commit to the bit [Patrick Barron]

Unverified Voracity Isn't Doing Facebook But Narrow Comment Count

Brian July 6th, 2023 at 9:57 AM

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We are all going to die soon. I bring terrifying news:

San Diego Lincoln 2025 quarterback Akili Smith Jr., was one of the standouts at Future 50 last month at IMG Academy in Florida. The Top247 prospect said he has a loose top three, not an official group, but the one he’s working with right now and it includes Florida, Michigan and Oregon.

The existence of a recruitable Akili Smith Jr. has caused me to drink from the wrong grail. If I find out there's a JJ McCarthy Jr in the 2026 class I'm going to evaporate.

I'm not joining "Threads." Elon Musk is currently running Twitter into the ground but "Facebook but narrower" is not something I will tolerate, folks. I do not want an algorithm populating my social media feed. I want it to be the maniacs I follow in chronological order. If Bluesky attains critical mass I'll migrate, but the sheer number of people I've blocked on Twitter is a critical advantage for that platform. Someone step in and buy it from Musk, please.

[After THE JUMP: Fred Jackson!]

Continued portaling. A new name in the portal that's relevant:

Perez has been at Gardner-Webb, Marquette, and Manhattan before a sit-out year at WVU. At lower levels he's been a massive-usage 6'5" point guard who gets to the line a ton but is otherwise dubiously efficient. His year at Marquette saw him get four minutes a game and doesn't mean much of anything. Perez is a career 30% three-point shooter, but he probably has some upside there since he was a ball-dominant guy sucking up 33% usage at Manhattan and if he ends up at Michigan he's likely to be a relatively low usage wing.

Michigan needs another 2/3. Perez isn't Caleb Love but he's an interesting prospect.

Bellamy on McCarthy. A JJ McCarthy great leap forward is something Michigan is banking on this year, and Ron Bellamy thinks it'll happen:

Speaking on “In the Trenches,” a Michigan Athletics podcast, Bellamy referred to J.J. McCarthy as “one of the best leaders I’ve been around”

“J.J. can make every throw,” Bellamy said. “He can make every throw, and the most dangerous part about J.J. is he can extend plays. Receivers love that — DBs lose sight of receivers and you’re running down the field open. J.J. is a complete quarterback, and just just watching him go through progressions, just watching him — whatever the coaches put on his plate, he was able to chew it up and digest it and then go out there on the field and execute it.

“We’re super excited about J.J. — especially as a football team, but in particular in our receiver room, we know that we have the best quarterback in America.”

From your lips, etc.

I'm not sure I agree 100% with your policework there. Devin Gardner discussed Kirk Campbell on Sam Webb's show recently, and:

Devin Gardner: “Last night I talked about the conversation I had a couple years ago I think when Kirk Campbell first got on the staff. And Fred Jackson is not just throwing out praise willy nilly. Fred Jackson is pretty stern in his approach on many things. And it was so unprompted. He's just like, 'listen, if you want to know anything about this offense… and he used different words that can't be used on the radio... and he was pointing at Kirk Campbell... he said, 'you need to talk to him if you want to learn anything about this offense.' And that was way before anybody even thought that we needed a new quarterback coach or whatever the case may be.”

I have no doubt that Campbell is a wunderkind and that Gardner's substantially right here, but FRED JACKSON IS NOT JUST THROWING OUT PRAISE WILLY-NILLY?!? Fred Jackson said Avery Horn was "Mike Hart but fast." I was going to make up some sort of entertaining hyperbole there but remembered the actual thing, and decided hyperbole was unnecessary.

Important hockey item. Michigan goalie commit Stephen Peck is coming in next year, and did we know the nickname of Avon Old Farms?

Winged Beavers! Beavers do not have wings. Avon Old Farms does not care. I'm putting an accent over that E in "winged" in my mind, because Avon Old Farms is fancy.

Various less important hockey items. Adam Fantilli signed with the Blue Jackets, of course. As soon as Anaheim didn't pick him that was likely foreordained. Alas, and good luck in the league.

Arizona State has been accepted into the NCHC, giving a major-college program a home for the first time. That gives the NCHC an awkward nine teams and may open the door for Miami—currently getting crushed—to move to the new CCHA. The linked article addresses that, saying Miami has no plans to relocate, FWIW.

Corey Pronman's initial 2024 mock draft has commit Michael Hage going 17th to Buffalo. Michigan is also after #7 Artyom Levshunov and #19 RJ Emery. College hockey-bound players go 1-2 as BU commit Macklin Celebrini and Minnesota commit Cole Eiserman are the top end of next year's draft.

Connor Earegood projects next year's lines. Michigan's likely to stick BC's former captain on their third pairing, which is a hell of a luxury. The forward corps is not quite as loaded as last year's but Michigan will be considerably more experienced—the only freshman in the top nine, Nick Moldenhauer, already had his D+1 year in Chicago. That's a major change from last year when the majority of the top nine was new to college hockey.

Etc.: Michigan won 13 Big Ten titles this year. Sokay. Birthday distribution in elite hockey players is wild.

Comments

Monkey House

July 6th, 2023 at 10:10 AM ^

I think complaining about Twitter is just the "in" thing to do. It's still by far the best social media platform, and it doesn't even make a profit. Excuse me while I laugh when I think bluesky, threads or whatever else pops up is going to do it better 

mackbru

July 6th, 2023 at 4:42 PM ^

Twitter has never had a competitor with the scale and heft of IG-backed Threads. Twitter is by all accounts in a financial and PR death-spiral. The timing couldn't be better for a rival. And god I hope the rival kills it. Twitter is a cesspool.

Context: The other competitors are obscure start-ups with somewhere between 100,000 and 300,000 subscribers. Threads signed-up 30 millions users in its first 24 hours.

Yinka Double Dare

July 6th, 2023 at 12:48 PM ^

Elon unbanned a bunch of Nazis and racists who got banned for being Nazis and racists, it's not surprising that things got worse.

But one of the biggest changes is with viral posts you'd also see funny replies with them, and because they were funny they'd get lots of likes and be pushed to the top of replies. Now instead you see nothing but unfunny bluechecks who paid to push their unfunny dreck to the top. It's a serious downgrade.

bdogg46

July 6th, 2023 at 12:56 PM ^

The amount of crazy and filth on there is completely out of control.

The amount of crazy and filth on there is completely out of control and HAS BEEN SINCE THE INCEPTION OF TWITTER.

I fixed that for you.

Be honest, Vlad.  The only reason you won't go back is his politics.  Twitter has always been a shithole and always WILL be a shithole.

Besides, don't you have a war to go Lose?

kehnonymous

July 6th, 2023 at 1:01 PM ^

As someone who does not have a Twitter account and whose opinion of Musk as a person and businessman is.... not great, I find myself perversely grateful that due to lack of Twit account, I now cannot look at Twitter dialogue on my browser.  If he follows that up by buying Ticketmaster, I may have to seriously rethink my opinion of him.

EGD

July 6th, 2023 at 2:09 PM ^

I used to love Twitter. It was never perfect, but after I had been on it long enough to get the followers I wanted and the right accounts in my feed, it was generally high-quality content. Twitter also led to a number of media opportunities for me and helped me connect with some prominent people in my field.

Musk ruined it.

Since then I have been eagerly awaiting its replacement. But Mastodon is terrible, Post just hasn't gotten off the ground, and Threads doesn't seem like it's going to be the answer either.

I don't understand why somebody doesn't just launch "Twitter for non-dipwads," but certainly it must be more complicated than it seems.

bdogg46

July 6th, 2023 at 5:34 PM ^

Musk ruined it lol.

NOT the tech overlords who previously ran it who shadow ban, allow pedophilia and child trafficking to propagate, and allowed ISIS, ANTIFA, and Boko Haram to coordinate and promote attacks while banning Americans from free speech.

Yes, it was SOOO much better back then.  LOL

CityOfKlompton

July 6th, 2023 at 12:07 PM ^

True. There is a lot of toxicity on just about every platform, but Twitter is amped up to 11 with its short-form nature lending naturally to easily create and distribute mindless filth born out of man's base emotions. Since Elon has taken over, it also has the worst content moderation of any platform, and it's not close.

SpaghettiPolicy

July 6th, 2023 at 1:46 PM ^

This is the right take. 

Criticizing Twitter amounts to nothing more than an attempt to showcase one's perceived moral superiority. Are you also active on TikTok or Facebook? If so, it would be hypocritical to pass judgment. Just admit that you dislike Elon because of his politics and move on. No need to virtue signal or act as if you are better than others.

Clarence Boddicker

July 7th, 2023 at 2:48 PM ^

Okay, Tucker Carlson. It was "no-gun" because the Secret Service pulled people with guns out of the crowd while Trump was still ranting on-stage. They literally broke into Congress and roamed the halls searching offices and running onto the congressional floor. They were screaming "Hang Mike Pence!" and had actually built the gallows outside. That they were unsuccessful is mostly due to the fact that it was a riot powered by anarchy and mayhem stoked by Trump, and also because they're Fox and OAN viewers--not exactly the sharpest knives in the drawer.

befuggled

July 6th, 2023 at 2:20 PM ^

Politics? Musk has:

  • Called a guy who played a key role in rescuing the kids in the Thai cave "pedo guy" when Musk's offer to help was rebuffed
  • Said that working from home is immoral while not paying rent on multiple offices
  • Refused to pay for the arbitration (required by their contract with Twitter) for employees who are trying to get the severance he promised them and has not paid
  • Not told an employee with muscular dystrophy he'd been laid off for over a week, then made fun of the guy on twitter when he asked, then backtracked when he realized he'd have to pay the guy a large sum of money after firing him

Politics ain't got nothing to do with it.

 

CityOfKlompton

July 6th, 2023 at 4:03 PM ^

Hey there! Not active on Facebook or TikTok. Used to be in Facebook a long time ago, but more of a lurker there. Was very active on Twitter before and after Elon took over. It was fine for a little while, but the eventual difference in experience and negativity was as clear as night and day.

There are studies that have proven negative content in tweets go viral at a much higher rate than positive or neutral. The place has become a toxic dump for hate speech, neckbeards, and propagandists.

bdogg46

July 6th, 2023 at 12:57 PM ^

Twitter is easily the best social media platform if you love the most toxic, vile, hate-filled, attention mongers routinely astroturfing the platform with their delusions and man child, big brain opinions.

FAKEBOOK is easily the best social media platform if you love the most toxic, vile, hate-filled, attention mongers routinely astroturfing the platform with their delusions and man child, big brain opinions.

Just change the name and the same garbage can be said about a different tech Monarch.

bdogg46

July 6th, 2023 at 12:57 PM ^

Twitter is easily the best social media platform if you love the most toxic, vile, hate-filled, attention mongers routinely astroturfing the platform with their delusions and man child, big brain opinions.

FAKEBOOK is easily the best social media platform if you love the most toxic, vile, hate-filled, attention mongers routinely astroturfing the platform with their delusions and man child, big brain opinions.

Just change the name and the same garbage can be said about a different tech Monarch.