betterREDthandead

That's pretty much all we did last time anyway

Be careful what you ask for around here sometimes.....

It looks like I'll be in town from the 27-28th to the 6th (flying back on the 7th). NYD sounds fine to me....NYE is likely to work as well, but NYD - probably safer. When it comes to venue, my preference of course is somewhere downtown, but I sorta got to pick last time, so I'll sit back and see how it plays out.

I'm so glad I'm not a Cub fan.

LSU, yes, Florida, no. Even if I did add Florida, Michigan comes off better, and it doesn't affect Arkansas's non-conference schedule, which is soft like butter. If Arkansas wins both games, they likely will get that push. There's enough of the season left that I don't think Michigan will stay at #2. Too many contenders playing each other, someone's bound to get a push upward.

The combined record of the Division I-A opponents on there are 61-58. Arkansas has three of the SEC's worst five teams (Alabama, Mississippi, Mississippi State) in its division and played the other two (Vanderbilt, South Carolina), and even then, they squeaked by most of 'em. They played a I-AA opponent, which is a BIG negative in my book, and they didn't even play a good one - SE Missouri State is 4-7, 2-6, which runs Arkansas' opponents' record to 65-65. They played one quality out-of-conference game and got blown into Texas. Michigan's opponents' records? 81-60, and note the lack of I-AA opposition. Michigan's out-of-conference opponents are 25-20....Arkansas's, 16-26. Arkansas gets absolutely no strength-of-schedule sympathy when compared to Michigan.

Yes they have. Not lose to the crappy teams on our schedule. Arkansas's the only one on that list without a poor-quality loss. And even then, our loss is better than their loss.

A playoff would have absolutely RUINED yesterday's game, before it even started.

Well, I'm rooting for the least chaos, so that we never see a playoff ever. Ever. But the ultimate chaos has been averted with Rutgers losing to Cincinnati. The max-controversy scenario would have been for Rutgers to win out, and then win a BCS bowl against someone like Florida. Meanwhile, the title game is a Michigan-OSU rematch. Then Michigan wins, causing a one-loss team that didn't win its conference to win the title over an unbeaten team from another BCS conference. It could have happened, because the voters very often carry their biases over from the beginning of the year. Rutgers could easily have been penalized for its name alone. I think the two most likely scenarios are for Michigan or Florida to head to Glendale. I think Florida would be the least controversial, so that's what I'm pulling for. Don't want a rematch.

I've decided I want no rematch either. Best-case scenario, we win and it's forever tainted because it's nothing more than a split where we just happened to win the right game. Worst-case.....two losses to OSU in one season. Neither sounds like much fun. Even weirder: What if Rutgers wins out but gets shafted....goes to the Sugar Bowl and beats SEC champ Florida....Michigan wins the game in Glendale and is "national champion", despite Rutgers being undefeated out of a BCS conference? What a weird year. - Red Wings earn best regular season record, lose in playoffs. - Pistons earn best regular season record, lose in playoffs. - Tigers earn AL championship, lose Series. - Wolverines win out but lose to OSU. Been nothing but falling just short of the goal, all year. Thank God for the consistency of the Lions. They just suck.

It was close enough not to squash rematch talk. I don't know if I want one or not. I guess it depends on what happens in the SEC, Pac-10, and Big East. If Rutgers wins out, even though they'd be just steamrolled by OSU, they deserve the spot. If not....well....when you consider all the one-loss teams, and you consider who they lost to.... Dunno if I want a championship that way, though. Because if Michigan and OSU were to rematch in Glendale, and Michigan wins, they're technically national champions, but it's nothing more than a split. And that would bring on playoff talk, which I don't want.

Halftime. Michigan's play-calling SUCKS right now.

Forgive me, but I strongly disagree here. The amount of Michigan State bashing that Michigan fans do on a regular, daily basis absolutely pales in comparison to the amount of Michigan bashing that State fans regularly do. State fans have a very, very deep-seated hatred for Michigan that isn't reciprocated. There'd be a few dumbasses. Every team has 'em. It wouldn't come close to what we saw on that State board. Gawd, only three more hours to go. Michigan NEEDS to win this. I'm seeing family for Thanksgiving, and that includes my OSU-loving cousin. I can't be sitting through an extended weekend listening to him if Michigan loses.

Maryland will do that, the little sh##s, I've never liked them. Not that I'm particularly unhappy to see MSU lose, but any game Maryland wins is a bad thing in my book. What I'm kinda baffled about is how few people are currently predicting MSU to make the tournament. So maybe they look a little down, nobody like a Mateen Cleaves or a Charlie Bell to carry them. I think MSU has, for now, reached automatic status. If you're having doubts about whether they'll make the tournament, Izzo alone is worth the benefit of the doubt to just toss them in as a #10 seed and make them prove they're not a tournament team.

I took a look at the Buckeye fan boards, and the near-universal reaction is classy. The Bo thread is filled with nothing but accolades for the man and respectful words. OSU fans know that Woody isn't Woody without Bo, and Bo isn't Bo without Woody, and that Michigan and Ohio State are the great programs they are because of each other, rather than despite each other. So that's the good news. Then I followed the link to a Spartan board. Jerks. Unbelievable. Actually about 2/3 of the posters are complimentary and offer their condolences and respects. Then again....here's a sampling of the idiocy: About 2/3 of the fans on that board are reacting with the class you ought to expect when a good man and a great coach passes away. The rest? They range from smug indifference ("this is an MSU board, who cares?" to empty wishes ("I hated that arrogant POS, he's no Tom Izzo, but my condolences to his family anyway") to petty jealousy ("the media wouldn't make such a big deal out of this if it weren't right before the game") to the filth above, and finally, the lowest of the low: http://www.spartantailgate.com/forums/show...mp;postcount=21 I realize that the Spartan fans on this board are classy with a capital C. And I know that, still, the majority of Spartan fans are saddened by the loss of Bo, or at least classy enough to tell off the morons who are taking joy out of this. But those morons are common enough that this is clearly not an isolated reaction. A sizable number of Spartan fans are happy about the death of Bo Schembechler. And for what, other than consistently beating their football team? One usually tries to remember not to let the actions of the few reflect on the whole. But there are more than a few MSU fans taking pleasure from this. I have gained quite a bit of respect for Buckeye fans today and lost plenty for the Spartans

Here's another blurb about the DS's, from ESPN. Interesting tidbits:

Here is the blurb from the DS's website regarding Bo's passing: (I never, by the way, took much offense at the choice of the band's name - I've always understood it to be a play on the punk band the Dead Kennedys, as evidenced by the DS's frontman's stage name of Bo Biafra after the DK's frontman Jeff Biafra.)

Here is the only link I've found that says he's passed away: Link edit....more and more are saying it's true Everything else only says he's collapsed and in the hospital....either way, it doesn't look good, not at all...... what a shame this happens on the eve of the greatest game yet in the rivalry.......

Tigers re-sign Casey One-year deal. No trade for a 1B, then? Edit: Also, Jamie Walker appears to have gotten his $12M with the Orioles.

Of course I'm biased. So're you. But the almost universal consensus is that Michigan has a good offense and Ohio State has a good defense, while Ohio State has a great offense and Michigan has a great defense. I see no reason to believe it's any different. I think the OSU offense vs. Michigan defense is almost a known quantity - Ohio State will definitely get more than the 30 yards on the ground that Michigan gives up, but Troy Smith will not be able to run wild like he has and not get the time in the pocket that he gets against the Indianas and Cincinnatis of the world. I can say this with near certainty. It's what happens when Michigan has the ball that's going to be key. Michigan leads the nation in time of possession with over 8 minutes per game more than their opposition. If they can keep that up, they win. If not, they lose. So it comes down to: can OSU stop Mike Hart? If not, Michigan grinds down the clock, takes 7-8 minutes off during every drive, and defends OSU's weapons the best way possible - keep them off the field. And it's not just Hart they have to deal with - Carr will throw Minor out there for some speed and Grady for some power when a change of pace is needed. If OSU does have an answer for Michigan's running game, they probably win. I may be biased, but I offer more or less objective observations (when I'm being serious). P.S.: I desperately hope Ohio State believes what you believe - that Michigan is helpless against running QBs. They used to be. Different coordinator, more senior personnel - this is obviously a different Michigan team that went into last year's game with three losses, or even the team that couldn't finish a Rose Bowl win over Texas. If Ohio State thinks Michigan can't touch Troy Smith, they'll go into halftime wondering what hit them.

For every stat you give me that claims OSU's defense is better than Michigan's, I got three that go the other way. But those aren't the numbers that really matter. Here are the ones that are keeping Buckeyes up at night: 56, 80, 6, 29, 45. Woodley, Branch, Burgess, Hall, Harris. Especially in the front 7, Michigan's personnel is far better. OSU has a bit of a secondary edge - they don't have a Leon Hall, but they're better all-around. But to say OSU's defense is just as dominant as Michigan's? That's like saying Chad Henne is just as dangerous as Troy Smith. It's just not true.

I've hated Nebraska ever since '97. If they think they'd beat Michigan this year, they're wrong. Dead wrong. If they were a Big Ten team they'd be staring at at least two conference losses, depending on their schedule. Wisconsin would beat 'em. Penn State might. Need I even mention what the scores would be against Michigan and Ohio State?

I've been excited about Ericsson for a while now. I really think Ericsson has a future in the NHL as a very solid defensive defenseman. I don't know how his skating is, but he's developed a nice mean streak, and he's huge, too. His development seems to have accelerated recently (past two years or so). So far so good for someone who was taken as the very last pick in his draft.

What's good about a good running attack is nobody uses it unless they're really good at it. Like Michigan or Navy. It's fun to watch your team stuff the ball down the defense's throat. More fun than the passing game, even, because you always know in the back of your mind the pass might not work all the time. A really good running attack dominates the game. It's not fun to watch your team pile up 4 yards on three downs and punt five times in a row. Navy can do it because they're damn good at it - one of the most fun things I've ever seen in any college football game was to watch Navy take the ball on their 20 with a little bit of time left in the 3rd quarter and a small lead, and not give it up until there were 2 minutes left in the fourth, by scoring a touchdown. Not one pass was thrown. Teams use a passing attack now because if they suck at offense, at least the pass will work every so often. If the run works, it works, and if not, there's no point trying.

Wow. I know Woody (and Bo) held great disdain for the forward pass but damn.