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2017 florida

Michigan To Play Florida In 2017, In Dallas Comment Count

Brian

jerry-jones-cowboys[1]

Just about all of the luster has gone out of the idea of playing a football game in Dallas after Michigan got pounded by Alabama to not make any money, to the point where actually getting the band there required Dave Brandon to squeeze half of the cost of that out of donors.

So guess what, guys!

I'd say this further proves that Dave Brandon charged his family for Thanksgiving dinner, but like playing a canned version of the Victors against the #1 basketball team in the country, money isn't actually a good explanation. These games are kind of inexplicable when OSU and MSU are locking down quality home and homes.

This leaves… I don't actually know. With dynamic pricing shoving marquee prices into the stratosphere and Michigan charging extra for premium opponents, a home and home is at least a financial push compared to these one-off neutral site games, and then you have a nice thing to show your season ticket holders instead of a six-game home schedule featuring Cincinnati and Air Force as your nonconference draws. If Florida won't agree to it, maybe someone else would.

The only thing I've got is that this gives Dave Brandon a chance to hang around his idol some more.

FWIW, this completes the unerring accuracy of that list the BTN leaked a few months ago.

Comments

93Grad

December 19th, 2013 at 1:20 PM ^

1) On field performance does not equal what kind of draw a team will be, 

2) Michigan has the largest living alumni, routinely gets 110,000 plus to home games, travels as well as any school in the country, and gets amongst the best tv ratings every week,

3) If we were no longer a "draw" then we would not be asked to participate in multiple Cowboy Classics,

4) If we were no longer a draw, we would not often get selected above our "slot" amongst the B1G tie in bowls,

5) If we were no longer a draw we would not have been selected for the 2011 Sugar Bowl,

6) Performing better on the field year after year can actual hinder a teams chances at getting a home and home with other "elite" programs, and

7) In the past, Michigan was limited in scheduling other top teams for home and homes because we were playing ND (which rightly or wrongly caused our AD's not to want to schedule other "top" programs),

I'm sure there are other reasons that I can't think of off the top of my head, but that should suffice.

The bottom line is that neutral games suck.  And it sucks that we have been mediocre for the better part of a decade, but that is not a valid excuse for not having a quality home schedule.

Joined: 07/26/2011

MGoPoints: 13566

michchi85

December 19th, 2013 at 10:57 AM ^

It CAN be done, but you aren't always going to get a marquee matchup.  Arkansas home and home isn't the same as an LSU-Michigan home and home.  LSU going to Lambeau is a step in the right direction, but LSU is going to be heavily favored in that hypothetical 3 year away matchup.  

I'd love nothing more than to see a home and hom with Auburn, belive me.  But knowing the landscape, it's just difficult to do.  

Joined: 09/04/2010

MGoPoints: 3904

Kilgore Trout

December 19th, 2013 at 11:03 AM ^

I agree that it's difficult. I have to think that a SEC fan base would like to see Michigan in their stadium. Maybe I'm too much of a homer though.

As to the SEC, OSU hasn't played them, but Penn State did get a home and home with Alabama within the last five years. I'm not really stuck on the SEC, I just would like to see big time programs come into Michigan Stadium.

Joined: 02/20/2009

MGoPoints: 13169

MGoShoe

December 19th, 2013 at 11:10 AM ^

...sinc 1991 that UF has played a non-conf game outside of the state of Florida. People pining for a home and home with them are delusional. 

Could we have gotten a home and home with another SEC team? Perhaps. But that's not the opportunity presented here. 

  • Option 1: Play in Cowboys Classic vs. UF
  • Option 2: Do not play in Cowboys Classic vs. UF

IME, Option 1 is a reasonable choice to make, all things considered.    

Joined: 04/23/2009

MGoPoints: 20734

Kilgore Trout

December 19th, 2013 at 11:29 AM ^

Michigan has one open slot in 2018 and 2020. Michigan has two open slots in 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023. That is a lot of room to work with, in my opinion. If we're going with the assumption that UM is only going to play one major conference team out of conference every year, then we are a lot more limited. I hope that isn't the case. 

Joined: 02/20/2009

MGoPoints: 13169

InterM

December 19th, 2013 at 1:12 PM ^

because the only option for 2017 was the one announced today, and there hasn't been any opportunity in the past few years for DB to explore different options for the opening game of 2017.  All he can do, in your apparent view, is wait for someone to call and drop something in his lap.  On the other hand, when DB is "proactive," we get things like the Appy State rematch, so maybe I should be happy that he's just sitting by the phone.

Joined: 01/16/2009

MGoPoints: 2257

MI Expat NY

December 19th, 2013 at 11:24 AM ^

But isn't a big part of that their non-conference rivalriy with FSU and to a smaller extent, with Miami?  It's not that they don't play road games, it's that those road games are limited by set non-conference rivalries, just as ours have been limited due to the ND series.  

You may be right that Florida wasn't the right team to pull off a home and home with, but I think most fans should prefer a home and home with another high quality opponent rather than shipping the one interesting non-conference home game off to Dallas.  

Edit: nevermind, read jamiemac below.  If it's this or a home game payoff to a MAC opponent, this is certainly better.  Still don't like these games as a general concept, though.

Joined: 07/24/2008

MGoPoints: 8641

jamiemac

December 19th, 2013 at 11:11 AM ^

UM has done this. Home and homes with Arky, Va Tech (like OSU) and UCLA from 2018-23. Michigan has a single scheduling hole to fill from 2014-18 and this is what they chose to do. The choise wasnt do we play one nuetral site game with Florida or a home and home with them. Rather, the choice is what to do we do with this single opening. As a season ticket, I prefer what we've done over the strong liklihood of dealing with a crappy game like Eastern over Labor Day weekend, which annually are the hardest games for me to find anyone to travel up from Ohio with me to go.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 8446

turd ferguson

December 19th, 2013 at 11:23 AM ^

I'm as critical of Brandon as anyone, but in his defense, Notre Dame really screwed us on short-term scheduling.  Brandon probably figured that he'd sit tight with that one marquee nonconference game while the Big Ten was transitioning to a 9-game schedule.

I'd much prefer a home-and-home, too, but if this was just a decision about how to fill a single gap in the schedule, I'm really happy with that decision.

Joined: 12/09/2009

MGoPoints: 26493

jamiemac

December 19th, 2013 at 11:30 AM ^

You are more than welcome to give up whatever tickets you own as protest. I, however, will not be doing that. I like the 2015 home slate with BYU and Oregon St, not to mention MSU and OSU coming to town. Next year's home slate is one big woof, but it is what it is. I like most of our schedules going forward after that.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 8446

GoBlueOval

December 19th, 2013 at 10:37 AM ^

I would love to see Florida in the big house and I wouldn't mind traveling to Florida. 

Neutral site home regular season games shouldn't happen... unless it's Slippery Rock playing at the Big House.

 

Joined: 01/04/2012

MGoPoints: 1145

dcmaizeandblue

December 19th, 2013 at 10:57 AM ^

I think it's pretty silly to think Florida is going anywhere north of the Mason-Dixon Line for a non conference anytime soon.

I'd prefer a home and home but this still is a marquee game. And we have Arkansas coming around then right? And some pac12 teams? I'm not too pissed at scheduling for the moment.

Joined: 04/01/2010

MGoPoints: 6892

a2_electricboogaloo

December 19th, 2013 at 11:16 AM ^

Everyone's getting all up in a tizzy about this, yeah neutral site games aren't the best /rabblerabblerabble/, but I'd so much rather play a neutral site game against a power program like Florida, than play a home game against against a MAC team or (god forbid) a Home-and-Home with the likes of UConn.

If we want to be a nationally relevant program, we have to be willing to fight with the big dogs.  Ohio St. and Michigan St. never got the respect they thought they and rightfully (respectively) deserved, because they played fairly light OOC schedules.  If we go into JerryWorld and beat Florida (even a struggling Florida team), that's an instant resumé booster.  So that's why I like this game a lot.

Would I prefer a home and home with florida? Absolutely.  But I'll take what I can get, especially if that is a game against a program like UF.

Joined: 04/21/2011

MGoPoints: 9660

93Grad

December 19th, 2013 at 1:27 PM ^

1)ND only would have been in Ann Arbor every other year,

2) there was already a break built into the series, and

3) there is no rule that says we could not play ND AND another quality opponent like we did numerous times in the 80's and 90's with South Carolina, UCLA, Washington, FSU, Miami (YTM), Colorado, etc.

Joined: 07/26/2011

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