Former NBA 12th man Brian Scalabrini was 9 years removed from the league and destroyed a starter from Syracuse fresh off his senior season. He also dismantled an overseas pro.
Tim McCormack said he played summer pickup ball vs Bill Laimbeer and did well. Played him during the season and got completely demolished.
Logged in just to upvote this. B10 hasn’t won a title in forever. Rutgers, Maryland, and Nebraska have all underperformed on the field and the B10 is still the media rights leaders.
Not an accident. Wouldn’t be true without those additions.
Can't let a mention of Intellivision basketball go without a co-sign. Mighty Joe and Stilt are still, to this day, two of my favorite video game characters ever.
Not sure why you assume everyone else’s product was or will be better than the B10 network. It was an innovative $$$ grab that everyone tried to copy. The Pac10 fell on its face and the Longhorn network arguably blew up an entire conference.
Lots of kids are born rich. They don’t all stay rich. The B10 is still filthy rich. For better or worse, the commish still has the B10 as the premier destination for most every university president considering realignment.
Its hard for me to "hate" the only jerseys we cut down the nets in. The Fab 5 jerseys created a seismic shift in basketball fashion that can still be felt today, so I agree, hard to not make them #1. At the same time, too much nostalgia wrapped up in the 80's gear to put them below the train wreck jerseys of the 90's/2000's.
I’m with XM on this one. I think our fan base is better than, “Well they did it so it’s OK.” We ARE better and we generally act like it. Sounds like her account may not be 100% accurate but let’s not rewrite basic ethics.
spitting on people in any context = unacceptable (glad to hear people refute this)
profane chants = bush league IMHO. I like to think I can take kids to games without having to apologize. I know there are others who might think this is an outdated and naive viewpoint, but I still wince at the “You Suck” that got added to one of our cheers. Scream at the opposing team all you want. Be clever, not crude.
Throwing things = silly. Throwing nerf items isn’t the same as getting batteries thrown at you or beer dumped on you, but should anyone have the right to violate your personal space just because you wore the wrong jersey? Again, I get it.....foam, but is touching another person in any capacity necessary to cheer for your team?
We are on of the great fan bases in the county and I’m proud we hold ourselves to higher standards than Ohio and Staee.
Thank you NewCarr and Stan Carlson for not letting the hysterical element of the fan base get too much unchecked stage time. You both were extremely well spoken. As you said, reasonable criticisms and discussions are definitely in order after any loss, but the complete lack of perspective by some is startling even by internet standards. We should hold our own fan base to a higher standard of discourse and I applaud your efforts.
Not a fan of the "Iverson-didn't'-work-hard" trope. Iverson made a comment about practice not being more important than his friend dying the day before and suddenly he's never worked for anything in his life? Garbage. Dude was better than most because he worked as hard if not harder than most.
Lakeyale13, I think you are right in that there is ample room for fair criticism of Harbaugh that doesn't have to be labeled as "irrational." That said, I think too many critics have laced their criticism with numerous histrionic statements that undermine the "rationality" of their initial point.
For instance, you say Harbaugh was great at other places but only good here. Completely reasonable position to hold. Then you go on to say he just lost "the most historic loss to OSU in the history of college football." A quick google search will prove that every team has suffered massive 40+ point losses to their rivals. Michigan once beat ohio 86-0. No sugar coating, this year's game stunk to high heaven, but let's keep it in perspective.
You also question whether Harbaugh can get the job here and support your position with this statement: "Is it also reasonable to think that there isn't really any evidence (other than past success at other institutions)." You very conveniently dismiss the hardest evidence anyone can provide, his actual track record. You use the fact that he's 0-4 against his biggest rival as evidence that he's making no progress here and that he can't get it done. Harbaugh didn't take the job on even footing with Ohio, MSU, PSU, or Wiscy. People have berated him about his losing record against those programs, but this year he went 3-1 against them, mostly on the road, in a year where people predicted he would lose all 4. Has he caught ohio yet? Clearly not. But to suggest that there is a mountain of evidence that he is incapable of beating ohio is much closer to "irrational" than it is to having a reasonable debate.
I wish takes like BlueMK1690 were more prevalent on this site. I get it. It's the internet. Trolls are going to troll. You'd think the tone would be dramatically different than the 2009 posts, but it sounds like the same sky-is-falling talk from a 3-9 season. People are pointing to Beilein as the model of great coaching but you only have to go back 12 months to find a proliferation of posts talking about how the game has passed Beilein by, how he isn't maximizing the talent, and how it's time for UM to get a "real" coach. There is plenty of room for criticism and countless things that need to be improved with the football team, but it's tiresome to hear that if a coach fails to win a championship in 4 years he is a failure at 10-3. The ohio game SUCKED, but a week earlier these same hyperbolic posters were talking about how we were ready to unseat Bama. We're not great yet clearly, but we're not going to play musical chairs with our coaches and expect to be anything but less than mediocre. The most qualified guy is at the helm and he's figuring it out. 2 teams rule the land. Everyone else suffered at least one blowout loss or got left out. That's reality.
I get the frustration that UM feels like they’re not maximizing their offensive situations, but let’s not rewrite history. Alabama won it’s first few titles with an old unimaginative pro style offense. I particularly remember people commenting on how underutilized Future NFL TE OJ Howard was in their scheme. Saban changed because his personnel (particularly QB) changed.
Harbaugh inherited a completely broken OL. He has yet to have a true 5* talent at RB.
I complain like everyone else that this play or that play could be different, but we did win 10 games for the 3rd time in 4 years against a schedule that most predicted an 8-4 ceiling. If everyone could be Alabama simply by being like Alabama wouldn’t everyone be Alabama? Hopefully we’ll get there, but my maize colored glasses hope that in 5 years people across the country will be complaining that their teams need to be more like Michigan.
I love the autobids because it gives all 350 teams a shot at the title. I hate when titles and privilege are decided on paper. Sometimes George Masons actually happen.
Definitely about the money. The HAVEs have no incentive to share with the HAVE NOTS. Illinois makes more $$$ than most power 5 schools, and doesn't even compare to a MAC school. They have no reason to support a system that would Thaler away their payday or cause them to split the pie more ways.
I personally love the idea of relegation, but whatever the new system is it would have to vastly increase the $$$ generated to entice the schools to change
The incentive for almost every team not in the B1G is $$$ and academic resources. No matter how bad Illinois is on the field, their share of B10 Network money exceeds most non-B1G universities.
All B1G schools are or were AAU accredited (Neb lost their status but had it when they were admitted). No other power 5 conference comes close. The B1G also part of the CIC which is a huge academic resource which most university faculties envy. Access to the CIC was the reason the ND faculty once expressed support of a move to the B1G.
It's not just W's and L's. Other than cultural or geographic problems, the B1G is a dream for most universities.
Great link. While it may not be etched into the letter of the law, T Boone Pickens has a lot of political sway and many of his minions have gone on record that they control enough of the levers of power to prevent a split. That said, Fox being part of the B1G negotiations adds to the war chest to pry them apart.
Texas and Oklahoma would put the B1G well above the SEC both financially as well as athletically. The SEC would have few options to counter such a strong move. They could dream of getting ND, but academically they don't fit the SEC. It'd be a tough pull, but getting UT/OU might be check mate in terms of the B1G being the premier conference for some time.
OU and OSU are definitely tied at the hip through state legislation and multimillionaire Boone Pickens' $$$ and influence. That said, the B1G tried to get both of them once before and will try again when the Big 12 GOR expires.
The most informative person on expansion is Frank the Tank. He's to expansion what MgoBlog is to UM. Not very active since realignment has slowed down the past couple of years, but he still blogs when new info comes out and his old posts are still solid gold IMHO.
Texas has always been the gold standard prize in realignment. They've flirted with the B1G a couple times in the past, but their own arrogance caused them to overplay their hand and left them in a piece meal conference. Now that things have settled, and their brand isn't what it once was, they may actually be interested.
My first trip to the shoe. After all the horror stories I was looking forward to this thread. I expected the worst and was prepared to share yet another low moment in human interactions. As much as I hate that school and the result of the game, I can't speak ill of the fans I encountered. In fact, to be honest, I was pleasantly impressed.
TL;DR detailed version
Drove down at night to avoid over eager cops (my car has an M vanity plate). Parked at a hotel near the airport. Drove to the stadium with a buddy with out of state plates.
I had bright Maize gear on for 48 hours straight. All the Bucknuts at the hotel were fun to be around. The walk to and around the stadium went without issue.
Almost every Bucknut we met seemed very aware of their reputation and at some point asked, "Have you been treated OK? I hope you haven't run into any jerks." The ushers near our seats welcomed us and pulled us aside to assure us they'd be looking out for us and to report anything they didn't catch. They joked with us throughout the game, on Ohio TDs and on UM TDs.
The 6 people who sat around us were nice and we had pleasant conversation at every TO break. After the game no fewer than 8 people came up to us, shook our hands and wished us the best in the bowl game (most checking to see if we had encountered any jerks). As we were walking to our car one guy even came over and gave us directions on how to get out of the stadium faster.
Sure, there were a few catcalls and one guy who cried mocking tears from 1 row over, but I didn't hear any vulgarity and never had anyone lay a hand on me. I don't doubt the veracity of other accounts, but I can at least verify that it's possible to come down here and have a good experience with their fan base.
Going to Columbus for the first time. I've heard all the stories. Believe every one of them. And yet deep in my heart I'm hoping to sit next to maybe that ONE bucknut that understands that it's a game that neither of us is playing in. That both of us have to go to work on Monday and should just enjoy an afternoon of epic competition.
Between Ped State, Sparty, and Ohio my faith that fan bases can be moral has been severely shaken, but I'm willing to go look for the Easter Bunny in the horseshoe anyways.
Go Blue
BTW - My wife is not thrilled I'm going and she has made the case for driving a rental with out of state plates.
Clever move but really a non story. WR/DB coaches are always looking to push the envelope on what they can get away with. It would be negligent to simply teach to the letter of the law. As long as no one is getting hurt, the rules are what they enforce, not what they write.
I had the fortune to sit through an afternoon of coaching seminars with Urban Meyer at a coaches clinic back when he was the WR coach at ND and he openly discussed how he taught his WRs to grab DBs without getting called. All of the coaches thought it was brilliant. I hate Ohio, and I wish they would get nailed for a 1/3 of all the cheating they do, but this is a simple case of rubbing is racing. Nothing to see here other than good coaching.
I get that for a significant portion of the younger fanbase UM-ND is ancient history. For me, the three decades of renewed rivalry starting in the 80's etched ND's place on the list for me. Throw in the continual battle for best winning percentage in NCAA history and I think this keeps this rivalry on top. Maybe UM-MSU stays relevant, but history suggests MSU returns to "occasional annoying upset" status.
I also recently bought a new 55" TCL. While my personal reaction was "I've never heard of TCL and they must be garbage," a little research proved me quite wrong. TCL has been the leading TV manufacturer in China for years and they're just new to the US market.
The TCL 55" has been rated by numerous reputable review sites as the #1 best bargain on the market for the past 2 years. I was worried that their overly cheap price of $650 was reflective of poor quality but the analysts say that when they do all their fancy testing the TCL comes out even with many $2,000 - $3,000 sets.
Im sure you could spend more and get the "best" set, but I'm thrilled with my TCL and notice the difference every time I turn on the TV. Can't wait to see those winged helmets on there
I'm going to jump on the TCL bandwagon here. Just bought the new 55" TCL model for $650. Did a lot of research and this unknown company was often declared the TV of the year last year. Top shelf quality for bottom shelf price. As others have stated, you can get last year's model even cheaper. Most reviews said the picture was on par with many $2,000 sets.
My biggest issue with the jump to 4k was content. There's not a lot out there. DirecTV gets the best ratings for service and they only have 1 channel (they claim 3 but 1 is a pay-per-view and the other broadcasts 2 events per week) . Netflix has it's original programming in 4k. Other than that, there's not a lot. The guy at the store claimed the software would make the regular 1080HD look better. I was skeptical, but I do think I get a better picture than I had previously.
Bottom line. If I had the need for another new TV I would buy another TCL sight unseen.
Looking forward to contributing to the downfall of the buckeyes. Hopefully it starts now and carries forward to a November afternoon in Columbus. ID Spydey14.
Logged in just to thank the use of stats here. I'm probably one of those tin hat conspiracy nuts, but your league-wide stats give me an honest moment of pause. I still think we got hosed multiple times last year in the shoe but F Ohio.
Recent Comments
Former NBA 12th man…
No
Former NBA 12th man Brian Scalabrini was 9 years removed from the league and destroyed a starter from Syracuse fresh off his senior season. He also dismantled an overseas pro.
Tim McCormack said he played summer pickup ball vs Bill Laimbeer and did well. Played him during the season and got completely demolished.
Pickup < real NBA game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i93vF0WOX6w&t=443s
Logged in just to upvote this. B10 hasn’t won a title in forever. Rutgers, Maryland, and Nebraska have all underperformed on the field and the B10 is still the media rights leaders.
Not an accident. Wouldn’t be true without those additions.
Hear Hear!
Can't let a mention of Intellivision basketball go without a co-sign. Mighty Joe and Stilt are still, to this day, two of my favorite video game characters ever.
Does this mean EA Sports can put out a new college football game?
<<<fingers crossed>>>
Not sure why you assume everyone else’s product was or will be better than the B10 network. It was an innovative $$$ grab that everyone tried to copy. The Pac10 fell on its face and the Longhorn network arguably blew up an entire conference.
Lots of kids are born rich. They don’t all stay rich. The B10 is still filthy rich. For better or worse, the commish still has the B10 as the premier destination for most every university president considering realignment.
Its hard for me to "hate" the only jerseys we cut down the nets in. The Fab 5 jerseys created a seismic shift in basketball fashion that can still be felt today, so I agree, hard to not make them #1. At the same time, too much nostalgia wrapped up in the 80's gear to put them below the train wreck jerseys of the 90's/2000's.
I’m with XM on this one. I think our fan base is better than, “Well they did it so it’s OK.” We ARE better and we generally act like it. Sounds like her account may not be 100% accurate but let’s not rewrite basic ethics.
spitting on people in any context = unacceptable (glad to hear people refute this)
profane chants = bush league IMHO. I like to think I can take kids to games without having to apologize. I know there are others who might think this is an outdated and naive viewpoint, but I still wince at the “You Suck” that got added to one of our cheers. Scream at the opposing team all you want. Be clever, not crude.
Throwing things = silly. Throwing nerf items isn’t the same as getting batteries thrown at you or beer dumped on you, but should anyone have the right to violate your personal space just because you wore the wrong jersey? Again, I get it.....foam, but is touching another person in any capacity necessary to cheer for your team?
We are on of the great fan bases in the county and I’m proud we hold ourselves to higher standards than Ohio and Staee.
Thank you NewCarr and Stan Carlson for not letting the hysterical element of the fan base get too much unchecked stage time. You both were extremely well spoken. As you said, reasonable criticisms and discussions are definitely in order after any loss, but the complete lack of perspective by some is startling even by internet standards. We should hold our own fan base to a higher standard of discourse and I applaud your efforts.
Not a fan of the "Iverson-didn't'-work-hard" trope. Iverson made a comment about practice not being more important than his friend dying the day before and suddenly he's never worked for anything in his life? Garbage. Dude was better than most because he worked as hard if not harder than most.
Lakeyale13, I think you are right in that there is ample room for fair criticism of Harbaugh that doesn't have to be labeled as "irrational." That said, I think too many critics have laced their criticism with numerous histrionic statements that undermine the "rationality" of their initial point.
For instance, you say Harbaugh was great at other places but only good here. Completely reasonable position to hold. Then you go on to say he just lost "the most historic loss to OSU in the history of college football." A quick google search will prove that every team has suffered massive 40+ point losses to their rivals. Michigan once beat ohio 86-0. No sugar coating, this year's game stunk to high heaven, but let's keep it in perspective.
You also question whether Harbaugh can get the job here and support your position with this statement: "Is it also reasonable to think that there isn't really any evidence (other than past success at other institutions)." You very conveniently dismiss the hardest evidence anyone can provide, his actual track record. You use the fact that he's 0-4 against his biggest rival as evidence that he's making no progress here and that he can't get it done. Harbaugh didn't take the job on even footing with Ohio, MSU, PSU, or Wiscy. People have berated him about his losing record against those programs, but this year he went 3-1 against them, mostly on the road, in a year where people predicted he would lose all 4. Has he caught ohio yet? Clearly not. But to suggest that there is a mountain of evidence that he is incapable of beating ohio is much closer to "irrational" than it is to having a reasonable debate.
I wish takes like BlueMK1690 were more prevalent on this site. I get it. It's the internet. Trolls are going to troll. You'd think the tone would be dramatically different than the 2009 posts, but it sounds like the same sky-is-falling talk from a 3-9 season. People are pointing to Beilein as the model of great coaching but you only have to go back 12 months to find a proliferation of posts talking about how the game has passed Beilein by, how he isn't maximizing the talent, and how it's time for UM to get a "real" coach. There is plenty of room for criticism and countless things that need to be improved with the football team, but it's tiresome to hear that if a coach fails to win a championship in 4 years he is a failure at 10-3. The ohio game SUCKED, but a week earlier these same hyperbolic posters were talking about how we were ready to unseat Bama. We're not great yet clearly, but we're not going to play musical chairs with our coaches and expect to be anything but less than mediocre. The most qualified guy is at the helm and he's figuring it out. 2 teams rule the land. Everyone else suffered at least one blowout loss or got left out. That's reality.
I get the frustration that UM feels like they’re not maximizing their offensive situations, but let’s not rewrite history. Alabama won it’s first few titles with an old unimaginative pro style offense. I particularly remember people commenting on how underutilized Future NFL TE OJ Howard was in their scheme. Saban changed because his personnel (particularly QB) changed.
Harbaugh inherited a completely broken OL. He has yet to have a true 5* talent at RB.
I complain like everyone else that this play or that play could be different, but we did win 10 games for the 3rd time in 4 years against a schedule that most predicted an 8-4 ceiling. If everyone could be Alabama simply by being like Alabama wouldn’t everyone be Alabama? Hopefully we’ll get there, but my maize colored glasses hope that in 5 years people across the country will be complaining that their teams need to be more like Michigan.
I love the autobids because it gives all 350 teams a shot at the title. I hate when titles and privilege are decided on paper. Sometimes George Masons actually happen.
Definitely about the money. The HAVEs have no incentive to share with the HAVE NOTS. Illinois makes more $$$ than most power 5 schools, and doesn't even compare to a MAC school. They have no reason to support a system that would Thaler away their payday or cause them to split the pie more ways.
I personally love the idea of relegation, but whatever the new system is it would have to vastly increase the $$$ generated to entice the schools to change
The incentive for almost every team not in the B1G is $$$ and academic resources. No matter how bad Illinois is on the field, their share of B10 Network money exceeds most non-B1G universities.
All B1G schools are or were AAU accredited (Neb lost their status but had it when they were admitted). No other power 5 conference comes close. The B1G also part of the CIC which is a huge academic resource which most university faculties envy. Access to the CIC was the reason the ND faculty once expressed support of a move to the B1G.
It's not just W's and L's. Other than cultural or geographic problems, the B1G is a dream for most universities.
Great link. While it may not be etched into the letter of the law, T Boone Pickens has a lot of political sway and many of his minions have gone on record that they control enough of the levers of power to prevent a split. That said, Fox being part of the B1G negotiations adds to the war chest to pry them apart.
Texas and Oklahoma would put the B1G well above the SEC both financially as well as athletically. The SEC would have few options to counter such a strong move. They could dream of getting ND, but academically they don't fit the SEC. It'd be a tough pull, but getting UT/OU might be check mate in terms of the B1G being the premier conference for some time.
OU and OSU are definitely tied at the hip through state legislation and multimillionaire Boone Pickens' $$$ and influence. That said, the B1G tried to get both of them once before and will try again when the Big 12 GOR expires.
The most informative person on expansion is Frank the Tank. He's to expansion what MgoBlog is to UM. Not very active since realignment has slowed down the past couple of years, but he still blogs when new info comes out and his old posts are still solid gold IMHO.
Texas has always been the gold standard prize in realignment. They've flirted with the B1G a couple times in the past, but their own arrogance caused them to overplay their hand and left them in a piece meal conference. Now that things have settled, and their brand isn't what it once was, they may actually be interested.
10 second answer- I met nothing but nice Bucknuts
My first trip to the shoe. After all the horror stories I was looking forward to this thread. I expected the worst and was prepared to share yet another low moment in human interactions. As much as I hate that school and the result of the game, I can't speak ill of the fans I encountered. In fact, to be honest, I was pleasantly impressed.
TL;DR detailed version
Drove down at night to avoid over eager cops (my car has an M vanity plate). Parked at a hotel near the airport. Drove to the stadium with a buddy with out of state plates.
I had bright Maize gear on for 48 hours straight. All the Bucknuts at the hotel were fun to be around. The walk to and around the stadium went without issue.
Almost every Bucknut we met seemed very aware of their reputation and at some point asked, "Have you been treated OK? I hope you haven't run into any jerks." The ushers near our seats welcomed us and pulled us aside to assure us they'd be looking out for us and to report anything they didn't catch. They joked with us throughout the game, on Ohio TDs and on UM TDs.
The 6 people who sat around us were nice and we had pleasant conversation at every TO break. After the game no fewer than 8 people came up to us, shook our hands and wished us the best in the bowl game (most checking to see if we had encountered any jerks). As we were walking to our car one guy even came over and gave us directions on how to get out of the stadium faster.
Sure, there were a few catcalls and one guy who cried mocking tears from 1 row over, but I didn't hear any vulgarity and never had anyone lay a hand on me. I don't doubt the veracity of other accounts, but I can at least verify that it's possible to come down here and have a good experience with their fan base.
Go Blue
this
Going to Columbus for the first time. I've heard all the stories. Believe every one of them. And yet deep in my heart I'm hoping to sit next to maybe that ONE bucknut that understands that it's a game that neither of us is playing in. That both of us have to go to work on Monday and should just enjoy an afternoon of epic competition.
Between Ped State, Sparty, and Ohio my faith that fan bases can be moral has been severely shaken, but I'm willing to go look for the Easter Bunny in the horseshoe anyways.
Go Blue
BTW - My wife is not thrilled I'm going and she has made the case for driving a rental with out of state plates.
Clever move but really a non story. WR/DB coaches are always looking to push the envelope on what they can get away with. It would be negligent to simply teach to the letter of the law. As long as no one is getting hurt, the rules are what they enforce, not what they write.
I had the fortune to sit through an afternoon of coaching seminars with Urban Meyer at a coaches clinic back when he was the WR coach at ND and he openly discussed how he taught his WRs to grab DBs without getting called. All of the coaches thought it was brilliant. I hate Ohio, and I wish they would get nailed for a 1/3 of all the cheating they do, but this is a simple case of rubbing is racing. Nothing to see here other than good coaching.
I get that…
Hear Hear!
I get that for a significant portion of the younger fanbase UM-ND is ancient history. For me, the three decades of renewed rivalry starting in the 80's etched ND's place on the list for me. Throw in the continual battle for best winning percentage in NCAA history and I think this keeps this rivalry on top. Maybe UM-MSU stays relevant, but history suggests MSU returns to "occasional annoying upset" status.
I also recently bought a new 55" TCL. While my personal reaction was "I've never heard of TCL and they must be garbage," a little research proved me quite wrong. TCL has been the leading TV manufacturer in China for years and they're just new to the US market.
The TCL 55" has been rated by numerous reputable review sites as the #1 best bargain on the market for the past 2 years. I was worried that their overly cheap price of $650 was reflective of poor quality but the analysts say that when they do all their fancy testing the TCL comes out even with many $2,000 - $3,000 sets.
Im sure you could spend more and get the "best" set, but I'm thrilled with my TCL and notice the difference every time I turn on the TV. Can't wait to see those winged helmets on there
It has…
Worst - Wisconsin
It has 2 words, "On Wisconsin," over and over and over....
I'm going to jump on the TCL bandwagon here. Just bought the new 55" TCL model for $650. Did a lot of research and this unknown company was often declared the TV of the year last year. Top shelf quality for bottom shelf price. As others have stated, you can get last year's model even cheaper. Most reviews said the picture was on par with many $2,000 sets.
My biggest issue with the jump to 4k was content. There's not a lot out there. DirecTV gets the best ratings for service and they only have 1 channel (they claim 3 but 1 is a pay-per-view and the other broadcasts 2 events per week) . Netflix has it's original programming in 4k. Other than that, there's not a lot. The guy at the store claimed the software would make the regular 1080HD look better. I was skeptical, but I do think I get a better picture than I had previously.
Bottom line. If I had the need for another new TV I would buy another TCL sight unseen.