I tend to agree about PSU. That said, their schedule is easier than Michigan's. Their toughest games are @USC, vs osu, vs Washington. Maybe @ Wisconsin. Their OOC P5 game is against WVU which is not a bad team, maybe above average, but not top tier. I could see them going 10-2 against this schedule. I think they lose to osu again and one of USC or Washington, but could win the rest.
As someone who only lived in Michigan for college and is not a native Michigander (or midwesterner, for that matter), what's the deal with Windsor Tunnel? All I know is I drove through it a bunch of times to go drink, gamble, and eat at Chinatown when I was in college.
It honors the civil rights movement b/c that is the license plate someone who demonstrated in support of civil rights had on her car at the time? Tenuous connection, but hey, whatever works.
My daughter is a senior and will attend the University of Georgia, owing to a scholarship which makes it about the same cost as attending the in-state flagship school.
My niece is a senior and will attend Duke (Early Decision). They can afford it, but it will still hurt.
I would not get into Michigan today. My nephew had a 1540 SAT, top 10 in his class, varsity tennis and platform tennis/paddle, part-time job, various leadership positions, NHS, national merit scholar, 12 APs and got rejected from Michigan. His profile is WAY better than mine was.
On the topic of number of schools kids apply to these days, my daughter applied to just 5 schools - Michigan, Illinois, Virginia, Georgia, NCSU, Louisville. Got into 4, deferred/rejected from Michigan, waitlisted at UVA. Two reach (UM, UVA), two probable (UVA, UGA), two safety (NCSU, UL). It worked out about the way we expected it to.
That said, most of my friends' kids applied to 10-15 schools which seems crazy to me, and I know some kids apply to even more. I guess you can shoot your shot, but at what point does it just become ridiculous?
Not been to too many. If I had to rank them, it would probably be in this order, although the first 3 are all pretty great imo.
Suntrust - er, Truist - Park: really nice, modern ball park. Brick facades give it a classic feel, great sightlines, good food. The Battery surrounding the ballpark is fantastic for before and after the game, or just on a random weeknight to have dinner/drinks. Parking is actually not too bad. Only thing that would make it better is if there was MARTA (ATL rapid transit) to the park.
Petco: Great park, saw the Braves/Pads there last year. Beautiful park, fantastic food, just a really great atmosphere all around. The area is definitely very walkable, which is nice. No idea about parking since I stayed at the Omni Hotel which has a walkway connecting hotel and ballpark - which is another plus! The Braves were staying there and I saw a few players and met a couple coaches. Really cool setup.
PNC: Gave a presentation to an industry group in a luxury box there one time (yeah yeah it was really just a boondoggle). Love the park - really classic ballpark feel while still being very modern. Nice area around the ballpark.
Wrigley: great history, cool city neighborhood location, the El right there. Definitely is old and smelly and not the best sightlines if you're under the upper deck. Still, a great place to watch a game. I've also been in the bleachers which are cool, but man it gets hot out there. Def bring a ton of sunscreen.
Coors Field: Loved the backdrop, great sightlines from outfield, ball carries (3 homers in that game which is always fun). I recall the food being good and that it was a fun atmosphere. Stadium facade is really nice, classic brick. Was with family, so we didn't spend any time around/outside the stadium so no comment there.
Gone:
Turner Field: this was actually a pretty cool stadium, I thought, with the Olympic opening/closing ceremonies and track and field events having been hosted there. I actually liked the design of the stadium and amenities. Pain to get to, though. While there is technically public transit to the stadium, the train lets you off at a station a couple miles away and you have to take dedicated buses to the stadium - and then reverse it on the way back. It's now known as Center Parc Stadium and is home to the Georgia State Panthers football team.
Tigers Stadium: Not having grown up in Michigan, my first time there was to watch the Mariners (Junior!) and Tigers sometime around 1996 or 1997. I don't remember much, just that we sat in the right field seats and he didn't hit a home run. That said, it was one of the classic stadiums from MLB history which is really cool.
Atlanta Fulton County Stadium: That was a dump by the end. Watched the Braves and Olympic baseball there. Generic, but still holds a special place for me as it was where I watched my first (several) MLB games as a kid.
Manu grew up in Tongo in the South Pacific and has looked up to [Penei] Sewell for years, saying his island is about a 45-minute flight from where Sewell grew up [on the American Samoan island of Tutuila] in the South Pacific. He's studied a lot of his film and has followed his journey to becoming arguably the best tackle in football.
"When I was in college I watched (Sewell's) draft day process. It was basically a blog of his whole day being drafted and I remember he ended the blog by saying, 'Any Polynesian kids out there and he named all the islands and I remember he said Tonga and said If you kids out there want to make it to the NFL you can truly make it if you put your mind to it.'
"I remember I was in my second year of college when he said that and I remember him saying that and it really motivated me and I told myself, 'If one of my fellow Polynesian brothers can make it, and he's giving me words of motivation, there's no reason why I can't do it either.' He's a true inspiration."
Saw that too. Prisco's rationale on the scoring makes zero sense at all. Penix at #8 is a terrible pick for the Falcons. I hate the pick b/c they have needs RIGHT NOW that should have been addressed. That should be a C- at best.
JJ at #10 - when he was significantly higher on most draft boards, including that of Bill Belichik - is a relative steal at a position of need.
But dude, maybe he could cool it with the pettiness, or at least the public insults.
Maybe you're reading some news stories that I'm not reading, but the only comments that I've seen being released by his agents indicates that he was "stunned" and "shocked" at the pick. Not exactly what I would call "pettiness" and "public insults."
If you have a source on the pettiness, I'd genuinely be interested in seeing it b/c google turns up bupkis for me.
Kirk Cousins is a 35 year old veteran who was CLEARLY signed to lead the team and teach the young guys …and he’s acting like a petulant child for…not being the only QB on the roster???
I think you're letting your anti-msu bias get the best of you. By all reports, he was surprised at the pick b/c it does nothing to help the team win now, particularly in a significant area of need on the DL. Rather, the Falcons' explanation is that they expect to win going forward and won't have an opportunity to draft their QB of the future in 2-3 years, so they drafted him now.
I think the move was stupid too and I'd be particularly baffled if I were in Cousins' position, also. No idea what kind of message they're sending to the guy they just signed for a guaranteed $100M to lead the team.
My hometown team! I would not be mad at that. They've got some great offensive weapons. That said, they did just sign Cousins to a 4 year deal. Not sure why they'd sign him at 8 and just sit him for a few years behind Cousins.
Only 6 super bowls have been played north of the mason dixon line - 2 in Detroit (Silverdome, Ford Field), 2 in Minneapolis (Metrodome, US Bank), 1 in Indy (Lucas Oil), and 1 in NJ (Met Life).
The 2 coldest outdoor super bowls were in 1972 and 1975 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans with kickoff temp of 39F and 46F. A bit ironic that New Orleans of all places has claim to the coldest outdoor super bowls ever. The game at Met Life Stadium had a temp of 49F at kickoff, third coldest.
I'm with you. He has all the skills and physical toughness you want, but he fell apart under all that pressure. Could just be smoke. Second round? Sure. First round? Reach. Top half of the first round? Um wut?
He was absolutely deflecting and looking for hits. All he had to do was write that he was trying to be funny, but realizes now that it was inappropriate and demeaning to Ms. Clark and he apologizes and will do better going forward.
That's it. Whatever that was somehow made things worse, imo.
I couldn't' understand what he said before the pause and she responded with, "you like that?" The thing he said at the end is super weird and creepy, but what did he say at the beginning after he ID'ed himself?
Yeah fanatics absolutely gets you on all their fees which wipe out any savings. Was looking at a $40 item for 20% off, but it was basically back to regular price after the $8.99 shipping, the additional $3.99 handling fee, and taxes. Slightly more palatable if you go through a site like rakuten and get some cash back (usually 2-3% for fanatics, but occasionally more), but it doesn't come close to making up the difference.
"Two quarterbacks are conspicuously missing. Oregon’s Bo Nix and Washington’s Michael Penix are not scheduled to attend the draft. It is unclear why Nix and Penix aren’t going."
and then:
"Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy also is absent from the list. "
Somehow, Nix and Penix missing the draft is conspicuous, but the other guy most talking heads peg as going in the top 5 picks missing the draft isn't? Weird.
That's Smith's schtick - be "contrarian" and be "controversial" and be "provocative" just for the sake of being so. Oh, that and literally being the loudest voice in the room. This is why I literally only watch ESPN these days for the live sports. I don't even watch Sportscenter anymore.
Good catch. I was so focused on transcribing the projections that I didn't even notice the absence of Zinter. That's a miss on his part for sure. Only OL he has listed is Drake Nugent.
Very cool! I quit debate after high school, awesome that you continued in college. I took a different route, joining the Men's Glee Club freshman year at UM.
I went summer of 1991 and stayed in Couzens. We worked hard and had a lot of fun. One of the highlights was when our counselors took us to watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show at... maybe it was the State Theater? Can't remember, but that was my first ever RHPS.
The one thing that stands out is that he mentions being called out/insulted by everyone at the other places he left. I don't know if he meant that there are just some disgruntled fans who will always criticize coaches for leaving or if it's his thing to leave his previous jobs with some level of controversy, but it doesn't sound good.
That said, the fact that he read and quoted Tressel's book does show some initiative and sucking up (as an "elite relationship builder").
I was a debater in HS, but definitely not a master debater. The schools back in the early 90s I recall as being excellent at debating are New Trier, Glenbrook North, Westminster, Georgetown Day School (GDS), Vestavia Hills, Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, some school near Houston I can't remember, a couple of schools in NC, I want to say Detroit Country Day but might be misremembering (maybe also Bloomfield Hills). Anyway, I went to mostly local and regional tournaments.
I did go to summer debate camps at Michigan, Emory, and American University (DC). It was pretty cool being a HS kid studying, doing research, and taking classes (um, debate camp classes) on college campuses.
I didn't care for Ryan Walters, but Matt Painter seems like a good dude and I have nothing against their basketball team. I also like Zach Edey. I also don't need to see UConn win yet another championship.
Recent Comments
The Braves City Connect jersey isn't anything earth-shattering, but I love it b/c it's basically a 1970s throwback uni and it looks great.
I tend to agree about PSU. That said, their schedule is easier than Michigan's. Their toughest games are @USC, vs osu, vs Washington. Maybe @ Wisconsin. Their OOC P5 game is against WVU which is not a bad team, maybe above average, but not top tier. I could see them going 10-2 against this schedule. I think they lose to osu again and one of USC or Washington, but could win the rest.
Actually, he has Utah at #6. and yes, Ole Miss at #5
He has Oklahoma at #17.
As someone who only lived in Michigan for college and is not a native Michigander (or midwesterner, for that matter), what's the deal with Windsor Tunnel? All I know is I drove through it a bunch of times to go drink, gamble, and eat at Chinatown when I was in college.
It honors the civil rights movement b/c that is the license plate someone who demonstrated in support of civil rights had on her car at the time? Tenuous connection, but hey, whatever works.
Wikipedia shows a 1963 plate with just "Water Wonderland" on it
Just tuned in and saw the score. Amazing! Will definitely be watching the second half.
Close only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, and MGoBlog score predictions, obviously
Gold jorts
Link to the Athletic mock: https://theathletic.com/5458526/2024/04/30/nfl-mock-draft-2025-prediction-shedeur-sanders-will-johnson/
Here is another from NBC Sports: https://www.nbcsports.com/fantasy/football/news/2025-way-too-early-nfl-mock-draft
NBC has Johnson at 5, Graham at #8, Grant at 24
These three seem to be early consensus first round picks
My daughter is a senior and will attend the University of Georgia, owing to a scholarship which makes it about the same cost as attending the in-state flagship school.
My niece is a senior and will attend Duke (Early Decision). They can afford it, but it will still hurt.
I would not get into Michigan today. My nephew had a 1540 SAT, top 10 in his class, varsity tennis and platform tennis/paddle, part-time job, various leadership positions, NHS, national merit scholar, 12 APs and got rejected from Michigan. His profile is WAY better than mine was.
On the topic of number of schools kids apply to these days, my daughter applied to just 5 schools - Michigan, Illinois, Virginia, Georgia, NCSU, Louisville. Got into 4, deferred/rejected from Michigan, waitlisted at UVA. Two reach (UM, UVA), two probable (UVA, UGA), two safety (NCSU, UL). It worked out about the way we expected it to.
That said, most of my friends' kids applied to 10-15 schools which seems crazy to me, and I know some kids apply to even more. I guess you can shoot your shot, but at what point does it just become ridiculous?
Nice. I had a 2003 Passat variant and currently a 2018 Volvo V60.
Hard to say no to a manual Golf R wagon. Otherwise, it would be some form of wagon.
A B8 Audi S4 Avant manual would also be loads of fun.
Not been to too many. If I had to rank them, it would probably be in this order, although the first 3 are all pretty great imo.
Suntrust - er, Truist - Park: really nice, modern ball park. Brick facades give it a classic feel, great sightlines, good food. The Battery surrounding the ballpark is fantastic for before and after the game, or just on a random weeknight to have dinner/drinks. Parking is actually not too bad. Only thing that would make it better is if there was MARTA (ATL rapid transit) to the park.
Petco: Great park, saw the Braves/Pads there last year. Beautiful park, fantastic food, just a really great atmosphere all around. The area is definitely very walkable, which is nice. No idea about parking since I stayed at the Omni Hotel which has a walkway connecting hotel and ballpark - which is another plus! The Braves were staying there and I saw a few players and met a couple coaches. Really cool setup.
PNC: Gave a presentation to an industry group in a luxury box there one time (yeah yeah it was really just a boondoggle). Love the park - really classic ballpark feel while still being very modern. Nice area around the ballpark.
Wrigley: great history, cool city neighborhood location, the El right there. Definitely is old and smelly and not the best sightlines if you're under the upper deck. Still, a great place to watch a game. I've also been in the bleachers which are cool, but man it gets hot out there. Def bring a ton of sunscreen.
Coors Field: Loved the backdrop, great sightlines from outfield, ball carries (3 homers in that game which is always fun). I recall the food being good and that it was a fun atmosphere. Stadium facade is really nice, classic brick. Was with family, so we didn't spend any time around/outside the stadium so no comment there.
Gone:
Turner Field: this was actually a pretty cool stadium, I thought, with the Olympic opening/closing ceremonies and track and field events having been hosted there. I actually liked the design of the stadium and amenities. Pain to get to, though. While there is technically public transit to the stadium, the train lets you off at a station a couple miles away and you have to take dedicated buses to the stadium - and then reverse it on the way back. It's now known as Center Parc Stadium and is home to the Georgia State Panthers football team.
Tigers Stadium: Not having grown up in Michigan, my first time there was to watch the Mariners (Junior!) and Tigers sometime around 1996 or 1997. I don't remember much, just that we sat in the right field seats and he didn't hit a home run. That said, it was one of the classic stadiums from MLB history which is really cool.
Atlanta Fulton County Stadium: That was a dump by the end. Watched the Braves and Olympic baseball there. Generic, but still holds a special place for me as it was where I watched my first (several) MLB games as a kid.
It's a hobby of mine.
One only has to watch the video of Harbaugh calling Junior Colson before the pick is announced as evidence of this.
EDIT:
Direct link since it's blocked for embed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szJqYmVWChQ
Hey, Detroit drafted two players from BC!
Love Manu's story:
Harbaugh made up for it by drafting two
nice save
Saw that too. Prisco's rationale on the scoring makes zero sense at all. Penix at #8 is a terrible pick for the Falcons. I hate the pick b/c they have needs RIGHT NOW that should have been addressed. That should be a C- at best.
JJ at #10 - when he was significantly higher on most draft boards, including that of Bill Belichik - is a relative steal at a position of need.
Maybe you're reading some news stories that I'm not reading, but the only comments that I've seen being released by his agents indicates that he was "stunned" and "shocked" at the pick. Not exactly what I would call "pettiness" and "public insults."
If you have a source on the pettiness, I'd genuinely be interested in seeing it b/c google turns up bupkis for me.
I think you're letting your anti-msu bias get the best of you. By all reports, he was surprised at the pick b/c it does nothing to help the team win now, particularly in a significant area of need on the DL. Rather, the Falcons' explanation is that they expect to win going forward and won't have an opportunity to draft their QB of the future in 2-3 years, so they drafted him now.
I think the move was stupid too and I'd be particularly baffled if I were in Cousins' position, also. No idea what kind of message they're sending to the guy they just signed for a guaranteed $100M to lead the team.
There were 4 QBs taken ahead of JJ. Bo Nix was 2 picks after. He doesn't seem like the "chip on the shoulder" type, but what do I know.
Lack of big numbers. The talking heads love numbers - 40, bench, passing yards, TDs, etc.
Literally one of the low grades was based on the fact he didn't throw for 3000 yards in a season.
As a falcons fan, I'm dumbstruck by this pick. I thought Bijan last year was not a bad pick, but this boggles the mind.
My hometown team! I would not be mad at that. They've got some great offensive weapons. That said, they did just sign Cousins to a 4 year deal. Not sure why they'd sign him at 8 and just sit him for a few years behind Cousins.
Only 6 super bowls have been played north of the mason dixon line - 2 in Detroit (Silverdome, Ford Field), 2 in Minneapolis (Metrodome, US Bank), 1 in Indy (Lucas Oil), and 1 in NJ (Met Life).
The 2 coldest outdoor super bowls were in 1972 and 1975 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans with kickoff temp of 39F and 46F. A bit ironic that New Orleans of all places has claim to the coldest outdoor super bowls ever. The game at Met Life Stadium had a temp of 49F at kickoff, third coldest.
You're right, ain't no lie
Does he own a Super Soaker and know how to use it?
I'm with you. He has all the skills and physical toughness you want, but he fell apart under all that pressure. Could just be smoke. Second round? Sure. First round? Reach. Top half of the first round? Um wut?
He was absolutely deflecting and looking for hits. All he had to do was write that he was trying to be funny, but realizes now that it was inappropriate and demeaning to Ms. Clark and he apologizes and will do better going forward.
That's it. Whatever that was somehow made things worse, imo.
I couldn't' understand what he said before the pause and she responded with, "you like that?" The thing he said at the end is super weird and creepy, but what did he say at the beginning after he ID'ed himself?
Homefield also has a 30% off sale ending today with code "sadness"
Yeah, it was a "joking, but not really" sort of comment. The water crisis out west is real.
Surprised nobody brought up the real reason for the move - not enough water to freeze in the rink. /s
That said, I did also just read an article on my news feed this morning about the great salt lake drying up, so....
Yeah fanatics absolutely gets you on all their fees which wipe out any savings. Was looking at a $40 item for 20% off, but it was basically back to regular price after the $8.99 shipping, the additional $3.99 handling fee, and taxes. Slightly more palatable if you go through a site like rakuten and get some cash back (usually 2-3% for fanatics, but occasionally more), but it doesn't come close to making up the difference.
What strange phrasing in the article.
"Two quarterbacks are conspicuously missing. Oregon’s Bo Nix and Washington’s Michael Penix are not scheduled to attend the draft. It is unclear why Nix and Penix aren’t going."
and then:
"Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy also is absent from the list. "
Somehow, Nix and Penix missing the draft is conspicuous, but the other guy most talking heads peg as going in the top 5 picks missing the draft isn't? Weird.
So much better than the ORD Bears.
I'm a frequent business traveler so I tend to think in airport codes. LAS is the airport code for Las Vegas.
That's Smith's schtick - be "contrarian" and be "controversial" and be "provocative" just for the sake of being so. Oh, that and literally being the loudest voice in the room. This is why I literally only watch ESPN these days for the live sports. I don't even watch Sportscenter anymore.
Good catch. I was so focused on transcribing the projections that I didn't even notice the absence of Zinter. That's a miss on his part for sure. Only OL he has listed is Drake Nugent.
Very cool! I quit debate after high school, awesome that you continued in college. I took a different route, joining the Men's Glee Club freshman year at UM.
Policy, of course. We were the cool kids lol.
I went summer of 1991 and stayed in Couzens. We worked hard and had a lot of fun. One of the highlights was when our counselors took us to watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show at... maybe it was the State Theater? Can't remember, but that was my first ever RHPS.
And yes, so. much. microfiche. Good times!!
I taught my wife's aunt and uncle how to install foreign eSIMs on their phones for their upcoming Mediterranean cruise.
The one thing that stands out is that he mentions being called out/insulted by everyone at the other places he left. I don't know if he meant that there are just some disgruntled fans who will always criticize coaches for leaving or if it's his thing to leave his previous jobs with some level of controversy, but it doesn't sound good.
That said, the fact that he read and quoted Tressel's book does show some initiative and sucking up (as an "elite relationship builder").
When the chips are down, you head out of town.
I was a debater in HS, but definitely not a master debater. The schools back in the early 90s I recall as being excellent at debating are New Trier, Glenbrook North, Westminster, Georgetown Day School (GDS), Vestavia Hills, Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, some school near Houston I can't remember, a couple of schools in NC, I want to say Detroit Country Day but might be misremembering (maybe also Bloomfield Hills). Anyway, I went to mostly local and regional tournaments.
I did go to summer debate camps at Michigan, Emory, and American University (DC). It was pretty cool being a HS kid studying, doing research, and taking classes (um, debate camp classes) on college campuses.
Yeah, I was a debate nerd.
That 'nova team deserved to win the way it did - they were crazy good.
That Louisville team should've lost. The ref should've swallowed the whistle. I hate when games come down to referee malpractice.
Iowa was basically Caitlyn Clark and a bunch of role players. Their bench was outscored 37-0.
Purdue was basically Zach Edey and a bunch of role players. Edey was the only player with more than 4 FGs.
SCar and UConn were both deep and balanced.
He said not much to talk about, not nothing 😉
I didn't care for Ryan Walters, but Matt Painter seems like a good dude and I have nothing against their basketball team. I also like Zach Edey. I also don't need to see UConn win yet another championship.