I do think this game feels very different to fans with a final score of 30-17, and that last State touchdown rattled us in a way to bring back memories of last year. I can still remember the Michigan sideline right before that muffed punt, and the celebration that was beginning to ensue. It may not be rational to fear a miraculous State upset yesterday, but it was understandable. Ultimately, Harbaugh has put Michigan in a place to win in this series for two years now, and I'm glad that we got things done in EL yesterday. Here's hoping to a second win over Dantonio next year. Now on to MD.
I work for Fairfax Schools, and correctly guessed they'd delay opening after seeing the dusting last night. There was no effort to pretreat, which exacerbates things. But now the region will spend the rest of the year going overkill in advance of every possible storm.
I hate trying to drive around NoVA during any winter event, but there's something nice about having the whole region shut down for a few days as the snow moves in. I don't remember a lot about the storms in Michigan growing up, but here in VA it seems like we get our snow all at once rather than spread out over the season.
Giving back really is one of the best things you can do, and I do want to echo the OP's suggestion of giving locally (or taking a quick look at the financials of a larger organization) in order to maximize the good that a donation can bring. I got a small raise at work this year and decided to put about half of it towards giving every month. I can find lots of things to spend $50 on for myself, but researching and giving to charities has taught me a lot about what needs there are out there.
Sometimes people interview just to remind themselves how good they have it where they are. I'm sure RR was curious to see what SC had to offer, but probably decided on stability in this case. I mean, who leaves a school that allows a coach to do a Bond style parody video?
It's amazing how much influence one person can have over the mood of an organization, and I trust Harbaugh was in tune enough with his coordinators prior to Saturday to at least sign off on the approach/gameplan. Michigan defenses will not revert to Greg Robinson's days, not as long as Harbaugh is here.
I don't fully understand the vitriol directed at Durkin; the guy got a promotion (in title, but not sure I'd want the MD job!), and it does reflect well on the caliber of coach Harbaugh wants to bring to M. If we hear stories of him ducking out of practice to interview, or shirking his duties before the Game, I might be more inclined to fault him, but I can't imagine he'd be so checked out of this job already; he chose to come back here over A&M, after all.
Given what we've seen of Harbaugh's handling of the press, I have to think he wants to keep people focused on the intensity of play, not the emotions associated with The Game. Soundbites in the press to get people riled up probably just distract from it, and the coaches are modeling the behavior they want the players to show.
and every first down, Seven Nation Army blared away. Both were stuck in my head for a good three days after attending the 2013 game. Most of the fans were pretty nice, though I got seated in front of the two drunk a-holes who screamed in my ear all game.
Regardless of the outcome, any Michigan fans in attendance will enjoy this game better than the 4OT meltdown endured in the last trip to Happy Valley (which I attended).
But I'm feeling good about this weekend. Defense will rebound, and a low scoring affair seems appropriate.
I turned off the 2011 UTL game right before Michigan's comeback began, and was shocked to see the slew of text messages on my phone the next morning. I was about to go storming around the house after the Minnesota catch on this game, but regained (slightly) my composure after seeing the replay and the receiver being just short. That said, that 3rd and 17 conversion prior to the big catch was just brutal.
...in thinking at the outset that this game would be a solid and easy win by Michigan, especially given our defensive play of the last few games. But, man, Leidner's bullets + a few of the Minnesota runs made me start to rethink the trajectory of the whole season. I'm happy for the win and thankful for the coaching staff's ability to stitch together some semblance of offense with duct tape and dental floss.
I'm also glad that those Minnesota fans wearing the 'ghosts of Michigan's past' costumes got to experience that last second loss. That just felt classless to me.
I wondered how you would approach this game recap. But I think you nailed the sentiments that many of us are feeling, and you managed to create a perspective that makes me (marginally) more accepting of things than I was on Saturday.
It's easy to grade State lower this year given our respective performances, but they've still found a way to win thus far. I remember Ace discussing the tire fire that was State's offense at the beginning of the season a couple years ago, and they figured it out, and I can still remember Michigan's lackluster game against Ball State in '06 (which was one of Michigan's best years of the decade). Bored? No. But work in progress? Check.
I really like our chances in two phases of the game, but the offense is the one question mark that precludes me from feeling comfortable about a win.
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I do think this game feels very different to fans with a final score of 30-17, and that last State touchdown rattled us in a way to bring back memories of last year. I can still remember the Michigan sideline right before that muffed punt, and the celebration that was beginning to ensue. It may not be rational to fear a miraculous State upset yesterday, but it was understandable. Ultimately, Harbaugh has put Michigan in a place to win in this series for two years now, and I'm glad that we got things done in EL yesterday. Here's hoping to a second win over Dantonio next year. Now on to MD.
I hate trying to drive around NoVA during any winter event, but there's something nice about having the whole region shut down for a few days as the snow moves in. I don't remember a lot about the storms in Michigan growing up, but here in VA it seems like we get our snow all at once rather than spread out over the season.
Looks like they fixed the banner as well:
http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/011416aad.html
Giving back really is one of the best things you can do, and I do want to echo the OP's suggestion of giving locally (or taking a quick look at the financials of a larger organization) in order to maximize the good that a donation can bring. I got a small raise at work this year and decided to put about half of it towards giving every month. I can find lots of things to spend $50 on for myself, but researching and giving to charities has taught me a lot about what needs there are out there.
Sometimes people interview just to remind themselves how good they have it where they are. I'm sure RR was curious to see what SC had to offer, but probably decided on stability in this case. I mean, who leaves a school that allows a coach to do a Bond style parody video?
It's amazing how much influence one person can have over the mood of an organization, and I trust Harbaugh was in tune enough with his coordinators prior to Saturday to at least sign off on the approach/gameplan. Michigan defenses will not revert to Greg Robinson's days, not as long as Harbaugh is here.
I don't fully understand the vitriol directed at Durkin; the guy got a promotion (in title, but not sure I'd want the MD job!), and it does reflect well on the caliber of coach Harbaugh wants to bring to M. If we hear stories of him ducking out of practice to interview, or shirking his duties before the Game, I might be more inclined to fault him, but I can't imagine he'd be so checked out of this job already; he chose to come back here over A&M, after all.
Partridge might want to move back closer to home. He was pretty settled in NJ before coming to M.
Given what we've seen of Harbaugh's handling of the press, I have to think he wants to keep people focused on the intensity of play, not the emotions associated with The Game. Soundbites in the press to get people riled up probably just distract from it, and the coaches are modeling the behavior they want the players to show.
and every first down, Seven Nation Army blared away. Both were stuck in my head for a good three days after attending the 2013 game. Most of the fans were pretty nice, though I got seated in front of the two drunk a-holes who screamed in my ear all game.
a low scoring affair. 17-12 M.
But I'm feeling good about this weekend. Defense will rebound, and a low scoring affair seems appropriate.
I turned off the 2011 UTL game right before Michigan's comeback began, and was shocked to see the slew of text messages on my phone the next morning. I was about to go storming around the house after the Minnesota catch on this game, but regained (slightly) my composure after seeing the replay and the receiver being just short. That said, that 3rd and 17 conversion prior to the big catch was just brutal.
...in thinking at the outset that this game would be a solid and easy win by Michigan, especially given our defensive play of the last few games. But, man, Leidner's bullets + a few of the Minnesota runs made me start to rethink the trajectory of the whole season. I'm happy for the win and thankful for the coaching staff's ability to stitch together some semblance of offense with duct tape and dental floss.
I'm also glad that those Minnesota fans wearing the 'ghosts of Michigan's past' costumes got to experience that last second loss. That just felt classless to me.
My preferred first and second scores were taken, see if this one holds up.
Brian was channeling his inner Walter White at the outset of this show. Love this podcast.
It's easy to grade State lower this year given our respective performances, but they've still found a way to win thus far. I remember Ace discussing the tire fire that was State's offense at the beginning of the season a couple years ago, and they figured it out, and I can still remember Michigan's lackluster game against Ball State in '06 (which was one of Michigan's best years of the decade). Bored? No. But work in progress? Check.
I really like our chances in two phases of the game, but the offense is the one question mark that precludes me from feeling comfortable about a win.
I'm going for 21-17 MSU. Not sure I want the shirt if I'm right, though...