Jump to content

Tell Me About Michigan


LTtxfan

Recommended Posts

On 8/7/2024 at 4:20 PM, Horn of Gabriel said:

The NCAA doesn't give the title trophy, the CFP does.  NCAA != CFP and the NCAA can't revoke a title they never gave for that reason.

It's popular to bash the NCAA.  Remember that the NCAA was created at the behest of and with the buy-in and support of the universities that created it, like UT and all of our new SEC friends, the B1G members, and so on.  They created the NCAA to do what they struggled to do themselves but wanted, which was to provide governance and more importantly to be a punching bag for all the unpopular decisions they didn't want to put their stamp on, like scholarship limits, academic standards, retaining amateurism, and penalizing rule breakers.  

It's a heck of a lot easier to sit back and say "those corrupt fat fucks at the NCAA are holding us down" "They're the ones preventing athletes from monetizing their NIL!"  Why do you think the NCAA did any of that?  Why do you think they held on so long that they get bitchslapped at the SCOTUS?  It wasn't for fun, it was because their membership wanted it.

Now with all the money in major college football, there is a schism in the NCAA membership between the have's like UT in Power 2 and the have not's in the G7 and below.  With the P2 programs turning profit it's no longer a "sports problem," it's a "sports opportunity" and the university presidents at those places are starting to care more.  Board members like Eltife are even getting involved at a level previously not seen publicly.  The power conferences are going to split off soon in football to establish more permissive rules for scholarships, recruiting, etc.  They will form a new body, like the NCAA but just for major college football.  The NCAA won't die, they don't even want to govern major college football because they don't make money on it and only get headaches.

So yeah I can empathize with NCAA, they're stuck in the middle between stakeholders who want diametrically opposed things.  They can't pick a winner because their membership is both.  They can't split the middle either.  Every choice is a losing choice for them.  They've also had some truly foot-in-the-mouth leadership along the way too, which doesn't help.

Also fuck you for making me defend the NCAA.

Well said.

  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted (edited)
19 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Just booked my trip on Ann Arbor for the game.  Never been. What should be the plan on game day?

  1. SURLY Tailgate
  2. Participate in drinking Games
  3. HYDRATE
  4. Watch Horns Win
  5. Back to SURLY Tailgate
  6. More Drinking Games + Food
  7. Party & Dance With RGB3/CTJ
  8. Give Immamac a Big Hug
  9. UBER to hotel for early evening nap
  10. Back to Ann Arbor bars to party
  11. End up in drunk tank jail in Frankenmuth

 

 

Edited by LTtxfan
  • Hook 'Em 1
  • Like 2
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Translation: "We haven't admitted shit, and we will continue to not say shit, to NCAA investigators. We are will aware that NCAA penalties against Michigan will, as always, be applied to Eastern Michigan, West Michigan, and/or Central Michigan, so fuck NCAA and its investigators."

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Laxtonto said:

 

 

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/ncaa-football/news/netflix-sign-stealer-connor-stalions-leaks-ncaa-interview/9647ff92f27c89f4a1013e88

'Sign Stealer' reveals how Connor Stalions obtained signals 

The documentary is a biopic of Stalions, who grew up as a Michigan fan and explores the origins of his methodology for stealing signs during football games – which ironically started when he was a staffer with Navy when the Midshipmen played Ohio State on Aug. 30, 2014.

Nearly a decade later, Stalions would be at the center of a scandal during Michigan's national championship season for several allegations. Stalions purchased tickets for games at other Big Ten stadiums and admits to obtaining videos from those games. He does not admit to using it, however. Stalions also does not admit to being in person at the Central Michigan game against Michigan State on Sept. 21, 2023. Stalions offers his defense, too.

"First of all, I've never advance scouted," Stalions said in the documentary. "Second, if this is about signals, I obtained signals the same way every other team does through watching TV copies and talking to other intel guys on other teams. What set me apart was the way I organized that information and processed it on game day." 

"Untold: Sign Stealer” operates in those gray areas and details an underground network for analysts that steal signals in college football. Stalions become engrossed in that network, and pushed past boundaries with an intricate sign-stealing system, which is detailed. 

"I think what Connor has is a unique football mind," Brown said. "I don't think it's just a football mind. I think it's a mind in general. There are a ton of people around the country that do similar things to what Connor did, but what makes Connor unique is that he is able to retain that and did have the organizational system that was unique that I don't know that other people would go to the lengths that he did. I don't think that they could retain the information that he did to make it as useful as he was able to make it."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

One of Michigan Insider's mods/beat guys posted his thoughts on where things sit for each position and I've spoilered it below. A few thoughts ahead of that:

-Orji is clearly expected to be the main guy at QB against Fresno State

-Michigan has at least 8 TE/h-back guys on their roster and these guys love every one of them

-There is a general lack of faith in Donovan Edwards being an every down back and they may need help from a true freshman

-These homers think LB "could be even better!" than last year, which featured 3 LBs drafted following the season

-They follow their LB silliness up with the same proclomation regarding CB/NB, where they lost an early pick from last year's team

Spoiler

Steve LorenzSTAFF

Posted on 11 hrs, V I P, User Since 152 months ago, User Post Count: 68922

11 hrsVIP

152 months

68922

Some of this is new, some of this is stuff Zach and I discussed on the preview podcasts for those who don't want to listen. 

Naturally starting in at quarterback.....

- Would still be very, very surprised if Alex Orji doesn't get the first crack on Saturday.

- Davis Warren's push is a best case scenario for Michigan; the talk/belief throughout is that Orji's overall abilities would be too tough to give the first crack to. If Warren does emerge out of the pack, he will have been very impressive. 

- I think Jadyn Davis will work his way up as the season continues. I do believe Michigan thinks they have something there. 

Running back

- I picked Kalel Mullings to lead the team in touchdowns this season. Michigan has gravitated towards using bigger backs inside the five in years past. 

- My biggest question at back is whether or not Michigan can get enough production elsewhere to utilize Donovan Edwards a bit more in the passing game. It's my opinion that he's too good to not use there more. 

- Jordan Marshall will be a factor before the end of the season. Mentioned that I would not be surprised if he gets kick return opportunities at some point (partial speculation). 

Receiver

- Tyler Morris is locked in. Maybe more than any player on the roster I am interested to see how he produces this year. 

- Sam mentioned Semaj Morgan as the best offensive player in fall camp....is he being sort of under-discussed? 

- All indications are that Channing Goodwin will see some legitimate time at some point. Another underappreciated addition recruiting-wise. 

Tight end

- Might not be a room on the roster that's in better shape now and for the future than tight end. 

-  I think Michigan feels like Zack Marshall is a guy who could fit as a Bredeson back-up but also someone who could be featured as a potential receiver at the spot. There is some real versatility there.

- All early indications are great for both freshmen. Better yet, both Marshall and Deakon Tonielli are on a good trajectory as well so there's no rush with Hansen or Prieskorn. Add in Eli Owens and Andrew Olesh and Michigan will be elite again next season even without Colston Loveland. 

- I would like to see Michigan use Max Bredeson the way Michigan used BJ Askew back in the day without the carries. Askew was a great short yardage receiver when he was used in motion as a blocker or in a straight H-back position. Bredeson is such an asset in the running game that I think he could easily find spots in the flat or in the middle if utilized properly. With a new face at quarterback, the more safety valves Kirk Campbell can create, the better.

Offensive line

- It's refreshing at this point for veterans to be battling veterans for whatever starting spots are up for grabs. In a way, it reminds me of how long it's been since I've been doing this as it long felt like Michigan was playing guys who weren't ready up front for years. Totally different ballgame now. 

- Talk is always going to be about those aforementioned spots that are up for grabs. For me? I am way more interested to see what Giovanni El-Hadi does as a guy who has waited his turn. I think he is a potential all-conference player in his first year as a starter. 

- Blake Frazier and Jake Guarnera continue to get early mentions on my end. Ben Roebuck recently got one also; I have been personally high on Roebuck for a while. 

Defensive line/edge

- Yes on TJ Guy. I was a bit miffed when Sherrone Moore went out of his way to praise Guy earlier today (Monday) as that was a note I was hoping to share. He might be the most underappreciated/talked about contributor heading into the season. 

- Fourth edge spot is going to be fun to follow as the season goes on. I don't know if Wink will actually rotate five guys in but Dominic Nichols is going to be tough to keep off of the field eventually in my opinion. 

- A rotation of five or six. That's the biggest question for me with Wink Martindale on the interior this season. 

Linebacker

- I think Michigan's starting two has the potential to be better than last year's starters were. 

- Chris Partridge was a HUGE Jaydon Hood fan as far as a guy who could spell those ahead of him but also could excel if given a bigger opportunity. Him being in the top four speaks to that in my opinion as Barham/Hausmann have all-conference potential. 

- Still think Cole Sullivan enters the conversation at some point before the season is over. 

Defensive back

- Jyaire Hill's emergence is a best case scenario for Michigan defensively. I think he leads the team in interceptions this season. 

- Was told that Aamir Hall was set to have a 'Josh Wallace-like' impact this season. If even close to true, you could argue Michigan's cornerback situation is better than it was last year. 

- There's a wide variety of skillsets Michigan can utilize at the safety spot. Makari Paige is a given and will contend for all-conference positioning; the bigger question to me is who emerges alongside of him. 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The line is surprisingly low at Michigan -21.5

I'm not sure if Fresno will score more than 3 points against arguably the best defense in the country... but can Michigan score more than 24? They should be able to run on Fresno rather easily, but that'll shorten the game. Decent chance though that Michigan just runs it on them easily scores a TD on almost every drive if their OL is actually as good as their mods seem to believe it could be

Link to comment
Share on other sites

48 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/ncaa-football/news/netflix-sign-stealer-connor-stalions-leaks-ncaa-interview/9647ff92f27c89f4a1013e88

'Sign Stealer' reveals how Connor Stalions obtained signals 

The documentary is a biopic of Stalions, who grew up as a Michigan fan and explores the origins of his methodology for stealing signs during football games – which ironically started when he was a staffer with Navy when the Midshipmen played Ohio State on Aug. 30, 2014.

Nearly a decade later, Stalions would be at the center of a scandal during Michigan's national championship season for several allegations. Stalions purchased tickets for games at other Big Ten stadiums and admits to obtaining videos from those games. He does not admit to using it, however. Stalions also does not admit to being in person at the Central Michigan game against Michigan State on Sept. 21, 2023. Stalions offers his defense, too.

"First of all, I've never advance scouted," Stalions said in the documentary. "Second, if this is about signals, I obtained signals the same way every other team does through watching TV copies and talking to other intel guys on other teams. What set me apart was the way I organized that information and processed it on game day." 

"Untold: Sign Stealer” operates in those gray areas and details an underground network for analysts that steal signals in college football. Stalions become engrossed in that network, and pushed past boundaries with an intricate sign-stealing system, which is detailed. 

"I think what Connor has is a unique football mind," Brown said. "I don't think it's just a football mind. I think it's a mind in general. There are a ton of people around the country that do similar things to what Connor did, but what makes Connor unique is that he is able to retain that and did have the organizational system that was unique that I don't know that other people would go to the lengths that he did. I don't think that they could retain the information that he did to make it as useful as he was able to make it."

So the combo "it wasn't me/ everyone does it" excuse...that's a bold strategy 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, crash_davis said:

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/ncaa-football/news/netflix-sign-stealer-connor-stalions-leaks-ncaa-interview/9647ff92f27c89f4a1013e88

'Sign Stealer' reveals how Connor Stalions obtained signals 

The documentary is a biopic of Stalions, who grew up as a Michigan fan and explores the origins of his methodology for stealing signs during football games – which ironically started when he was a staffer with Navy when the Midshipmen played Ohio State on Aug. 30, 2014.

Nearly a decade later, Stalions would be at the center of a scandal during Michigan's national championship season for several allegations. Stalions purchased tickets for games at other Big Ten stadiums and admits to obtaining videos from those games. He does not admit to using it, however. Stalions also does not admit to being in person at the Central Michigan game against Michigan State on Sept. 21, 2023. Stalions offers his defense, too.

"First of all, I've never advance scouted," Stalions said in the documentary. "Second, if this is about signals, I obtained signals the same way every other team does through watching TV copies and talking to other intel guys on other teams. What set me apart was the way I organized that information and processed it on game day." 

"Untold: Sign Stealer” operates in those gray areas and details an underground network for analysts that steal signals in college football. Stalions become engrossed in that network, and pushed past boundaries with an intricate sign-stealing system, which is detailed. 

"I think what Connor has is a unique football mind," Brown said. "I don't think it's just a football mind. I think it's a mind in general. There are a ton of people around the country that do similar things to what Connor did, but what makes Connor unique is that he is able to retain that and did have the organizational system that was unique that I don't know that other people would go to the lengths that he did. I don't think that they could retain the information that he did to make it as useful as he was able to make it."

each Untold is more pointless than the last.  this added nothing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

IIRC the issue is not sign stealing per se, but attending opponents' games. The filming has nothing to do with it, apparently. Just going to the games at all is the violation. It's not clear if it's okay if a complete stranger (or at least someone not employed by your school) goes, videotapes the opponent, and donates the film to you. 

This is a fairly new rule (or guideline or whatever they call it), from the 1990s I think. The original discussion was about fairness for the poorer schools, because of course those tickets and the travel are just beyond the means of Toledo, Miami of Ohio, and their ilk. Nothing about whether "sign stealing" is some sort of ethical or moral affront, mind you. There was talk of going in that direction so maybe something was added that makes it a foul for your staff to watch opponents' sidelines during a game and discern their signals and communicate their findings to coaches either live or at half-time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Fud said:

The line is surprisingly low at Michigan -21.5

I'm not sure if Fresno will score more than 3 points against arguably the best defense in the country... but can Michigan score more than 24? They should be able to run on Fresno rather easily, but that'll shorten the game. Decent chance though that Michigan just runs it on them easily scores a TD on almost every drive if their OL is actually as good as their mods seem to believe it could be

I don't think they will be that great at the beginning of the season, but I will not be surprised if they are stout in the back half.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sherrone Moore and Wink Martindale were interviewed by The Michigan Insider this week. They acknowledged that the interior DL is the most banged up unit on the team. Rayshaun Benny is expected to be a key part of the rotation. He's coming off of a broken ankle injury and can play on it, but he's not nearly 100% and won't be when they play Texas. Mason Graham has missed practices but will play Saturday. They've been cagey about info on Graham's injury. I think that is something to watch on Saturday in terms of how much and how well he plays.

They have another guy that they want to see step up, but he's a pussy and is constantly "hurt" at the 3rd starting LB spot. They might as well have called the dude a goldbricker. They have two transfer LBs, one from Nebraska and one from Maryland, who will also start. The Maryland transfer is a thumper but not a sideline to sideline guy, as far I can understand in terms of the comments. The Nebraska guy is the defensive playcaller and he's also apparently an "overthinker", per Martindale, who can think his way out of plays sometimes. Okay then.

  • Hook 'Em 2
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

They acknowledged that the interior DL is the most banged up unit on the team.


That is particularly interesting because a favorite compensation to average or tired D-Line play is to blitz, a tendency we are all too unfortunately familiar with during the Todd Orlando years.  And Martindale has a fetish for blitzing.  

Martindale historically called blitzes at the highest rate in the NFL, with some years as high as >50%!  For context, the average NFL blitz rate is typically in the 20s, which is probably why John Harbaugh gave him the boot.  Even when you have a franchise with a stellar front office like the Ravens, who can acquire and develop talent better than most, that high of a blitz rate just doesn’t make sense.

Michigan shouldn’t need to blitz week 1 to win.  If they do, then you know Martindale can’t help himself and Quinn will be seeing 5-6 coming at him every other play in week 2.

  • Hook 'Em 2
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sherrone Moore and Wink Martindale were interviewed by The Michigan Insider this week. They acknowledged that the interior DL is the most banged up unit on the team. Rayshaun Benny is expected to be a key part of the rotation. He's coming off of a broken ankle injury and can play on it, but he's not nearly 100% and won't be when they play Texas. Mason Graham has missed practices but will play Saturday. They've been cagey about info on Graham's injury. I think that is something to watch on Saturday in terms of how much and how well he plays.
They have another guy that they want to see step up, but he's a pussy and is constantly "hurt" at the 3rd starting LB spot. They might as well have called the dude a goldbricker. They have two transfer LBs, one from Nebraska and one from Maryland, who will also start. The Maryland transfer is a thumper but not a sideline to sideline guy, as far I can understand in terms of the comments. The Nebraska guy is the defensive playcaller and he's also apparently an "overthinker", per Martindale, who can think his way out of plays sometimes. Okay then.

You don’t ever wish for injuries, but their d line is/should be awesome when full strength. I’m sure they are having a sigh of relief when CJ went down as well.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, markstanco said:


You don’t ever wish for injuries, but their d line is/should be awesome when full strength. I’m sure they are having a sigh of relief when CJ went down as well.

I cheer for injuries. Not on specific players except for Dallas Turner and other dirty fuckers like him, but just generally would like to see all opponents more injured than Texas. It’s a violent sport, people are going to get hurt, give me as many people getting hurt that we play as you can, dear football gods. 

  • Hook 'Em 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

49 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I cheer for injuries. Not on specific players except for Dallas Turner and other dirty fuckers like him, but just generally would like to see all opponents more injured than Texas. It’s a violent sport, people are going to get hurt, give me as many people getting hurt that we play as you can, dear football gods. 

I’ll give you dirty players getting theirs, but naw, generally speaking I don’t want players getting hurt and possibly losing money in their future. Even OU players. They suck ass but are people too. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’m unapologetic about it and have said as much on the boards for 25+ years. Cheer for your opponent at full speed all you like, and I’ll laugh and roll my eyes every time I see someone saying as much. 

Whatever works. Still fucked up.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, closetojumping said:

I cheer for injuries. Not on specific players except for Dallas Turner and other dirty fuckers like him, but just generally would like to see all opponents more injured than Texas. It’s a violent sport, people are going to get hurt, give me as many people getting hurt that we play as you can, dear football gods. 

I subscribe to your newsletter. I hope all teams we face have their best players out for our game. Not rooting for lifetime, debilitating injury or anything but give me some a good run of mono through an opponent to soften them up any day. 
 

Only thing i don’t root for is the opponent’s starting QB to go down during the game as Texas historically has shown an amazing ability to lose to whatever backup comes in that seemingly Texas has no clue how to defend. 

  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, demos said:

Lol this dude said he didn’t do any advance scouting.

Yeah I typically pass on these "the killer speaks" documentaries that platform the guilty, but this obviously isn't super srs bizness. Not as bad as letting Tim Donaghy tell his "truth" but it was frustrating watching this dork lie unrepetentantly with minimal pushback. Strange guy btw. The navy/marine corp background doesn't really jibe with soaking up his celebrity, doing videos with Barstool, cuttin it up with fans, etc. Nevertheless, interesting episode.

  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 8/7/2024 at 4:40 PM, choripan said:

Here's your UM scouting report:

Coaching: Lot of good coaches. Moore did well when Harbaugh out last season, but can he do it as the man? We shall see. Tough schedule this year, especially with UT out-of-conference.

  • QB: Total wildcard. We have the athletic wizard with a cannon in Orji, a good game manager transfer in Tuttle, and a kinda hybrid in Warren. Orji is lowest floor, highest ceiling. The outcome here is the difference between a great season and something like 8-4.
  • RB: Excellent. Edwards is a 5* that panned out and the backup Mullings would start and do well at most other schools.
  • WR: Who knows? Morris smoked Bama's secondary last year, Semaj Morgan is a great jitterbug, and we have some talented guys who haven't seen much of the field. Definitely talented, but production?
  • TE: Top-15 draft pick next year in Loveland, the more in-line guy who I can't remember is also really good. This is a strength.
  • OL: A number of guys with spot starting experience and they all performed well. If Moore's experience as OL coach is any indication, at least 3-4 of the positions will be plus and we'll be at least average at the other 1-2.
  • DT: God-level. Top-10 pick in Graham and Grant is 1st rounder. Solid depth.
  • DE: Heavy talent, light on experience. Should be good but not great, like I'd expect from the OL.
  • LB: Hearing great things about Hausmann and the other guy I can't remember, writing this off the cuff.
  • CB: Top-5 pick stud in Will Johnson. Other side could be a weakness, though. Who knows?
  • S: Loaded. Two-deep with guys who are at least quality starters. Big position battle.
  • Special Teams: Don't have a clue. Nerds will kick balls and athletic dudes will return them.

Intangibles: Team seems to be coming together over this NCAA stuff. Our strawman joke is that it was "about a hamburger" but if you look at the source material, the key things are buying a couple of meals for recruits and their families during the covid dead period, buying a $100 entry to a charity golf outing affiliated with the family member of a recruit, and (no joke) assisting a recruit with getting verified on Instagram. The rub is that we essentially went between telling the NCAA to fuck off, in not so many words, and ignoring them, especially in light of what had recently happened at UNC, Tennessee, etc.

If QB pans out, I could see an easy Michigan win. If QB is weak, I can see an easy Texas win. Middle-of-the-road, I see a good game between a probably-better Texas team and a playing-at-home Michigan team. Looking forward to it!

 

Word is coaches are going with Warren. Here's Mgoblog's writeup on him:

Warren had leukemia in high school and got healthy just in time for COVID to cancel his senior season. This man is high in the rankings of worst-scouted quarterbacks.

This continued a theme for Warren, who has caught the eye in multiple spring games. In 2021 Warren and Alan Bowman went head to head and "observers thought Warren was better" than a guy who ended up starting for Oklahoma State last year.

He's not going to be Orji but you don't have to dump the zone read out of the playbook if he enters.

Add it up and I think Warren has displayed enough over the course of the last two years to believe he could step in and be a version of Stetson Bennett, Georgia's walk-on turned national champion QB. Emphasis on "a version": Bennett was a fourth-round pick and threw for over 9 YPA during his two-year run as Georgia's starter. That's the best-case scenario, and thus unlikely. But could he be Cade McNamara? Yeah, probably.

So with money on the line, the head coach went with a higher-floor guy. 

FWIW, if you're reading up on Michigan this year, Mgoblog is doing position-by-position previews, which will end in a teamwide summation tomorrow, the day before gameday. They do really good work and, as much as the paysites tend to be overly-optimistic (to maintain access), Mgoblog tends toward disaffected nerd slightly pessimistic.

  • Hook 'Em 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 8/29/2024 at 5:20 AM, Wilcox Cummingtonite said:

Who’s the douchebag sleazeball Austin attorney representing Connor Stalions in the Netflix documentary? His esteemed clients include Johnny 8-ball…

We are going to skullfuck Michigan by 2-3 TDs btw.

I finally figured out I went to high school with the lawyer.  Actually was a good guy, though I didn't know him that well as he was a couple grades below me.  Yes, I feel old as shit after typing that out 

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



×
×
  • Create New...