Great Bo quote about night games
In the freep today there was a quote from Bo Schembechler about night games and his thoughts on them. I greatly cherish hearing new quotes that I hadn't heard from two of my all time favorites, Ernie Harwell and Bo.
We miss ya Bo.
http://www.freep.com/story/sports/college/2017/09/28/jamie-samuelsen-mi…
The last time I had the distinct pleasure to be in the company of the late Bo Schembechler, he had a few thoughts about the current state of college football.
Among the topics he discussed were the varying start times for the games. Needless to say, Bo wasn’t thrilled with the notion of playing under the lights. In his distinct Schembechler voice, he scrunched his eyes behind his trademark sunglasses and delivered the following line.
“We used to tell the TV stations that we’re going to tee the ball up at one o’clock. If you want to come down and take your little pictures, feel free.”
September 29th, 2017 at 11:15 AM ^
I did think Bartman was a Bonehead at that time, now I have zero sympathy for him......
September 29th, 2017 at 9:50 AM ^
So Steve Bartman brought us Denard Robinson? I feel my Michigan fandom is fuller because there were 4 years of Denard. I don't remember the Toledo loss or the futility of those years unless prompted. I don't need anyone to say " 'Memba Denard?, Memba him running?"
September 29th, 2017 at 12:28 PM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 2:03 PM ^
I was prompted by 7 years of pain, specifically the pain part. If someone said, "Word association, Rich Rodriguez... ready? Go!" My answer is Denard. Brady Hoke years: Denard.
Pain? Toledo.
September 29th, 2017 at 7:58 AM ^
Bartman. What a scumbucket that guy was...
Thanks, Bart...
September 29th, 2017 at 8:35 AM ^
But that also means that Bartman is responsible for Harbaugh coming home to Michigan. Raises the conundrum of a question: is the present glory of Harbaugh/Brown worth the ten-year humiliation and pain of RR/Hoke? I say yes. So, Thanks, Bartman!
September 29th, 2017 at 2:17 PM ^
Harbaugh was a virtual lock to come home at some point in his 50s if there was a Michigan vacancy. He came when his NFL stock couldn't have been higher, and our program couldn't have been lower. And he came because it was home. It was clearly inevitable.
And the only way there wouldn't have been a Michigan vacancy is if we had hired a different elite coach. In which case, we could have ended the pain earlier. This fanbase wouldn't accept Lloyd winning 8-10 games a year, which is the best Les Miles would have done, and if he did better, we'd be happy! We wouldn't have accepted that mediocrity and it would have been championships or let's fire this guy and get Harbaugh.
September 29th, 2017 at 8:40 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 8:57 AM ^
It must be stated, that said LSU National Title was at the expense of the Buckeyes---and they were destroyed.
Secondly, as a die hard Cubs fan, the onus falls squarely on SS Alex Gonzalez, who booted a taylor-made, inning-ending double play ball, moments later. Even if Alou could have made the catch (I'm very skeptical he would have), the Cubs still had to get another out to get out of the inning.
September 29th, 2017 at 9:06 AM ^
for leaving Prior in too long. I don't think ol' Pee Hands would've caught that ball either. Bartman is the lazy excuse for the fact that the whole team shit the bed.
Over it all though after last year. Eamus catuli.
September 29th, 2017 at 9:27 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 9:34 AM ^
I mean, the crying of the Cubs fans was also pretty wonderful.
But, but, but, but if we hadn't hired RRod, and then had him fail and get Hoke and then had Hoke also, fail, but not get fired before Brandon's ouster, would we have ever gotten Harbaugh? And on top of that Harbugh with Greg Mattison as a DL coach? Les would have probably been good, but after squeaking out the 2007 championship with two losses (albeit both in triple overtime), it is clear in retrospect that he couldn't maintain dominance as they only finished in the top 10 two more times. (Nick Saban may have had something to do with that, granted.)
September 29th, 2017 at 3:47 PM ^
There is no guarantee we'd have hired Les if RR hadn't taken the job. There were a lot of people opposed to Les. It's quite likely we'd have ended up flailing around and might have finally settled for Hoke.
September 29th, 2017 at 10:15 AM ^
You ever tried to get on an El train on the north side of Chicago when the Cubs are playing at night and you just want to go home? Or dodged the vomit puddles and staggering drunk people everywhere? Or, god forbid you live in the neighborhood and commute by car to work, and then have to drive around all night looking for a parking place.
Not against night baseball, but let's not pretend that Wrigleyville isn't pretty adversely affected by dealing with the Cubs 81 days and nights every year.
September 29th, 2017 at 2:36 PM ^
Maybe anyone that doesn't like it shouldn't live in Wrigleyville?
Lots of options for cool neighborhoods in Chicago. Many of them less expensive and more convenient to the loop than Wrigleyville. Live in Wrigley if you want to be in that atmosphere and with convenience to the stadium, but don't live there if you're adversely affected by it and find it to be a pain.
That's like living next to the big house if you weren't a M fan and then bitching about the tailgating and traffic and vomit and... just move. There are other very nice parts of Ann Arbor.
September 29th, 2017 at 2:56 PM ^
It's a north side problem--that feeling when you're getting on the Red Line anywhere north of Lake or so, and when the train gets there, it's full of people in baseball stuff who don't know where to stand, how to move to the middle of the train, and can't figure out that the gigantic Cubs logo at the Addison stop and the giant honking Wrigley Field behind it is the sign to get off.
But, thanks for the advice.
September 29th, 2017 at 5:06 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 7:05 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 7:08 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 8:40 AM ^
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September 30th, 2017 at 12:45 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 12:14 PM ^
That's just because they aren't old enough to enjoy beer and mimosas with their bacon and eggs when they roll out of bed to watch 9AM football.
It's like Saturday morning cartoons, with more Harbaugh.
September 29th, 2017 at 5:41 AM ^
Are played at night, let's get used to it!
GoBlue
September 29th, 2017 at 5:42 AM ^
It's a different age. The B1G payout is $50 million this year. I have a hard time believing Bo would turn down that much money for the school he loved.
September 29th, 2017 at 5:43 AM ^
that you bring up Bo & Ernie together... I had always gone with the perception that Bo fired Ernie, but there's more to the story (always is):
According to Jim Hawkins, the gist is that Harwell signed a deal for five years in ‘86 and “indicated that would be his final contract.” Near the end of that deal he had a change of heart, but the Tigers and WJR wanted to go a different direction thinking they needed to tap into a younger audience. When the contract was up in 1990 WJR wanted to let Harwell go but Bo insisted on extending Ernie an additional year, giving him a big raise and allowing him to go out with a “farewell tour”.
Hawkins words on what happened next:
Schembechler thought he was being generous. In Bo’s mind, he had Ernie’s back.
After the 1990 season ended, Harwell, unaware that his future as the Tigers’ broadcaster had already been discussed and decided behind closed doors, went to the ballpark with his agent/attorney Gary Spicer to negotiate a new contract. Reportedly, Spicer asked the Tigers for another five-year deal and a raise in pay for his client.
But Schembechler refused to budge. So, reluctantly, on December 18, 1990, Harwell signed the one-year contract for 1991 that Schembechler offered.
Ernie also asked the Tigers to schedule a press conference at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull the next day. The Tigers assumed Harwell wanted to announce his own retirement, following the ’91 season, and the ballclub was happy to oblige. WJR, unaware of how Harwell felt, even agreed to broadcast the press conference.
But Ernie was far from happy. He felt was being discriminated against because of his age.
Harwell didn’t graciously say good-bye. Instead, he told his adoring public that he was, in fact, being fired.
September 29th, 2017 at 7:51 AM ^
In fairness, Ernie was being fired. As you note, "the Tigers and WJR wanted to go a different direction thinking they needed to tap into a younger audience". Bo was the president of the Detroit Tigers at the time that (awful) decision was made.
Not that Bo was wrong in his actions, but if Ernie wasn't informed that initially he was not getting renewed at all, I can see him being put off by the one-year extension. It may be a bit of "no good deed goes unpunished" from Bo's perspective, but it's not like Ernie had all the data to see the context of the one-year extension.
And "tapping into a younger audience" does sound a bit like age discrimination. I don't think it is - entertainment is a field where you can discriminate in certain respects (notice how almost all the talking heads on the news are attractive* - esp. the female ones?).
*Some smokin' hot (especially mid and major market weather women), and some attractive in a "Sears Catalog" sort of way. But nearly all attractive to a large segment of the audience.
September 29th, 2017 at 8:23 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 10:09 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 9:23 AM ^
As you note, you can't say "the Tigers" wanted to go in a different direction without acknowledging that Bo was the team president. Now that all the facts are known, it turns out that Bo was pretty much the fall guy, and that WJR's general manager made the decision to "go in a different direction" -- which gave us "Rick and Bob" as truly terrible replacements, a decision Mike Ilitch promptly reversed when he bought the team.
But I'm sure Bo regretted not pushing back harder against this decision. And, as typical for Bo, when the decision was criticized by fans and the media, he got defensive and swung back, while the WJR guy who actually made the decision laid low and let Bo take the flak. Watching from the outside at the time, I was none too pleased with Bo. With the benefit of hindsight, I can see why he acted as he did, but definitely wish he could have prevented a horrible decision.
September 29th, 2017 at 10:57 AM ^
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September 29th, 2017 at 8:12 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 6:27 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 8:20 AM ^
This is my first year as an ex-pat. I'm not looking forward to night games.
September 29th, 2017 at 12:18 PM ^
I've been an expat on-and-off for the past ~10 years or so. Where in Europe are you?
September 29th, 2017 at 12:24 PM ^
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September 29th, 2017 at 3:01 PM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 3:07 PM ^
I lived in Plain-Palais and Champel for a few years while working at the UN. There was a fairly sizable group of UM alum (~5-10) that would show up for the marquee games at Pickwick's. We also used to go there for Sunday Night because Pickwick's has the NFL Redzone and airs it downstairs. (Note: this happened a few years ago...not sure if they still do this!).
Enjoy Geneva! I know it's expensive, but it's a great spot, and it's so easy to get around Europe from there. I miss it a ton!
September 29th, 2017 at 3:17 PM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 12:23 PM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 6:53 AM ^
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September 29th, 2017 at 8:34 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 10:52 AM ^
If you sell them to a cash strapped spartie, they'll be unable to pay rent and will have to burn their couch to keep warm in the winter.
So think of the poor couches, don't sell them your tickets.
September 29th, 2017 at 2:43 PM ^
aren't many Sparys willing to pay market for this game, but agree, don't sell any of the dwindling number possibly willing to pay that much.
September 29th, 2017 at 7:12 AM ^
September 29th, 2017 at 9:25 AM ^