Michigan Monday is finally up at the Ozone
September 28th, 2015 at 10:49 PM ^
Probably took them longer than usual to post because they've been looking for Ray Finkle and a clean pair of shorts for the past 48 hours.
September 28th, 2015 at 10:51 PM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 9:27 AM ^
I liked this one about Smith's 60 yard run:
He (the BYU defender that tried to tackle Smith at the 35) was eventually tossed away like an unused Olive Garden gift card.
September 28th, 2015 at 10:51 PM ^
"I don’t think they are one of the two best teams in the Big Ten East, but I won’t be surprised in the least if they go 1-1 against Michigan State and Ohio State."
September 28th, 2015 at 11:06 PM ^
September 28th, 2015 at 11:15 PM ^
2 teams. I'm not sure he has spent much time looking at MSU if that's the case.
September 28th, 2015 at 10:53 PM ^
It also means that Michigan has the best defense in the state right now. They have the defense that everybody else thinks Michigan State has. MSU’s lowest yardage total allowed this season is 340 yards, which is three more yards than the highest total that the Wolverines have allowed.
September 29th, 2015 at 12:31 PM ^
I thought Mork said Sparty was being disrespected? But everyone thinks they have a great defense? Are we being disrespected?
September 29th, 2015 at 10:48 PM ^
September 28th, 2015 at 11:01 PM ^
My usual sense that they know they're better is showing cracks. I feel like this week's MM was written with a concerned mind. I think it took so long to post because he re-wrote it several times trying to avoid inserting gloom into his writeup. That aside, it was a great post as usual.
September 28th, 2015 at 11:06 PM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 7:09 AM ^
September 28th, 2015 at 11:02 PM ^
I don’t think they are one of the two best teams in the Big Ten East, but I won’t be surprised in the least if they go 1-1 against Michigan State and Ohio State. I still think the offense is very faulty and the defense has individual weaknesses that are hidden behind a remarkable collective strength.
With regards to that first sentence, I would say that like many here, I was a little cautious about my projections for rivals at the beginning of the season. Indeed, I wasn't sure in the days before the Utah game that we would win either of those games, but having seen this team improve each week, even with conference play of any kind not yet in the books, I would not be shocked either if we split those games. My lean right now - based on current performance is that Michigan State might be the more vulnerable team.
September 28th, 2015 at 11:14 PM ^
Between the two, MSU has definitely shown to be the more vulnerable of the two. I think we match up better against them too, but we'll still need a consistent Rudock to lead the charge. As long as he can manage the game, we will have a chance to win. Just get better every day and this season has the chance to be something special.
September 29th, 2015 at 6:40 AM ^
I think you're right that MSU is more vulnerable, but I think the timing will be right for an OSU win. OSU comes here 7 days after MSU goes to Columbus. If that ends up being a 1 v 2 game.... Getting OSU coming off that game plus being at our best by the end of the season (hopefully). I'll take those odds.
September 29th, 2015 at 9:26 AM ^
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September 29th, 2015 at 9:29 AM ^
Maybe he meant that Ohio State - Michigan will be 1 vs. 2, hmmmm?
September 29th, 2015 at 4:46 PM ^
A lot of folks seem to overlook this, although there are a ton of Buckeyes who do not. Moreover, they're as aware as we are that The Game is happening at our digs, not theirs.
September 29th, 2015 at 9:24 AM ^
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September 28th, 2015 at 11:25 PM ^
September 28th, 2015 at 11:37 PM ^
most of us believe OSU and MSU are at a higher level than BYU. Wouldn't surprise me to see BYU with 5 or 6 losses. (Utah State gave Utah as much of a game as we did, play at Missouri)
I think we've established we're probably better than most of our schedule except MSU and OSU. No biggie really.
September 28th, 2015 at 11:46 PM ^
6 losses? They beat Nebraska on the road, beat a fringe-top-25 Boise Team, and lost to #10 UCLA by 1 in the Rose Bowl. I do not see 6 losses in their future.
And we were up 31-0 at half before shutting the game down. We're not saying MSU and OSU aren't better than BYU, but we obliterated what I think will be a decent team at the end of the year.
September 28th, 2015 at 11:48 PM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 12:29 AM ^
Cincinnati is good enough to beat BYU on a good day.
at Missouri is BYU's toughest remaining game
Fresno State is another high powered offense, wouldn't surprise me at all if gave BYU fits and even beat them
Utah State lost to Utah by 7 and looked a hell of a lot better against them than we did or BYU did against us.
So no, 6 losses is not implausable, likely? probably not but its still out there, just like its possible Michigan drop 3 or 4 games.
September 29th, 2015 at 7:30 AM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 7:49 AM ^
as usual, the truth is likely somewhere in between, but was the BYU outcome a result of poor play by BYU or outstanding play by M?
I'd say it's about 2 - to - 1 good plays by M (probably 3-1 in the 1st half). Hopefully the UFR will shed some light on that.
September 29th, 2015 at 9:28 AM ^
Join a conference, BYU, if you want to avoid that kind of schedule.
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September 29th, 2015 at 11:23 AM ^
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September 29th, 2015 at 12:50 AM ^
That's how it was in 1997. It wasn't until November and the beat down in Happey Valley that Michigan fans started believing their, our, team deserved to be ranked in the top five. Mind you, that was after beating ND and after The Catch in East Lansing, and still Michigan fans refused to believe in their team.
They, we, can't be blamed. After all ND did go Oh for the Big Ten, and Colorado in '97 was but a shell of Colorado vintage '94. MSU was, as always, a good rivalry game that was to be won, as usual, by Michigan. So after a ho hum win over Minnesota to open the month of November it was still an open question as to whether or not Michigan would prevail against the Nit Lions, a team they had been losing to since '94. Besides, as good as Michigan's D had been playing they still had a young offensive line and a walk-on 5th year QB with a noodle arm.
Sounding familiar?
September 29th, 2015 at 4:24 AM ^
I believed in them as soon as I saw how the defense played vs. Colorado. It was total destruction, by a fast and physical D. Others felt the same way. PSU was like finally having sex with the hot girl that you have been dating for a month.
September 29th, 2015 at 7:17 AM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 9:58 AM ^
PSU was more like finding out that you have a secret admirer and it's the hottest girl in the class and she wants to have sex with you immediately. And you also have another secret admirer and she is the second hottest girl in the class. And they are okay with a threesome.
September 29th, 2015 at 6:57 AM ^
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September 29th, 2015 at 9:57 AM ^
I was there. We were guilty . . . of being awesome.
After that game (we were ranked #1 after it) we were all eyeing an undefeated season, and not in the way that every CFB fan thinks they will go undefeated at the beginning of the year, but in a way where we truly believed for the first time that we could do it.
September 29th, 2015 at 11:16 PM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 9:50 AM ^
"QB with a noodle arm"??? Really? Griese started 83 NFL games and completed 62.7% of his passes for over 19,000 yards. He was selected All-Pro with the Broncos in 2000. He has a Super Bowl ring AND a National Championship ring.
It's hard to take the rest of your points seriously when you miss your closing statement so badly.
September 29th, 2015 at 11:32 AM ^
Griese was awesome. One of the most underappreciated Michigan players ever.
September 29th, 2015 at 11:50 AM ^
Griese frankly wasn't very good when he started as a sophomore. The '95 team could have been a national title contender with better quarterbacking - it had everything else.
But he had a very, very good senior year.
September 29th, 2015 at 12:22 AM ^
"...went for a loss."
Impressive math for a Buckeye.
September 29th, 2015 at 1:26 AM ^
I would have written more here, but there’s nothing to write. How do you review a movie where no struggle occurs and everybody goes home happy?
I recommend scrolling through the Rotten Tomatoes page for Chef (2014) to see how this is done.
September 29th, 2015 at 3:19 AM ^
It will not surprise me to see a surge in improvement simply from players believing they have an opportunity to have a major impact on the 2015 season. Combine that with improved coaching — because how could it be worse — and I would expect a much better product on the field next year.
September 29th, 2015 at 4:23 AM ^
doubled up
September 29th, 2015 at 4:22 AM ^
I enjoy some of the analogies that Tony uses, such as the minor store, which is pretty creative. His analysis is usually fairly good.
But he is Pure Buckeye...if he thinks that Michigan is not one of the top 2 teams in the division.
Exactly what does MSU have that makes people think they are so good? They are not. This ranking is based on previous years. Their defense is like an old sponge used to clean the kitchen sink...works but not particularly effective on tough stains. Harbaugh is one freakin tough stain to deal with. Oregon should have beaten them, had they made that one catch in the end zone late in the game.
MSU does not have nearly the overall talent that Michigan has. Other than Cook, Allen and Burbridge on offense...there is not one guy who Id rather have starting on Michigan's offense.
MSU is a 3-4 loss team waiting to happen. I do not know whay others refuse to see this.
In the end, it will be Michigan vs. OSU for the division title...just like old times.
September 29th, 2015 at 6:46 AM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 6:59 AM ^
September 29th, 2015 at 9:08 AM ^
But, we may find that their beatdown at the hands of Utah was also an anomaly. Who knows? Oregon hadn't experienced anything remotely like Utah and didn't know how to respond to "adversity."
September 29th, 2015 at 7:31 AM ^
I don't really think MSU is playing down to their competition (I would think being perpetually "disrespected" would ensure that never happens), I think they are experiencing legit obstacles resulting from lack of playmakers in both backfields, and, other than Burbridge, at receiver as well. However, they're still elite along both lines, which is what enables one team to impose their will on another, and they're likely to have the better QB in nearly all of their remaining games, which makes them more likely than the other team to get the one or two plays that win a close game. I think they're currently overrated at #2 and "Cook as Heisman candidate" thus far looks like a joke, but they're still damn good and deserve to be considered "in the mix".
OSU, to me, is a lot harder to get a bead on. The expectation, of course, is that they will look like a playoff team come late November and it will be up to Michigan to deny them.
September 29th, 2015 at 9:30 AM ^
They are elite on the DL. OL is less certain given their injuries to both tackles.