The Story 2014: Memories Of Butter
Previously: The Story 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008. Preview 2013.
So I'm in Canada and I'm shopping for food and we're in the dairy isle and my friend laughs and says "no way." But yes, yes way. There is a margarine they are selling called Memories Of Butter.
![o-MEMORIES-OF-BUTTER-MARGERINE-facebook[1]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/The-Story-2014-Memories-Of-Butter_B74C/o-MEMORIES-OF-BUTTER-MARGERINE-facebook1.jpg "o-MEMORIES-OF-BUTTER-MARGERINE-facebook[1]")
This is an acceptable name for something only if dairy cows have been obliterated by whichever flavor of apocalypse comes home to roost. In between shifts at the sludge plant you smear Memories of Butter on your protein cube and weep silently when the child who doesn't know any better asks you what it was like during the Before Time.
In a world where there is butter, this is literally the worst possible marketing. The butter is three feet away. Once moved to action by the memory of butter, you can reach out and acquire butter. Our operative theory was that it was badly mistranslated from French, or at least there was something lost in translation. What that could possibly be we do not know.
And so: Michigan football. There is no quote more Memories Of Butter than this Gerry DiNardo exclamation about Michigan finally getting rid of that Denard Robinson guy:
"When I saw them in the spring it was like a war at the line of scrimmage. It was what you imagine it looks like at Alabama and all the downhill teams. It changes your entire program. Just like the spread makes your defense soft, the West Coast offense makes your defense tough."
That comes from a Mark "Stretchgate" Snyder article that is almost as embarrassing as the article that will follow him around until he dies:
Every spring and fall, the network analysts would attend a practice, try to absorb the flavor and make nice about the impact of an offense they knew didn't fit.
Then they strolled into Ann Arbor this spring and had to check their GPS — or their mirror to see if they rolled back a decade.
This was Michigan playing smashmouth football, the game's nastiest, purest form.
Michigan finished 11th in the Big Ten in sack-adjusted rushing, ahead of only Purdue, and was last nationally in TFLs allowed. A tub of margarine may well have made the two-deep on Michigan's "smashmouth" offensive line. It would clearly be the Free Press's best reporter.
Michigan football is a white tub proclaiming to be a memory of a feeling. It is on the shelf next to things that still provide dat mouthfeel tho. For everyone reading this Michigan basketball has provided the craved-for combinations of hope, joy, and even eventual, forgivable disappointment. For myself and a goodly hunk of the people reading this, USA soccer has also filled that void. But when we cleared the NBA draft and the World Cup, the cliff loomed ahead.
The dread was palpable. Dread. Unprecedented, but true.
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![4355d408624ca-18-2[1]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/The-Story-2014-Memories-Of-Butter_B74C/4355d408624ca-18-21.jpg "4355d408624ca-18-2[1]")
How did we get here? Every year the fact that I declared 2005 the "Year Of Infinite Pain" becomes yet more ridiculous as we explore new avenues in not feeling real good about football, but I submit that 2013 was the worst football season I have ever experienced. 2005 just isn't even in the ballpark anymore; 2008 had an obvious explanation and novelty; 2010 was GERGtastic but man I can't get that mad at a season containing the 2010 Notre Dame game.
Why was 2013 the nadir? We've learned that it's worse—so much worse—to know that you have absolutely no chance to score points than to have absolutely no chance to prevent them. Ludicrous pointfests like 2010 Illinois and 2013 Ohio State are full of explosions, at the very least. Farting out a three-point loss with under 200 yards of offense is death on a field. There are tense, well-played defensive battles that are the football equivalent of pitcher's duels, and then there's 2013 Michigan: Don Kelly, the football team. (Except when they weren't.)
I kind of lost it as a result. By the end of the year I was giving up on UFRing anything and proclaiming that I was going to go bowling because the Big Lebowksi taught me how to sportsfan my best…
The movie is a series of unfortunate events culminating in the death of Donny thanks to the bullheaded stupidity of Walter, who doesn't want to give up his fifteen dollars to some nihilists. That Donny dies as an indirect effect of that decision is the capper: your desires and actions are futile; you are subject to the random capricious whim of a universe that doesn't care about anything and if it was going to care about something it absolutely wouldn't be you. I don't have to spell the rest out for you. Sports!
…and I remember watching the bowl game in this state of obligation. Worthless, stupid obligation. We had gone from infatuation to a bad 30-year-old marriage that will never end because no one can think of anything better to do.
In retrospect, all of that seems… on-point, actually. Semi-quitting and having public conniption fits at the folks who defended Borges looks like eminently defensible behavior, and that's coming from a guy who occasionally remembers certain actions in high school and has to quickly think of something else lest the eyerolling self-shame overwhelm.
This is where we are: when I got around to doing the Iowa UFR at the last possible moment, most people just asked "WHY?"
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How do we get away from here?
Many of you aren't going to like my answer to this. It is: hold on to what we have and hope like hell. Transitions are awful. Michigan has suffered through two consecutive botched ones that left the roster in a state of strip-mined mid-majordom for the better part of a decade. The next one will either be run by Dave Brandon or an unknown person who has just arrived. With nothing approximating a terrific idea out there after Texas snapped up Charlie Strong, with zero reasonable, available Michigan Man™ options out there, the move appears to be to sit tight and hope.
And Brady Hoke does provide a good deal of hope. Seriously! His recruiting is bulletproof. He is the real William Carlos Williams. Michigan can suffer through the least tolerable season since the 1960s; he can lose three top-100 commits; Michigan State can win the Rose Bowl. None of this prevents him from locking down a class of consensus four-stars minus a kicker and an OL legacy. Save for the rare Skeeps suckerpunch or microfracture surgery, all of these players will arrive qualified and stick around until they've been definitively passed on the depth chart… and possibly beyond.
If these are the kind of positives that seem beneath This Is Michigan, well, yeah. This Is Michigan is fiction. This Is Michigan has rarely meant anything better than 9-3 since the 80s ended, and the program is now 1-5 against MSU and 2-11 against OSU since [insert year here]. They haven't had anything approximating a complete roster since 2006, and even that team was so desperately short on cornerbacks that Chris Graham spent much of Football Armageddon trying to cover a future first round pick WR.
This is were we're at: trying to figure out exactly which things we took for granted for 40 years are real assets and which are replaceable. For me, keeping guys around until they're good is not replacement-level performance—as much as I wish it was. And even if I think Hoke is set on 1997 Michigan as the endpoint of football as the sport mutates at breakneck speed around him, there are teams that make it work.
I just want something to work now. I just want something to sit on my tongue and dissolve into a salty heaven, like my father told me about in the long long ago. I may be of the mines and forever from the mines as we try to keep the engine that keeps us all alive running, but by God even a man of the mines has heard about grass, and the possibility of moving forward upon it for upwards of three yards at a time.
Let's find a cow. Let's punch it until it excretes butter. We may later find out that punching a cow until it leaks is not the optimal way to do these things, but that's for later. Now is for building a society like idiots who have only read about it in books.
August 25th, 2014 at 7:45 PM ^
The word Minnesota is what's wrong with your premise though. How unstoppable did you think we'd be when we won 58-0 a few years ago?
August 25th, 2014 at 2:24 PM ^
Because I saw an offense that really could work against B1G defenses; I mean, Threet and Sheridan were your QBs and the offense still produced a decent rushing attack.
What I saw was an offense that confused good teams at least early on, and it felt like once they had proper talent in positions they'd be great. 2009 helped show the way, but I was happy to see 2008 show some potential.
August 25th, 2014 at 3:22 PM ^
August 25th, 2014 at 9:21 PM ^
I think the defense looks very good this year, but it still seems a step slow against tempo teams and spread units; IU and OSU shredded them last year for long stretches, and to hear Mattison and Hoke talk it still sounds like they think that type of offense is a fad and not one you need to really gameplan for. I may be off, and maybe the move to a more aggresive, pressing secondary will address those failings, but I'm not sure if the defense will make that type of massive leap forward to where it can compete against the elite offenses in the country. Again, I do think there is evidence that UM's defense is taking a step forward, but I'm not sure how far they are away from their ceiling.
With 2008, it felt like that offense, even with horrible parts, could still take strides forward and be truly terrifying. I mean, look at what OSU is doing under Meyer with that offense, and you can see how scary RR's type of offense could be with the top talent UM could have pulled in (and I actually think RR is the better offensive designer compared to Meyer, even though Meyer is the better coach). Again, it's all about perception at the end of 2008 vs. the end of 2013. Now do I think 2014 will be a good year? Sure. But in 2008 it felt like the pain you needed to go through to possibly have an elite program every year; going into 2014, UM feels like it may well return to Carr-ish levels of 9-10 wins but being a step below the nations best teams. I'm fine with that for now, and I'm actually kind of high on Hoke given his recruiting wins and the fact he does seem to be fashioning a good defense, but I'm sitting here seeing UM returning to a moderate level of success that defined most of Carr's teams in the 00's.
August 25th, 2014 at 10:53 AM ^
Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment, maybe the people that called me a "sunshine blower" are right, but I can't remember being this excited for a season, to the point I'm kind of scratching my head and wondering why. I think, maybe, that it is precisely because last year was the soul crushing dong punch that Brian so aptly described.
This season is not....well, that. At least not yet. Things may spiral out of control quickly and become that, but at this point it's shiny and new and full of potential. Gardner has functional limbs again, so might our offense, even if they're attached to a suspect core. Frank Clark will actually live up to the hype this year, our corners have discovered this newfangled "press" technique, and have you heard of this Peppers guy we just got?
Yes, some (most?) of it is irrational, like wishing for the stud freshman QB on the bench to replace your solid, but flawed veteran, not because he doesn't have flaws of his own, but because you can't see them yet. So, you push aside the historical stats and examples that tell you playing freshman QBs usually is a bad, bad idea and focus on the possibility that, god dammit, he might be Chad Henne.
This is me on a macro level for the season as a whole. Yes, I know the odds of an OL doing a 180 in a year is near impossible. Yes, I know our hardest games are on the road where we haven't been very good. Yes, I know we have a true Freshman LT. But god dammit, it's late august, the weather is cooling off and the marching band is practicing at the school by my house. Football is upon us again. To quote Han Solo, "never tell me the odds," because we're going straight into this asteriod field either way and it's going to be fucking awesome. WEEEEEEE!
August 25th, 2014 at 10:58 AM ^
Excellent post ReShip. Couldnt agree more.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:00 AM ^
Optimism, Pessimism, none of it matters. Might as well get hyped!
August 25th, 2014 at 11:37 AM ^
I love optimism and hope you are right. But do yourself a favor and start wearing a cup.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
To quote Han Solo, "never tell me the odds," because we're going straight into this asteriod field either way and it's going to be fucking awesome. WEEEEEEE!
This is no cave.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
I apologize for forgetting to mention you in the Favorite mgoblogger thread.
August 25th, 2014 at 10:48 AM ^
We all need to remember that those bulletproof recruiting classes, when he's had a full cycle to recruit, are only juniors and reshirt sophomores at the oldest this season. Even if you have decided Hoke isn't the long term answer, he hasn't been so obviously bad as to warrant getting rid of him before he's had a full opportunity to show what he can do with a full team of his recruiting classes (as opposed to, say, a Tyrone Willingham). We need to see what these offensive lines look like as upperclassmen. The defense sure looks like it's going to be there this year, now full of Hoke's guys. I feel like the offense could follow suit and be good enough to get back to a 10 or 11 win (or more) type season in 2015, but we can't be running for Ann Arbor Torch & Pitchfork this year. Hopefully people have finally learned that lesson.
August 25th, 2014 at 10:49 AM ^
What's past is prologue.
August 25th, 2014 at 10:52 AM ^
Guess what, great football teams retain players. This is Michigan schtick or not, that's why Wisconsin and MSU both have really nice programs. More importantly, it's why Jim Tressel owned the conference for a decade. He kept bringing in 15 player classes that stayed for five years unless they were too damn good to keep off the field and out of the NFL.
Brady Hoke is doing the same thing right now. On paper, this Michigan team is loaded with a 5th year, borderline 5-star QB. If they block anyone, they can no kidding win the conference. Next season, they're the favorites going into the season. Recruiting and retention are the first steps towards excellence.
There are legitimate concerns with the offensive line coaching, but that's basically it. The move to Nussmeier is a decided step in the direction of modern football. His brand of offense is the same one that's torched Big 12 defenses for a decade now.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:06 AM ^
A strong defense can carry the entire team. Buddy of mine was out in vegas last week and they had us at 6-1 to win the conference with MSU at 4-1. That was after Miller went down for OSU but I'm not sure that news was baked into those odds. Blended together its 2-1 odds for either MSU or Michgian to win the B1G...a combined 33% Bull[ogna]...I gladly took those odds. Anyway, its all about unknowns here and I dont think anyone really knows about Michigan's defense...yet.
Can't nobody bring me down at this point. Super hyped about this year.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:07 AM ^
This is the part I don't get about people calling for Hoke's head. I can literally think of one thing he's not doing well right now:developing the OL, with an incomplete I guess on the Nuss hire (although, I suspect it'll be a pretty massive upgrade). If things continue to not go well in the OL, why wouldn't you address just that issue (i.e. fire Funk) instead of blowing it all up and starting from scratch? The nice thing about Hoke's high level CEO type style is that the pieces under him are interchangeable.
August 25th, 2014 at 10:58 AM ^
2008 - I knew the offense would have some tough times. But we had a decent D. No bowl
2009 - A few fun games but losing again to MSU and OSU was tough. Again no bowl!
2010 - Almost like a step backwards. D sucked! Blown out by OSU, MSU and SC.
2013 - After looking like we were heading in the right direction, awful OL and running game!
1984 - Bo's only poor season. Due to Harbaugh and Mallory's injuries.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^
2010 was the worst for me. At that point, it bacame clear that this was not going to work. You felt that 2011 was not going to be any better if we stayed on that path.
2013 sucked (mostly because at least two of the losses were avoidable), but you always still thought 2014 and 2015 were going to be better.
August 26th, 2014 at 8:07 AM ^
Agree about 2010. It was clear by the end of that season that a change was needed - no way this was going to work. The frustrating thing about 2013 compared to 2010 was that, in 2013, it looked like the team was playing way below potential - just a few better calls, and some better communications on the O-line, and the team should have won PSU and OSU, and maybe Nebraska and Iowa. The damage seemed self-inflicted.
2010, on the other hand, seemed like the team that just wasn't a Michigan team. It had some brilliant players and great guys, but it wasn't playing like Michigan. It was too built around big plays rather than solid play.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:01 AM ^
Let's do this
August 25th, 2014 at 11:01 AM ^
August 25th, 2014 at 11:01 AM ^
1) only one (not two) of the most recent hires were "botched" and we can thank our then resident Sailor AD for that one, though I believe the wind was high that weekend, so kudos; and
2) to use Charlie Strong and Texas as indicia of "the one that got away" seems both premature and laughable.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:31 AM ^
August 25th, 2014 at 12:58 PM ^
Les was never offered the Michigan coaching job at the end of '07.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:05 AM ^
I do think the 'manball' thing can work. I don't think UofM can become a spread program. I know there are arguments both ways, but I believe the path to success goes through a strong Defense and a competent Offense.
Real Asset - Top 10 D
Replaceable - September / October Heisman Candidates
August 25th, 2014 at 11:12 AM ^
When Rodriguez was fired, I remember thinking that (1) this is the right decision and (2) if I were smart I wouldn't watch a single play, read a single word, or have a single conversation about Michigan football until about 2015 (no matter who was hired).
For me, the last few years have been about enduring the basically inevitable pain. Granted, I would have guessed that 2011 wouldn't have gone as well as it did and 2013 wouldn't have gone as poorly as it did. But when you fail as spectacularly as Michigan did with Rodriguez (no matter whose fault it was) and when those few years involved playing the least Michigan football-like football there is, a return to the familiar was inevitable and the transition was going to be rough no matter who was hired.
I think - and hope - that at most we have one more year of pain left. I actually figured that by now the first post-Rodriguez coach would get run out of town by an impatient fan base while that coach built a roster that the second post-Rodriguez coach would win with. And Hoke struck me as the right kind of transition scapegoat. He was by all accounts a good guy, so we could expect to stay clean, and he was low-profile enough that if/when he got canned it wouldn't make Michigan look like the place where good coaches come to die. Plus, it was his dream job, so at least he'd get a thrill if he was treated unfairly here. The Michigan job wasn't attractive in 2011, but with a rebuilt roster and a fan base with recalibrated expectations, I figured it'd look a lot different to prospective coaches around now.
A few years later, I've come to love Hoke as a person and a representative of the university. That's a big deal to me. I'm cheering as hard for him as I've ever cheered for a coach, and I want him to show us that he can be the guy. I think that basically means surviving this season, since the 2015 roster and schedule, at this early glance, seem drool-worthy. I don't know what surviving is, record-wise, but I know this would be a bad, bad time for a 7-6 kind of year. This season will determine what the next several look like, and damn I hope we see some wins and progress from the team and some patience and levelheadedness from the fans.
Survive and advance, Coach Hoke.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:14 AM ^
Michigan's going to recruit well almost regardless of who the coach is. Not sure "solid recruiting" is ever a reason to keep a coach at a place like Michigan.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:28 AM ^
August 25th, 2014 at 12:12 PM ^
RR's recruiting classes at Michigan were considerably better than his classes at WVU; even his best WVU class only ranked 23rd on Rivals. Meanwhile, his worst class was ranked 20th at Michigan in 2010, and the hybrid 2011 class ranked 21st. His attrition rates were bad at Michigan, but the players he brought in (read as: tried to bring in) were definitely an upgrade over WVU.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:15 AM ^
Brian:
Hell of a piece. I feel like my fandom has grown and evolved as yours has over the years (similar ages; similar formative memories; similar views, generally on the program), and this blog has served as the lense through which I often view the source of that fandom. Hats off, and hang in there. It's going to be another wild ride this season.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:15 AM ^
RR rewarding us with getting hammered vs Cow Bell in his last apearance
KSU was bad IMHO because the team quit and had no desire to play as we had no desire to watch the BW3 bowl where they had MMA on instead of the fucking game.
I like the program, no over signing, negative recruiting, tats/cars, pedophiles. I get 13-15 Saturdays to enjoy (good or bad). Football > noFootball.
UM will be a pro style team, teams built in the trenches with good D's because that’s what the big guys want.(As I do)
August 25th, 2014 at 11:54 AM ^
The second half score was 10-8 KSU. The team did not quit on Hoke. That can be contrasted with Rich Rod's last game, where we were outscored 42-0 in the last three quarters.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:20 AM ^
Really missed these type of pieces in the offseason. Awesome post, really enjoyed reading.
Let's go punch that cow.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^
I've always enjoyed reading what Brian writes. Once again, he doesn't disappoint.
I mostly get the dread. After last year, how could you not? I think watching the MSU game last year was one of the most painful experiences possible. You just knew that they were not going to score on State's defense. And that Devin was taking punishment all game long, especially in the second half. And that the defense couldn't do it all.
And yet, I have such a strong sense of anticipation for this season. I don't know what the OL will do, but with Nuss, and with what appears to be a very strong offense, and with the OL possibly improving over the season, and with more receivers, I have hope.
I strongly agree with Brian that Michigan needs to stay the course with Hoke, Transitions, indeed, are brutal, and the last thing we need now is another transition. Actually, I believe that Hoke's ceiling is much higher than Brian and many others anticipate. For an example, you need look no further than Beilein. Prior to Michigan, Beilein was a good coach. Bringing him to Michigan gave him the resources he needed to excel. Brian wrote several years ago of limited expectations for Beilein. Well, Brian's expectations were exceeded. I believe that with the excellent coaching staff, and the recruiting, Michigan football under Hoke will also exceed Brian's expectations.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:28 AM ^
August 26th, 2014 at 8:15 AM ^
"If he can't win a road game against Staee or Ohio this year it may never happen."
I'd flip that: if MSU and OSU don't beat us at home this year, they may have lost their last chance to beat us.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:36 AM ^
It's the week of the first game. I am optimistic. I will always be optimistic, even when I have serious doubts about a couple of our linemen. I don't care if I'm the sole goddamn guy holding onto the last 6 inches of the mast as the ship slips into the abyss. I'm holding on because MIchigan Football is a part of my soul and holding on is the only thing I know how to do. I am a blind loyalist who gets a little closer look than the average Joe. I trust our coaches because they are our coaches. I believe in Hoke because he is a good man who works his ass off and has the best interest of the program at heart. He is loyal to Michigan, therefore I am loyal to him.
We are embarking on another season of Michigan football. The students feel alienated, the athletic director is polarizing, the Spartans and Buckeyes are laughing at us, and we will be rehashing the worst defeat in modern football history this week. Despite all that, I will be in my seat on the 40 yard line, tearing up as the Band high steps it into the stadium and the horns blare Fanfare.
Go Blue!
August 25th, 2014 at 11:40 AM ^
Last year was frustrating and disappointing and worrying, but at least our defensive coordinator didn't rub a fucking stuffed animal in the face of one of our linebackers during an ass-pounding embarrassment in our own stadium.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:47 PM ^
But our OC did run 27 times for 27 yards.
I will be glad to put all of that in the mirror.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:51 AM ^
Gimme sum dat grass-fed organic non-rBST NussButter.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:52 AM ^
Nice piece.
But 2008 was the worst thing that has ever happened.
August 25th, 2014 at 11:54 AM ^
Or if I don't want to punch a cow? I kind of like cows. Can I punch butter instead?
August 25th, 2014 at 11:56 AM ^
In 2008 and 2010, there was nothing to be won. We were never going to challenge in 2008 with our offense. In 2010, even if the defense had been a bit better, we were still well behind MSU, Wisconsin and OSU.
In 2013, there was plenty to play for. Had the offense been coherent, we more than likely beat Nebraska, Penn State and Iowa. Hell, we were only down 16-6 to Sparty until the last two drives. Of course, the defense shit the bed against OSU, but whatever. Its not inconceivable to look at last year and think "Man, with a mid-level Big Ten rushing attack and mediocre pass protection, could we have gone 11-1? 10-2?".
I dunno. All three of those seasons were painful. Hell, 2005, 2007 and 2009 were pretty awful in their own ways.
I vote we stop looking at the past and look forward. This is going to be the best Michigan defense we've seen since 2006 and that's gonna keep us in a lot of games. If the offensive line can gel by the time we play MSU....who knows?
August 25th, 2014 at 12:04 PM ^
I want to be optimistic, but I can't shake the sense that we'll be looknig back on this year in December and telling ourselves, "what if?".
I want to believe that the OL comes together, allowing our 5th year senior QB, and stable of talented RBs and WRs, to stand up against our enemies, control the line of scrimmage, manage the clock, and efficiently score points.
I want to be surprised again, in a good way, like against OSU in 1996, or PSU in 2005.
I want results to not be the foregone conclusions that they seem to have become with us, and when the predictions are wrong, they're usually wrong in a bad way, like against Toledo in 2008 or Iowa last year.
I want the swagger that we had in the past that comes from programs built around superior recruiting and tear a hole in the psyche of all the Valentis of the world who will claim that programs can make up for lack of stars by being "tougher" than others or "coaching up" their players better.
I want all these things.
I want to believe. Make me wrong about being pessimistic, guys. Make me believe again.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:04 PM ^
I thought the piece you did on Kentucky vs. Michigan this spring was the best writing piece on this site up until now.
Great job on this Brian. And as much as I want to disagree, I think you are right that we just need to hang on to what we have. I would love to see a change at the top because it would be more entertaining than what we have now. But it's probably our best bet to just let things play out.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^
Still marvel at how Funk kept his job after his line came up LAST in the nation in TFL with 2 NFL lineman bookends.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:49 PM ^
A tub of margarine may well have made the two-deep on Michigan's "smashmouth" offensive line. It would clearly be the Free Press's best reporter.
ZING!! with a capital "Fuck You".
August 25th, 2014 at 12:51 PM ^
This is exactly why you don't UFR the 2013 Iowa game before the 2014 season. I did however go to Culver's and pick up a delicious burger for some reason.
August 25th, 2014 at 12:52 PM ^
Always one of my favorite columns of the year.
But I will say this about Hoke...
We have got to see signs of progress this year. The offensive line has got to get better. Some of the studs on defense have to start living up to their billing. There have to be signs of improvement. If we end up 7-5 and we see no signs of player development, then I see no reason to expect any differently for 2015, and I see no reason to keep the head coach around. Hoke got his assistant mulligan. He used it on Borges.
Most Michigan fans, thanks to the cuckoo Carr-Rodriguez transition, have a wildly skewed view of how most coaching transitions go. Most of them are uneventful. Lots of them have been prosperous almost immediately. The concern over the candidate pool is valid, as is the concern about Dave Brandon being the guy who would make the hire. So I guess that means that Hoke gets the benefit of the doubt. But he shouldn't get a fifth year unconditionally.
August 25th, 2014 at 1:37 PM ^
August 25th, 2014 at 1:18 PM ^
I have to say, with my son recently taken off of all dairy products, Memories of Butter is an apt name in my household...
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