Would a win at PSU be Coach Hoke's biggest road win?
You can make the case that it would be despite Penn State's losses to UCF and Indiana. I've listed Coach Hoke's road wins below with the final records of the defeated teams in parentheses. Given the hostile crowd that Michigan will face in Happy Valley, I don't see any wins that would trump a win on Saturday...EDIT: I did not count the Sugar Bowl since it was a neutral site game...EDIT No. 2: I am referring to the biggest road win to date.
2011:
Northwestern (6-7)
Illinois (7-6)
2012:
Purdue (6-7)
Minnesota (6-7)
A thought regarding the 2012 OSU game: that was arguably Michigan's best road performance under Coach Hoke in light of the Buckeyes' 12-0 finish and the typical loudness of the crowd at the Shoe.
2013:
UConn (bad)
Moral of the story: Let's not take anything for granted tomorrow.
October 11th, 2013 at 10:47 AM ^
October 11th, 2013 at 11:01 AM ^
Neutral site, not a road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:07 AM ^
If Michigan had beaten Bama, would that have been given the same dismissive "neutral site" treatment?
October 11th, 2013 at 11:10 AM ^
The Sugar Bowl was a great win. It just wasn't a road win.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:17 AM ^
Yes it was.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:31 AM ^
Well, look - you might think calling it a "road win" is appropriate because Michigan won "on the road." However, Virginia Tech was also on the road (New Orleans isn't particularly close to either school). Therefore, this neutral site game didn't offer a home field advantage to either team , which is what I would consider the paramount challenge of playing on the road. So it's entirely an issue of semantics, but in my mind there's no question that beating the Hokies in this neutral site game was a different animal than beating someone on their own turf.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:37 AM ^
I see what you're saying, but my argument is that it is a road game whenever a team travels. It doesn't matter if it is a neutral site game. Playing away from a home stadium is and will always be a road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:40 AM ^
The RPI calculation treats home, road, and neutral site games differently.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rating_Percentage_Index#Basketball_Formula
October 11th, 2013 at 11:41 AM ^
That's fine, but they're still on the road. The games are away from home venues. They're on the road, which means they're road games.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:51 AM ^
Call it "wins at opposing team's home venues" which is what the OP is getting at. Geez...
October 11th, 2013 at 12:04 PM ^
Would playing UCLA in the Rose Bowl (the game not stadium) be a road game? Seems like the answer is yes. Playing USC there might also be a road game as they don't have to travel and could follow their home game routine.
October 11th, 2013 at 4:43 PM ^
I would posit the following:
Playing against UCLA in the Rose Bowl during the regular season would be a de jure road game.
Playing against UCLA at the Rose Bowl in the actual Rose Bowl game (on Jan. 1) would be a de facto road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:06 PM ^
I assume you consider The Big Chill a road game then because the Big House is not in fact our hockey team's home venue?
October 11th, 2013 at 12:08 PM ^
I see what you did there.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:39 PM ^
Every game could be considered a home or road game. All teams travel together in some form to reach whatever stadium they are playing at even when it's in the city they live in. They use roads for this. Road game.
The Earth is our home. This place is for us. If our heart lies in the place we wind up then we are home. Therefore Happy Valley is a home game.
October 11th, 2013 at 1:06 PM ^
And while we're at it, as long as both teams play by the rules and have a lot of fun, aren't both teams winners as well? As far as I'm concerned, every Michigan squad is undefeated in my heart. Yay!
October 11th, 2013 at 4:02 PM ^
to see how small the text boxes can get
October 11th, 2013 at 4:04 PM ^
Smash that broad
October 11th, 2013 at 4:05 PM ^
based board
October 11th, 2013 at 4:06 PM ^
glavin
October 11th, 2013 at 4:07 PM ^
I hope it'll last.
October 11th, 2013 at 4:09 PM ^
is relished by the wisest men.
October 11th, 2013 at 4:25 PM ^
to be a part of my first MGoBlog Shitshow thread.
October 11th, 2013 at 6:11 PM ^
For smaller box.
October 11th, 2013 at 7:31 PM ^
our space is running out!
October 11th, 2013 at 9:26 PM ^
October 11th, 2013 at 11:54 PM ^
Tommy Tuberville's hair.
October 12th, 2013 at 12:53 AM ^
I'm always late for these things. sadface.
October 11th, 2013 at 1:33 PM ^
is frightening. We all know what the OP was getting at.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:34 PM ^
I am going to lick the first two layers of skin off of your entire body. Then I will bath you in the finest salts all the way from the black sea. You will then be treated with a ritualistic dance to remove the demon within you. An old priest and a young priest will put forth their words and I will reach within you and remove the evil through your lower basin.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:40 PM ^
Picturing Gary Busey doing that is sort of making my day
October 11th, 2013 at 12:43 PM ^
October 11th, 2013 at 12:47 PM ^
-1 (Ritualistic Torture)
October 11th, 2013 at 12:40 PM ^
The Michigan football team has to travel on a road to get to the Big House. Road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 4:54 PM ^
I think it's more of a "street" that they take. So maybe it's a street game?
October 11th, 2013 at 11:57 AM ^
You seem to be unable to understand the difference between the literal, dictionary definition of "road game" and how 99% of sports fans understand the term. Sports fans understand that a road game means a visit to your opponents home field. A neutral site game means travel by both teams to a site that is neither team's home field. It's why people use phrases like "away from home" when they want to encompass road games and neutral site games.
I don't know why I'm bothering to answer. It seems like you're just trying to see how long you can keep this up.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:09 PM ^
Oh no, I perfectly understand what a "road game" is, but that doesn't change the fact that neutral site games require travel and are on the road.
October 11th, 2013 at 6:59 PM ^
Home road away neutral ... defend this house... winning on the road... the road to the B1G championship . Technically VT was the Sugar Bowl home team in 2012 - they wore home jerseys and sat on the home side. They lost a home game if you want to go to that place. There is a difference between beating OSU in the shoe and in Indianapolis. Either one is sweet but I prefer the terms in Lucas Oil. Both are road games in your mind... so be it. For those who play football in reality let their be more accurate designations. Read all you want between the lines ... there is an overarching theme.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:41 PM ^
The Michigan football team has to travel on a road to get to the Big House. Road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 12:50 PM ^
"Road games" aren't just road games because you have to hop in a vroom vroom to get there. They are road games because you are entering into another team's home venue.
There's a difference between playing Alabama in Tuscaloosa (where the entire crowd is pro-Alabama and they are playing on familiar turf) and playing them in Dallas (where the crowd is 50/50 and both teams are on unfamiliar turf).
October 11th, 2013 at 11:15 AM ^
I mean there are road games and their are nuetral site games, right? The distinction is not all that difficult to grasp I don't think. It would have been his biggest win to date, but still not a road win.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:17 AM ^
It was a road win.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:26 AM ^
so the whole crowd at the sugar bowl was almost all Hokie fans? The whole purpose of people mentioning "best road win" would be the fact that we go into a hostile environment and win... The sugar bowl didn't exactly look like it was very hostile to me period.. Quit trying to saying it was a true road win under every comment
October 11th, 2013 at 11:29 AM ^
It was on the road. Why is that hard to understand? Any game away from Michigan Stadium is a road game.
October 11th, 2013 at 11:42 AM ^
So you would also argue that there is no fundamental, qualitative difference between a tomato and an orange, since technically they're both fruits.