What happened to noon games?
Should we blame it on Dave Brandon?
I personally love noon games (especially against teams from the central time zone, or west). I do wonder if Dave Brandon had any influence in this (likely if he desired to leverage game start times he could have).
Under Brady Hoke, we are 11-3 in games starting at noon. In 2011 both our losses came during games starting at 3:30 or later, and we tallied 6 wins. In 2012 we did not lose a noon kick-off, going 3-0. In 2013, the lone outlier during the Hoke era, we went 1-2, with one loss @Iowa (ugh, that game) and against OSU the next week. This year we are 1-0 at noon (AppState).
I skipped over the RR years to look back into the later half of the Carr era. In 2007, the Horror, @WIS, and OSU all started at noon. In 2006 we were undefeated in games that started at or before 12:30. In the six years before that, we only lost 4 times in, well, I'm sure I could go on.
I understand the reasons behind late games (the added dollars spent in the community are hard to argue with), but it seems we should be playing earlier more often.
Thoughts?
November 11th, 2014 at 8:31 AM ^
It likely has something to do with Brady Hoke not eating before games, huh
November 11th, 2014 at 11:30 AM ^
OMG, you have discovered what has caused Brady Flintstone's downfall, he can't stay awake past 3:30 after a lunch! Let's tell Jim Hackett to move all games back to noon and we will be undefeated!
November 11th, 2014 at 8:32 AM ^
ESPN I, II, III, IV..........MMCCVXXVII and the Big Ten Network happened.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:35 AM ^
I don't buy this. Lots of teams play at noon every Saturday. Why should Michigan only play at 3:30 or later?
November 11th, 2014 at 9:00 AM ^
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November 11th, 2014 at 9:02 AM ^
I have a hard time believing that Michigan has zero influence on this
November 11th, 2014 at 9:04 AM ^
When you take the man's money, you play by the man's rules. As the TV contracts have gotten bigger, I believe schools lost a lot of input into game times.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:13 AM ^
I think schools do have some say in primetime vs. non-primetime, but otherwise, I think you're right. I think a school has almost no control over what time an afternoon game kicks off at.
November 11th, 2014 at 11:37 AM ^
Which is why UM and the others can't state the start times until closer to the day of the game and not before the start of the season.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:13 AM ^
Michigan has no influence over 12pm vs 3:30pm. That is determined by the conference and its network partners.
Michigan can refuse night games which they had done for years and continue to do with the Game (Ohio State) and Michigan State.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:21 AM ^
B1G allows home team to determine 1 home game or homecoming time slot per season. Notice how last several years the homecoming game time has been set before the season. And if Dave Brandon said he prefers noon games to 3:30 games I question that because the last several homecoming games where Michigan controlled the starting time have been 3:30 pm kickoffs.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:22 AM ^
Michigan has very little influence over the start times, with some caveats.
If Michigan wants to play a night game, and the broadcaster wants to show it at that time (like with Penn State this year), they will get their wish. Michigan gets to pretty much name their time slot for the homecoming game (as long as it is at noon or 3:30 or at night--no 2:00 games), and they picked 3:30 for the Indiana game this year.
All of the other games, though, they are pretty much at the mercy of television: if TV wants a noon game, it will be at noon. If TV wants a 3:30 game, it will be at 3:30. If TV wants a night game, they need some buy-in from the school.
November 11th, 2014 at 10:13 AM ^
However, the Michigan AD does have some say and influence.
November 11th, 2014 at 10:46 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 1:32 PM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 9:11 AM ^
I bet you won't find many traditional top-25 programs that play many games at noon.
More games used to be at noon because 3:30 was the "primetime" slot for college football, with the exception of an SEC night game on ESPN. That has changed. Now the primetime slot is 7:00 or 8:00 and is likely to see a big game on Fox, ESPN, and ABC, with possible big games on CBS or NBC. With slightly lesser games on ESPN2 and Fox Sports 1. That has bumped most of the better noon games up to 3:30 leaving primarily the dregs for the noon slot. Michigan, even when awful like this season, only seems to qualify for the dregs if we're playing an FCS or MAC-equivalent. The Ohio State game is the lone exception and that is more out of tradition than anything else.
November 11th, 2014 at 10:59 AM ^
Yes. With the exception of a few traditional games - Michigan-Ohio State on rivalry Saturday - noon games are for losers. Noon games would get you Joey Galloway and Pam Ward.
It's a credit to Michigan that we're usually on at 3:30. That means it's a big game. Because we are in it.
The day when Michigan starts playing lots of noon games is the day that we've really sunk to second tier status.
November 11th, 2014 at 11:03 AM ^
The dregs of the dregs are at 3:30 on the BTN. The BTN puts their best game at noon and their second or third best at 3:30. Having the Miami (NTM) and the Indiana games at 3:30 on the Big Ten Network is no credit at all--it means those games were of no perceived interest at all.
In general, the 7 games a week are ranked thus:
(1) 8:00, ABC
(2) 3:30, ABC
(3) noon, ESPN2
(4) noon, ESPNU
(5) noon, BTN (main network)
(6) 3:30, BTN
(7) noon, BTN (secondary feed)
November 11th, 2014 at 11:26 AM ^
When you watch on Saturdays, anything past (1) and (2) is dregs. Some rodents are uglier than other rodents, but they're all ugly.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:35 AM ^
Just this past weekend, there were only 10 games kicked off at noon.
How things have changed since Bo responded to reporters asking if he could be more flexible in scheduling for the sake of TV, "We kick off at noon on Saturdays. If you want to come and take pictures, feel free."
November 11th, 2014 at 11:03 AM ^
Actually it was 1:05 on Saturdays, but the sentiment was the same.
November 11th, 2014 at 12:48 PM ^
"Toe meets leather at 1."
November 11th, 2014 at 10:12 AM ^
I believe a fair number of the conference network contracts are second-tier to ESPN / ABC (not sure about the relationship with Fox), so basically ESPN goes through and makes their picks among available games and then BTN, SEC Network, and the like do the same with the remaining games in their conferences. I could be way off, but I have a suspicion that at least some teams that consistently play at noon nowadays find their TV coverage sporadic at best, but obviously not all of them necessarily.
November 11th, 2014 at 10:35 AM ^
This may well be overly simplistic, but I beleive it is about ratings. Even in the most down period of on the field quality in five decades, Michigan has a huge fan base that generates ratings. For whatever reasons, the networks tend to show the more desirable (i.e., ratings) games later. Unless they are really good, the Indianas and Purdues of the world are going to get the 12:00 games.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:35 AM ^
Apparantly I really don't buy this.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:35 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 10:19 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 8:35 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 8:37 AM ^
Michigan no longer controls their schedule. The B1G and ESPN are the 900 lb gorillas.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:40 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 8:43 AM ^
For those of us that work in the hospitality industry, the 3:30 start time is a curse. As someone who ran a bar for multiple football seasons, nothing was better than being able to watch Michigan football and have the game finish before work.
November 11th, 2014 at 10:14 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 8:40 AM ^
We have a better record in noon games because many games have start times that are set by our broadcast partners and they generally select our more competent, bigger name foes for later start times and bottom-dwellers that have less national appeal for noon.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:46 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 10:08 AM ^
Thanks for repeating exactly what the other guy said.
POINTS!!!!!!
November 11th, 2014 at 8:48 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 8:48 AM ^
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November 11th, 2014 at 9:09 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 9:12 AM ^
But, if you get bombed for a game at noon, there will be plenty of time to go home, sleep it off, and get bombed again...
November 11th, 2014 at 10:09 AM ^
and miss the other games on TV while sleeping. Yeah, great idea.
November 11th, 2014 at 2:00 PM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 9:34 AM ^
Maybe not this year (alcohol needed), but historically if you need to get bombed to watch a Michigan game are you really a fan? Or just an alcoholic looking for an excuse to get drunk?
November 11th, 2014 at 9:37 AM ^
Are the two mutually exclusive?
November 11th, 2014 at 11:09 AM ^
Depends on how bombed the person is.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:53 AM ^
As a student, getting from North to the stadium before noon was murder.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:05 AM ^
I agree. As I student, I loved the 3:30 starts. I had to sleep off the Friday drinking...er, I was recovering from the late/all nighters I pulled studying all during the week.
Now, as an old cranky alum that drives out to the games, I really detest these late starts. I don't get home until 9-10 at night, and by then there's a ton of kids on my lawn that I have to kick out. Seriously though, it seems like the 3:30 games demand a total day commitment. I mean, sure I devote my entire Saturdays to college football, but I've had people bail out of going to games with me because of the late start.
November 11th, 2014 at 9:40 AM ^
That's why it was great when he had both. Not every weekend had to be a total commitment. For the IU's and App. State's of the world we get a noon kick, a light tailgate and time to get home and do something with our lives. Every home game being late is a grind for your season ticket base.
November 11th, 2014 at 11:46 AM ^
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November 11th, 2014 at 9:01 AM ^
We only play M00N games now.