I'm not sure who noticed the shot of the folding chairs before the opening kickoff - but I did, and laughed myself into a lonely existence around my family because I was the only one that appreciated the significance - or lack thereof - I don't even know. Apparently I, too, am now into absurdist Buddhism. See you on New Years Eve, M Fans. Go. Blue.
I'm a regular reader of this blog - most often during football season. It's my go-to for a source of truth on Michigan football - and it's a great source of info, perspective, and you know - sometimes - a few laughs. As sit here on the Monday after "The Best Day Michigan Fans Have Had In Literally Years" I'm embarrassed to admit I'm just finding this post now, even though I'd seen references, etc.
I'm happy you're doing the work to find something in the "pile of bricks" around you. Have been though some of that myself....the work is hard, but worth it. I know you'll eventually come out the other end of this process in a better place.
I hope you know that the work you've done here is appreciated by so many of us. Thank you for giving what you can, and for being a good steward to those who can help you by continuing to create content here. Keep up the good fight, and keep up the good work here.
We'll do our part as fans - we're the ones holding folding chairs in the air, cheering you on from the sidelines.
For all of its flaws - and this team has some - this team is wired differently than any Harbaugh team since maybe the Jake Rudock season. The aforementioned capability to knuckle down and deal with some adversity has become a consistent theme - and I love that this team has (generally) refused to beat itself. They have been well prepared, poised, and they've had a tendency to play well when the proverbial crap is hitting the proverbial fan.
I'll double down and use the words people are afraid to use: This has been a good season. There is hope that something very good could happen on November 27th.
Like literally almost everything else happening with the program, this is both “a bummer” and hard to explain. Obviously wish him all the best, but stuff like this is happening way too regularly any more....smh....
This was perhaps the most impressive opener you could have hoped for: plenty of opportunity for cleanups, but a convincing win, on the road, against a ranked opponent. The kicking game and the Hill injury loom large. I’m not as worried about the defense as some. This is modern college football - your opponent will score. The question is whether or not you can respond. For the first time in Jim Harbaugh’s tenure, last night, the answer was an emphatic “Yes”. Go Blue.
1) For whatever this team could have done, the one thing it was not going to do, Championships or not, was silence the Harbaugh rumors. I fully believe that Michigan bought those issues when they bought Harbaugh and no matter his record, I don’t believe they’re going away any time soon.
2) For as strong as Don Brown has been, it’s clear there are issues defensively. What they’re doing works well when they have the best athletes on the field. It’s clear they can’t count on that against elite competition (few teams can) and adjustments are in order. I pray they don’t go into next year thinking the addition of a single 5-star safety fixes things - they don’t - and they need to address this as urgently as the offense.
3) The offense is mind boggling. At some level, the talent level isn’t matching the on-field execution - and I just think it’s lazy to look at scheme and play calling and say all the issues are there (some are). We have yet to see one of these receivers take over and dominate a game. While some of this is a function of opportunity, there are clear issues with consistency and execution at the WR/TE position. I see some of the same things at QB, where Patterson missed 2-3 throws yesterday that could have gone for long chunks if they’re thrown well.
4) For all the issues - this team did exceed my expectations for most of the season. If you had told me in September they were going to OSU with one loss on their resume, I’m not sure I’d have believed it. I’m not sure what to say about the final two efforts because neither were close to the body of work they amassed during the season.
5) So long as he wants to be here, Harbaugh remains the best person for this job. He brings credibility and fit to the program, he understands the Michigan way, and I truly believe he wants to win in the worst way possible. I also truly believe he’s doing it the right way and there’s something about his version of the Michigan experience that’s about more than “just winnning football games”. Don’t undervalue that - it’s what differentiates Michigan from the OSU’s and SEC schools of the world. You can’t bash those programs for questionable integrity then demand UM win at all costs.
I can't remember the last time I saw a Michigan team that wanted to punish their opponent the way that this one does. They are absolutely using the recent past as motivation, and they know what they're capable of. The scary thing is this: I'm not sure we've seen their best game yet.
1) I hate to mention 2017, but it's plays like this that continue to make me feel like 2017 was more about injuries and poor execution than it was anything the coaching staff was/wasn't doing. The overall point is this: if you're going to successfully run tendency-breakers - you have to have a successful tendency. We saw a lot of this type of thing in 2015 and 2016. The concept of "successful tendency" was non-existent in 2017 - and it showed. That these sort of things are happening again is significant improvement. Not only is this well designed from a coaching perspective, players executed and did the thing. We all applauded in kind. Yay.
2) There's a point above that mentions WR screen options. I thought there were multiple times where Michigan could have run WR screen against Wisconsin and I found myself wondering where that existed in the playbook, if at all. In the spirit of breaking tendencies, I find myself wondering if that's a wrinkle we've yet to see. Time will tell.
I'm surprised that I haven't seen anything that talks about this game being the reverse of the 2007 "Little Brother" game.
2007 was a game that MSU probably should have won. They did everything but win and ended up losing to a team that, although talented, was harder, more battle-tested, and simply found a way to pull something out of nothing. The events that spun afterward are the things that have propelled MSU to the position they're in today.
As much as UM's program is on a positive arc - the challenge for the players and coaches will be laying the groundwork to use this as the event that fuels tomorrow's champions. In my opinion, Harbaugh has handled this perfectly - no crying, shake it off, "welcome to football", "steel in our spines". Nobody in this group is going to forget what happened - ever. They have the opportunity to use this as the event that brings it all together.
Think about it - for all the pain and suffering - we may have just witnessed the thing that 10 years from now will be heralded as the event that started it all (the thing that is MSU's "Little Brother Game"): a devastating loss that galvanized the whole thing.
From my vantage point, he cared more about dancing in the spotlight than winning games - another example of a kid that came in with a lot of hype under Hoke, and either didn't develop himself to his full potential or wasn't in the right environment to do so (or both).
It's been interesting to me thus far that Harbaugh's attitude has been to challenge guys at every turn to earn their spot on the roster, and it seems that some haven't taken kindly to the culture change.
If we're going to embrace Michigan tradition (The Team, The Team, The Team) then we shouldn't be sad when the guy who likes to dance in the spotlight moves on to greener pastures.
Recent Comments
I’m…
Fair. And noted.
I’m still smiling ear-to-ear. One more to go.
let’s get it done.
Gotta love a good Corey Hart reference, amirite?
I'm not sure who noticed the shot of the folding chairs before the opening kickoff - but I did, and laughed myself into a lonely existence around my family because I was the only one that appreciated the significance - or lack thereof - I don't even know. Apparently I, too, am now into absurdist Buddhism. See you on New Years Eve, M Fans. Go. Blue.
I'm a regular…
Brian -
I'm a regular reader of this blog - most often during football season. It's my go-to for a source of truth on Michigan football - and it's a great source of info, perspective, and you know - sometimes - a few laughs. As sit here on the Monday after "The Best Day Michigan Fans Have Had In Literally Years" I'm embarrassed to admit I'm just finding this post now, even though I'd seen references, etc.
I'm happy you're doing the work to find something in the "pile of bricks" around you. Have been though some of that myself....the work is hard, but worth it. I know you'll eventually come out the other end of this process in a better place.
I hope you know that the work you've done here is appreciated by so many of us. Thank you for giving what you can, and for being a good steward to those who can help you by continuing to create content here. Keep up the good fight, and keep up the good work here.
We'll do our part as fans - we're the ones holding folding chairs in the air, cheering you on from the sidelines.
Cheers. Peace.
For all of its flaws - and this team has some - this team is wired differently than any Harbaugh team since maybe the Jake Rudock season. The aforementioned capability to knuckle down and deal with some adversity has become a consistent theme - and I love that this team has (generally) refused to beat itself. They have been well prepared, poised, and they've had a tendency to play well when the proverbial crap is hitting the proverbial fan.
I'll double down and use the words people are afraid to use: This has been a good season. There is hope that something very good could happen on November 27th.
Like literally almost everything else happening with the program, this is both “a bummer” and hard to explain. Obviously wish him all the best, but stuff like this is happening way too regularly any more....smh....
This was perhaps the most impressive opener you could have hoped for: plenty of opportunity for cleanups, but a convincing win, on the road, against a ranked opponent. The kicking game and the Hill injury loom large. I’m not as worried about the defense as some. This is modern college football - your opponent will score. The question is whether or not you can respond. For the first time in Jim Harbaugh’s tenure, last night, the answer was an emphatic “Yes”. Go Blue.
1) For…
A few thoughts here:
1) For whatever this team could have done, the one thing it was not going to do, Championships or not, was silence the Harbaugh rumors. I fully believe that Michigan bought those issues when they bought Harbaugh and no matter his record, I don’t believe they’re going away any time soon.
2) For as strong as Don Brown has been, it’s clear there are issues defensively. What they’re doing works well when they have the best athletes on the field. It’s clear they can’t count on that against elite competition (few teams can) and adjustments are in order. I pray they don’t go into next year thinking the addition of a single 5-star safety fixes things - they don’t - and they need to address this as urgently as the offense.
3) The offense is mind boggling. At some level, the talent level isn’t matching the on-field execution - and I just think it’s lazy to look at scheme and play calling and say all the issues are there (some are). We have yet to see one of these receivers take over and dominate a game. While some of this is a function of opportunity, there are clear issues with consistency and execution at the WR/TE position. I see some of the same things at QB, where Patterson missed 2-3 throws yesterday that could have gone for long chunks if they’re thrown well.
4) For all the issues - this team did exceed my expectations for most of the season. If you had told me in September they were going to OSU with one loss on their resume, I’m not sure I’d have believed it. I’m not sure what to say about the final two efforts because neither were close to the body of work they amassed during the season.
5) So long as he wants to be here, Harbaugh remains the best person for this job. He brings credibility and fit to the program, he understands the Michigan way, and I truly believe he wants to win in the worst way possible. I also truly believe he’s doing it the right way and there’s something about his version of the Michigan experience that’s about more than “just winnning football games”. Don’t undervalue that - it’s what differentiates Michigan from the OSU’s and SEC schools of the world. You can’t bash those programs for questionable integrity then demand UM win at all costs.
6) Go Blue.
I can't remember the last time I saw a Michigan team that wanted to punish their opponent the way that this one does. They are absolutely using the recent past as motivation, and they know what they're capable of. The scary thing is this: I'm not sure we've seen their best game yet.
Great post. A couple thoughts:
1) I hate to mention 2017, but it's plays like this that continue to make me feel like 2017 was more about injuries and poor execution than it was anything the coaching staff was/wasn't doing. The overall point is this: if you're going to successfully run tendency-breakers - you have to have a successful tendency. We saw a lot of this type of thing in 2015 and 2016. The concept of "successful tendency" was non-existent in 2017 - and it showed. That these sort of things are happening again is significant improvement. Not only is this well designed from a coaching perspective, players executed and did the thing. We all applauded in kind. Yay.
2) There's a point above that mentions WR screen options. I thought there were multiple times where Michigan could have run WR screen against Wisconsin and I found myself wondering where that existed in the playbook, if at all. In the spirit of breaking tendencies, I find myself wondering if that's a wrinkle we've yet to see. Time will tell.
I'm surprised that I haven't seen anything that talks about this game being the reverse of the 2007 "Little Brother" game.
2007 was a game that MSU probably should have won. They did everything but win and ended up losing to a team that, although talented, was harder, more battle-tested, and simply found a way to pull something out of nothing. The events that spun afterward are the things that have propelled MSU to the position they're in today.
As much as UM's program is on a positive arc - the challenge for the players and coaches will be laying the groundwork to use this as the event that fuels tomorrow's champions. In my opinion, Harbaugh has handled this perfectly - no crying, shake it off, "welcome to football", "steel in our spines". Nobody in this group is going to forget what happened - ever. They have the opportunity to use this as the event that brings it all together.
Think about it - for all the pain and suffering - we may have just witnessed the thing that 10 years from now will be heralded as the event that started it all (the thing that is MSU's "Little Brother Game"): a devastating loss that galvanized the whole thing.
Time will tell...
From my vantage point, he cared more about dancing in the spotlight than winning games - another example of a kid that came in with a lot of hype under Hoke, and either didn't develop himself to his full potential or wasn't in the right environment to do so (or both).
It's been interesting to me thus far that Harbaugh's attitude has been to challenge guys at every turn to earn their spot on the roster, and it seems that some haven't taken kindly to the culture change.
If we're going to embrace Michigan tradition (The Team, The Team, The Team) then we shouldn't be sad when the guy who likes to dance in the spotlight moves on to greener pastures.
My two cents.