"of the decade" help request
I'm going to do the following posts:
1. Worst calls (5 in favor of M, 5 against)
2. Best/worst games
3. Best performances
4. Best ridiculous extracurricular weirdness in the spirit of Hockeybear.
I am not as assured about these as best/worst moments and would like the community to chip in with recommendations for any or all of the above. Go!
Best games: '03 Minnesota, '03 OSU, '04 MSU, '05 PSU, '08 Cap One Bowl, '09 ND
Best plays: Breaston punt return vs Illinois in '03, either of Braylon's 4th quarter TDs vs MSU in '04, Arrington catch over defender's back in Cap One Bowl
Extracurricular weirdness: giant inflatable penis passed around the stands. Don't remember the year(s) or game(s).
I remeber the 05 OSU game it was very noticeable. I havent seen it since, but my tickets are no longer right next to the student section.
Best Games: Braylonfest. 05 Penn State
Worst Games: Horror, 08 Toledo, 08 Northwestern (that 30 degrees and raining game that NW won 21-14).
Worst call: The Henne "fumble" returned for a TD (man on field and the replay booth got it wrong).
Worst game: Toledo '08. By far. They're the worst team ever to beat Michigan. I know they're not FCS and all, but I think the '07 App St. team would have beaten the '08 Toledo squad by four touchdowns.
Best performance: Mike Hart "07 vs. ND. After The Horror and Oregon with Henne out, he guaranteed a win, then went for 187 yards and 2 touchdowns. Also, best special teams performance had to be Breaston against Texas in the Rose Bowl.
Worst call for: Minor's '08 touchdown vs. MSU. If I remember correctly that call went against UofM in real time and got reversed on replay. I was watching with my Spartan fan brother-in-law, and I just kind of laughed. He laughed last, though.
Worst call against (ok, maybe not the worst, but a bad one I didn't see mentioned): Anthony Gonzalez running out of bounds and then coming back in to make catch downfield in '06(?). He was not forced out, goddammit.
That game should have redeemed that season from the early losses, instead it was off to the Alamo Bowl and Sun Belt officiating crew
1. Worst calls (5 in favor of M, 5 against)
In favor: Brandon Minor phantom touchdown
Against: Spartan Bob, Domata Peko, 2005 Notre Dame calls?
2. Best/worst games
Best: Ohio State 2003; Penn State 2005
Worst: Obvs
3. Best performances
Braylon Edwards, MSU 2004
Steve Breaston, Rose Bowl 2005
4. Best ridiculous extracurricular weirdness in the spirit of Hockeybear.
Hot! Hot! Hot! (Too soon?)
Brady Quinn for Heisman
Houston's Better
[Honorable mention since it's not directly related: Mike Valenti's meltdown]
one comment about the worst plays and the analysis of them from me: i enjoyed reading the ones about the coaching moves that lead up to the worst plays against UM, like players blitzing out of position or weird formations rather than the ones that are just "Ecker is an idiot." Given that a lot of these plays are pretty far removed, i think that the difference between this blog and a sportscenter highlight reel is that someone (Brian) can take some time and disect the scenarios, situations and personalities that go into good and bad plays. Granted, some good plays are made by guys who are just out of their minds and bad plays are made by guys with rocks for brains, but good or bad plays don't exist in a vaccuum.
worst loss, for me: 2000 at purdue. for me, this seems like the first time that Michigan gave away a game (although i am sure it is not). UM has the ball up by 2 after a Purdue missed field goal, can't get a first down, punts to Drew Breeze who walks the team down the field and gives Travis Dorsch the exact same kick he just missed with 3 seconds left. the howls of the purdue fans after the game still echo in my nightmares.
BOMB ASS DICK!
Cosigned, and I think you'll have to add the Fuck Lion to this.
MSU in 2003: 51 carries, 221 yards.
kyle orton for heisman
Worst games: against Syracuse in '97 - coming from the NC we got destroyed by McNabb
That Tennessee bowl game, we looked like we didn't belong
Best: Florida and Alabama bowl games. '06 OSU, Penn State '96 (remember 38-0)
Call against us: clock gate, and the trip.
Things going our way: the punt that bounced into Brett Bell of Wisconsin (forgot the year). So sweet since he was down to us and UW when he committed.
Best performance: Edwards against MSU in '03, Perry against MSU with those ~50 carries, the super comeback against UM
Worst performance: Appalachian
Worst luck: Anthony Thomas fumble against Northwestern
You have an interesting interpretation of "decade."
Ha, opps, I was thinking since I started following in '96
I think most fall within the range
Not sure why, but you seem to be always taking a year off the correct year for these games.
Lloyd Carr v. Todd Harris?
Notre Dame girl picks her zit in defeat?
Lyod Carr/Todd Harris, still makes me laugh just thinking about it.
extra curricular:
can we get some sort of derogatory "big nut" t-shirt or does this cross the line? i feel like he feeds off being on tv every time osu plays, so he is subject to the same level of infamy as players, mascots and coaches.
It may cross the line, given that he died in 2004. I would endorse this sentiment, though, for those idiot Penn State fans in the masks who seem to exist for no other reason than mugging for the cameras.
That photo was taken after the '98 OSU-MSU game. How an absolutely loaded OSU team lost to a .500 Sparty team at home that day remains an incredible mystery.
I havent seen much mention of it in the worst call department, but the back to back plays on the 1-yard line in the 2005 ND have to be on the list. I'm still not sure why one play wasnt a TD, but the next play was a fumble.
Sigh.
That's a good one, and it reminded me of the 2002 ND game when Carlyle Holiday scored on a QB sneak when the replay showed he clearly lost control of the ball prior to crossing the goal line. Ugh.
Still can't believe he was given a TD on that play. Hopefully things go better this year when I make my second trip to South Bend for a game.
Best Performance nominee:
Brandon Graham vs the entire MSU offensive line, 2009
Extracurricular: Fuck lion
Best game: Field goal win against Washington in 2002. Has to be on there for no other reason than it was a 40'ish yd kick and we missed nearly every other fg the rest of the season.
Worst call in favor of M:
1. Brandon Minor's "TD" against 2008 MSU
2. Rocky Harvey's "fumble" to give Michigan the Illinois game in 2000.
Best Games:
2000 vs. OSU (Curry's icing pick, Henson's scramble)
2002 vs. Washington (Brabbs Kick)
2002 vs. PSU (1st overtime game in Michigan Stadium)
2003 vs. Minny (the comeback)
2005 Rose bowl vs. Texas (yes, a loss makes it)
2009 vs. ND
Best Performances:
2003 Navarre vs. OSU
2005 Breaston Rose Bowl vs. Texas
2003 Perry vs. MSU
2004 Braylon vs. MSU
2007 Henne vs. MSU
Doesn't 2006 vs. ND have to go on the best games list? Unless you want to leave it off since it wasn't as much of a competitive game as a BEATDOWN, but still think 3 hours of euphoria need to make it.
I was interpreting "best game" as most compelling, best played, so a complete beat-down wouldn't qualify.
Best Games
- 2004 vs. MSU (Braylonfest)
- 2008 vs. Florida - Capital One Bowl (Carr goes out a winner, LOL Tebow Heisman)
- 2003 vs. Minnesota
- 2009 vs. ND (Hope returns)
- 2005 vs. Penn State (Henne to Manningham...woo!)
Worst Games
- 2007 vs. App State (The Horror)
- 2003 vs. Oregon (F*#k!)
- 2000 vs. Northwestern (Hold onto the damn ball A-Train!)
- 2002 vs. Iowa (Epic beatdown....ugh)
- 2009 vs. Purdue (*sigh*)
2008 vs Wisconsin for an honorable mention.
3 TFL and 3 sacks. Only good thing about that game.
is the 2007 Notre Dame game.
I wasn't a great game like the Rose Bowl against Texas, or a game with a trip to the NC game like OSU in 2006, but I think that this was a very, very important win. After losing to Appalachian State and getting killed by Oregon, both at home, and being forced to start a true freshmen at QB, I thought the season was on the brink.
You have to wonder if going 0-3, all at home, that Lloyd Carr's final season doesn't take a real ugly turn rather than coming out like it did. And Carr doesn't get the send-off that he did.
I just finished the #1 game of all time on NCAA 11, using Michigan. Shouldn't that be in here somewhere?