The thing about RRod that upsets me (The Game)
I'm sure this has probably been discussed on this board many of time, but I just wanted to add my thoughts and get yours this week before the game.
I was looking through ESPN and noticed an article about the game. http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/20233/buckeyes-prepared-for-upset-minded-michigan Now as much as I hate tOSU, I do think ol sweater vest himself is a great coach. He emphasizes the game more than anything and I respect that. His main thing when he was hired was to beat us and man have they ever.
Rich Rod has been aware of the game, but seems like it's not his main focus. I know he has bigger plans, but I think beating them should be right behind national championship. I also think that should be in the back of his head all year long, game planning for them.
I guess I just want more emotion out of him for this game and hope that maybe he will have some things up his sleeve. God I pray that this horrible streak comes to a end now, this weekend. Everyone thinks next year for sure, but this year would be even sweeter.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:48 AM ^
cot dammit
November 24th, 2010 at 11:16 AM ^
Do you think the Yankees will resign Derek Jeter? There are some rumors now that the Yanks are telling him to shop around.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:51 AM ^
I really think there isn't enough to conclude that this game isn't considered monumental to Rich Rod.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:54 AM ^
the sweater vest made of point of saying he will beat michigan in his first address to a stadium of rabid fans
I know that may sound silly, or it may be playing to the masses but he did it
does rich rod have a similar moment? honestly, I know its silly and I have no idea what he does behind closed doors, but as of right now he is 0-5 against our 2 biggest B10 rivals and is entering the game as an enormous underdog
November 24th, 2010 at 11:12 AM ^
Am I missing something? When did Notre Dame not become a rivalry? I keep hearing the "0-6" against our two main rivals stat. Even if they are down, I don't see how it's not relevant to include them. I know I hate those guys and it means something to me to beat them.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:18 AM ^
is a huge rivalry
but I did say B10 rivals, the ones we have to beat in order to win the B10 championship in order to get to the BCS in order to play for the national championship
November 24th, 2010 at 11:24 AM ^
I know exactly what you said. But you said it in the context of Rich Rod doesn't "get" the rivalries we have. My point is that you can't cherry-pick stats for the sake of argument. He's 2-1 against ND, which is, as you agree, a huge rivalry. So this meme that he doesn't "get" rivalries is bs.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
there is but one true meme and its name is national championship
everything else is bs
November 24th, 2010 at 12:01 PM ^
as he had zero NCs on his resume.
November 24th, 2010 at 12:21 PM ^
but different era
Bo understood all he could control was winning the B10 and he did (13/20)
there was not a BCS system set up, he could not control the voters and who they awarded the national championship to
“If you look at the Harris poll, two-thirds of them really don't know what they're doing. About one-third does, but two-thirds don't,”
November 24th, 2010 at 2:25 PM ^
Are you Rodriguez's personal internet bodyguard? hahaha.
November 24th, 2010 at 2:26 PM ^
Are you Rodriguez's personal internet bodyguard? hahaha.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:54 AM ^
To Hell with Notre Dame.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:31 AM ^
Know your audience.
OSU fans demand victory in The Game. Tressell knew that, and is enough of an accomplished coach to have provided some auxiliary benefits beyond his record against Michigan. You really think that Cooper was fired because of his 8-4 record his final season? "2-10-1" is probably a more notorious statistic in the minds of OSU fans than the number of national championships they've won.
Michigan fans don't operate in the same vacuum, and I don't need a silly little speech to remind me that our head coach is doing everything he can to win EVERY game. What happened to Cooper will never happen here.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
Does Lloyd have a similar moment? Does Moeller? How about Bo? Nope.
November 24th, 2010 at 12:50 PM ^
A Bo moment ? He lived it 365 days a year. Everybody knew how Bo felt about Ohio State and The Game, most importantly his players.
November 24th, 2010 at 1:11 PM ^
dude...the game that gave rebirth to michigan football
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1969_Michigan_vs._Ohio_State_football_game
To motivate his team, Schembechler had the number 50 displayed everywhere in the Michigan locker room, and taped to every player's practice uniform
November 24th, 2010 at 10:56 AM ^
Yeah, but in the same sense, I haven't seen enough that he gets pumped over it also. I live in Ohio, which sucks. But everytime they show a interview with sweater vest or quotes, he is talking about the game with great emotion. Reminds me of Bo and Carr. I guess that's what I'm looking for is some old school talk.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:44 AM ^
I'm having a problem imagining Tressel showing "great emotion" over anything. I don't live in Ohio so I don't see any local coverage or interviews, but from what I've seen, sweatervest is not the emotive type
November 24th, 2010 at 11:45 AM ^
I haven't seen enough that he gets pumped over it also. I live in Ohio, which sucks.
Aaaaaaand that's why you wrote this stupid post. I'm sorry that your coworkers and neighbors make fun of you for being a Michigan fan, but honestly dude just suck it up. Rich Rodriguez isn't responsible for your personal emotions.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:49 AM ^
sweatervest doesn't talk about anything with "great emotion"
November 24th, 2010 at 12:04 PM ^
"I live in Ohio, which sucks."
The "which sucks" part is redundant.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:53 AM ^
You're right, Rodriguez doesn't care about the rivalry and just views this as another game. In his entire existence as a coach in football, he has never been at a school that had a hated rival and thus will never understood what it means. I'm sure he gameplanned more for BGSU, because he probably vowed to never lose to a MAC school ever again.
What a bum!
November 24th, 2010 at 11:31 AM ^
If not for WV blowing it in the Backyard Brawl, he wouldn't even be at Michigan.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:46 AM ^
Why do you think he's so insistent on having multiple QBs that can run the system? He learned from that mistake bc when Pat White went out they were hopeless. OTOH this year we won a game with the backup in bc the offense was still able to work.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
I really don't see your point. Does the fact that he lost to Pitt mean that he doesn't understand our rivalry with OSU?
November 24th, 2010 at 12:08 PM ^
Given what was going at at WVU, there's no way Rod would have been back there for the 2008 season. The Pitt game (and the reaction from the athletic department) was perhaps the last straw, but he had already decided to get out of there by that point.
November 24th, 2010 at 3:12 PM ^
November 24th, 2010 at 10:51 AM ^
What exactly would you like him to do?
November 24th, 2010 at 10:51 AM ^
How can you judge his intensity anyway?
November 24th, 2010 at 11:04 AM ^
He has an "It seems to me" detector.
You see, it seems to him that RR doesn't plan for the game all year. He would like to see more emotion out of him.
November 24th, 2010 at 2:09 PM ^
I don't know when the DERP montage meme started, but I like it.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:53 AM ^
I don't think we will have objective evidence that he cares about this game. UNACCEPTABLE
What would you like him to do? Swear on TV? Beat his wife? Perhaps a crown of thorns?
/s for the challenged
November 24th, 2010 at 10:54 AM ^
How about the video of him on the sidelines last week blowing a gasket, I believe after a Michigan touchdown
November 24th, 2010 at 10:55 AM ^
and my work is already done. Now can somebody please get me a coffee with cream?
November 24th, 2010 at 11:01 AM ^
would you also like sugar?
November 24th, 2010 at 10:55 AM ^
Sigh. I am happy, so blissfully happy, that we have a coach who doesn't make idiotic, inflammatory comments a la Hope and Dantonio.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:52 AM ^
I'd also add that it would have been completely insane for RR to make any promises or guaranties throughout his tenure so far. As much as I love Michigan and hate OSU, talent-wise, they're just on another level.
November 24th, 2010 at 10:57 AM ^
You wonder whether Rod underplayed the rivalry too much before the infamous Pitt game. Pitt came in loaded for bear and WVU didn't come close to matching that intensity.
Much as I was psyched about Rod's hiring -- and I was extremely psyched -- that game now looks more like a foreshadowing than an accident, with sloppy preparation matching the general sloppiness he's exhibited about the job beyond the offense. The Pat White injury obviously didn't help, but you simply CANNOT lose that game if you're Rod. It's almost as if Rod thinks his offense is so great that he doesn't need to worry much about defensive scheme, defensive coaches, and intangibles like rivalry week.
Gotta call 'em like I see 'em.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:01 AM ^
and a troll.
One game does not define a coaching career. Bo dropped a bunch of games to unranked nobodies. I was a student listening on the radio when #1 ranked Michigan lost to Minnesota in 1977. He did the same thing in 1976 to Purdue.
Stuff happens in football. Deal with it.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:30 AM ^
Unranked Wisconsin 21, #1 Michigan 14 in season opener.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:57 AM ^
I remember all three losses very well. In our haste to restore the traditions of Michigan football, let us not forget that one of those traditions under Bo was to consistently lose our bowl game, even when we were favored. I remember hearing every excuse from rustiness after tOSU to not being accustomed to playing on natural grass.
The obvious response is "at least we got to the bowl games" but back then it was basically a two team conference. PSU wasn't there, Wiscy was a doormat, and Iowa was an afterthought.
The program was slipping in 2007 and we hit rock bottom the following year. Am I happy with the progress thus far? No but changing leadership at this time is asking for more uncertainty. If we are still having this debate a year from now, I think almost everyone will agree a change is needed.
November 24th, 2010 at 1:05 PM ^
That sort of loss is UNACCEPTABLE!
November 24th, 2010 at 11:03 AM ^
it was to go to the National Championship!!!
November 24th, 2010 at 11:07 AM ^
Talking smugly in an attempt to incite a board meltdown.
Gotta call 'em like I see 'em.
November 24th, 2010 at 11:31 AM ^
but you simply CANNOT lose that game if you're Rod."
So by your standards, Bo Schembechler simply CANNOT lose to MSU, Iowa, Purdue, Ohio State, or Brigham Young in 1984, regardless of the fact that his starting QB was out with a broken arm. That's just a silly excuse.
Not only that, but Bo Schembechler took undefeated teams with a chance at playing for a national championship into the Ohio State game four times—1970, 1972, 1973, and 1974—and FAILED to beat Ohio State in any of them. That certainly foreshadowed something, all right. Bo clearly wasn't the right guy to coach Michigan.