sept. would be appointment viewing for any and all college football fans. You are talking Game Day, an ABC National Night game for the visit to Auburn, etc.
I'm not seeing that, and asserting it doesn't make it so. First: we don't know what other games are on the docket the same weekend, so GameDay and ABC are uncertain, at best. Second: given the recent history, we cannot say right now that both programs will be hot shit in 2013. UConn is, based on recent history, in much better shape than Auburn, period.
I understand that in Playstation Auburn may have a higher prestige ranking than UConn, but in the real world I'm not sure that matters.
Ummm, what? Michigan vs Utah was national televised on abc or mirrored on espn. If you have both channels, and lived in america, and had a tv, you could watch it. It will be the same way for Michigan vs UConn.
http://www.hdsportsguide.com/files/330-aug-30.jpg
"ND + UConn + one low sugar cupcake = better non-conference games then 95% of D1 schools."
Great point if that's actually the case and that 95% includes the premier programs onto whose level we're attempting to ascend.
Can you name a few teams that have better OOC games? Oklahoma has BYU and crap. USC has Ohio State and crap. Texas has WYOMING AND TWO BALLS OF CRAP. LSU has Washington and crap.
Who has better OOC? Tell me!
I agree. Auburn strikes me as a team that living on reputation and the SEC mystique to an extent. They tend to recruit reasonably well, but if Saban can truly turn Alabama back into a power, I'm not sure that Auburn will be able to keep pace and might fall back a bit in terms of recruiting and national presence. UConn has been a bowl game the last 2 years, and looks to be one of the top 2-3 teams in the Big East for the foreseeable future.
Michigan v. Auburn would have the country glued to their television.
Why? Two programs desperately trying to rebuild and forget last season's debacle is a story that would have the "country glued to their television" how? I don't see it.
I suppose it might be a better recruiting draw for M to take a trip to Alabama, but...that's questionable, IMO. The state of Alabama is A) not target state #1 in the South, and B) doesn't offer much hope to out-of-region programs trying to make inroads there. Connecticut/New England isn't a recruiting hotbed, but if it's going to be a nationally televised game anyway, then I'm assuming the "big picture" will be just fine.
I doubt it'll be anything other than regional. Auburn, being a longtime member of the SEC and a team that was pretty good a few years ago would probably have merited truly national coverage, while a program that was 1-AA until four years ago will hardly get the national juices flowing.
While it's correct that Alabama (and Georgia) itself is not a fertile recruiting territory for us, the impact on potential recruits extends beyond the geographic location of where the game is played if the game is truly of national significance, which a matchup between Michigan and most of the SEC teams would be. When Bobby Bowden was still early in his tenure at FSU, they were willing to go on the road anywhere, and that created a perception that the Seminoles were a pretty fearless bunch, and that in turn attracted the attention of plenty of recruits outside of Florida, since top recruits like to picture themselves with similar attributes.
Whatever. It's done, and we can just repeat to ourselves "we're the Leaders and Best because we say we are" over and over and over until we feel better.
I recall M road games to BC and Oregon were nationally televised games, and a road game to UConn doesn't strike me as much different. And if it's at night, then it's just a guarantee that it'll be nationally televised.
(note: I consider a game on ESPN or ESPN2 to be a "nationally televised game". Perhaps we disagree there, but I really don't see much difference between a nationally broadcast game on ABC and a game on ESPN. They both have national reach, IME.)
Are you familiar with the term ratings?
This is what your argument has been reduced to: "this is a bad opponent because the 2013 ratings will be bad."
First, just pause for a moment and savor the absurdity of implying the ratings for a 2013 game are anywhere near predictable and the ratings for a specific game have any long-term impact on a program's fortunes.
Second, how familiar are you with Michigan's traditional ratings history? Outside of ND, OSU, the bowl game, and maybe PSU, I imagine the ratings are either a crapshoot or just crap. So how exactly does UConn not offer either a crapshoot or crap? How is UConn worse?
Third, what would the ratings be like for a tomato can at home in 2013? Or, more sharply, what will the ratings for the 2nd or 3rd game on BTN be in 2013? If you're going to use ratings as a critique, you'd better be ready to justify the alternatives.
You seem to want to apply some advertising/marketing logic to this decision, without understanding the environment that M is in and the constraints M faces. Not good enough.
How many times can you use the prhase "leaders and best" in a comment thread. Abso-fucking-lutely amazing how you drop it in all the time. I count three times in this thread of comments alone. It's almost as bad as some Harvard douchebag dropping the H bomb all the time.
http://www.amazon.com/Spent-Sex-Evolution-Consumer-Behavior/dp/06700206…
Great book on how our perceptions of value are formed and how that effects human decision making.
It'll help you to understand the concept of how the 'perception' of something is more valuable than what something actually is.
Would you get more looks from women driving a brand new Ford or a 3 year old Bentley with a bad trans that they can't see? And Auburn is still a premium name in a premium conference.
Ask a 16 year old in Florida game he'd rather watch - or, if you prefer, ask all of the 16 year olds in America which game they'd rather watch and see who comes out on top.
The fact that people who really know college football know that UConn is a solid opponent is insignificant.
I'd almost rather pack on one more cream puff and get that new HD screen for the Big House
It'll help you to understand the concept of how the 'perception' of something is more valuable than what something actually is.
We don't disagree here. What I'm saying and what you keep ignoring, though, is that Auburn's brand has turned to shit ever since Saban moved over to Alabama. And last year was just a trainwreck, from start to finish. Perhaps 5-19 Chizik can turn it around, but is that the perception?
Would you get more looks from women driving a brand new Ford or a 3 year old Bentley with a bad trans that they can't see? And Auburn is still a premium name in a premium conference.
Again, you seem to think that Auburn is a premium Bentley. I disagree, and your repeated assertions to the contrary do not constitute evidence that you're right.
Ask a 16 year old in Florida game he'd rather watch - or, if you prefer, ask all of the 16 year olds in America which game they'd rather watch and see who comes out on top.
I would love to see this done. I would love to see some national survey of 16 year olds that think that an agricultural school in fucking Alabama is teh awesome. Of course, you would have to control for regional biases, so you might be surprised at the result.
Greater ratings mean more people see it
More people seeing it means more marketing influence
More marketing influence = more money/power/respect
It's the key to life
Nick, you have no fucking idea what you're saying.
I'd like to respectfully disagree with what you're saying and provide some creative argument as to why I feel that way as well.
Loved that last blog post about how summer downtime was "good" btw. Keep up the riveting insight.
Nick, thanks. Loved your hilarious intro video... that was a viral campaign for the new Apatow flick right? You don't expect anyone to believe those two douchebags are "pick up artists"... right?
Nor would I ever aspire to be,
But you're right. I was caught off guard after another guy jumped on me for saying that seeing M play Auburn would be cool and allowed myself to get worked up by it.
I did get thrown and didn't know what the fuck I was talking about; I'm new to posting. Sorry about the personal attack.
I simply have the opinion that I would prefer Michigan play an opponent with a higher national profile than UConn.
If anyone has a different opinion I understand.
So you don't think Auburn has much more "bag appeal" than UConn?
If this is his idea of scheduling a "special" game, how will he do when he goes back to "normal?"
Haha, didn't think of that...
we'll get sideline shots of Rip, Charlie V, maybe Emeka.
lets hope the official announcement is different.
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