How did your Mgoblog life start?

Submitted by Big_H on

It's friday and the weekend is finally here! So I thought I would start something interesting to talk about. Something fun. Something other than who will win the NCAA 2014 game cover vote.

So let's hear it. How did your Mgoblog life start?

For me it's been a fun journey. It all started late 2009/early 2010 when I was really getting into Michigan recruiting. To be honest I had almost no clue who to follow or where to look. I will even admit I used to look at Mlive for any information on Michigan football or recruiting(I would never post on there though). I would check the front pages of Rivals for any free info but that just wasn't good enough. Then there was one day I was looking for new sites and I ran across this Mgoblog. At first, I really didn't know what to think there was so much content with all this crazy shit going on in it. I didn't understand how to even start looking around. I didn't like it, but the urge to come back for some recruiting news led me back every once and awhile. By 2011 I started to check the blog weekly and started to read the comments on topics that intrigued me. I started to learn the Mgoblog lingo and inside jokes also how to not act like an idiot when something is being discussed that I don't agree with. Man I was starting to feel comfortable around here even though I did not have an account, yet. Then 2012 rolled around and I found myself coming to this site multiple times daily. With that it was time to start an account. It's been great ever since and I always have the information I want and more. I feel like this site has made me a better Michigan fan and I'm really glad I stumbled upon it.

I hope to hear some good stories and sorry for any grammar errors. If you don't like the content than get a mod to delete it. Go Blue!

Wolverine Devotee

March 8th, 2013 at 1:21 PM ^

Wandered the internet looking for an alternative due to the UMGoBlue forum. That place was getting really bad with the bickering so I stumbled across here. And the rest is history.

mvp

March 8th, 2013 at 1:55 PM ^

I used to post there a TON and spent all my time responding to and refuting idiots.  I sought out something different and found MGoBlog.  The content was so good, though, that I mostly just read and haven't spent much time posting on the boards (and got part of my life back...).

 

Wolverine Devotee

March 8th, 2013 at 2:07 PM ^

One day I went back there when Hoke was hired and some idiot had a sig of how many days it would be until he would be fired.

That ensured my MGoBloggership. 

Tater

March 8th, 2013 at 5:48 PM ^

I think I "heard" about mgoblog when Jim Carty mentioned it in a column. I found mgoblog a refreshing change from the idiots on mlive and later, annarbor.com.  

No matter what the points system is, who can neg or not neg, and who is or isn't a mod, Brian has created a community that is far superior to any other forum concerning University of Michigan sports.  Plenty of disagreements happen here, but trolls are gone in a heartbeat, as they should be.

Mustachioed Ge…

March 8th, 2013 at 6:01 PM ^

I'm pretty amazed at how this community has grown but has not really succumbed to the downsides (for the most part) that websites like reddit or digg have fallen victim to. A great example of a community properly policing itself.

 

[This is just my opinion - I know some people will disagree and say that this community has gone to shit and possibly call me some version of idiot but I don't really give a shit.]

randyfloyd

March 8th, 2013 at 11:38 PM ^

I still have the same screen name as I did on MLIVE and I was a bit of a legend (at least in my own mind). I use to troll the trolls and basically made almost all of them look foolish. It was in 2006 that I heard of a blog that didn't have any trolls, only great M fans sharing stories and information. Needless to say, even though it took me over two years to finally get a screen name and officially join in the conversations, I was hooked and have been here almost every day since.

 

beenplumb

March 8th, 2013 at 1:22 PM ^

For me, as an analyst, I just got sick of Google search results taking me to Bleacher Report. Once I found out about this place, and the level of thoughtful analysis Brian puts into the UFRs, and what guys like The Mathlete and LSAClassof2000 bring to the table, it was game over. Lurked for a couple months, then once I joined up I never looked back.

dothepose

March 8th, 2013 at 1:22 PM ^

Was an Engineering Intern for the city of Ann Arbor back in 2008, we had lots of free time on the computers...a co-worker who was UM Grad brought it up. I've been addicted since. Also, if you wonder how the city was in financial struggles, I could give you a few reasons as to why being an intern.

MGoKereton

March 8th, 2013 at 1:24 PM ^

Heard the front page of MGoBlog was bashing the MMB somewhere around the fall of 2009.  After a few months (and the rampant band support that ensued), I decided you guys weren't too bad.

JimBobTressel

March 8th, 2013 at 1:25 PM ^

"Hey, this michigan blog says Lloyd Carr is going to retire." Right around Ohio State 2007.

Me: "What? BS, yo."

The blog (this blog) was right. I visited for the first time, saw the rumors, read a thorough preview of the game that told me what to watch for (Preview Ohio State, 2007)

I was just a sophomore at UM and I went to that game, screamed my lungs out, watched Beanie Wells repeatedly run at us. Awful game.

Came back and the blog had a moving piece up about Carr (the osu game column 2007). Then it was on to the joyful Capital One Bowl, I was digging through the archives all the way back to 2005, and the hilarious/ bungled coaching search was soon underway. I was hooked.

JohnnyV123

March 8th, 2013 at 1:25 PM ^

I think it was when we were in the hiring process for a new coach that my brother goes yeah so this site mgoblog they are crazy they are following like what plane rides Michigan higher ups are taking to try and figure out what coaches they are going to visit to interview for the job. Plus they follow recruiting a lot you should check it out.

Michiganfootball13

March 8th, 2013 at 1:25 PM ^

I started following MgoBlog when my buddy David AKA Lloyd Brady was "discovered" on here and all of the photoshops of him were being made.  I didn't join until last year when I wanted to start chiming in on the discussions. 

mgobaran

March 8th, 2013 at 1:26 PM ^

My buddy always looks at bleacher report, and acts like he is doing me a favor every time he reports something to me. So I was bored, check out the site a couple times the first week. It took me about 3 days to figure out that it was complete garbage.

But I was fixing for some Michigan football news. I didn't know where to look. Googled "Michigan Football Blogs," this one seemed legitimate. So I kept coming back around a few days, made an account and have been addicted ever since. It took me forever to get the inside jokes, and I think for the first 2 months, I never got a comment up-voted. It was a proud moment when someone actually agreed with what I was saying on here.

/embarassing

 

 

JonSnow54

March 8th, 2013 at 1:32 PM ^

One day during the coaching search that eventually hired Rich Rod, I saw a random retweet about some weird flight tracking website.  I checked the guy's twitter page and it had some references to MGoBlog.....so I checked it out.  Been visiting multiple times a day ever since. :)

EDIT: It was actually the search that eventually hired Hoke and people were stalking flights.

jcgold

March 8th, 2013 at 1:28 PM ^

I needed a site where I felt I wouldn't be browbeat with what happened from a non-michigan perspective. I later started commenting.

LSAClassOf2000

March 8th, 2013 at 1:28 PM ^

I was a reader for several years actually, almost going back to a game in 2007 which shall not be mentioned. It was only in early 2011 (as you can see) that I decided to create a posting account in order to discuss the coaching transition with others and my own views on it. Within days, I found myself expressing my opinion and sharing information / knowledge / stories with a group of Michigan fans that were as passionate about everything Michigan as I was and I never quit contributing - I even began to find ways to proactively contribute, and I don't plan to stop that either. 

Even better, by some strange coincidence, I now have scary powers here.

Indeed, this very browsing session is over two years old now. 

jtmc33

March 8th, 2013 at 1:29 PM ^

One-stop-shopping.

I have no patience, and need instanst gratification.

After a couple days on MGoBlog I realized that if there is something important to read (from any of the dozen media outlets that I was looking at every couple of days) then it would be discussed, and always linked, on this site.

One of the first posts I made was about a story I read from a news outlet and I did not link the story.  Backlash from the board was harsh.  But I realized quickly that most (but not all) of the backlash on this board is to assure that the relay of information is credible and current.  No other blog, and even some news outlets, can match MGoBlog's integrity and accuracy.

 

jericho

March 8th, 2013 at 1:29 PM ^

I was posting on the old Freep board many years ago and then they shut that board down.  The members all moved over to a Worldcrossing board.  The level of content and the users were really good for a couple years, but then the trolls hit.  One of the members suggested coming here and have never looked back.  I try to read more than I post, but I am good and truely hooked.

rob f

March 9th, 2013 at 4:58 PM ^

and moved to the Worldcrossing U of M Forum (and Detroit Tigers Forum, too) when the Freep shut their board down.  Then Worldcrossing (a place with good format but absolutely piss-poor servers that crashed constantly) went under and most survivors of that crash resurfaced at http://detroitlionsforum.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=16 as a sub-forum to http://detroitlionsforum.com/forums/index.php. .  It's a lot smaller place than this one, several of us have been around since forever (late 90's, anyway) at the Freep, and overall, it's a good community, including even the handful of fans of OSU, ND, Nebraska, and other schools that post regularly, many of whom migrated over from Worldcrossing's CFB MegaSite.

Yes, we still have occasional trouble with trolls there, but not as much as most boards I've looked at.  OTOH, this place seems to have pretty much gotten it right on how to quickly and decisively weed out trolls. 

I started out here by just lurking occasionally when someone posted a link at Worldcrossing, but never joined until about 2 years ago, posting very rarely for my first year.  I've been getting more and more active here in the last year, even starting a few Board threads.  One of these days I might even put up a userpic/avatar, probably well before I go join Facebook in an effort to keep people off my lawn.

Best thing about this place, though, is the content and timelyness of the information I find here.  Brian has a real gem of a place on his hands here, his writing and that of his staff is supremely interesting, and I rarely have a day that I don't visit here at least once.  Yes, sometimes the MGoBoard gets a bit too cluttered and bogged down, but overall this place has no equal.

BTW, Jericho, what was your username on the Freep and Worldcrossing Forums?  I use the same one I've used since the migration to Worldcrossing; I think I used "RBob F" or something like that back in the Freep Forum days.

 

 

 

quigley.blue

March 8th, 2013 at 1:30 PM ^

When I was in college in the 2005-2006 range, I remember my roommates, a couple of whom have memberships here, discussing some website.  I remember thinking, "That sounds a lot like the University's Athletic Website, whatever, I won't correct them, give me a beer".

In a brief sober period during the same timeframe, one of them actually showed me the website, "OH MGoBLOG, I get it now", and so I read it, thinking, MAN, I understand none of this, the stadium is right there, and LaMarr Woodley is probably at Rick's.  GIVE ME A BEER"

After college I spent much more time at desks, and slightly less time drinking, and discovered that there was some semblance of structure and community involved with this place, So around 2008, I started reading Every.Single.Post.

I eventually made a usename around 2010, undoubtedly because someone posted something on the board that i found unconscionable, irreconcilable, or totally f'ing awesome, and had to SAY SOMETHING AND DEFEND MY FAMILY'S HONOR.  I don't know, maybe someone can help my find my first post.

sheepdog

March 8th, 2013 at 1:31 PM ^

Back when "Google Realtime" was available, I kept seeing this guy named TonVH tweeting important stuff about Michigan recruiting and the Hoke/RR transition.  So I kept watching his twitter, which led me here.

I stalked the site for about 6 months and finally made an account in June 2011.   Been hooked since.

Magnus

March 8th, 2013 at 1:32 PM ^

I used to write blog posts that very few people read, and it got boring because nobody read them/commented.  So I did a Google search for "Michigan football blog" or something like that, and MGoBlog popped up.  It was pretty professionally done (for being on Blogspot) and discussed a lot of things that interested me, so I stuck around.  This was in 2006, I believe.  I've been visiting pretty much daily since then.

ken725

March 8th, 2013 at 1:34 PM ^

I don't really remember because it was so long ago.  I remember this place used to really different with the WLA guys around.  Those were some good times with lots of interesting trolls (McFarlin, Emo, etc.).

Does anyone from way back when remember a lawyer who said he would sue us all because we said he looked like a pedo?  He was being a pretty big troll and someone found his website and posted his picture.

MichiganMan2424

March 8th, 2013 at 1:34 PM ^

2 years ago, during the basketball season. Football had obviously been disappointing and this was the Darius Morris year for basketball where we were on the buble. I was looking for any coverage I could of Michigan basketball to drown out the sorrows of football. I was on ESPN's CBB blog right before the home MSU game and saw this site linked in the side bar. Came here, have been hooked ever since.

weasel3216

March 8th, 2013 at 1:34 PM ^

The coaching search was the first main reason i ever checked on the site, plus Time posted about Michigan lacrosse even when they were club (since then he started his own blog greatlaxstate.com).  Kept on coming back, never really have been a heavy poster on topics but the reading is great and the threads produce some of the funniest things i have ever read on the internet.  Plus the personalities on here are great, still one of my favorites of all time is KOB.

anwonadell

March 8th, 2013 at 1:37 PM ^

A high school buddy of mine tipped me off about it shortly after The Horror. I finally committed and made a user account when before the 2009-10 basketball season.

Michigan and my roommate's team UNC were ranked in the top 25 preseason. We made a bet about who would go further in the NCAA Tournament and I wanted the MGoCommunity's opinion of whether I made a good bet. As many may remember, we didn't make it to the tournament that year, and I apologize for jinxing the team. Luckily me for, UNC didn't either, causing that bet to result in an unlikely draw.

R Kelly

March 8th, 2013 at 1:40 PM ^

I found the site originally in summer 2006 when I was randomly looking for Michigan football video clips to try to make my own highlight films with.  I didn't come back again for a few years, when RR was hired, and I was trying to consume as much info about him as possible.  I lingered as a reader for a little over  a year until I finally gave in and made a user account.    

evenyoubrutus

March 8th, 2013 at 1:40 PM ^

My brother had told me about MGoBlog a few times and I was just like "yeah whatever" but at some point during the 2007 season I checked it out and thought it was cool but nothing special.  Then Brian got the leak that Lloyd was going to announce his retirement the day after the Ohio State game and I was like "yeah whatever" and Sam Webb got on his show and was like "yeah whatever" and then it happened and I was like "that was perty cool."

And that is how life begins.

the Glove

March 8th, 2013 at 1:40 PM ^

I use to periodically follow a Michigan blog that no longer exists. I also followed rivals and scouts pretty heavily. When the blog begin to shut down I started looking at other sites that it had mentioned. That is when I stumble across Mgoblog. It would be 3 years before I would post on the message board for the first time, but I read everything though. I still don't post to often, but I do still creepily read everything. I've got to witness Brian's staff change, the Jyhad, and The Horror, but my most favorite is being a part of fandom insurance III. I have the merit badge.

http://mgoblog.com/content/perverse-joy-abject-stupidity