Michigan has sent its response to the Big Ten

I have a feeling that, if Pettitti backs down, M will keep it in the folder for another day.

If he announces a suspension, I'm sure that a bunch of in-person scouting is going to be leaked about OSU, and some dirty laundry about other Big Ten schools as well.

I'd love to put the genie back in the bottle and go back to just watching football. But too many people in the administration will not forget the way a majority of members pushed to derail a championship-potential season by gaslighting. And in the era of realignment, I don't think this will ever go away - we probably stay in the big ten, but i've never been more sure that the 18 team big ten is temporary. There is nothing that binds Michigan to Rutgers or Purdue, not anymore.

I'm sorry.

"no people with horse-themed names"

Does this mean we can no longer refer to John Elway as "Mister Ed"?

It’s too late for that. If Pettiti had simply listened to the other ads and coaches, and then told them to go sit in a corner and think about what they’ve done, and waited for the NCAA, then maybe. 

Xwitter is a cesspool.

From Tom Hanks in Catch Me If You Can, "Knock, knock." "Who's there?" "Fuck you."

With all respect to your prediction, I expect that what he does is going to depend on what his employers -- the other 13 Big Ten members -- want him to do.

To me, this is like one of the Washington DC spy thrillers where our naive protagonist (Petitti) is minding his own business, jogging in the park or something, when a mysterious guy in a trench coat gets his attention and wants to have a chat with him.  It starts as small talk, how's the weather type stuff, but then he slips out some personal info he shouldn't know.  Then he starts explaining the world to Pettiti.  How actions have consequences.  How there's a very big file of dirt that is just waiting to be released to the media.  Pettiti just stares at the old guy with his mouth agape as he slowly realizes the huge mistakes he's made.  He asks who the hell are you?  And it turns out to be the CEO of Fox or one of his lackeys. 

/fanfic

Um.  He goes by Drink Water.

Agreed, but he'll be fine.  He's completely in line with ESPN's journalistic rules.

Or his bosses at ESPN simply told him to shut up.

A little more rumor here, but I've heard that Ono approached ESPN and told them if they didn't lay off the negative reporting he was going to deny them campus access for College Game Day. 

At this point I believe it could be true, and I'm fine with that.

Amen to that! Let’s abandon these fucking assholes and go to the ACC.

Michigan joining the ACC works for me.

I'm skeptical this happens fast but I've never been more confident that the 18 team Big Ten is temporary. There are 3 other schools that are probably close to as valuable as M in the league - OSU, PSU and MSU. But the only one that DRIVES M's value is OSU. PSU won't be an annual game soon, and they're utterly replaceable to M with a big time OOC game. MSU drives some value, but really just as many, if not more, would probably tune into annual game with ND.

The M-OSU rivalry really is huge. It may be the only thing that keeps M from jumping. But there is enough bad blood here from 12 other schools that M has no financial need to support that I'm absolutely sure M won't think twice about creating a super league and leaving the rest behind.

And that is how it starts. Isaiah floats it and specifically says it sounds like message board fodder but it is true. That is one small step towards having that threat be realized. 

My theory is that the rest of the conference told Tony that Michigan will self-impose like they always do and did at the beginning of the year. Michigan fighting this, like this, I bet is shocking to everyone.

On the one hand, could be an inept bungler.  On the other, a Pac 12 agent, secretly working to undermine the Big 10 for revenge.

Yeah, this has turned into a real Mexican standoff, and I'm betting B1G will flinch first.  M has called their bluff, brought in the big guns, and the prospect of a battalion of lawyers deposing nearly every coaching staff, digging through their texts, emails and phone records just has to be unacceptable and downright frightening at this point. 

If the B1G's recent scandals have taught us anything, is that there has to be plenty of bodies buried around here, and I'm sure no school wants theirs exhumed, a couple in particular.

They have strayed pretty damn close to breaking the advance shitting rule that Stalions broke. They'll argue it's not but, materially it is the same.

They likely get the same also on the wrist as m, or less, if they keep their mouths shut