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There won't be much of a…

There won't be much of a difference between the varying options on the media consumption side. Pay attention to size and screen specs, but you'll be able to find good options across any OS. Not much to differentiate in that space.

With productivity, I think it comes down to how much and how often you plan to use your tablet. Are you envisioning taking hand-written notes with a stylus? If so, do you need those notes to sync up to a desktop/laptop somewhere? In my experience, the productivity angle for a tablet just isn't there. For almost any productivity task, a laptop is a superior experience.

Last thing to consider is overall OS integration with other devices you own. What type of phone do you use? What type of laptop? If Apple, then an iPad is going to make sense because it will fit in seamlessly with everything else. If Android or Windows, then an iPad may not make as much sense.

Personally, I have an Android phone and Windows laptop. I have a Google Pixel Tablet (Android). I don't try to do anything productivity-related on the tablet, so it's primarily media-consumption. The other thing I like about the Pixel Tablet is the included dock. The dock charges the tablet well, and serves as a good home hub and music player. It's very practical and just works well.

Define "high". Because, uh,…

Define "high". Because, uh, I'll probably still pay.

Honestly, depth is a concern…

Honestly, depth is a concern across the board with next year's team. One of the great things about Team 144 was the level of depth across the board. That enabled them to rotate heavily, and I suspect contributed to them largely staying healthy over the course of the season.

With Team 145, even the defensive depth is concerning. The starters will all be great, but there isn't much behind them.  

Man, seriously. Getting…

Man, seriously. Getting through the dark ages makes this run so much enjoyable, memorable, special. All of it. It actually happened. Wow.

The one arguable flaw is…

The one arguable flaw is that you are using SP+ ratings that include the bowl games, and that skews things because for most bowls there were (1) many starters opting out, and (2) teams with players who did not really seem to care much.  And that is why OSU comes in at the no. 33 offense, for example.  Prior to scoring only 3 and gaining so few yards with a depleted roster, OSU was a top ten offense, per SP+. 

I had a similar thought, but you must not be looking at the correct SP+ data. When I looked at the SP+ pre-bowl rankings, OSU's offense was at #25. I also had expected to see OSU's offense ranked higher, but I think that was just a matter of assumption. I realize the bowls skewed some things, but I think that's where the overall dataset prevents massive jumps. I kept the reference point as post-bowl rankings to have the most data available.

Yes, 100%. I am a big fan of…

Yes, 100%. I am a big fan of the Big Game Blues, but the classic blue on maize just looks so good. Plus you can't mess with the mojo after that game yesterday. In fact, if you ask me, I say they shouldn't even wash the jerseys. Just keep them as is and put them back on next Monday.

This is special. One more to…

This is special. One more to go and all that, but just take a moment to bask. Take it all in. These are good times.

I'm not a lawyer, but I had…

I'm not a lawyer, but I had two main takeaways of the B1G message:

  • They focused a lot on the evidence, gathered by the NCAA, that proves the scheme Stalions was running. But that hasn't been the point of any of this. UM acknowledged what he did, but they called into question whether the noted NCAA rules were actually broken. Petitti did nothing to advance or further clarify how Stalions' actions broke the noted bylaws. Petitti's message was the proof shows he did this thing, and that thing broke the rules, therefore punishment. 
  • They also focused heavily on the justification for immediate action, based on Michigan's supposed competitive advantage. They misinterpreted Michigan's pointing out OSU and others stealing signs as deflection or whataboutism. But what that actually demonstrates is the relatively negligible advantage Michigan gained from Stalions' scheme. In context, Michigan was treading water with their opponents rather than gaining some competitive upper hand. One could even make the case that Michigan would have been at a competitive disadvantage without the work done by Stalions.
Interesting, glad to see him…

Interesting, glad to see him in Detroit!

I live in Cleveland, so have been following him closely in Cleveland. He's shown flashes, and people keep looking to him break out, but he hasn't consistently strung together good games. He's also had extremely inconsistent and variable QB play in his time. I'll be excited to see him in Detroit with a consistent QB.

Brian employing a liberal…

Brian employing a liberal amount of the Royal We in this post. Starting to sound like Balas!

Decent chance that all of…

Decent chance that all of these teams remain unbeaten after this weekend. In my mind, the teams at greatest risk of losing:

  1. Liberty. Will be a tough conference opponent for them.
  2. Oklahoma. I could see Kansas being a sneaky tough game.
  3. UGA - decent opponent in Florida.
lol I was about to praise…

lol I was about to praise the OP for posting such quality information...then checked and saw it was posted by Seth. No surprise there, thanks Seth!

McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy…

McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy.

For whatever reason, reading this made me think of Steve Ballmer's "developers" chant.

 

McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy, McCarthy...yeah!

This was going to be my…

This was going to be my suggestion. If you have a streaming service that you can use to watch the game, your best bet might be firing up a VPN and watching from your hotel. 

I think it's likely that…

I think it's likely that someone in the MSU admin saw this as an opportunity to get out of Mel's contract, so they leaked it. The whole thing is a mess.

Interesting you mention the…

Interesting you mention the rapture. That's a connection I've lost over the years, but seeing your comment here brought back a lot of memories. 9/11 was right around the time when the "Left Behind" series was at the height of its popularity. So I do remember my family and a lot of people in church thinking we were nearing end times.  

I opened up CNN.com…

I opened up CNN.com expecting that a Cessna hit it.

I wonder if it was initially reported that the first plane was a Cessna or something. Would have to go back to broadcasts or the initial reports that came out. Because you're not the first one to mention that, and that's one of the memories that sticks in my mind. The initial fogginess of information. Hearing a plane hit one of the WTC towers and thinking "must have been an accident, must have been a small plane like a Cessna". The slow realization of the reality of the situation, then seeing the second plane hit. Then fuzzy reports of the Pentagon being hit, which ended up getting confirmed. Then fuzzy reports of another plane crashing in Pennsylvania, and then that getting confirmed. I think there was also another fuzzy report of a second plane hitting the Pentagon, which obviously ended up not being the case.

But I think that's one of the things about that day that is easy to forget with the clarity of hindsight: the amount of confusion, uncertainty, and fear that seemed to pervade. Led to a sense of wondering "what's next?"

Unrelated to numbers, but I…

Unrelated to numbers, but I've never heard Sabb's name pronounced before, and wasn't sure quite the correct pronunciation. I checked his bio, and sure enough there's a soundbyte of him saying it himself. So for those like me wondering, it is officially:

Keon (key-on)
Sabb (rhymes with stab)

The Twitter account itself…

The Twitter account itself is fairly reliable, as far as I know. But I'm taking all of this information with a huge grain of salt.

To be clear, I was mostly being facetious about Prigozhin arranging for his own plane to be shot down to fake his death. All of this is pretty bizarre, but if reports are getting out that his body has been identified in the wreckage...well, it's hard to refute that. (But then, I also question who is releasing the information to the media saying he has been identified. Hence the grains of salt.)

So then how surprised would…

So then how surprised would you be to learn that there was a second plane, also owned by Prigozhin, that landed safely in Moscow shortly after the first one crashed...

https://twitter.com/sentdefender/status/1694400331247948098?s=20

 

I'm going to put my money on "Prigozhin arranged for the first plane to be shot down, to create a diversion that would allow him to land on the second plane and escape Putin's grip".

The biggest thing to me was…

The biggest thing to me was at the 22-second mark, when the lights flashed on and off moving along the stadium. I suspect it'll be reminiscent of other stadiums where the lights flash and go crazy for TDs and other big events during a game. The Tennessee-Alabama game from last season comes to mind as an example.

Favorite is probably Denver…

Favorite is probably Denver. I like the openness, high ceilings, and have generally had good experiences connecting through there. (Note it has been a good 4-5 years since I last flew through there, and I read some things about security being insane there now.) Also, tons of fodder for conspiracy theories:

  • Runways are aligned in the shape of a swastika (I actually noticed this once from the air, then looked it up and sure enough).
  • Murals with odd depictions of death and destruction (with more SS symbolism).
  • Free Masons symbology on the murals.
  • Blue demon horse out front.
  • Location almost certainly means there's some sort of underground government bunker there. Which makes everything else above that much more interesting.

I also like the Minneapolis airport. Clean, open, lots of food options.

Least favorites:

  • Chicago O'Hare. I've missed more connections here than anywhere else combined. 
  • Frankfurt, Germany. I've only flown through here once, but for such a large airport, it was very chaotic and unorganized. I've also heard lots of reports of lost baggage here.
You've just listed every…

You've just listed every show our kids have watched growing up.

In the past 6ish months or so, we've transitioned into a phase where they now exclusively watch Dude Perfect, That's Amazing, and anything involving trick shots. I like the creativity that it has spawned, as they now spend hours on end trying to recreate trick shots, bottle flip challenges, and dice-stacking...but the constant thudding of the bottles being flipped starts to get on your nerves.

A number of years ago, I was…

A number of years ago, I was waiting to board a flight in Chicago. As the inbound plane arrived and de-boarded, I swear I saw Tony Hawk step off as the first person off the plane. He was walking quickly and I wasn't paying all that close of attention, but he caught my eye since he looked familiar. As he passed by me, I was wracking my brain trying to think of who he looked like. Then it struck me that he looked like Tony Hawk. By that point, he was well gone so I can't say for 100% certainty it was him...but I'm 98.5% certain.

That's what I find…

That's what I find interesting in people's reactions. Everyone hears "non-human" and assumes that means alien. It could be robot, animal...there are many things that are non-human.

My guess is there are legitimate UAP objects that pilots are seeing; I believe the testimony of the pilots who are observing strange things up in the sky. But I think those objects are likely either top-top secret US vehicles (which, due to compartmentalization, pilots and other military personnel are not privileged enough to know about), or they are top-top secret vehicles from foreign governments.

Logged in to say the same…

Logged in to say the same. To me, that's the safest and most fool-proof way to ensure nobody can do something with my identity. It's a hassle when you need a credit check, but I have no loans to take out, and it's a fairly quick process to temporarily unfreeze your credit at each of the agencies. A minor hassle to ensure that nobody can take out new loans, credit cards, etc with my identity. And in this day and age, with all the data breaches that have taken place, we should all assume our identities have been compromised.

This is fantastic, thanks…

This is fantastic, thanks for the info. You guys are making me lean more toward Hamburg.

If I were to do Berlin though, do you think I'll have any issue finding train tickets? I keep hearing about summer holiday being a busy travel time in Germany, and when I initially did some looking (over a week ago at this point), the site I found for train tickets showed nothing available for the Friday evening I would try to get from Hamburg to Berlin. Are there reliable sites/apps for booking train tickets, or would I be better off walking up to the train station and buying a ticket? I'll be there end of July through the first weekish of August, for reference.

Awesome, thanks for the info…

Awesome, thanks for the info. I'm fascinated by WWII history, so that church and the navy yard sound awesome. The place I'm staying is actually further north from Hamburg, so I'll be staying right on the Baltic Sea. I'm looking forward to that. My ideal weekend getaway would be to the mountains in the south for a good hike, but I think the travel distance will make that too hard with limited time. I keep reminding myself that I'm going there for work, so I can't just prioritize seeing a new country.

Sounds like Hamburg itself could be a good option.

Also, if you have rules that…

Also, if you have rules that move emails to folders automatically, you do not have the option to still pop a desktop alert. Rules from the old Outlook with the alert set as an action are incompatible in the new version. And when you create a rule in the new version, there's no option to add a desktop alert as an action. This was the primary reason I switched back; I rely on some of these rules to still pop up a desktop alert, so when emails were coming through and going to my folders without me knowing, that was impactful.

Here's the overall schedule…

Here's the overall schedule with groups:

And here's the detailed game schedule:

To me, Oregon and Washington…

To me, Oregon and Washington make so much sense, I have to imagine they would be part of any expansion. They check the boxes for academics (AAU), have competitive athletics, and expand the B1G footprint. I imagine USC and UCLA are looking for some company so they don't have to travel east so much.

Aside from that, it's hard to say what would come of the southeastern schools. UNC and GT seem like good choices, but I don't think you can get UNC without Duke and/or NC State, and those are less palatable options to me. I've heard more recent speculation about FSU and Miami, and while those schools don't check the AAU box, those would be great additions from an athletics perspective.

So if 24 is the goal, then my next 8 are:

  1. Oregon
  2. Washington
  3. UNC
  4. Duke
  5. NC State
  6. GT
  7. FSU
  8. Miami
Came here to say UM/OSU '97…

Came here to say UM/OSU '97. Incredible game with great, iconic moments, and of course iconic players.

Always felt like he was…

Always felt like he was close to a huge play but would just miss it.

Hit the nail on the head. How many times was he in position for an INT then just dropped it? Or how many times did he come flying up to stuff a run, only to run right past the ball-carrier, or just bounce off the tackle?

Came here to say this is…

Came here to say this is good news for at least one of Zeke/Sabb/Dent. Makes it clear that Paige and Moore are the clear leaders at safety, and that Moten had been passed on the depth chart.

Good luck to Moten wherever he lands, but the safety position appears to be very strong for UM.

This gif ages like a fine…

This gif ages like a fine wine. Every time I see it, it's somehow better than the last time. Does not get old. It's just fantastic.

Taking notes. And posting…

Taking notes. And posting here so I can more easily find this in the future!

Lastly, ChatGPT has some…

Lastly, ChatGPT has some holes in the data.  I didn't go through each team and year, but thought it was close enough to share to see close to "what could have been". 

Before reading through it, my first question was how closely you spot-checked the data for quality. My (fairly limited) experience with ChatGPT so far is that it does a good job of understanding your inputs and providing clear answers that address the question...but that upon closer inspection, it does not do a good job of following parameters, especially when multiple parameters are involved.

So it's no surprise to me that ChatGPT would provide something that appears relevant, but in reality is dubiously accurate. It's a fun exercise though!

Yeah, I dunno. The team…

Yeah, I dunno. The team certainly isn't a contender, but in my opinion last season saw just about everything go wrong that possibly could go wrong. Between injuries, weird circumstances (Meadows dealing with vertigo, Eduardo going AWOL), and top guys like Greene and Tork going through their initial adjustments to the major league level...I just don't see a similar level of fluky things coming together to somehow end up worse than last season.

Last year's pitching staff was held together with duct tape and bubble gum, so I think there's potential for improvement there this season. Greene, Tork, and Meadows this year should be better than last year's versions of themselves. Maybe Miggy gets some final-year magic?

I guess my argument is basically that I don't see how they could be worse than last year! Day 1 optimism!

Same. Makes more sense over…

Same. Makes more sense over YTTV especially if you also have Disney+.

Traditional maize and blue…

Traditional maize and blue is undefeated. Can't be beat.

Aside from that, big game blues!

There have been so many…

There have been so many hints at "exciting" and "upcoming" NIL opportunities that just haven't come to fruition...I'll believe it when I see it. UM is behind the curve in this department, and the track record so far indicates that it won't change while Warde is in charge.

Prescient.

Prescient.

Wait wut. The bot attack…

Wait wut. The bot attack that led to huge increases in players for OSU and TAMU was led by one of our own?

This is a challenge of…

This is a challenge of diplomacy at this point. We have the strongest team, but we've been pressed on multiple fronts from the beginning, in ways that others have not. I'm surprised that OSU has managed to forge an alliance with Wisconsin AND GT; the fact that we don't appear to have any allies is glaring at this stage, and will absolutely prevent us from winning. 

Risk 1.0 bot

Risk 1.0 bot

I don't think it's a…

I don't think it's a difference in the quality of sources. I think Balas is as well-sourced as Webb. To me, it comes down more to philosophy: Balas is willing to divulge more of what he hears, on a more frequent basis. So you see more of the ups and downs and twists and turns in a story. Sam doesn't post as frequently, but when he does, he reports on things that are more solid. 

That doesn't mean Balas isn't plugged in or that he's hearing bad info. He moreso reports things as they evolve, which means thing change in fluid situations. 

If I was in charge I would…

If I was in charge I would extend Berhalter through (hopefully) the 2024 Copa America and then re-evaluate then.

Isn't this the worst possible path forward? Seems to me a mid-cycle coaching change would be disastrous for the '26 WC. Either you go all in with Berhalter and stick with him through '26, or you make a change now so the new coach can establish himself with the team and organization before it's too late for '26.

Here are the FEI definitions…

Here are the FEI definitions:

Overall Stats:

  • Fremeau Efficiency Index ratings (FEI) are opponent-adjusted possession efficiency data representing the per-possession scoring advantage a team would be expected to have on a neutral field against an average opponent.
  • Offense ratings (OFEI) and defense ratings (DFEI) are opponent-adjusted drive efficiency data representing the per-drive scoring advantage a team unit would be expected to have against an average opponent unit.
  • Net drive efficiency (NDE) is the sum of offensive drive efficiency and defensive drive efficiency data representing scoring value earned by offense and defense units per drive.
  • Strength of schedule ratings represent the expected number of losses an elite team two standard deviations better than average would have against each team's schedule to date (ELS), the expected number of losses a good team one standard deviation above average would have against the schedule to date (GLS), and the expected number of losses an average team would have against the schedule to date (ALS).

Offensive Stats:

  • Offensive drive efficiency (ODE) is scoring value gained or lost per offensive drive.
  • Touchdown rate (OTD) is the percentage of offensive drives that result in a touchdown.
  • Value drive rate (OVD) is the percentage of offensive drives that conclude with a drive end value greater than the drive start value based on field position.
  • First down rate (OFD) is the percentage of offensive drives that earn at least one first down.
  • Busted drive rate (OBD) is the percentage of offensive drives that gain zero or negative yards.
  • Turnover rate (OTO) is the percentage of offensive drives that end with an interception or fumble.

Defensive Stats:

  • Defensive drive efficiency (DDE) is scoring value gained or lost per opponent offensive drive.
  • Touchdown rate (DTD) is the percentage of opponent offensive drives that result in a touchdown.
  • Value drive rate (DVD) is the percentage of opponent offensive drives that conclude with a drive end value greater than the drive start value based on field position. 
  • First down rate (DFD) is the percentage of opponent offensive drives that earn at least one first down.
  • Busted drive rate (DBD) is the percentage of opponent offensive drives that gain zero or negative yards.
  • Turnover rate (DTO) is the percentage of opponent offensive drives that end with an interception or fumble.
This just feels so good…

This just feels so good. After so many years of frustration and disappointment, going back to App State and everything that followed. Just feels like we can finally put that chapter behind us. These are the good ol' days. Soak it up while we can.

Big game blues!

Personally,…

Big game blues!

Personally, I prefer the classic maize pants and blue jersey, but I don't care what they wear as long as they win!

GO BLUE!!