The last game before everything went to hell in a handbasket.
More like a false exit ramp on the highway to hell. It was a fun little diversion, but the handbasket was sent express mail from Boone, NC much earlier that season.
I wasn't touching that game with a 10-foot pole.
to post same thing. The Oregon game was also very painful as well. So yes, I think you put it perfectly, the bowl game was a ray of sunshine in what otherwise was a horribly disapointing season.
I prefer to believe that Scot Loeffler told Mike Debord that if he called any more stupidly predictable running plays he was going to feed him to an actual wolverine. Debord was so scared of the possibilty that Loeffler went on to call the entire offense for that game.
If only Hart hadn't fumbled those two times, then the score would've reflected how truly pantsed Florida was that day
There is quite the selection of Michigan games over the next few days on BTN:
Monday -
10 AM and 9:30 PM - 1999 Michigan-MSU
12:30 PM - 1993 Rose Bowl
3:30 PM - 1998 Rose Bowl
Tuesday -
The two aforementioned Rose Bowls air at 12:00 AM and 3:30 AM, and then...
10:30 AM - 2001 Michigan-MSU
12:30 PM - 2005 Michigan-Ohio State
8:00 PM - 2004 Michigan-MSU
10:00 PM - 2007 Michigan-MSU
Wednesday -
You get 2001 Michigan-MSU again at 4:00 AM and then...
8:00 PM - 2000 Michigan-Northwestern
Off topic I know, but I don't see a thread on it and I can't create one. Lawrence Marshall tweeted earlier that his father passed away. Condolences.
it was driving me nuts and i was so riled up by the game that i went bow-hunting (last day of deer season) b/c i couldn't handle the back and forth of the game.
came home with deer. michigan won game. a fine day all around.
Murder fisting? Ouch, hot damn.
knowing that he's thinking about Michigan's cupboard always being stocked, naively, before we embark on three decidely miserable years of Michigan football
"I love the punter's name, Zoltan Mesko. Sounds like he is the leader of the evil empire!"
Of interest:
Already several mentions of "freshman tight end Aaron Hernandez."
Also Greg Mattison was the Florida DC.
And this game prompts its share of ambiguous emotions. "Why couldn't we have played offense like this all the time?" "Where was this against OSU?" "Why couldn't we have built off of this momentum in the RR era?"
But despite that I still find this game one of the most satisfying of the entire Lloyd era. So what if there was underachievement? So what if the next few years were rough?For one game, a team I personally expected to get destroyed by a loaded Florida team that was between national titles played like the best team in the country. It was, in many ways, deserved vindication of the players and of much of the good of what Lloyd was. They crushed, finally, many long-time demons (unimaginable offense, can't stop a mobile QB, etc).
And for three magnificent hours (I watched them at Tarzana hospital in LA where I was working, some of the most enjoyable pay I ever made) it was absolutely glorious.
wasn't the only game over the years where conservative playcalling from the staff was called into question.
I had forgotten about the Jake Long screen that never was. Call in the bulldozer...Damn that wouldve been sweet.
It's so weird watching Mattison in UF gear coaching AGAINST Michigan (and watching his defense get tore up). Watching Justin Boren play for Michigan is weird as well. It's also creepy watching Aaron Hernandez out there, on Percy Harvin's long run Hernandez gets DESTROYED at the line of scrimmage. Michigan threw a pass to Jake Long in this game. Lastly, the amount of NFL talent on this team was sickening. Carr was forever holding back guys for his way and his system...this game he unleached them all and it showed. Everytime they show Rich Rod and Bill Martin, I turn away before I throw something at the TV.
That interview with RichRod was painful to watch. I hate knowing the future.
"Of course we can adjust to the talent available."
the thoughts of a couple others, who mentioned the bitter sweet nature of this game. It was obviously a very nice win over a team with the Heisman Trophy winner, even more so considering the fact that media wasn't giving UM much of a chance in this game. It was also nice to see the coaches finally cut loose with the offensive playcalling, and play a more agressive style. Obviously, it was also nice to send Carr off with a nice feeling after the horrors experienced earlier the season.
However, it only makes the more conservative playcalling we typically saw from the staff even more frustrating in retrospect, and let's be honest that game did not salvage what was a still an disapointing and painful season. Regardless of how painful the RR era was, I still don't remember feeling as down after losses as I was after the first two games of 2007.
Gotta just love the tall, strong, and athletic receivers Lloyd had in Manningham and Arrington... Those guys were absolute monsters.
Pretty sure this is how we all felt that day.
Standing there looking at his future team run a version of spread with players not even recruited for it, thinking of the bright future, not knowing that things are about to get unimaginably bad.