I'm strongly considering giving my 3 season tickets up (held them since 2001). In part it's due to the product on the field being poor for so long, but just as importantly, I've found I don't really miss spending the whole day committed to the game. I like being able to do things in the morning of noon game, watch the game, then do other things after instead of taking the 100 mile drive each way. The other advantage being that my couch and bathroom are much more convenient than where we park and at the stadium.
Breaking patterns/traditions this year is likely to be a catalyst for people like me who haven't been happy with the on-field product but holding on based on tradition, but the break this year has caused changing behavior further.
The past 3 days I've been getting re-directed to "update Flash" on both my iPhone and Mac when visiting the site. I've had the issue when going direct to the URL or when clicking on an MGoBoard entry or the button.
The only reason I plan on renewing this year is to not lose my tickets next year and beyond. I flatly do not want, nor plan, to attend a game in person this year. Between my kids and my older family members, the risk isn’t worth it to me. I would expect a 20-25% drop in renewals this year from older or cash strapped fans. The wait list may end up clearing and those that gave up their tickets this year could get them next based on their point totals.
Slightly late to the game - but if he's willing to spend some time on education, network security is huge and growing. Certifications can be had through self-study or online courses and a reasonable exam. CCNA, CCNA-Security, Fortigate, Barracuda, etc.
I've been a network engineer since leaving UM with a BA in economics. I love it!
I have season tickets, and we park about a third of a mile away (Pauline) - all in on just parking and tickets it's well over $200, add food, gas (100 miles each way), it get's really expensive quickly - so that's absolutely a factor - I can't consistently use all 3 of my tickets on any given game (big games are the exception). However, the thing that's making me look at not going each week is the in-stadium experience: taking kids is hard, made harder by the fact that cell phones that we have come to rely on aren't reliable. Baking in the sun and essentially sitting on top of your neighbors isn't pleasant either - shrinking the capacity by increasing the seat size would a HUGE step in the right direction for me. The days of having the largest stadium being important to me are long over.
OSU is by far the most reviled rival. However, I think the impression of the MSU hate is created by proximity. Those of us in Michigan are far more likely to hear about the MSU games than OSU. The other factor is the fact that MSU fans I know spend a lot of time telling me about the activities at Michigan - which is why to this day "little brother" really fits the fan base since they are always looking to see what Michigan is doing and trying to one-up.
Fun anecdote - when a student, following the '96 game I was told by a Sparty that they were our #1 rival. The crestfallen look on his face when it was pointed out that we may be *their* #1, they were closer to #3 (OSU and ND) was fantastic.
1974 Corvette - brown. It wasn't fast, it handled poorly, developed a myriad of vacuum issues and had a bad carb when I bought it. Lesson learned is I needed to know WAY more about auto repair than I did then as I thought I could just fix it all myself.
My feeling around the possibility of 2 B1G teams going to the CFP revolve around Michigan winning in Columbus and OSU keeping it close (and getting help from Washington and/or Clemson/Louisville losing). That would be the way in for OSU, but I feel like even with what will likely be the top defense in the country we are left out if we lose.
Once we have a better recent history of winning (which is where OSU and Alabama are getting the benefit of the doubt) - we might be able to get away with dropping a game then - so 2-3 more years of winning 10+ and we are likely in the conversation with 1 loss (even if we aren't conference champions).
I was there too (sophomore year) - I remember the arena being incredibly loud and everyone not in Michigan gear being very much for Colorado College (Vermont, BU and Colorado College).
I agree 100% with this. From a "fairness" perspective, the outcome was right. What immediately came to mind for me was the Wisconsin/PSU game where Bielma repeatedly committed penalties on a kickoff at the end of the game to run clock because PSU couldn't decline the penalty and put the ball in the hands of the offense.
Currently have a '16 Forester (leased in September '15) and once I get into the 3rd year of the lease my plan is to get an end of the year deal on a '17 F-150 crew cab short box and drive that until the wheels are about to fall off.
My thought is if it's called on the field, it's 15-yards. Full stop. The only call made in the booth is ejection or not. If you are flagged for targeting it's like the unsportsmanlike rules where 2 and you are out.
Let the booth do a yellow/red card system if no flag is thrown.
My junior year we played against both Sword (in conference) and Copenhaver (OOC). Lost to both, but I vividly remember Sam being a man among boys for both teams at Arthur Hill Stadium.
Hands down - it was my dad's, and the EEPROM controlling the turbo had been replaced with a tuned one drawing an extra 2-4 pounds of boost from the turbo. It was neck snapping. Driving that at 16 was crazy.
As far as my own, a 1974 Corvette, fun and good at the top end, but didn't have the crazy accelleration that the Buick had.
I may be in the minority on this - but the scholarships are significant outlays by the University (read: Athletic Department) especially for out of state athletes, since the AD is paying the University listed tuition rate.
I think there is a happy medium between the "pay the athletes" and "the education is their payment", and it ties in with the suggestion of creating a trust for each athlete - deduct the cost of the scholarship from the specific athlete's trust. If they complete their 4 years eligibility and graduate, they get the surplus, and if there is a negative balance the trust is closed and there is no loss passed to the athlete. This would include changing merchandising rules to allow the names of the actual player to be sold on the jersey, with them getting a percentage of the revenue (not profit - revenue). Players not on scholarship can leverage the balance in their trust to help pay tuition.
I think this requires two things though: mandatory 4(5) year scholarships, and a means to track transfers. The 4/5-year scholarship thing I feel is and always has been something that should be required, and it would help address some of the over signing issues and also protects athletes that may be highly hyped, but not pan out as well as those that may not be hyped but become popular or elite (Kovacs).
The transfer issue is trickier - personally I think it needs to become more of a "professional" model where if player X wants to transfer from Michigan to Kentucky, they can do so, but Kentucky has to pay any negative balance in the player's trust, and any positive balance transfers with the athlete. Also - remove the 1-year wait on playing for the new school. This will absolutely discourage transfers of players, which has 2 effects (what in my mind are benefits): playing time transfers are unlikely to happen as only the elite athlete will have a positive balance in their trust; 5th year grad transfers become an expensive proposition for unproven athletes.
In and of itself the university and their student athletes are not terrible individuals (save the actual and should be felons - ahem, Winston).
Their fans on the otherhand are absolutely insufferable. My observation living in Saginaw, MI is that outside of Ann Arbor and sections of Metro Detroit, there is a largely 2:1 fan count for Sparty, and they find the most offensive and obnoxious way about them. Every Sparty I know has been asking what kind of taunting we will be throwing their way when we win (they seem to have little faith this year) - and my response has been "none - the focus is on beating Ohio and winning the B1G" - which irks them to no end. It's clear that by continuing to show indifference toward them will be the best way to not only drive them nuts, but to continue to foster the sensation that they are little brother.
Recent Comments
I'm strongly considering giving my 3 season tickets up (held them since 2001). In part it's due to the product on the field being poor for so long, but just as importantly, I've found I don't really miss spending the whole day committed to the game. I like being able to do things in the morning of noon game, watch the game, then do other things after instead of taking the 100 mile drive each way. The other advantage being that my couch and bathroom are much more convenient than where we park and at the stadium.
Breaking patterns/traditions this year is likely to be a catalyst for people like me who haven't been happy with the on-field product but holding on based on tradition, but the break this year has caused changing behavior further.
The past 3 days I've been getting re-directed to "update Flash" on both my iPhone and Mac when visiting the site. I've had the issue when going direct to the URL or when clicking on an MGoBoard entry or the button.
The only reason I plan on renewing this year is to not lose my tickets next year and beyond. I flatly do not want, nor plan, to attend a game in person this year. Between my kids and my older family members, the risk isn’t worth it to me. I would expect a 20-25% drop in renewals this year from older or cash strapped fans. The wait list may end up clearing and those that gave up their tickets this year could get them next based on their point totals.
We pre-pay, and the homeowner is greatly reducing spots, so even those with pre-pay might have issues.
Slightly late to the game - but if he's willing to spend some time on education, network security is huge and growing. Certifications can be had through self-study or online courses and a reasonable exam. CCNA, CCNA-Security, Fortigate, Barracuda, etc.
I've been a network engineer since leaving UM with a BA in economics. I love it!
I have season tickets, and we park about a third of a mile away (Pauline) - all in on just parking and tickets it's well over $200, add food, gas (100 miles each way), it get's really expensive quickly - so that's absolutely a factor - I can't consistently use all 3 of my tickets on any given game (big games are the exception). However, the thing that's making me look at not going each week is the in-stadium experience: taking kids is hard, made harder by the fact that cell phones that we have come to rely on aren't reliable. Baking in the sun and essentially sitting on top of your neighbors isn't pleasant either - shrinking the capacity by increasing the seat size would a HUGE step in the right direction for me. The days of having the largest stadium being important to me are long over.
OSU is by far the most reviled rival. However, I think the impression of the MSU hate is created by proximity. Those of us in Michigan are far more likely to hear about the MSU games than OSU. The other factor is the fact that MSU fans I know spend a lot of time telling me about the activities at Michigan - which is why to this day "little brother" really fits the fan base since they are always looking to see what Michigan is doing and trying to one-up.
Fun anecdote - when a student, following the '96 game I was told by a Sparty that they were our #1 rival. The crestfallen look on his face when it was pointed out that we may be *their* #1, they were closer to #3 (OSU and ND) was fantastic.
1974 Corvette - brown. It wasn't fast, it handled poorly, developed a myriad of vacuum issues and had a bad carb when I bought it. Lesson learned is I needed to know WAY more about auto repair than I did then as I thought I could just fix it all myself.
My feeling around the possibility of 2 B1G teams going to the CFP revolve around Michigan winning in Columbus and OSU keeping it close (and getting help from Washington and/or Clemson/Louisville losing). That would be the way in for OSU, but I feel like even with what will likely be the top defense in the country we are left out if we lose.
Once we have a better recent history of winning (which is where OSU and Alabama are getting the benefit of the doubt) - we might be able to get away with dropping a game then - so 2-3 more years of winning 10+ and we are likely in the conversation with 1 loss (even if we aren't conference champions).
I was there too (sophomore year) - I remember the arena being incredibly loud and everyone not in Michigan gear being very much for Colorado College (Vermont, BU and Colorado College).
I agree 100% with this. From a "fairness" perspective, the outcome was right. What immediately came to mind for me was the Wisconsin/PSU game where Bielma repeatedly committed penalties on a kickoff at the end of the game to run clock because PSU couldn't decline the penalty and put the ball in the hands of the offense.
Currently have a '16 Forester (leased in September '15) and once I get into the 3rd year of the lease my plan is to get an end of the year deal on a '17 F-150 crew cab short box and drive that until the wheels are about to fall off.
Let the booth do a yellow/red card system if no flag is thrown.
My junior year we played against both Sword (in conference) and Copenhaver (OOC). Lost to both, but I vividly remember Sam being a man among boys for both teams at Arthur Hill Stadium.
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Hands down - it was my dad's, and the EEPROM controlling the turbo had been replaced with a tuned one drawing an extra 2-4 pounds of boost from the turbo. It was neck snapping. Driving that at 16 was crazy.
As far as my own, a 1974 Corvette, fun and good at the top end, but didn't have the crazy accelleration that the Buick had.
Keep playing this level of defense and Atlanta is looking promising!
I may be in the minority on this - but the scholarships are significant outlays by the University (read: Athletic Department) especially for out of state athletes, since the AD is paying the University listed tuition rate.
I think there is a happy medium between the "pay the athletes" and "the education is their payment", and it ties in with the suggestion of creating a trust for each athlete - deduct the cost of the scholarship from the specific athlete's trust. If they complete their 4 years eligibility and graduate, they get the surplus, and if there is a negative balance the trust is closed and there is no loss passed to the athlete. This would include changing merchandising rules to allow the names of the actual player to be sold on the jersey, with them getting a percentage of the revenue (not profit - revenue). Players not on scholarship can leverage the balance in their trust to help pay tuition.
I think this requires two things though: mandatory 4(5) year scholarships, and a means to track transfers. The 4/5-year scholarship thing I feel is and always has been something that should be required, and it would help address some of the over signing issues and also protects athletes that may be highly hyped, but not pan out as well as those that may not be hyped but become popular or elite (Kovacs).
The transfer issue is trickier - personally I think it needs to become more of a "professional" model where if player X wants to transfer from Michigan to Kentucky, they can do so, but Kentucky has to pay any negative balance in the player's trust, and any positive balance transfers with the athlete. Also - remove the 1-year wait on playing for the new school. This will absolutely discourage transfers of players, which has 2 effects (what in my mind are benefits): playing time transfers are unlikely to happen as only the elite athlete will have a positive balance in their trust; 5th year grad transfers become an expensive proposition for unproven athletes.
The D holds strong most of the day.
I hate the Sparty fans.
In and of itself the university and their student athletes are not terrible individuals (save the actual and should be felons - ahem, Winston).
Their fans on the otherhand are absolutely insufferable. My observation living in Saginaw, MI is that outside of Ann Arbor and sections of Metro Detroit, there is a largely 2:1 fan count for Sparty, and they find the most offensive and obnoxious way about them. Every Sparty I know has been asking what kind of taunting we will be throwing their way when we win (they seem to have little faith this year) - and my response has been "none - the focus is on beating Ohio and winning the B1G" - which irks them to no end. It's clear that by continuing to show indifference toward them will be the best way to not only drive them nuts, but to continue to foster the sensation that they are little brother.