I worked at a hockey pro shop in college at LSSU. Two of my colleagues were CCHA officials. They were also Lake State students. They were not allowed to do Laker games. I happened to be at Northern one weekend and saw one of them ref an NMU vs FSU game. It was not good.
Thank you for putting this to words! I've had this feeling for a while but was unable to articulate it. I think we'll see some great things from people who are getting elevated within the org. It will be really interesting to see how everyone does! I feel good about our chances.
I didn't realize how much I counted on OW to be my weekly dose of levity heading into a weekend of football nonsense until it was gone. Keeping my fingers crossed that life calms down for BiSB soon and he can return to delighting us with his supreme wit and pithy observations.
A note on the technical side of this. I think Brian's assertion of this being a Google Drive or equivalent thing makes total sense. Here are some insights from someone who spent 16 years working in computer security at U-M...
Michigan's primary file storage/sharing service for years was an internal system. It still exists. You have to have a uniqname (University account) to access this. Sharing with outside resources is impossible without obtaining a sponsored account, which is a DeFacto uniqname.
When the University went from locally hosted email to GMail, they adopted the full on G Suite set of online collaboration utilities. This includes Google Drive. After that they also had Box.com for a minute, before moving to Dropbox. ALL of those options offer the possibility to share with external collaborators.
Additionally, individuals with U-M email accounts could, for a long time, use those accounts to sign up for personal versions of those accounts. When U-M adopted Dropbox, a concerted effort had to be made to address personal accounts that had been set up with @umich.edu accounts. It was several months after adoption before the University addressed people's ability to sign up for a personal Dropbox account with a UM email address.
So it is entirely conceivable that Stalions set up a Google Drive (or Dropbox) share using him UM credentials and then shared it with external individuals. He may have also added other Athletic department staff to this share. You can't stop someone from giving you access to their shared folder. This would explain the statement that multiple members of the coaching staff had access to the data, while also explaining that they had no idea about it.
It's also conceivable that Stalions used his @umich.edu email address to sign up for other services. To an outside entity (PI maybe?) this could look like authorized University access, though it's not. The University is very clear that they allow students, faculty, and staff to use their University email for personal purposes.
All of this sharing and access are very easily explained by the University's purposely loose data handling and management policies and practices.
The graphic on crosses into the penalty areas really got me thinking. I mostly watch the Bundesliga. My team, VfB Stuttgart, have a left back (Croatian Borna Sosa) with a lethal cross from his left foot. We're sitting in relegation danger right now. We used to have a 6'8" Austrian (Sasa Kaladjzic) as a target for Sosa. Without Sasa, Sosa can't do much. The US doesn't have a tall target forward for our wings to bomb crosses into, so what's the point?
Brian's point about crosses and soccer more broadly is something I've been thinking about since I read this piece a few days ago. Most teams have tall, leapy, center backs who can make finding space for headers off lobbed in crosses very difficult. Unless you have your own 6'8" Austrian, you're gonna have a bad time. so teams need to adjust. How do you beat a skyscraper of a central defender? Speed? Better ball movement? Some combination? I don't think the answer is MOAR CROSSES!!!
Thanks for the insights Brian. Looking forward to part 2!
The fake hand off on the Clifford run was outstanding. Me and everyone around me in the stadium were cheering because the PSU back had been tackled for a loos. We were all then real confused when we saw Clifford galloping down the sideline. In the moment it sucked. In hindsight, good on him. Well played.
I appreciate your take on this Craig, but I think what you're saying and what Brian/Seth are saying are both true. WH's stated recommendation was to further investigate. WH's report also laid out several fire-able offenses. WH provided Manuel with the information he needed to make an informed decision. All he did with that information was have an anonymous survey conducted, when the end decision looks to be pretty obvious.
I'm scratching my head that the department hasn't said anything about any of this. I'm wondering why we had to hear about it via MLive. The whole thing stinks. I think Mel needs to go, and I think some serious questions need to be asked about Manuel.
Tenured faculty have protections and must be put through a process. Union staff likely do as well. I do not believe non-union staff have any such protection unless they have a specific contract in place, which at this point Pearson does not.
I think the fearing retribution part of the report can explain why no recent players wanted to participate. Some of these guys are early enough in their professional careers that bad words from former coaches could have an impact. Some of them are still at Michigan. I think there are valid reasons for people being afraid to speak up.
Good points both. Instead of "we" there I should have used "The B1G/northern schools". You're both right that this isn't something Michigan can fix on its own. It would be nice to see Michigan and the B1G trying to do something to change the status quo.
So close to being a baseball school too. This is a real bummer.
Seth's point about the B1G being a mid-major is spot on though. Why we kneecap ourselves by not playing baseball during baseball season is a real head scratcher.
I am here for more Brian talks soccer. I shouted when he was talking about Timmy Chandler. I'm an avid Bundesliga fan, and have been watching Chandler for years. He's not good. He's not a starter on his club Eintracht Frankfurt. Frankfurt fans I know shrug if you mention Chandler's name.
MLS is a pretty darn good league, and has been steadily getting better. The USMNT defenders bear that out. Zimmerman was a force throughout qualifying. We aren't seeing much Jordan Morris because he and Pulisic play the same spot, but he's a legit attacking force down the wing.
I think there's credence to Brian's reasoning for the European players struggling when they come back to North America for USMNT duty. Going from the pristine fields and ideal conditions of top European football to... <gestures at Trinidad and Tobago> ...is a big adjustment. You can see some of this when first division teams go to play at lower division stadiums for domestic cup games.
The overall trajectory of the team is positive too. I'm not a Berhalter fan, and was not excited about that hire, but the continued improvement of the side is evident. The team doesn't look lost and confused on the field as it so often did under Klinsmann. It feels like Berhalter has a plan, where it felt like Klinsmann was winging it more often than not.
I'm feeling positive about the USMNT right now. Some more soccer content on MGoBlog wouldn't hurt my feelings.
Does having co-coordinators make anyone else a little nervous? I remember the mess that was play calling when Pep Hamilton, Tim Drevno, and Jim Harbaugh were all weighing in on every call. I'm concerned that we're going to see something like that again. We've even got a run game coordinator to throw into the mix!
A big part of me is worried we're walking into a too many cooks situation on both sides of the ball. If everyone is in charge, no one is. Another part of me is wondering if this isn't just a case of title inflation. It happens everywhere, why should college football be any different?
I'm really glad Seth included that in the article. I had no idea International students couldn't do NIL deals. Absolutely fascinating. Hopefully that's just an early implementation wrinkle that will get sorted out in the next couple of years.
Interesting, thoughtful, well written pieces like this are one of the reasons this community is so special. Thank you for this. I'm glad you came through and are doing well now.
I'm pretty sure the first time Seth said it he pronounced it "deMONicles" which, IMO, is a significant upgrade to Damocles. The Sword of Demonicles sounds like an amazing weapon from a fantasy RPG. Or a sick Norwegian thrash metal band. Either way, I'm here for it.
Tanks for another great year of Opponent Watch. I'm always a little bummed when this column folds is tent for the year. Have to find a new favorite way to procrastinate until next season.
Being Liverpool's kit supplier didn't hurt either. Seeing legends like Salah, Sane, and Van Djik in NB gear on the regular has certainly raised its coolness a few notches.
An often overlooked group of people the U could promote cheap tickets to: staff. M is the largest employer in Washtenaw county. The number of staff I speak with who would love to go to a game, but have never been is astounding. Give the people who work hard every day to keep the U running an affordable (or free) chance to take in one of the University's signature experiences.
There are a lot of existing programs they could do this through. They could pick departments at random. Heck, they could start by rewarding the front line staff who've continued to work onsite through the pandemic! A lot of staff are feeling really underappreciated right now. This could help start to alleviate that.
Recent Comments
I worked at a hockey pro shop in college at LSSU. Two of my colleagues were CCHA officials. They were also Lake State students. They were not allowed to do Laker games. I happened to be at Northern one weekend and saw one of them ref an NMU vs FSU game. It was not good.
You'd think with the money and stakes involved...
Thank you for putting this to words! I've had this feeling for a while but was unable to articulate it. I think we'll see some great things from people who are getting elevated within the org. It will be really interesting to see how everyone does! I feel good about our chances.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
<INHALES>
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Hell yeah guys! This is exactly what I needed this morning. LFG!!!
I didn't realize how much I counted on OW to be my weekly dose of levity heading into a weekend of football nonsense until it was gone. Keeping my fingers crossed that life calms down for BiSB soon and he can return to delighting us with his supreme wit and pithy observations.
A note on the technical side of this. I think Brian's assertion of this being a Google Drive or equivalent thing makes total sense. Here are some insights from someone who spent 16 years working in computer security at U-M...
Michigan's primary file storage/sharing service for years was an internal system. It still exists. You have to have a uniqname (University account) to access this. Sharing with outside resources is impossible without obtaining a sponsored account, which is a DeFacto uniqname.
When the University went from locally hosted email to GMail, they adopted the full on G Suite set of online collaboration utilities. This includes Google Drive. After that they also had Box.com for a minute, before moving to Dropbox. ALL of those options offer the possibility to share with external collaborators.
Additionally, individuals with U-M email accounts could, for a long time, use those accounts to sign up for personal versions of those accounts. When U-M adopted Dropbox, a concerted effort had to be made to address personal accounts that had been set up with @umich.edu accounts. It was several months after adoption before the University addressed people's ability to sign up for a personal Dropbox account with a UM email address.
So it is entirely conceivable that Stalions set up a Google Drive (or Dropbox) share using him UM credentials and then shared it with external individuals. He may have also added other Athletic department staff to this share. You can't stop someone from giving you access to their shared folder. This would explain the statement that multiple members of the coaching staff had access to the data, while also explaining that they had no idea about it.
It's also conceivable that Stalions used his @umich.edu email address to sign up for other services. To an outside entity (PI maybe?) this could look like authorized University access, though it's not. The University is very clear that they allow students, faculty, and staff to use their University email for personal purposes.
All of this sharing and access are very easily explained by the University's purposely loose data handling and management policies and practices.
So so so happy Opponent Watch is back!
You're either having a stroke or overcooking your toast.
The graphic on crosses into the penalty areas really got me thinking. I mostly watch the Bundesliga. My team, VfB Stuttgart, have a left back (Croatian Borna Sosa) with a lethal cross from his left foot. We're sitting in relegation danger right now. We used to have a 6'8" Austrian (Sasa Kaladjzic) as a target for Sosa. Without Sasa, Sosa can't do much. The US doesn't have a tall target forward for our wings to bomb crosses into, so what's the point?
Brian's point about crosses and soccer more broadly is something I've been thinking about since I read this piece a few days ago. Most teams have tall, leapy, center backs who can make finding space for headers off lobbed in crosses very difficult. Unless you have your own 6'8" Austrian, you're gonna have a bad time. so teams need to adjust. How do you beat a skyscraper of a central defender? Speed? Better ball movement? Some combination? I don't think the answer is MOAR CROSSES!!!
Thanks for the insights Brian. Looking forward to part 2!
Super Mike Sainristl!
ACTIVATE JANE COASTON ALL PI OFFENSE!
We're running the ball! With some success! I don't know what to do with my hands!
Curious why we haven't seen JJ run much at all.
Feels like I'm watching the official OSU broadcast, not a "neutral" national broadcast. Anyone else?
The fake hand off on the Clifford run was outstanding. Me and everyone around me in the stadium were cheering because the PSU back had been tackled for a loos. We were all then real confused when we saw Clifford galloping down the sideline. In the moment it sucked. In hindsight, good on him. Well played.
I appreciate your take on this Craig, but I think what you're saying and what Brian/Seth are saying are both true. WH's stated recommendation was to further investigate. WH's report also laid out several fire-able offenses. WH provided Manuel with the information he needed to make an informed decision. All he did with that information was have an anonymous survey conducted, when the end decision looks to be pretty obvious.
I'm scratching my head that the department hasn't said anything about any of this. I'm wondering why we had to hear about it via MLive. The whole thing stinks. I think Mel needs to go, and I think some serious questions need to be asked about Manuel.
Tenured faculty have protections and must be put through a process. Union staff likely do as well. I do not believe non-union staff have any such protection unless they have a specific contract in place, which at this point Pearson does not.
The feed has been fixed.
I think the fearing retribution part of the report can explain why no recent players wanted to participate. Some of these guys are early enough in their professional careers that bad words from former coaches could have an impact. Some of them are still at Michigan. I think there are valid reasons for people being afraid to speak up.
Good points both. Instead of "we" there I should have used "The B1G/northern schools". You're both right that this isn't something Michigan can fix on its own. It would be nice to see Michigan and the B1G trying to do something to change the status quo.
So close to being a baseball school too. This is a real bummer.
Seth's point about the B1G being a mid-major is spot on though. Why we kneecap ourselves by not playing baseball during baseball season is a real head scratcher.
Love this idea. Would be a big improvement over what we have. Therefore it will not happen. <sigh>
I am here for more Brian talks soccer. I shouted when he was talking about Timmy Chandler. I'm an avid Bundesliga fan, and have been watching Chandler for years. He's not good. He's not a starter on his club Eintracht Frankfurt. Frankfurt fans I know shrug if you mention Chandler's name.
MLS is a pretty darn good league, and has been steadily getting better. The USMNT defenders bear that out. Zimmerman was a force throughout qualifying. We aren't seeing much Jordan Morris because he and Pulisic play the same spot, but he's a legit attacking force down the wing.
I think there's credence to Brian's reasoning for the European players struggling when they come back to North America for USMNT duty. Going from the pristine fields and ideal conditions of top European football to... <gestures at Trinidad and Tobago> ...is a big adjustment. You can see some of this when first division teams go to play at lower division stadiums for domestic cup games.
The overall trajectory of the team is positive too. I'm not a Berhalter fan, and was not excited about that hire, but the continued improvement of the side is evident. The team doesn't look lost and confused on the field as it so often did under Klinsmann. It feels like Berhalter has a plan, where it felt like Klinsmann was winging it more often than not.
I'm feeling positive about the USMNT right now. Some more soccer content on MGoBlog wouldn't hurt my feelings.
Does having co-coordinators make anyone else a little nervous? I remember the mess that was play calling when Pep Hamilton, Tim Drevno, and Jim Harbaugh were all weighing in on every call. I'm concerned that we're going to see something like that again. We've even got a run game coordinator to throw into the mix!
A big part of me is worried we're walking into a too many cooks situation on both sides of the ball. If everyone is in charge, no one is. Another part of me is wondering if this isn't just a case of title inflation. It happens everywhere, why should college football be any different?
Great story Patrick. Always enjoy your photos and your work on Twitter. Thanks for sharing. Congrats on all the successes!
I'm really glad Seth included that in the article. I had no idea International students couldn't do NIL deals. Absolutely fascinating. Hopefully that's just an early implementation wrinkle that will get sorted out in the next couple of years.
These are excellent. Though I will humbly request a Hurdling Fools shirt featuring Haskins doing Haskins things.
Edit: Just saw Seth's comment about doing this as NIL with Haskins after the season. LOVE this idea!
Interesting, thoughtful, well written pieces like this are one of the reasons this community is so special. Thank you for this. I'm glad you came through and are doing well now.
Couldn't have said it better. Nice work, Alex! Hope everyone is savoring this one as much as I am.
I'm pretty sure the first time Seth said it he pronounced it "deMONicles" which, IMO, is a significant upgrade to Damocles. The Sword of Demonicles sounds like an amazing weapon from a fantasy RPG. Or a sick Norwegian thrash metal band. Either way, I'm here for it.
Tanks for another great year of Opponent Watch. I'm always a little bummed when this column folds is tent for the year. Have to find a new favorite way to procrastinate until next season.
Needed to wait a few days before reading this. Alex, you are brutally honest and fair. I'm here for it. Great recap.
I love the Ruska Vodka song.
It's easy to do. Most of us here have been guilty of it at one time or another. Hope the waters calm for you soon.
For my part, I'm trying to remain cautiously optimistic.
Well done! Chez should be pronounced cheese. NIU should be required to play Adrian. The Willy Wonka comp is brilliant. Thanks!
Being Liverpool's kit supplier didn't hurt either. Seeing legends like Salah, Sane, and Van Djik in NB gear on the regular has certainly raised its coolness a few notches.
Responses like this are one of the reasons I love this site so much. Thank you!
This is fascinating. Your assessment makes a lot of sense. Let's hope we continue to see the results play out on the field.
I must have missed your second paragraph somehow. My mistake. Great point! ;-)
Well he didn't have a position coach last season. Hopefully being coached this year will help clear some of this stuff up.
My morning game day ritual now complete, I'm ready to be hurt again. LFG!
I'm more excited about the return of Opponent Watch than I am about the return of Michigan Football. This says something about something...
"For my money, Roman Wilson plays football like a young Maurice Richard only faster and less Québécois."
*chef's kiss*
Splitters!
An often overlooked group of people the U could promote cheap tickets to: staff. M is the largest employer in Washtenaw county. The number of staff I speak with who would love to go to a game, but have never been is astounding. Give the people who work hard every day to keep the U running an affordable (or free) chance to take in one of the University's signature experiences.
There are a lot of existing programs they could do this through. They could pick departments at random. Heck, they could start by rewarding the front line staff who've continued to work onsite through the pandemic! A lot of staff are feeling really underappreciated right now. This could help start to alleviate that.
Thanks Alex! Always fun to follow former Wolverines through their Olympic journey.
Glad you're doing ok Craig. Looking forward to hearing back on the air when you're ready!
Oh man. This may be the most exciting part of this whole playoff idea.
Totally agree. Love reading Brian's takes on the USMNT. I'd support some USWNT coverage as well!