Whatever Comment Count

Brian

1/1/2018 – Michigan 19, South Carolina 26 – 8-5, end of season

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[Marc-Gregor Campredon]

I don't know how people get mad about this shit still. I just turn off, because for the last decade Michigan football has been either a disappointment or in a brief interim period that sets you up to be disappointed. But yes many many people still get fucking furious about Michigan football for some reason.

I'm tired of talking about it. I'm tired of this cycle that always seems to be at the bottom. I'm tired of this toxic-ass fanbase screaming at stuff. I could muster some takes, I guess, but I've already said them and anyway they seem beside the point. December was nice since it lacked football. 2018, so far, is bad because it had football.

In a situation like that I'd rather not talk about football. Especially because I have nothing left to say. Maybe it'll be better next year. Maybe it won't. Either way it's a meaningless distraction on the way to the grave. Eat at Arby's.

Comments

smwilliams

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:34 AM ^

Whatever about sums it up for me. I love Michigan football. Love it to death. But, much like being a Cubs fan pre-2016, it doesn't bring me a ton of joy. Sports usually doesn't unless you have the fortune to be a Pats, Duke, etc. fan. And I wasn't born in Michigan, didn't go to Michigan. I have no ties to the university. I've tried to stop, but I can't. 

Just hold out hope that one of these seasons, everything falls into place. I'm not asking for a national title. A playoff appearance would be nice. B1G title. Win over Ohio State. 

But, at this point, whatever. 

gruden

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:35 AM ^

When I was younger I used to get really mad after M losses.  I finally took something my father said to heart, which is at the end of the day it's just a game.

My son is in the marching band and he had a blast, so there's that.

bronxblue

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:51 AM ^

They have always pointed out when the team has looked bad.  People think negativity is always toxic just because it's against someone they either like or don't.  

Harbaugh has gotten quite a bit of negativity around here considering he's done quite well compared to the last, I don't know, decade of Michigan football.  But that doesn't matter because goalposts keep moving for people, and that's fine.  But if you look at Harbaugh and Hoke and their teams as being on the same trajectory, then I can't imagine why you'd still want to frequent this place.

JFra

January 2nd, 2018 at 1:20 PM ^

Where are your goalposts? 3rd place in the B1G East? People are deservedly upset with this team and Harbaugh's (lack of) success thus far. I don't condone being vicious about it and any personal attacks, but fans have a right to question where the program is headed. 

People can still support a program and criticize what amounted to a down year and brutal bowl game. There were significant coaching mistakes made yesterday (TE fumble, overly aggressive defense 2nd half, odd TO usage, end of game, etc).

bronxblue

January 2nd, 2018 at 3:37 PM ^

People can be angry, and this game wasn't great by any means.  I guess it isn't so much moving goalposts (though even this last year people said none of it mattered because they didn't beat OSU, even though previously it had been you have to beat teams like MSU and PSU) as there being this part of the fanbase that wants to complain about what happened instead of just experieincing it.  This year was always going to be rough; had they gotten a break or two maybe they win 10 games instead of 8, but this was going to be the gap year where sub-optimal recruiting would cause depth issues.  But I keep seeing people say it's a down year because they expected Harbaugh to magically overcome losing 3 QBs and limited playmakers on the offense through sheer force of will and his contract.  And to me, that's just being needlessly combative.

MSU went 3-9 last year, ND went 4-8.  Before the last 2 years, PSU hadn't won more than 9 games since 2009.  Michigan isn't OSU yet; they might never get to that level.  But if this is a "down" year, I'll take it, especially given the logical assumption that players mature and the track record for Harbaugh is continued improvement.

1817

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:40 AM ^

Hey, playing 8-8 ball and only 9 TD passes all year will put anyone into denial, but 3rd string QB's and an OL with 1 good player will do that to you. Here's to hoping they develop alot of pieces quickly.

ak47

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:40 AM ^

We are a basketball school now, all hail Beilein, our new overlord and winner of big games and finishing seasons better than starting them.

bronxblue

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:44 AM ^

It'll be better next year, and people will still complain.  It was great last year for large stretches and people still complained.  It's a sport that turns normally rational men and women including screaming man- and woman-babies (count me in that group) because the unpaid college athletes wearing their colors didn't win a fucking game.  

On to September.

colomon1988

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:48 AM ^

Smart commentary is where MGoBlog shines, and letting its voice be drowned out by "toxic-ass fanbase screaming" is a terrible thing.

For instance, the postgame post mentioned "playing behind a line down three starters by halftime".  I missed this detail during the game, and don't know what it means.  But now that I look, I see http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/index.ssf/2018/01/michigan_notes_offens… explains that Ben Bredeson and Juwann Bushell-Beatty were not able to play, and Patrick Kugler went out by halftime.

That seems a pretty major detail that I don't hear many people mentioning.  I know the rabid portion of the fanbase hates it when you make "excuses", but they seem to have a hard time distinguishing excuses from, you know, REASONS.  Me, I want to understand what's going on, and yes, that means looking for reasons.

I just peeked at ESPN's box score summary and the offensve UFR for the Florida.  Guess what?  Our leading passer, our leading reciever, our leading rusher from that game -- NONE of them played in this bowl game.  Also the #1 fullback and the #3 reciever from that game were absent yesterday.  It's a bit fuzzy, but it looks like to a first approximation more than 50% of the starting offense we played against Florida did not play yesterday.

bronxblue

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:56 AM ^

I agree there needs to be commentary, but looking at this site after a loss and I'm amazed Brian and co post anything.  The comments are just this circle-jerk of lazy memes and angry people smashing their fingers against a keyboard.  

Michigan's got structural problems on offense this year, and being down 3/5 of your offensive line that you fielded 1 game ago, and not because you got guys back from injury to replace them, didn't help.  But people want to stick Tim Drevno's head on a stick and throw Pep Hamilton into a lake, and no amount of reality will change that.  I was surprised Brian even left comments up for this article and others after this game, and I'm sort of happy I just skipped the site for a while.

People will get excited in the summer and beyond.  But for now, this is one of those hellish times where people you usually ignore get to yell loudly.

bronxblue

January 2nd, 2018 at 3:39 PM ^

Brian doesn't really care about the comments, and this site has existed for long enough to safely assume they aren't really getting to him.  I'm just pointing out that it makes sense a guy might not want to post something for a couple days when it will likely be drowned out by assholes getting into fights.

Blue Durham

January 2nd, 2018 at 4:47 PM ^

Brian is a Michigan fan first and foremost. He isn't a professional writer that happens to write for a given team, but a fan that made a profession out of his fandom and abilities.

The best example I can come up with is recaps like the above, and the absence of UFS after late season losses. When questioned, he has responded "what is the point." But when Michigan actually beats OSU or wins their bowl game, he always does the UFR (at least I can't think of an exception).

With this whatever OP, I just think it is him dealing with a loss he really didn't see coming. Apathetic "whatevers" is the worse thing a sports program can suffer, and I am sure he knows it. If his concern was really in regards to the assholes, he probably would have written a "knock it off assholes" post like he has in the past.

It probably doubly hurts him because I would guess that the blog traffic and book/preview issue sales are higher when the team(s) do well. So there may be an added financial pinch he feels with every loss.

Great Best and Worse column again, as usual. You seem put so much time and effort into them. You are a terrific writer and I will miss them again in the offseason.

Ed Shuttlesworth

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:49 AM ^

Somehow I don't think Brian would have been all "Eat at Arby's" in November 2014 if Brady Hoke had given the other team a massive game-changing momentum jolt by fumbling on our own 20 on a "Tight End dive" play.  

For comedic value, that debacle was right up there with the Jets' Buttfumble, the only difference being that TE Dive was the product of actual conscious thought and effort.

 

 

brad

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:51 AM ^

One of the fascinating aspects of mgoblog is that it has made the coverage of Michigan football actually more entertaining than Michigan football itself. Think about that this off-season, it's a rare feat. I'm trying to remember a M game that met my unreasonable expectations for happiness and excitement, and I think it was the 2011 OSU game.

So, I agree with Brian that M football has offered only the slightest blips of satisfaction for an entire decade, but I would just add that Brian has effectively singlehandedly replaced that, at least for me who can't regularly attend games.

Anyway, last year was The Year, and that was blown, partly by mistakes and partly by cruel, cruel fate. Here's hoping next year they can pull out of this perplexing slump of incoherence on offense and shine the way we all hope they can.

mgobaran

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:52 AM ^

Fuck a useless bowl game between two 8-4 teams. This season already ended in November. We were 9-3 +/-1 like most people would of thought would happen. I think Brian was split between 10-2/9-3 at the start of the season, with 8-4 being a floor only reachable by injury devastation. 

We did get injured but not devastatingly so. We performed below expectations, slightly. Boo hoo. 

abertain

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:53 AM ^

I get less upset than I used to after a game. I mean, Michigan has been mostly bleh since 2007, so I don't obsess as much over games from mediocre teams. I do still think about losing to Iowa or OSU last year. That said, I agree with some posters that all fan bases of historically good teams are pretty toxic. I mean, most of OSU fans were talking about how Meyer was on a downward trend after Iowa. Now they are exctied about winning it all next year. Fans, myself included, tend to respond to recency bias. 

That said, because I still choose to spend my free time following Michigan football, driving out to Ann Arbor for at least one game a year etc. I like to read content about how people think things can be fixed. After the initial shock, which was, I admit, muted given the crappy year, I start thinking of reasonable ways to fix the program. If I didn't care at all, I'd find something else to do Saturdays. I prefer to care, occasionally rage and sometimes spend time thinking about how a top shelf offensive coordinator could help Michigan be very good next year. 

gmoney41

January 2nd, 2018 at 1:13 PM ^

Thank god my Manchester City team is playing at an epic level this season, watching them is something unique, it is actually fun to watch!! I used to never miss Michigan games and if I did, I would always watch the dvr'd version or catch a condensed highlight reel. But this year has been a chore to watch. At the end of the day, I want to be entertained, this shit isn't life or death, it's just football, and I am just not that entertained by what I see. Opposed to man city, where I watch every dvr'd game and wake up early on the weekends to watch them, it's been an absolute joy to see this season. That is all I want out of my wolverines, and I am not seeing the joy. I would never take to Twitter or social media to bash a player but the people that do are a minute portion of the fan base. Hell, I am ok with loses, as long as the boys are fighting to the end, I will be pleased, sometimes the better team just wins. I'll be here next year, excited for the season, but the obsession with recruiting and spring practice has gone away for me.

SAM love SWORD

January 2nd, 2018 at 11:57 AM ^

There’s a big difference between analyzing what went wrong in a loss and calling for someone’s head (or lazily deeming things “unacceptable period”. I find when Brian and Ace write the former they get criticized for “making excuses” when they’re just explaining what happened.

One of the reasons I started reading this blog was to avoid the reactionary Beserker takes of the Mlive comment section. We’re in a cultural moment where the internet is a place for people to feel empowered and just really mean.

I can deal with the losses. The rage bots lowering the level of discourse on this blog and clearly wearing on Brian’s soul is what’s most disappointing.

panaMark

January 2nd, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^

Ok, it has been (almost) 24 hours so not a hot take. We lost yesterday because of poor coaching. Too many turnovers?  Poor coaching. Poor play calling (crowned off by wonder-full cute TE plunge on 3rd and 1)?  Poor coaching. Inexperienced players not being developed? Poor coaching. Nice one UCF!  I guess I have fallen off the Harbaugh wagon and now am just stumbling along behind examining the pieces that fall off. I will always be a Meechigan fan, but as Toomer said we will need better than this. How many times can we say "there is always next year!".  I am sure I will be saying it soon too, but for now it is just sad reality.

Rupert Bear

January 2nd, 2018 at 12:00 PM ^

I'm not delusional enough to think I know better than Jim Harbaugh how to run this team, or delusional enough to think we could find a better coach, but yesterday was a new level of perplexing. They were not beaten by a better team, they completely fell apart and blew what looked like it was going to be, and should have been, a comfortable win. Turnovers happen, but what happened yesterday was a string of baffling mistakes that clearly were'nt isolated incidents, it was a teamwide breakdown, collapse, implosion. Call it what you want, but that falls on the coaches, and that's scary. I didn't have the irrational expectations of a CFP appearance this year, but I don't think it's unreasonable to expect this team to be able to play a consistent, decent 4 quarters of football in their 13th game of the season and not fall to pieces when momentum shifts. Youth isn't an excuse anymore. This isn't a matter of nitpicking or having to high of expectations.They looked like a straight up Hoke team yesterday, which for the first time made my confidence in this staff waver. What's even scarier is that the O-Line, which is the biggest weak point, will likely be either the same or worse next year with the loss of Mason Cole and no underclassmen tackles clearly poised to step up. That all being said, I do agree with the sentiment of this post. Being a "die hard" fan is bad for your health and mental well being. Be pissed for a minute then shake your head and move on. Quit letting what a group of 18-22 year old kids are doing negatively affect your life so much. Could 2018 be a breakout year? Sure. But, everybody should take this offseason to adjust their expectations in the event that it's just ok.

gmoney41

January 2nd, 2018 at 1:24 PM ^

At the end of the day this team is just soft, and I thought I would never say that about a Michigan team and especially not a harbaugh led Michigan team. We had the ball inside the 10 about to go up 26-3 when the fumble occurred. It would have been game over, but we fumbled and gave up a td quickly, then the team folded in embarrassing fashion. Judging by some of the player tweets after the game, and it became crystal clear that a lot of these guys are just soft, and need to nut up. Most of idiots tweeting at these guys are insufferable douches, but the fact that these kids get so emotional about what people say to them on social media is very disconcerting and shows a soft underbelly that I didn't think I would ever say about our boys. I think it's time to put down the cell phones, turn off the waste of time that is social media, and hunker down and get to work. We have talent on this team, we need 22 guys with mo hurst heart though.

username03

January 2nd, 2018 at 12:01 PM ^

After the excuses wear thin, what else is there really to say. I mean you can only claim different guys are the third string QB so many times before it starts getting ridiculous. Admit that King Harbaugh might have made some mistakes this year, UNACCEPTABLE! 

leidlein

January 2nd, 2018 at 12:03 PM ^

Brian,

 

While I agree with your sentiments........ Wrong or right this is your job. You signed up for it. We are your customers. We click on your ads, dontate to your beveled guilt, buy your publications, t-shirts, listen to your podcasts, listen to you on 1050. Your "it's my ball and I am going home" attitude is very unprofessional.

 

Yes there is a very sizable toxic portion of the fanbase right now. Fuck them. We don't need them, ignore them. There is also a very sizable portion of the fan base like me who has been following literally since day one of mgoblog, and this is my 2nd post ever on this site. We enjoy and in some cases need your insight since the alternatives are usually pretty shitty. So please do your job and provide the post game analysis that you usually do.

 

Hell I just saw today on facebook one friend who posted he is "officially off the Harbaugh bandwagon". You know what? Fuck him too. I plan to shove it in his face when the team returns to glory and remind him this is no longer his team. Is this regime above criticism? No, and I can take it. I would be the first in line to ask Harbaugh why the fuck he was handing off to a TE late in the game. Don't give me any "wrong personnel" bullshit. That is why we need you. We need your insight. We need you to do your job. Because there are people like me who don't  have time to analyze the hell out of this and provide great insight. We rely on you for that. Now please, do your job.

 

Thanks.

You Only Live Twice

January 2nd, 2018 at 2:33 PM ^

Brian will be back.

Some guys need to be given a little space after a tough loss.  My son is like that too, for both Michigan and the Lions.  I've learned not to try and engage with him until he's ready.

We don't need Brian to validate our emotions. Let Brian be Brian, and everyone else, be you.

zeda_p

January 2nd, 2018 at 3:59 PM ^

This might have been one of the times when writing it out and not hitting publish might have been better for Brian – and saved some emotional backlash. 

One emotional blog post is no biggie. We have all been there, and I am sure everything will be better in a couple of days. 

uminks

January 2nd, 2018 at 12:03 PM ^

This program was a train wreck when Harbaugh took over. He was able to get the most out of Hoke's recruits( from Hoke's first couple years of recruiting) when he took over. But there was no QB but Jim was able to get Ruddock to transfer and then developed Wilton to the point of being serviceable. But now we are feeling the effects of Hoke's bare cupboard recruiting, no upper class men at the skill positions and a young OL. It may take another year or two before this team is good. And yes, given the tough ass schedule next season, Harbaugh may finish with 4 losses but overall the team will improve. I still think Harbaugh was the best HC hire since Bo and people will forget about the train-wreck years of RR and Hoke in 2 to 4 years from now. I will not make any judgement on Jim until the 2019 season but even Bo lost 6 games when he lost his starting QB and his stud MLB.