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I've always been here.  …

I've always been here.  (Been busy due to a career change a couple of years back - good busy, not bad busy.)

I doubt you'll see this as…

I doubt you'll see this as it's been a couple of days since I last posted, but just in case - hello backatcha!

Oberon is like the girl with…

Oberon is like the girl with the little curl.  So hit and miss from year to year.

Some years, it's a wonderful bit of alchemy with kombucha-like clots of dead yeast goodness.  Other years, it's meh at best.

And there it is - RonaRock …

And there it is - RonaRock (TM) in the headline picture notwithstanding*, a welcome return of the familiar in this charlie-foxtrot called 2020.

Thank you BiSB.  This and "Best and Worst" are my favorite in-season features, and the 2020 premiere of Opponent Watch did not disappoint!

And for our next opponent, the real concern is whether we get Panusiaked (TM) by MSU.  I can't help but be afraid that ye olde "play to injure" mentality is still there.  On the other hand, the possibility of an absolute shellacking of the Spartans has me excited to watch.

*RonaRock (TM) was a deft touch.  Seems obvious now that it's there, but inspired all the same.

You should really ask to…

You should really ask to speak to a manager.  Maybe get your money back.  Or a free dessert.

Nobody is prostrating…

Nobody is prostrating themselves before anyone.  People are finally acknowledging a societal imbalance that has roots reaching over 400 years.  That's a good thing.

If you think the real problem is black "porky" officer violence on white suspects, I suggest you reconsider the situation.  Of course you can always find one-off incidents that don't fit the overall concern in any societal shift.  Those incidents in isolation mean jack shit.  There's a reason that white Americans are not taking to the street because of systemic injustice to white suspects based on race.*

Jebus, man.

*Spoiler alert - it's because there's no evidence of that sort of systemic injustice.

My mileage has varied, it…

My mileage has varied, it seems.  I've not witnessed many dimes dropped at all,  And if dimes are dropped, they need to be dropped publicly (after authentication) rather than on the DL.  IMO the overall problem is a cultural one related to the "thin blue line" ethos of the majority of PDs.

Fix that, and you fix a LOT of the police brutality problem.  That would include a cultural change, requiring body cams, and reducing sovereign immunity relief.  Do that, and our at-risk communities are much safer from the minority of bad cops. YMMV,

I enjoyed your post and…

I enjoyed your post and found parts of it enlightening, and parts of it consistent with my own limited experience in the justice system.  The one thing I'd respectfully suggest you leave out is the elephant in the room (IMO) - the "thin blue line" mentality.

Most cops I know did a good honorable job in a tough environment.  But the one thing that was drilled into them is never ever ever rat out a fellow cop for stepping over the line with a suspect.  You might upbraid them in private (as you relayed), but you never ever ever reported a fellow officer's bad conduct.  It would make you a pariah with the worst elements of any PD.  The outside logic being that it's a "thin blue line" that protects us from the worst elements of society, and we need to protect those who serve as cops.

That's one of the key things that needs to change - and will be mighty difficult to fix.  I've stood up to racists comments in my career, to my detriment, but probably not stridently enough at points.  PD/Sheriff/State Police leadership need to set the tone.  And punish those who stand silent to take any choice out of the matter.

FWIW, my local city police department is on the nightly news, and doing a really good job of community policing and keeping the nonsense down while weeding out bad actors.  Mobile phones are a terrific tool for the public to keep their PDs honest.  Because the good ones deserve all of our support and the bad ones deserve none.

Again, thanks for sharing your perspective.

I came here to note that…

I came here to note that Chris Doyle's comment was incredibly tone deaf, but then I saw this.  Jebus dude, you get the top podium on the tone deaf awards ceremony.

What is the point of your "very strange" comment?  

Didn't cost him his balls. …

Didn't cost him his balls.  Cost him a ball, at most.

I was aware of Armstrong from his triathlon days.  Amazing VO2 max, etc.  But he lost me fairly early on, when it was clear he was doping (LA Confidential, etc.) and even clearer he was bullying Greg Lemond.  Lemond was a truly amazing guy, and has more integrity in his little finger than Armstrong has in his entire body.

Frankie Andreu was amazing, a fantastic domestique, and I loved that he was from SE Michigan.  Definitely a fan of his cycling and his integrity.  Betsy isn't wrong on accusing Armstrong, but she is one annoying person.  Like the Susie Greene (i.e., the Susie Essman CYE character) of the cycling world.

The Kipke one is my favorite…

The Kipke one is my favorite ("This is the best I can do for you Jim").  It teases the imagination what that accompanied the letter.  A fruitcake?  A game-worn sock?  An origami condom?  (Pretty much has to be one of those three options.)

Good get for WD, too.  

I too smell someone with an…

I too smell someone with an agenda.  I smell someone with a legit medical background trying to counteract Vitamin C mega-dose quackery.  And who understands that telling someone to mega-dose against a virus (FFS) might give one who reads this a false sense of security that they can avoid COVID-19 by taking a shit-ton (or piss quart?) of Vitamin C, when hand hygiene, social distancing, etc., are the proper measures.  

As far as agendas go, it's a worthy one.

So you're saying he solves…

So you're saying he solves problems with aggression.  Sounds like strong safety / OLB is a good spot for him!

Congratulations to your son…

Congratulations to your son and your whole family.  It has to be an exciting time for your son, with a lot of lifting, practice, and literal muck-raking paying off as he likely dreamed.

You should do a little…

You should do a little reading on how doctor abuse works.  The doctor is in a position of authority, has been recommended to you by your coach, and has a medical degree and a job at a major university.  They are in a position of authority, and if they say a "complete exam" means that they want to digitally probe you, etc., they're the doctor and you let them - at least for 90+% of the population.

And the human body is a complicated thing, which doctors can exploit to abuse.  By way of example, our ears, eyes, and throat all share a lot of common systems and connectivity that a layperson may not fully appreciate.  The lymphatic system goes through your entire body.  Damage to one part of your body can cause pain in a seemingly distinct part.  And we're raised to implicitly trust and respect our doctors.  This puts nearly all patients at the mercy of their doctors (and of course those few POS doctors know not to pull this crap on medical peers),

So the "WTH?" attitude smacks of victim blaming, and is not helpful.  This abuse, along with the OSU abuse of wrestlers and the Nassar atrocities, took place within the framework of a clear doctor-patient power dynamic.  And it's usually only after the fact that people fully realize that the visit involved abuse.

Also, to the extent Canham covered up known or suspected abuse, his name should be taken off of the Natatorium, any scholarships, and anywhere else on campus.  Give him the full Sackler treatment.  And the same for anyone else who might have covered this up.  

The important thing is that the investigation be thorough, we let the facts come out, and we deal with them accordingly.

You're not wrong.

You're not wrong.

The end-of-game box score…

The end-of-game box score numbers lie.  At one point early in the second half MSU had 15 shots from the charity stripe vs. 2 for Michigan.  That's right - 15 vs. 2.

The foul-per-team numbers only "evened up" when MSU started purposely fouling with two minutes left.  To the point the refs called a phantom foul on MSU at a point where MSU desperately wanted a foul (I forget who committed the foul, but it was at the half court line after a pass that would have led to an easy lay-up).

Either Michigan really, really likes fouling at Crisler, or the refs suck.  I hate how Izzo is constantly in the refs' ears, but it does seem to pay off for him.  

Joe Roberson was no Dave…

Joe Roberson was no Dave Brandon.  He also had a number of other terrific qualities, and kept the athletic department on a steady course throughout his tenure.  He was very direct and forceful, but never self-aggrandizing.  

I'm sorry to hear of his passing, and wish his family the best through this difficult time.

That'll do, pig - that'll do.

That'll do, pig - that'll do.

I've got a few questions:

I've got a few questions:

  • Is there an overall set of composite stats that Michigan looks for (beyond track speed) for various positions?  It seems obvious that a Josh Gattis offense would require a different filter than a Pep Hamilton offense, but how much of this is a Moneyball hard number/algorithm analysis and how much is still left to an eyeball test?
     
  • Has Josh Gattis influenced the overall recruiting process, having been exposed to Saban's methods? 
     
  • On a related point, who dictates the overall metrics on the recruiting analytics?  Is this something position coaches control, or some other approach?

Great write-up, btw!  

Great write up for this game…

Great write up for this game and all the games you've commented upon, BronxBlue.  I'm perhaps a bit more optimistic than you regarding next year, because Brown's defense has (ignoring the elephant games like OSU '18) been solid and consistently top ten.  Gattis was in his first year, and Shea Patterson had moments (some lasting entire games) but never quite clicked overall like we had hoped.

Next year we have a legitimate QB battle, a great room of running backs, and a second year in Gattis's system.  The big "if" - to me - is whether our OLine can cohere quickly.  If that happens, Michigan could well be combining a top ten offense with a top ten defense.  

As far as toxic fandom goes, I've been avoiding that for the past couple of years in part by only selectively engaging in MGoBlog board posts.  There are way too many diatribes disguised as discussions or debates.  Usually identifying those posts is as easy as reading the titles - most posts and subsequent discussions are more predictable than the end of a Scooby Doo cartoon.

Avoiding these, and instead reading your excellent Best and Worsts and items like Opponent Watch has improved the fan experience.  As you say, it's supposed to be fun to support your college team.

Anyway, thanks for putting these together.

Well, if Mr. Rogers was…

Well, if Mr. Rogers was caught in a sweater vest, that's how he'd be.

(Unless it is one of them fancy resurrecting sweater vests.)

Great write-up as always, BB…

Great write-up as always, BB. 

To amplify one point, I thought that the best thing apart from the score was that Michigan suffered no injuries (after some cheap shots last year).  Another encouraging thing was a LOT of punishing but clean hits by our defense. 

The Worst?  Steve Mariucci's love-child, a/k/a the Ref, dropping the intentional grounding flag like it was some kind of mike drop, but oh-so-precious.  It was the right call (Patterson had not gotten outside of the tackles), but something in the way that he dropped that flag made me irrationally angry at him.

Great write-up on a…

Great write-up on a thoroughly pleasing pantsing of MSU.  One more Best (you touch on this, but it was a major point for me):

Best:  No serious Michigan injuries.

BronxBlue notes "other than a couple of taunting penalties and your now-standard "MSU guy just trying to hurt someone" ejection, it was a reasonably docile game".  That "MSU guy just trying to hurt someone" was 100% George Perles's brand, it's what originally made me despise MSU.  (Along with steroids.  Which, thank goodness that's no longer an issue at MSU, amiright?)  As Metellus noted:

"I'm pretty pleased because I feel like we're way more classier than them.  They try to take it to a level that wasn't playing football. We play football over here. I don't know what they do over there, but we play football and it showed today."

I'm sure much of E. Lansing's undies will be knotted by Metellus et al. waving MSU off the field, but there were several cheap-shot instances well after the whistle.  I'm glad nobody got hurt as a result of those cheap shots.  As Metellus said, one side was playing football and the other side was trying to play bully.  It didn't work so well for those trying to play bully. 

Question for the Board:

Question for the Board:

Does this 34 point shellacking constitute Defeat With Dignity (TM) for MSU?  I'm a bit unclear on that point.

Cassius Winston wrote a…

Cassius Winston wrote a really compelling message to his brother, and the sincerity rings through his message.  Sometimes these tributes ring heartfelt but (understandably, given the author is always grieving) wooden.

Not so for Cassius Winston. His tribute comes over as authentic and thorough - pretty amazing given how recently he lost his brother.  I hope Cassius Winston and the rest of his family can find peace with this awful situation, and in the meantime I'm even a bit more impressed with Cassius Winston.

And needless to say, everyone out there please TALK about mental illness like depression.  That shit needs to be destigmatized, and posts like Winston's help reach that goal.

I really like Josh Jackson. …

I really like Josh Jackson.  He passes like a 1986ish Dan Marino, but with the speed of a senior at VT Michael Vick, and makes decisions like Tom Brady, but with the strength of Cam Newton.

Thanks for being a voice of…

Thanks for being a voice of reason re: Patterson.  He played well - not great, but well - under very windy conditions.  He managed the game, and got us a crucial 4th down conversion on a planned QB keeper.

People trashing Patterson have gotten so tiresome in various media outlets.  This is yet-again a new OC for him, implementing a new system, and while it ultimately will best utilize his (and McCaffrey's) skills it was always going to take some time getting traction.  

Next week will be a great barometer of progress as to that traction.  In the meantime, thanks to BB for being a voice of reason, while the worst of Michigan fans are full of passionate (but misplaced and negative) intensity.

So instead people should get…

So instead people should get information from uplifting and reliable sources like InfoWars, 4Chan, 8Chan, etc.?  Asking for a friend.

Kirk Ferentz's call

On…

Kirk Ferentz's call

On fourth and 1 at M's 9?

Imma punt that ball

Yes.  And once there, for…

Yes.  And once there, for its toe.

2018 Winter Olympics were…

2018 Winter Olympics were the least-watched on record.  LINK  

2016 Summer Olympics US Prime Time viewership was down nine percent from 2012.  LINK  (See third paragraph.)

Are the Olympics very popular events still? Sure.  Are they trending the right direction?  Not so sure.

 

I'm still trying to figure…

I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about this, since most on both sides of the debate (i.e., the "pay the damn athletes" crowd and the "don't let money sully our pure-as-snow programs" crowd) act as though the issue is simple and not problematic.  I think it's really a pretty complicated issue, and that whatever action is taken or not, there will be some collateral damage to the NCAA landscape.  And perhaps some improvement justifying the collateral damage.  It's complicated, and I think both sides sell that complication short.  (To be clear, owning one's own image is very low on my list of concerns.  Athletes should always have that right.)

But this is, I think, flat wrong:

Nobody cared when the Olympics dropped their amateurism requirements and nobody will care when colleges do.

Lots of us checked out of the Olympics when they went pro.  Yes, we knew the Soviets and East Germans were cheating, but there was a great reward in watching countries who didn't cheat get the upper hand.  (Miracle on Ice, anyone?)  Anytime you make a sea change in a sports landscape, people will care.  And some will check out.

You misspelled "Chris…

You misspelled "Chris Peterson ".  Leach, though, for press conferences.

And yes, please stay, Coach Harbaugh.

The fact that your h.s…

The fact that your h.s. coach and your h.s. principal can't muster up one good thing to say about a kid afforded a chance to go to a Power 5 program astounds in and of itself.  Add to it easily discoverable sexual assault allegations?  And the fact that while you're not a super-elite program, it's not like you have to troll the bargain bins to find serviceable players for your program.

Dantonio is a POS on the order of  ... .  Tom Izzo.  That whole win at all costs culture in EL was and seemingly remains trash.  

I would not have guessed the…

I would not have guessed the Illinois would be one spot ahead of us, post-Fisher years notwithstanding.  Also I was surprised to see Ohio State as high as 11.  And I was disgustipated to see MSU at 6 (not surprised, just disgustipated).

 

I assumed it was on porpoise…

I assumed it was on porpoise.  

/ clears throat /

/ clears throat /

Hutch is what you'd get if…

Hutch is what you'd get if you crossed Pat Summit with Bo Schembechler with a pirate.

Am I reading this correctly…

Am I reading this correctly that since Michigan beat No. 1 overall seed UCLA, Michigan inherits their place in the overall bracket?  Put another way, it looks like the CWS does not reseed after Super Regionals.

Does anyone have a definitive answer on this?  (Magic 8 Ball just told me to "not ask me, I'm an effing ball".) 

The Thai keeper was…

The Thai keeper was shockingly bad.  She would have been bad in any high school or U17 game I've been to. 

Life comes at you fast.  Alex Morgan comes at you faster.

I wouldn't say anybody has…

I wouldn't say anybody has better overall body control or tactical placement than Federer (my all-time favorite player).  But with the start-stop and sliding that is unique to clay, Rafa does a great job covering the court.  Rafa also seems to focus on clay more than some of the other "golden age" stars - so as much as ability goes, it's also a choice to focus on clay.

To your original question, if you've ever played soccer on a soaking wet field (cough, cough, "pitch"), it will give you a sense of the difference you feel on clay.  You can't really run at things as hard, and you can't be quite as much in "react" mode as you are on a hardcourt surface.

Next time you are near a…

Next time you are near a clay court, see if you can sneak on just to walk around.  The surface is unique - you actually slide around a bit while you are playing.  This slipperiness not only impacts your footwork, but the ball "bites" into clay, making the effect of spin amplified.  And the ball comes off clay a bit slower than a hard court or grass.  Historically, that's meant that clay caters more to tactical players and is less rewarding of a pure power game.

Interestingly, though, the differences between clay, grass, and hard courts have diminished over the years - making the surfaces more consistent.  This allows players like Rafa to move between surfaces and still be pretty dominant.  (Of course a steady diet of steroids has also helped Rafa, depending on who you ask.)  The "blending" of the characteristics of the three main surfaces has been a bit of a controversy.  In any event, the days of "clay court specialist" are dwindling, if not gone.  That blending has meant that changing between surfaces is not as drastic as it was 20 years ago.

Clay forces changes in one's game, and is a hell of a lot of fun.  There was some hotel out in Ypsi that had outdoor clay courts back in the day, and I'd pretend that I thought they were public courts (they were near the road and away from the main hotel) until they'd chase me off.  Those were old-school clay (i.e., much "softer" than most clay courts these days), and just a riot to play on after spending nearly all my time playing on high school or muni hard courts.

I'm not even mad about this…

I'm not even mad about this.  Just disappointed.

I mean, I wish him luck and am grateful for all he did for the program.  But Cleveland?  The Cavs?  At age 66?

It's like a fever dream that I can't awake from.

I would have guessed the…

I would have guessed the Browns would have been interested.  (cough, cough ... Kareem Hunt ... cough cough)

I have a hard time pulling for Clark, unless he somehow had a real epiphany and turned his act around.  

"Both teams played hard.  …

"Both teams played hard.  (Rasheed.)"

Man I miss Rasheed (especially after witnessing a beat-down like last night's record-setting game*).  Maybe the funniest Detroit professional athlete in memory.

*Most consecutive playoff losses.  Jebus.

Thank you for noting that…

Thank you for noting that Payne essentially confessed to raping that woman with Appling.  To not bring charges with this sort of evidence goes well beyond "prosecutorial discretion" and points to a system fixed to allow MSU basketball and football players to commit heinous crimes without any consequences.

And now it's credibly alleged to have happened again, with the stock "oh, you don't want to get sideways with MSU athletics" response protocol having apparently been pushed downward.  It gives Izzo supposedly plausible deniability. 

Never stop beating the Appling-Payne drum.  That was a whitewash that even Penn State could arguably shake its head at.

MSU's athletic and academic administration was trash, is trash, and will (apparently) for the foreseeable future be trash.  F*ck them all with a rake.

After the very credible…

After the very credible Appling/Payne reports that MSU/ELPD/Ingham Cty Pros. never pursued, this is absolutely sickening.  Is it one tiny bit surprising?  It is not.

And I would not be surprised if additional claims crop up at the school that appointed John Fuckin' Engler to "clean things up" after the Nassar nightmare.  So far they've done little but kick the can w/r/t sexual assault.

That administration was shit under Lou Anna Simon, and by all appearances still is shit.  All the credit in the world to this young woman for standing up to MSU and its dirtball systematic covering up of sexual assault.  And props to the NYTimes for covering the story.

But hey - Final Four, amirite?*  
// says a huge chunk of the MSU fanbase //

So what you're saying is it…

So what you're saying is it's not the Xs and Qs, but the Bighorns and Ewes.

Got it.

This was a fun read and…

This was a fun read and brought back many good memories, but this bit:

While MGoBlog does not condone murder, I don't know what else you can call the decision to let this man tackle people.

strikes me as ... .  I don't know.  A tad judgmental?