I do not understand why all the pundits thinks the Lions window is "tight." They are basing these opinions on past history with a terrible front office and coaching staff. These Lions should really be viewed at as a different organization. They have shown a sustainable approach to team-building and great draft history over the past three years, which in the NFL is not a small sample size.
I suppose it depends on your definition of "tough," but I would classify Ryan Day as extremely tough. The guy lost his father to suicide when he was 9 years old, overcame that tragedy, and has worked his way up through the coaching ranks despite not having a D1 playing career or family connections to the sport. I dislike him as a football coach, but respect the guy a ton.
Sherrone Moore is also a tough, fantastic person and I'm very excited that he will be the next Michigan football coach.
Sorry, my tenses are incorrect. Herbert was a way better prospect coming out of college. I agree that comparing him now to JJ would be ridiculous. The big knock on Herbert was that he was "too quiet" to be a leader, which is ridiculous. They said the same thing about Stroud and it was garbage as well.
The amount of ridiculous comments saying "Give Jim what he wants" or "Fire Warde for not getting it done," is astonishing. Based on what's been reported, it is Jim that is the problem in getting this across the finish line, not Warde or Michigan.
1. Money - The money that's been reported would make Jim the highest paid coach in CFB. Michigan's staff pool is already top 10 in the nation and I'm sure they are working to make that top 5
2. Term - 10 years is what is reported, I don't know what else he could want on this front and we have had no reports that he wants a life-time contract.
3. Assurances/Termination Rights - Does Jim want a Jimbo-style contract where it is fully guaranteed regardless of NCAA action? Michigan cannot and should not enter into that agreement. If he wants this, Michigan should let him walk. Michigan cannot be on the hook for $100+ million if Jim gets a show cause or other incredibly significant NCAA penalty. For Michigan to offer that assurance would be silly, regardless of Jim's achievements. Fans that want Michigan to provide that assurance are not viewing this rationally.
4. NIL - Michigan will not enter the pay-for-play market and that sucks, but it is technically a violation. With the NCAA's microscope on the program, there can be no assurance on this front. Furthermore, no party would put guarantees of performing a rule-breaking strategy in a contract. Michigan can't offer guarantees that the NIL from collectives will improve either. I don't think this item could be the hold-up.
My guess is that Jim wants #3 above and in that case, I think Michigan should thank him profusely, wish him well in the NFL, and guarantee a statue will be up in 5-10 years.
I've seen a lot of hyperbole re: JJ, but this is the most far-fetched. I love JJ and all that he has done for the program, but he is nowhere near the caliber of prospect of Justin Herbert. Herbert has a way better arm, is a faster processor, has nearly as good of mobility, and better pocket presence.
I'm half-expecting people on the blog to say JJ is a better prospect than CJ Stroud or Drake Maye. The hype train is getting a bit ridiculous.
The fanbase on the forum has really become too tribalistic and defensive, although I understand some of it with the general public's massive overreaction to the advanced scouting garbage.
Sherrone is awesome, but Phil Parker did more with way less. Our offense was also stymied by the three teams with a pulse, whereas the Iowa defense played really well against PSU and Michigan. It's okay to admit that.
Maybe we should stop using "due process" since that applies to the state. I don't believe the Big10 would be considered the state, though I'm not familiar with any relevant precedent.
Your statement that Williams is an "all show no action QB" is just flat wrong. Williams is a fantastic QB and if you put a halfway decent line in front of him and a defense that isn't a sieve, he wouldn't have to resort to hero ball all the time. The guy gets so much flak for no reason, its ridiculous.
I'd also just note that all three of these guys were high three stars/low four stars. Grant was #444, Graham was #247, and Jenkins was #513 in the composite rankings on 247. The scouting and coaching has been phenomenal.
Caveats apply that you need high-end talent at certain skill positions, but there are other positions where I have complete trust that the three star recruit this staff targets will play like a well-developed 4/5 star in 2-3 years under the program: S, CB, DL, OL, TE, RB. I think the jury is still out on development of LBs and the QB.
Despite the win, I do not believe this game showed OSU to be a "tough" team. From my vantage point, ND really controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides in the second half until their choke job last defensive drive. It seemed like the OSU line was getting pushed back in the run game and could not pressure Hartman in the pass game. Up until ND had that silly miscommunication on the negative run play, they were moving the ball and were 1 first down away from a win.
Hahah, what a joke of a response. Did you even look at Rivals' website prior to posting? Rivals doesn't go back before 2002. What source are you using for a 2001 ranking because I cannot find one on Rivals or 247.
I agree that recruiting has recently taken a turn for the worse. However, your notion that Michigan should easily get top 5 recruiting classes on the backs of two playoff appearances is ridiculous. You constantly repeat this same argument in every recruiting post without any facts to back up your point, all the while bashing other Michigan fans for not expecting more (calling them arrogant and ignorant, when those words best characterize your argument).
I think a good comparison here is Oklahoma. They are equal to or a more storied football program than Michigan. They have big advantages over Michigan in being in the South and having incredibly deep ties within Texas. Additionally, the weather is more similar to the talent-rich areas of the country. OU went to the playoff in 2015/16, 2017/18, 18/19, and 19/20. Their recruiting rankings starting in 2017: 8, 9, 6, 13, 10.
IMO, Michigan will never be a top 5 recruiting program. We could win two national championships in a row like Georgia and it wouldn't change anything because of the non program-related disadvantages.
You should recalibrate your expectations because they are unrealistic with where Michigan falls within the modern (last 30 years) college football landscape.
Lessons lessons lessons. Golf seems to be the only sport where people actively avoid getting lessons from a professional - you would never think to do that in any other sport. Try to get a six pack of lessons and it will help immensely - one-off lessons are a waste because you often overcompensate/need additional fixes and then don't have more lessons booked. I would think 6 lessons (one at least every two weeks) with practice 2-3 times a week in between would have this fixed and make golf much more enjoyable.
I would be leery to go to a pro who isn't using at least one of, if not a combination of Trackman/GC Quad and Swing Catalyst.
The good news is that since your issue is so pronounced, it will likely be a pretty simple fix to identify. The bad news is that it will be a lot of practice to get rid of it.
Agree with everything regarding tactics and formation, but would slightly disagree with the best team in the tournament.
England with their three stars would be a tough out. IMO Spain with Patri, Mapi, and a handful of the other 12 players sitting out, is the best, most talented team in the tournament. Rooting for a Spain-US showdown at some point in the tournament and excited for the 2023 Womens International Champions Cup.
Same, hoping the majority commit to the good guys. This post sparked my brain this morning - With the bottom falling out at Stanford, I would say the only college that balances athletics and academics is Notre Dame. USC could potentially get back there. If DeBoer can keep the trajectory moving upwards, maybe Washington. Can you think of any others?
I think Michigan develops talent well at almost every position, wide receiver being the exception. I think our problem with recruiting elite talent is that our development doesn't create many first round draft picks. Its wildly rare to take an above average high school athlete and mold them into a first round pick, so we end up having a number of players drafted in rounds 3+ of the NFL Draft (but I doubt they would become NFL players without the development at Michigan). That's a tougher sell than at Bama, Georgia, and OSU that take elite talent and just continue their trajectory. I think elite high school recruits see the first round picks and get wide-eyed. It won't ever happen, but I would love to see what this staff did with a roster full of the the talent that Alabama gets yearly.
I pray that the Lions do not draft Bennett at all. What a waste of a pick.
The general consensus on the blog, and my own view, is that OSU QBs should not be drafted because of the talent advantage their skill players have over college competition (i.e. easier to hit a wide open Marvin Harrison Jr. than make a tight window throw in the NFL or run through three progressions quickly).
Stetson Bennett is that on steroids. Below average arm talent, doesn't actually go through his reads well, and gets happy feet very quickly. He does have plus mobility, but his pocket awareness is average. His lack of height will also become a much bigger problem in the NFL because he wont have that massive 5 yard pocket to throw from and doesn't display the ability to throw accurately off platform unlike, for example, Bryce Young. He had an insane O-Line in both running and pass blocking, and Brock Bowers along with pretty decent crop of receivers. He also rode an incredible defense that cannot be replicated in the NFL because the talent margin is never that steep.
From all of the summaries I have read, he lined up exclusively at TE at the All American Bowl and was good-to-great against the nations best linebackers and safeties. Michigan has had great in-line TE's recently, but Harbor has the potential to be a more athletic version of Brock Bowers (the only reason I think Georgia isn't in on him is because they are getting Duce Robinson).
Coupled with the Michigan run game, he could be the biggest play action threat in the country. Additionally, if he turns out to be as good as he can be, he would require two defenders, further enhancing the run game (a la Bowers).
1. Jim interviewing matters tremendously if it continues to impact recruiting. Michigan is great at developing prospects, but if they fail to land some top end recruits each cycle, the losses to OSU will follow. If interviewing has no impact on recruiting and retention, interview as much as he desires.
2. From what you described in the penultimate paragraph, Jim would basically not report to anyone in the athletic department and would be given carte blanche over items in which he has no expertise (NIL regulations, risk management across multiple sports, financial implications of a managing an NIL fund). People can argue that Michigan should hire a different AD that is more receptive to pay-for-play, but the structure of any school is that the coach is below the AD.
3. Jim has done incredible things at Michigan to turn around the program and I'm grateful he is the coach. However, he does not deserve to be the highest paid coach in college football. Saban, Smart, and Dabo all deserve to be higher paid based on results. I would argue that he should be the highest paid coach in the Big 10.
4. Isn't Jim 4-4 against MSU? The last two years have been incredibly fun, but are we just going to forget the first 6?
5. This is not related to your points above, but a general counter to the trend I'm seeing where Warde is blamed for any and all things. I'm not sure why people blame Warde for Michigan's unwillingness to engage in pure pay-for-play. From my recollection of discussions on podcasts and this blog over the last couple of years, that is an institutional decision, not a Warde Manual decision. Where is the evidence that Warde is unilaterally shutting down these efforts in defiance of his higher-ups? There likely isn't any because he would fired if he took that action. In all likelihood, Michigan isn't on board and Warde is having to operate as the fall guy. He seems to be the easy scapegoat for miserable fans.
That's wild if true - $15 Million/year is going to reset the coaching market considerably and I think puts him at 120% of Saban's salary. I think its more difficult to win at Michigan than Alabama, but still surprises me given Michigan's general reluctance to set the market in coach compensation. Hopefully this doesn't impact the assistant pool $.
Jim is not "way" underpaid. He makes 92% of Ryan Day's salary and around 95% of Frames' salary. He's achieved more than Frames and should probably be on par with Ryan Day in terms of salary - an extra 500k/year.
This notion that Jim is out here making half of what of the rest of the top coaches in CFB make is crazy. He should make less than Nick Saban, Kirby, and Dabo. I would argue the maximum amount he deserves is what Brian Kelly makes at LSU - $9.5 million.
Michigan should target Fentrell Cypress from Virginia. He was a starting CB and is a grad transfer from a top academic school. He seems to fit the mold of what Michigan is looking for in transfers.
These guys said that the Michigan - Penn State game was closer than the final score and turned on a couple of plays, when anyone watching the game would have said the opposite. I take everything these guys said with a massive pinch of salt.
Time to flip the two Michigan recruits in Cincinnati's class - Drogosh would be a nice late get at QB and Amare Snowden has a chance to be the next Sauce Gardner.
Harbor is going to be very tough given the finish to the season that the Gamecocks just had. That's a program with a ton of momentum and, in my opinion, Columbia is a very nice city.
I like the defensive recruiting a lot for this 2023 class:
I think if we can keep achempeong (sp?), edge and DT will be set with him, Etta, Pierce, Bahr, and Howard.
I think Hewlett and Ishmail are perfect fits at LB and Bridgman reminds me of Josh Ross.
The backend of Hill, Calhoun also has the potential to be great.
My only concern areas would be OT/OL (2nd year in a row with not hitting top targets) and RB.
Concerning to me will be if we dont start possessing the ball. They have already had the ball for 14:30 and our defense is not used to even playing games at 50/50 TOP.
You are right. OSU enjoys a much greater advantage than Bama and Georgia.
OSU's (983 points) has to deal with Michigan (847), PSU (830), and Nebraska (754).
Bama (1016) and Georgia (990) have to deal with each other and then TAMU (947), LSU (873) and Florida (857).
Depth is also a massive advantage for OSU. 9 of 14 teams in the B1G have less than 700 points, whereas every SEC school except Vanderbilt is over 700. Missouri (2nd least amount of talent in the SEC) would be the 6th most talented team in the B1G.
I may be misunderstanding your comment, but I do not view those two games and the scoreboard as a good example to show that recruiting is not 85% of the equation and that coaching, culture, and intangibles matter.
Michigan was never in the Georgia game and got run off the field. We had equal talent at maybe 2 positions (Edge and Safety). That scoreline flatters us.
Alabama was winning with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter whilst down their two best receivers who had torched Georgia the month prior.
Agreed that this is a better US squad, but 0 of the USA's players would get into the starting 11 of England, and you could probably extend that out to 14-16 players. Reyna, Pulisic, Mckennie, and Adams are not getting into that starting 11. The talent gap is massive and England seem to not be performing down to opponents in the two most recent international competitions.
This England team is likely to have tons of pace. I think Saka and Grealish/Sterling are going to wreak havoc on a really poor US back line. England have the best 5-6 players on that field, it will be interesting to see how to the US copes.
All indications are that everyone exited safely, which is great to hear. I used to caddie there for the Monday caddie playing privileges. Most members were great, but some of them would treat you like dirt and expect you to enjoy it just for being in their presence. I wonder by what % dues will increase.
They need to revise the definition of "beneficial use" within the prior appropriation doctrine (first in time with a beneficial use gets priority). While there are certain carve-outs to allocate water use without older/junior designations, that's pretty limited. Narrowing that definition to avoid inefficient use might give them a chance.
Eventually, there will be water litigation between these SW states. Florida v. Georgia and Texas v. New Mexico are two similar cases.
The fact that Alabama could hang with Georgia while down their 2 starting corners and receivers is just insane. My big takeaway from this game is that Michigan and the rest of the Big 10 are massively behind at the LB position. These two teams can line up 4-5 guys that can accurately diagnose plays, rush the passer, stop the run, and cover athletic tight ends. Michigan doesn't have anyone at the position that is that versatile.
The fact that Alabama could hang with Georgia while down their 2 starting corners and receivers is just insane. My big takeaway from this game is that Michigan and the rest of the Big 10 are massively behind at the LB position. These two teams can line up 4-5 guys that can accurately diagnose plays, rush the passer, stop the run, and cover athletic tight ends. We don't have anyone at the position that is that versatile.
I wholeheartedly agree. I would rather it cost us wins in football (not that I think it does) than to change the transfer credit policy solely for football players.
Sure, the best player didn't win, but that player is not Hutchinson. The best player in college football is Will Anderson. I would say Young is more deserving than Hutch and its only on this board that this is considered "rigged" or an unjust outcome.
I have one ticket for sale. It is Section 610, Row 6. My costs were $350. For reference, the same section is selling at between $375-$400 without fees considered. Please text at 734-674-562-four if interested.
A couple of the ND players have a podcast called "Inside the Garage." I listened to it last night and came away with an appreciation for the type of recruit that commits to ND. The players were mature and level-headed in their thoughts. The theme that ran through the discussion was "you commit to ND, you don't commit to the coach."
All of this to say that I think there probably were very few questions. Second, it seems that the ND recruits are all committed to the school, I think its going to be very difficult to flip someone like Josh Burnham. Its almost a polar opposite scenario to OU.
I'm happy with this hire. It should bring the talent gap down a touch by having less California kids go to Ohio State, Alabama, Clemson, and Georgia. If only Texas could become relevant again and nab some of the talent that's been leaving to go to OSU.
I would argue the comparison shouldn't be to Payton Thorne. We should expect at least a QB on the level of Brennan Armstrong (charted in the Twitter thread, probably 15-20th best QB in CFB), and Cade falls way short of that mark.
While others are pointing out a limited sample size for Cade, there seems to be a complete disregard for the fact that most teams stack the box and Cade is getting very favorable matchups with receivers relatively open.
I unfortunately think this recruitment might go the way of Tyler Friday. If I recall correctly, we were in pole position, but only because OSU wasn't a committable offer. A story was done with his parents and they were all Michigan at the time. Then the OSU offer became committable a couple of days before his decision and it flipped completely.
In case you haven't seen it, I recommend this video and channel. Ian, the owner of TXG, is probably a top 10 fitter in North America, if not the world. Much of this is simple but can easily be lost in the build up to the fit and during the fitting process.
A golf discussion thread would be fantastic. In terms of courses I would want to play regularly/daily, I think its very geographically specific:
In Michigan, its U of M. My last year of law school, I was able to get the student pass and having played that course around 200 times, I view it as a great daily course. 1. Condition is decent; 2. greens are challenging and fun with varied pin locations; 3. plenty of difficult holes (2, 10, 12, 18 spring to mind) and scoring holes (5, 6, 7, 13); 4. very walkable; 5. suits many different styles of play. I just wish they would bring in Tom Doak or Coore/Crenshaw to restore it closer to the original Mckenzie design.
I've played the Scarlett course at Ohio State and if I could choose, that would be my daily course. The only *other* issue is that it basically operates as a country club and I am not a fan of country clubs.
I now live in the DMV area and Montgomery County has some of the most fantastic municipal golf in the country. My normal course is Northwest Golf Course, a walkable parkland course which is simple, but enjoyable. It tips out at 7346 yards and hosts the local US Open qualifier so it can present some real challenge when you play it at that distance.
I vehemently disagree with the third sentence of this post. Texas may have tampered, but a head coach railing about it on Twitter is ridiculous and would be a low. I prefer a coach who wouldn't whine about it on social media.
You seem very upset. When I am upset, I meditate a bit and it gets me back to my happy place. I cannot recommend it enough. Personally, I'm a big fan of mantra meditation.
As an aside, I am entertained by your implied equivalency of mask policies with socialism. Thank you for the humour on what has otherwise been a very serious and somber day.
Recent Comments
I do not understand why all the pundits thinks the Lions window is "tight." They are basing these opinions on past history with a terrible front office and coaching staff. These Lions should really be viewed at as a different organization. They have shown a sustainable approach to team-building and great draft history over the past three years, which in the NFL is not a small sample size.
I suppose it depends on your definition of "tough," but I would classify Ryan Day as extremely tough. The guy lost his father to suicide when he was 9 years old, overcame that tragedy, and has worked his way up through the coaching ranks despite not having a D1 playing career or family connections to the sport. I dislike him as a football coach, but respect the guy a ton.
Sherrone Moore is also a tough, fantastic person and I'm very excited that he will be the next Michigan football coach.
Sorry, my tenses are incorrect. Herbert was a way better prospect coming out of college. I agree that comparing him now to JJ would be ridiculous. The big knock on Herbert was that he was "too quiet" to be a leader, which is ridiculous. They said the same thing about Stroud and it was garbage as well.
The amount of ridiculous comments saying "Give Jim what he wants" or "Fire Warde for not getting it done," is astonishing. Based on what's been reported, it is Jim that is the problem in getting this across the finish line, not Warde or Michigan.
1. Money - The money that's been reported would make Jim the highest paid coach in CFB. Michigan's staff pool is already top 10 in the nation and I'm sure they are working to make that top 5
2. Term - 10 years is what is reported, I don't know what else he could want on this front and we have had no reports that he wants a life-time contract.
3. Assurances/Termination Rights - Does Jim want a Jimbo-style contract where it is fully guaranteed regardless of NCAA action? Michigan cannot and should not enter into that agreement. If he wants this, Michigan should let him walk. Michigan cannot be on the hook for $100+ million if Jim gets a show cause or other incredibly significant NCAA penalty. For Michigan to offer that assurance would be silly, regardless of Jim's achievements. Fans that want Michigan to provide that assurance are not viewing this rationally.
4. NIL - Michigan will not enter the pay-for-play market and that sucks, but it is technically a violation. With the NCAA's microscope on the program, there can be no assurance on this front. Furthermore, no party would put guarantees of performing a rule-breaking strategy in a contract. Michigan can't offer guarantees that the NIL from collectives will improve either. I don't think this item could be the hold-up.
My guess is that Jim wants #3 above and in that case, I think Michigan should thank him profusely, wish him well in the NFL, and guarantee a statue will be up in 5-10 years.
I've seen a lot of hyperbole re: JJ, but this is the most far-fetched. I love JJ and all that he has done for the program, but he is nowhere near the caliber of prospect of Justin Herbert. Herbert has a way better arm, is a faster processor, has nearly as good of mobility, and better pocket presence.
I'm half-expecting people on the blog to say JJ is a better prospect than CJ Stroud or Drake Maye. The hype train is getting a bit ridiculous.
The fanbase on the forum has really become too tribalistic and defensive, although I understand some of it with the general public's massive overreaction to the advanced scouting garbage.
Sherrone is awesome, but Phil Parker did more with way less. Our offense was also stymied by the three teams with a pulse, whereas the Iowa defense played really well against PSU and Michigan. It's okay to admit that.
Maybe we should stop using "due process" since that applies to the state. I don't believe the Big10 would be considered the state, though I'm not familiar with any relevant precedent.
Your statement that Williams is an "all show no action QB" is just flat wrong. Williams is a fantastic QB and if you put a halfway decent line in front of him and a defense that isn't a sieve, he wouldn't have to resort to hero ball all the time. The guy gets so much flak for no reason, its ridiculous.
Its a true embarrassment of riches.
I'd also just note that all three of these guys were high three stars/low four stars. Grant was #444, Graham was #247, and Jenkins was #513 in the composite rankings on 247. The scouting and coaching has been phenomenal.
Caveats apply that you need high-end talent at certain skill positions, but there are other positions where I have complete trust that the three star recruit this staff targets will play like a well-developed 4/5 star in 2-3 years under the program: S, CB, DL, OL, TE, RB. I think the jury is still out on development of LBs and the QB.
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Fantastic from Mike.
Despite the win, I do not believe this game showed OSU to be a "tough" team. From my vantage point, ND really controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides in the second half until their choke job last defensive drive. It seemed like the OSU line was getting pushed back in the run game and could not pressure Hartman in the pass game. Up until ND had that silly miscommunication on the negative run play, they were moving the ball and were 1 first down away from a win.
Hahah, what a joke of a response. Did you even look at Rivals' website prior to posting? Rivals doesn't go back before 2002. What source are you using for a 2001 ranking because I cannot find one on Rivals or 247.
Not according to Rivals.
2002 - 16
2003 - 17
2004 - 5
2005 - 6
2006 - 13
2007 - 12
2008 - 10
2009 - 8
Average: 10.875.
Add in the turmoil within the program from Rich Rod and Hoke and the slip from 11 to 15 over the last 13 years makes sense.
I agree that recruiting has recently taken a turn for the worse. However, your notion that Michigan should easily get top 5 recruiting classes on the backs of two playoff appearances is ridiculous. You constantly repeat this same argument in every recruiting post without any facts to back up your point, all the while bashing other Michigan fans for not expecting more (calling them arrogant and ignorant, when those words best characterize your argument).
I think a good comparison here is Oklahoma. They are equal to or a more storied football program than Michigan. They have big advantages over Michigan in being in the South and having incredibly deep ties within Texas. Additionally, the weather is more similar to the talent-rich areas of the country. OU went to the playoff in 2015/16, 2017/18, 18/19, and 19/20. Their recruiting rankings starting in 2017: 8, 9, 6, 13, 10.
IMO, Michigan will never be a top 5 recruiting program. We could win two national championships in a row like Georgia and it wouldn't change anything because of the non program-related disadvantages.
You should recalibrate your expectations because they are unrealistic with where Michigan falls within the modern (last 30 years) college football landscape.
Lessons lessons lessons. Golf seems to be the only sport where people actively avoid getting lessons from a professional - you would never think to do that in any other sport. Try to get a six pack of lessons and it will help immensely - one-off lessons are a waste because you often overcompensate/need additional fixes and then don't have more lessons booked. I would think 6 lessons (one at least every two weeks) with practice 2-3 times a week in between would have this fixed and make golf much more enjoyable.
I would be leery to go to a pro who isn't using at least one of, if not a combination of Trackman/GC Quad and Swing Catalyst.
The good news is that since your issue is so pronounced, it will likely be a pretty simple fix to identify. The bad news is that it will be a lot of practice to get rid of it.
Agree with everything regarding tactics and formation, but would slightly disagree with the best team in the tournament.
England with their three stars would be a tough out. IMO Spain with Patri, Mapi, and a handful of the other 12 players sitting out, is the best, most talented team in the tournament. Rooting for a Spain-US showdown at some point in the tournament and excited for the 2023 Womens International Champions Cup.
Same, hoping the majority commit to the good guys. This post sparked my brain this morning - With the bottom falling out at Stanford, I would say the only college that balances athletics and academics is Notre Dame. USC could potentially get back there. If DeBoer can keep the trajectory moving upwards, maybe Washington. Can you think of any others?
I think Michigan develops talent well at almost every position, wide receiver being the exception. I think our problem with recruiting elite talent is that our development doesn't create many first round draft picks. Its wildly rare to take an above average high school athlete and mold them into a first round pick, so we end up having a number of players drafted in rounds 3+ of the NFL Draft (but I doubt they would become NFL players without the development at Michigan). That's a tougher sell than at Bama, Georgia, and OSU that take elite talent and just continue their trajectory. I think elite high school recruits see the first round picks and get wide-eyed. It won't ever happen, but I would love to see what this staff did with a roster full of the the talent that Alabama gets yearly.
I pray that the Lions do not draft Bennett at all. What a waste of a pick.
The general consensus on the blog, and my own view, is that OSU QBs should not be drafted because of the talent advantage their skill players have over college competition (i.e. easier to hit a wide open Marvin Harrison Jr. than make a tight window throw in the NFL or run through three progressions quickly).
Stetson Bennett is that on steroids. Below average arm talent, doesn't actually go through his reads well, and gets happy feet very quickly. He does have plus mobility, but his pocket awareness is average. His lack of height will also become a much bigger problem in the NFL because he wont have that massive 5 yard pocket to throw from and doesn't display the ability to throw accurately off platform unlike, for example, Bryce Young. He had an insane O-Line in both running and pass blocking, and Brock Bowers along with pretty decent crop of receivers. He also rode an incredible defense that cannot be replicated in the NFL because the talent margin is never that steep.
From all of the summaries I have read, he lined up exclusively at TE at the All American Bowl and was good-to-great against the nations best linebackers and safeties. Michigan has had great in-line TE's recently, but Harbor has the potential to be a more athletic version of Brock Bowers (the only reason I think Georgia isn't in on him is because they are getting Duce Robinson).
Coupled with the Michigan run game, he could be the biggest play action threat in the country. Additionally, if he turns out to be as good as he can be, he would require two defenders, further enhancing the run game (a la Bowers).
I am in complete disagreement.
1. Jim interviewing matters tremendously if it continues to impact recruiting. Michigan is great at developing prospects, but if they fail to land some top end recruits each cycle, the losses to OSU will follow. If interviewing has no impact on recruiting and retention, interview as much as he desires.
2. From what you described in the penultimate paragraph, Jim would basically not report to anyone in the athletic department and would be given carte blanche over items in which he has no expertise (NIL regulations, risk management across multiple sports, financial implications of a managing an NIL fund). People can argue that Michigan should hire a different AD that is more receptive to pay-for-play, but the structure of any school is that the coach is below the AD.
3. Jim has done incredible things at Michigan to turn around the program and I'm grateful he is the coach. However, he does not deserve to be the highest paid coach in college football. Saban, Smart, and Dabo all deserve to be higher paid based on results. I would argue that he should be the highest paid coach in the Big 10.
4. Isn't Jim 4-4 against MSU? The last two years have been incredibly fun, but are we just going to forget the first 6?
5. This is not related to your points above, but a general counter to the trend I'm seeing where Warde is blamed for any and all things. I'm not sure why people blame Warde for Michigan's unwillingness to engage in pure pay-for-play. From my recollection of discussions on podcasts and this blog over the last couple of years, that is an institutional decision, not a Warde Manual decision. Where is the evidence that Warde is unilaterally shutting down these efforts in defiance of his higher-ups? There likely isn't any because he would fired if he took that action. In all likelihood, Michigan isn't on board and Warde is having to operate as the fall guy. He seems to be the easy scapegoat for miserable fans.
That's wild if true - $15 Million/year is going to reset the coaching market considerably and I think puts him at 120% of Saban's salary. I think its more difficult to win at Michigan than Alabama, but still surprises me given Michigan's general reluctance to set the market in coach compensation. Hopefully this doesn't impact the assistant pool $.
Jim is not "way" underpaid. He makes 92% of Ryan Day's salary and around 95% of Frames' salary. He's achieved more than Frames and should probably be on par with Ryan Day in terms of salary - an extra 500k/year.
This notion that Jim is out here making half of what of the rest of the top coaches in CFB make is crazy. He should make less than Nick Saban, Kirby, and Dabo. I would argue the maximum amount he deserves is what Brian Kelly makes at LSU - $9.5 million.
Notre Dame would be a great fit given Mayer is leaving and their track record at developing TEs. Although no place does it better than Iowa.
Maye is UNC through and through with huge family connections to the university. I would be shocked if he decided to transfer.
Michigan should target Fentrell Cypress from Virginia. He was a starting CB and is a grad transfer from a top academic school. He seems to fit the mold of what Michigan is looking for in transfers.
These guys said that the Michigan - Penn State game was closer than the final score and turned on a couple of plays, when anyone watching the game would have said the opposite. I take everything these guys said with a massive pinch of salt.
Time to flip the two Michigan recruits in Cincinnati's class - Drogosh would be a nice late get at QB and Amare Snowden has a chance to be the next Sauce Gardner.
Harbor is going to be very tough given the finish to the season that the Gamecocks just had. That's a program with a ton of momentum and, in my opinion, Columbia is a very nice city.
I like the defensive recruiting a lot for this 2023 class:
I think if we can keep achempeong (sp?), edge and DT will be set with him, Etta, Pierce, Bahr, and Howard.
I think Hewlett and Ishmail are perfect fits at LB and Bridgman reminds me of Josh Ross.
The backend of Hill, Calhoun also has the potential to be great.
My only concern areas would be OT/OL (2nd year in a row with not hitting top targets) and RB.
Concerning to me will be if we dont start possessing the ball. They have already had the ball for 14:30 and our defense is not used to even playing games at 50/50 TOP.
You are right. OSU enjoys a much greater advantage than Bama and Georgia.
OSU's (983 points) has to deal with Michigan (847), PSU (830), and Nebraska (754).
Bama (1016) and Georgia (990) have to deal with each other and then TAMU (947), LSU (873) and Florida (857).
Depth is also a massive advantage for OSU. 9 of 14 teams in the B1G have less than 700 points, whereas every SEC school except Vanderbilt is over 700. Missouri (2nd least amount of talent in the SEC) would be the 6th most talented team in the B1G.
I may be misunderstanding your comment, but I do not view those two games and the scoreboard as a good example to show that recruiting is not 85% of the equation and that coaching, culture, and intangibles matter.
Michigan was never in the Georgia game and got run off the field. We had equal talent at maybe 2 positions (Edge and Safety). That scoreline flatters us.
Alabama was winning with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter whilst down their two best receivers who had torched Georgia the month prior.
Agreed that this is a better US squad, but 0 of the USA's players would get into the starting 11 of England, and you could probably extend that out to 14-16 players. Reyna, Pulisic, Mckennie, and Adams are not getting into that starting 11. The talent gap is massive and England seem to not be performing down to opponents in the two most recent international competitions.
This England team is likely to have tons of pace. I think Saka and Grealish/Sterling are going to wreak havoc on a really poor US back line. England have the best 5-6 players on that field, it will be interesting to see how to the US copes.
Streetchemist, TeslaRed, Benvom. Eat some crow and maybe calm down with the Juwan sucks at coaching Hot-Takes.
All indications are that everyone exited safely, which is great to hear. I used to caddie there for the Monday caddie playing privileges. Most members were great, but some of them would treat you like dirt and expect you to enjoy it just for being in their presence. I wonder by what % dues will increase.
They need to revise the definition of "beneficial use" within the prior appropriation doctrine (first in time with a beneficial use gets priority). While there are certain carve-outs to allocate water use without older/junior designations, that's pretty limited. Narrowing that definition to avoid inefficient use might give them a chance.
Eventually, there will be water litigation between these SW states. Florida v. Georgia and Texas v. New Mexico are two similar cases.
The fact that Alabama could hang with Georgia while down their 2 starting corners and receivers is just insane. My big takeaway from this game is that Michigan and the rest of the Big 10 are massively behind at the LB position. These two teams can line up 4-5 guys that can accurately diagnose plays, rush the passer, stop the run, and cover athletic tight ends. Michigan doesn't have anyone at the position that is that versatile.
The fact that Alabama could hang with Georgia while down their 2 starting corners and receivers is just insane. My big takeaway from this game is that Michigan and the rest of the Big 10 are massively behind at the LB position. These two teams can line up 4-5 guys that can accurately diagnose plays, rush the passer, stop the run, and cover athletic tight ends. We don't have anyone at the position that is that versatile.
I wholeheartedly agree. I would rather it cost us wins in football (not that I think it does) than to change the transfer credit policy solely for football players.
Sure, the best player didn't win, but that player is not Hutchinson. The best player in college football is Will Anderson. I would say Young is more deserving than Hutch and its only on this board that this is considered "rigged" or an unjust outcome.
Selling this ticket…
Update -
Selling this ticket for $250. Text 734-674-562-four or [email protected] if interested.
I have one ticket for sale. It is Section 610, Row 6. My costs were $350. For reference, the same section is selling at between $375-$400 without fees considered. Please text at 734-674-562-four if interested.
A couple of the ND players have a podcast called "Inside the Garage." I listened to it last night and came away with an appreciation for the type of recruit that commits to ND. The players were mature and level-headed in their thoughts. The theme that ran through the discussion was "you commit to ND, you don't commit to the coach."
All of this to say that I think there probably were very few questions. Second, it seems that the ND recruits are all committed to the school, I think its going to be very difficult to flip someone like Josh Burnham. Its almost a polar opposite scenario to OU.
I'm happy with this hire. It should bring the talent gap down a touch by having less California kids go to Ohio State, Alabama, Clemson, and Georgia. If only Texas could become relevant again and nab some of the talent that's been leaving to go to OSU.
I would argue the comparison shouldn't be to Payton Thorne. We should expect at least a QB on the level of Brennan Armstrong (charted in the Twitter thread, probably 15-20th best QB in CFB), and Cade falls way short of that mark.
While others are pointing out a limited sample size for Cade, there seems to be a complete disregard for the fact that most teams stack the box and Cade is getting very favorable matchups with receivers relatively open.
I unfortunately think this recruitment might go the way of Tyler Friday. If I recall correctly, we were in pole position, but only because OSU wasn't a committable offer. A story was done with his parents and they were all Michigan at the time. Then the OSU offer became committable a couple of days before his decision and it flipped completely.
Hopefully I am wrong!
Wolf Hammer. Explained here:
https://nolayingup.com/videos/the-mixed-bag/the-mixed-bag/wolf-hammer
In case you haven't seen it, I recommend this video and channel. Ian, the owner of TXG, is probably a top 10 fitter in North America, if not the world. Much of this is simple but can easily be lost in the build up to the fit and during the fitting process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6gF7wsAcc8
A golf discussion thread would be fantastic. In terms of courses I would want to play regularly/daily, I think its very geographically specific:
In Michigan, its U of M. My last year of law school, I was able to get the student pass and having played that course around 200 times, I view it as a great daily course. 1. Condition is decent; 2. greens are challenging and fun with varied pin locations; 3. plenty of difficult holes (2, 10, 12, 18 spring to mind) and scoring holes (5, 6, 7, 13); 4. very walkable; 5. suits many different styles of play. I just wish they would bring in Tom Doak or Coore/Crenshaw to restore it closer to the original Mckenzie design.
I've played the Scarlett course at Ohio State and if I could choose, that would be my daily course. The only *other* issue is that it basically operates as a country club and I am not a fan of country clubs.
I now live in the DMV area and Montgomery County has some of the most fantastic municipal golf in the country. My normal course is Northwest Golf Course, a walkable parkland course which is simple, but enjoyable. It tips out at 7346 yards and hosts the local US Open qualifier so it can present some real challenge when you play it at that distance.
Muni/Public Golf Forever!
I vehemently disagree with the third sentence of this post. Texas may have tampered, but a head coach railing about it on Twitter is ridiculous and would be a low. I prefer a coach who wouldn't whine about it on social media.
You seem very upset. When I am upset, I meditate a bit and it gets me back to my happy place. I cannot recommend it enough. Personally, I'm a big fan of mantra meditation.
As an aside, I am entertained by your implied equivalency of mask policies with socialism. Thank you for the humour on what has otherwise been a very serious and somber day.