We've all heard of  "My way or the highway", right?  This phrase fits Rich Rodriguez perfectly.  Listening to a little sports talk radio yesterday, a couple things are certain about Rich.

1. He doesn't care if you don't agree with how he runs his program.   Learning that Ryan Mallett was transfering, and that Adrian Arrington and Mario Manningham were bolting for the NFL Draft, Rodriguez's response was, "I only care about who will be on Michigan's football team in 2008."  In other words, don't let the door hit you on the way out boys.

2. This guy needs to land a certain recruit out of Pennsylvania and he knows it.  I am talking of course about Terrelle Pryor.  Word is that Mr. Pryor has narrowed it down to either Michigan or Ohio State.  One of Rodriguez's first calls when he got the Michigan job was to Pryor.  So Pryor erases West Virginia from his list and adds Michigan. 

Along these same lines, Rodriguez needs Pryor because........... WELL, THE CUPBOARD IS PRETTY BARE EVERYWHERE ELSE ON THE MICHIGAN ROSTER IN 2008.  With the defections of Arrington, Manningham, Mallett and all the seniors, even I've looked at the roster for next year and cringed.

Getting Pryor would:

A. Steal him from Ohio State.  Good times.

B. Land Rich that mega recruit that would help bring more top talent to the new system Rodriguez is implementing.

C. Like I said earlier, getting Pryor would give Rodriguez somebody noticeable to put on the field next year.

It's nice Rich has ordered that 95% of the weight room be replaced ( they're selling the old stuff Sunday in the biggest yard sale anyone has ever seen), so his strength and conditioning coach can work his vaunted program.

It's nice Rich has a team first approach.  A certain guy named Shembechler preached THE TEAM, THE TEAM, THE TEAM.

A slight little problem though.  It seems Mr. Rodriguez's approach has turned many players away.  Mallett was the second rated quarterback last year behind Jimmy Clausen.  Manningham and Arrington would have been weapons for whoever ends up as Michigan's quarterback.

Michigan has never had a problem landing recruits.  Many have said the similarities between Schembechler and Rodriguez are striking.  You might suffer a little in the begining, but it will be worth it in the end.

And it's not like Michigan plays the hardest schedule in 2008.  Big Ten foes Wisconsin, Illinois, MSU, Northwestern come to play in the Big House.  Michigan travels to PSU, Purdue, Minnesota and Ohio State.  Non conference games include Miami-Ohio, Utah and Toledo at home with the annual matchup in South Bend to round out the schedule.  So to be generous, 6-6 and a bowl game?  I certainly hope so.

Change is well under way in Ann Arbor.  Change can sometimes be difficult.  And some players may be asking for spare change in a few years to get on I-94 and get the hell out of Ann Arbor if things don't change for the better. 

I guess I have to be first on that list.   Bill Martin knew what he was doing all along. Michigan could not have hired a better candidate to replace Lloyd Carr.  This changes a whole lot in Ann Arbor, including ( cover your ears Bo) the spread offense being run by MICHIGAN in the Big House.  Did you think you would ever see that day come? 

Change was needed in Ann Arbor.  Michigan was very stuck in their ways and with a Bo disciple running the program, ( Lloyd Carr), they were running in circles.  Now with Rich Rodriguez in charge, Michigan can look to the future and be hopeful.

I can't put it into words how excited I am about this hire for Michigan.  Rodriguez was my second choice behind Brian Kelly to succeed Lloyd Carr.  There were rumors floating that Michigan would give offensive coordinator Mike Debord the interim label for a year and try to hire another huge name next year.  That would have been a disaster.  ALSO, LES MILES NOT GETTING THIS JOB WAS THE BEST THING THAT ANY MICHIGAN FAN COULD HAVE ASKED FOR. 

Les was very much like Bo and Michigan would have probably reverted back to three yards and a cloud of dust.  There is zero chance of that happening now with Rich Rodriguez's offense being the staple in Ann Arbor.

Congratulations to the Wolverines and Bill Martin for abandoning the status quo.  That was a huge step in guiding Michigan back to the elite of college football.  Of course, there will be questions about this hire. 

What took Bill Martin so long?  From the outset, Bill Martin said that he would get the best candidate for the job, no matter how long it took.  Martin accomplished that.

What about all the recruits Michigan lost this past month?  I'll answer that with a question of my own.  What about all the recruits Michigan just GAINED?  Rich Rodriguez brings buzz, excitement, a wiining record and mentality. 

You can mock him for getting that record in the Big East.  ( FYI fellow Big Ten fans, the Big East was top to bottom better than the Big Ten this year.) You can point out that Rodriguez and his Mountaineers blew a chance of playing in the BCS title game by losing to Pitt.  I can't argue that, but name me a coach or team who didn't blow a game or title opportunity this year.  I hear crickets.

As you can tell, I'm behind this hiring 100%.  Change was needed and will happen in Ann Arbor.  It will not happen overnight.  Rodriguez has to get athletes and guys who know the spread offense to play at Michigan.  If he can recruit  those guys to play at West Virginia, he will find it easy to recruit those same guys to Michigan.

January 1 2008 will be, in a way, and ending of an era.  After that day, there will be no more Henne, Hart, Long or Carr.  There will be enthusiam, nervous anticiaption, excitement and change.  It's what Michigan needs and Bill Martin knew it all along.

It has been a struggle for me to pick a side in the BCS Championship game. As a Michigan fan, do I root for Les Miles and LSU to beat the Buckeyes?  You know, to put Sweatervest's championship game record at 1-2?  Or do I root for The Senator and boys to try to put the SEC in their place?  This is quite easy.

As you know, the University of Michigan is looking for a head football coach.  What a scene it is when LSU, coached by a Michigan alum, is playing Ohio State for all the marbles.  Get this, there are actually media members, and of course, paranoid LSU fans, who think Michigan is trying to harm LSU's chances of beating Ohio State.  Were these people born yesterday?  So you're telling me, Michigan is going to HELP Ohio State win a national championship, just so the Buckeyes have something else to hold over Michigan's heads? 

Les Miles is a classic Butterface case.  You know, Butterface.  You see this girl walking towards you.  Oh, things look promising.  Wow, she is smoking hot.  What a body!  As she gets closer, your heart begins to race.  You try to keep your composure.  And then, it happens.  That drop dead gorgeous girl turns out to be a butterface.  Her face is just hideous.  She had everything!  BUT-HER-FACE!

Looks can be decieving boys.  With all this desire over Les, you would think the guy would be a coaching legend.  But, last time I checked, there are no statues of Les Miles being built.  Les Miles isn't on my wish list for the next Michigan coach.  LSU, please keep him!  The guy was outcoached by Rich Brooks and Houston Nutt this year, so how bad is Jim Tressell going to embarrass Miles? 

To top this whole saga off, let me introduce you to Skip Bertman.  He is LSU's athletic director.  Oh, sorry.  Since Skip is in the all to mighty SEC, we shall give Skip proper respect.  Is it Skippy?  Mr. Skip?  Skip to my Lou?  Hop Skip and a jump?  I'll just call him ####, something we can all agree on.

#### gave Michigan athletic director Bill Martin permission to speak to Les Miles, but asked Martin to wait until after the SEC Championship game.  Martin, being a classy Big Ten gentleman, obliged.  Then news yesterday spread that, GASP, Miles had spoken to Michigan.  Traitor!  How could he?  He promised!  Oh, that Bill Martin!  Les is staying Bill, leave him alone!  Leave Les Alone!  Tears, many tears.

So #### issues a press release and in it he says that LSU is a better job than the Michigan job.  Debatable, but what do you expect him to say?  The guy is trying to keep the coaching legend ( snicker ) that is Les Miles from heading back to his alma mater.  I mean LSU is full of tradition, national championships, the works.  What's that?  I know, don't tell the people that believe this that more people have said the Michigan job is better.  Even with Michigan hardly doing anything the last 10 years, and LSU having the chance to win a second BCS championship game, most people IN THE KNOW ( and that's not you or me)  say Michigan would be a better job than LSU.  But LSU's in the SEC, which makes them automatically better.  Case closed.

So, I hope Miles stays at LSU.  I hope he makes more head scratching gameday decisions.  I actually hope he makes a coaching blunder in the BCS title game.  Then all these whiners who want Michigan to leave Les alone will have their way. 

They will be crying for losing to a Big ten team in the title game.  They will blame Michigan and Miles.  But hey, you saw what you were getting when you wanted to keep Les.  You're now stuck with the butterface.  That is something to cry about.

It is upon us once again. It does not seem that long ago that rivals Michigan and Ohio State were playing for a berth in the BCS title game, does it?  Seems like it was just yesterday I was watching Cold Pizza at work the day before The Game, when that sick feeling came over me.  Bo had collapsed and was taken to the hospital.  It sounded bleak and when they went to a live report with Dana Jacobsen ( Michigan grad, oddly enough) just before noon, you just knew.  Bo was gone.  The day before arguably the biggest contest ever between the 2 bitter rivals.  It was surreal. 

They played the next day in what was a tremendous game.  Back and forth with all the emotion of the rivalry, plus Bo's death and the right to play in the BCS title game.  The Game will probably never see the circumstances surrounding last years's game, but they will still play Saturday.  And it will be almost as fun as the week leading up to The Game.

I don't need to tell you these schools don't like each other.  At all.  You may disagree, but this rivalry is bigger for Ohio State than Michigan.  Michigan doesn't like Ohio State, but Ohio State lives for Michigan week.  Last year there were actually students at the library in Ann Arbor when #1 was playing #2.  Think ANYONE in Columbus didn't have their eyes and ears on The Game?  Who knows what it is, but this may speak to the fanbases also.  Michigan fans are more reserved, and are a little conceited.  Buckeye fans are exuberant and passionate.  The Big House is not loud at all for having the largest seating capacity in all the land, partly because of the way it was constructed.  The Horseshoe is incredibly loud and is known for being a pain in the #### for visting opponents.  Maybe you disagree, but this guy says this means more for Buckeye fans than Wolverines fans. 

Dude, quit rambling, get to the rules!  Alright here we go.  This week is one of the funnest of the year for me.  Message boards, blogs, sports talk radio, I can't get enough of it this week.  So as a Wolverine fan, these are my rules for the week.  How serious am I being?  You decide.

ALLOWED

1. I can take that much more joy when my fantasy quarterback, Tom Brady, torches the Buffalo secondary led by Ashton Youboty and Donte Whitner.  Sure, it's a day after The Game, but this rivalry isn't just Saturday, it's year round.
2. I can hope Desmond Howard strikes a Heisman pose whenever he encounters Robert Smith at ESPN this week.
3. I can dream that Charles Woodson gets teammate A.J. Hawk suspended by presenting him with a rose this week, and Hawk goes nuts because of it.
4. I am allowed to look up any meaningless fact about this rivalry if it benefits any argument of mine this week.  I am allowed ( and encouraged) to just leave the words Cooper, 1969, Biakabatuka, Elvis, Desmond, Bo, Woodson or anything I want on any pro-Buckeye post this week.  Likewise, I expect many Troy Smith, Archie and Lllllllllllllloyd Carr comments in return.

NOT ALLOWED

1. The word Bucks is out this week.  If person A asks me for ten bucks and person B asks me for ten dollars, person B clearly wins.  Person B is a Wolverine fan and knows how to speak correctly.  And also shower.
2. The color red is out.  I may root for the Red Wings, but I have to say, " Go Wings!" not "Go Red Wings".  This also means no Target, wearing red clothing, ketchup, pizza or stopping at red lights or stop signs.  Red is in a lot of things, I'll stop now.
3. No Buckeye gear around me.  I live about 100 miles west of Ann Arbor and the sight of Buckeye gear makes me cringe.  This week if I see any bumper sticker, flag or apparel with tOSU on it, all bets are off.  
4. Last, but certainly not least.  If I or any Michigan fan encounters one of those Nuts claiming it's THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, you DO NOT let that slide.  A proper response could be this:

"THE Ohio State University sure did get THE #### kicked out of them in THE national championship games last year."

I know you can do better than that, give it a try.

GO BLUE!

Oh Sparty. We believed in you. We were thrilled for you. You started the season oh so well.  We thought Mr. Dantonio had changed the mindset in East Lansing. 

And then you reminded us why you are Michigan State football.  You are the school that once mentioned having basketball coach Tom Izzo take over the football program.  Huh?  Oh Sparty, we feel for you.  ( Someone get Mariucci off of NFL Network so he and Izzo can be in East Lansing coaching together.) 

You're more of an annoyance than anything else.  When I claimed my allegiance many moons ago to the University of Michigan, my brother just to be different, picked Michigan State.  He bet me a couple times in football.  #### poor results for him.   Happiness for me.

FYI.....Michigan invades Spartan Stadium Saturday.  Let's get this straight, this is a nice and for the most part, clean rivalry.  If you've never been to a Michigan-Michigan State hockey game, whether it be in Ann Arbor, East Lansing or Joe Louis Arena, that gets my vote for being the fiercest of any sporting rivalry between these 2 schools.  Michigan State owns Michigan in basketball, quite the opposite in football though.

This is also a nice rivalry because MSU fans for the most part are also Tiger, Piston, Lion and Red Wing fans.  They're not Ohio State fans, that's a step in the wrong direction. ( November 17 ####es)  Anyway, you kind of have to root for MSU.  You can't hate Sparty, East Lansing is a GREAT, let me repeat that, GREAT college town. 

But on occasion, Sparty #### you off.  When they ever so keenly keep an extra second on the game clock so T.J. Duckett can catch a game winning touchdown.  Or when they trip Desmond Howard in the end zone so " no one" defeats " number 1". 

But more times than one can keep straight, Sparty does things like blow a huge lead to your team and while laughing, you say " Oh, those poor ####s!"  Or Sparty gives you the impression they have an NFL changing reciever and so your favorite NFL team picks, lets say Charles Rogers, in the NFL Draft and the guy is a BUST. 

One can not hate Sparty, we love Sparty.  We root for Sparty.  We want Sparty to fight for Big Ten titles in football.  We want Sparty ranked.  WE WANT A RIVALRY SPARTY!!!!!!!  You can't replace Ohio State, sorry, they're our first.  One doesn't forget your first, right Buckeye? Oh, we got Buckeye to blush.  How cute.

We ask this of you Sparty.

1. Change your mindset.  Doesn't take a rocket scientist to know you've got a confidence problem.  If the Detroit Lions can start to change around their losing mentality, so can you Sparty.

2. Give us a reason to not like you.  I couldn't even find that much to dislike about you Sparty.  You just sit there and take it. You've got to fight back Sparty.  When I put my foot on your seat, because I want a footrest, don't act like that's okay.  It's not okay!  Damn it, that's your seat!  ( This happened in Spartan Stadium 2 years ago.  We got their early and I'm wearing a Michigan hat, coat, you name it.  I'm relaxing before the game and my feet are in this guys seat.  Instead of asking me to move my feet, he just sits closer to his buddies.  I would have moved my feet!  But he didn't even put up a fight.  He's a true Spartan.)

3.  Play to your potential every week. You had me fooled earlier this year.  I believed the words of Mark Dantonio.  I believed Sparty, I believed!  But, I should have known better.  I should have known when Michigan State fans didn't get excited about the quick start.  I should have known you would come back and scare the #### out of Ohio State, but lose in the end.  And then you lost to Iowa and Northwestern.  Would you have lost to Minnesota also?  Don't answer that.

Well Sparty, the 100th meeting between Michigan and Michigan State is Saturday.  Will you win?  It could happen.  You're due for a win in this rivalry, plus you play at home.  And, I pretty much called you out here, and that will probably come back to bite me. Michigan might just be penciling in a big FAT W .( Something they shouldn't do again after the Appalachian State disaster.)  We just don't know with you Sparty, I'll reluctantly say:

MEEEEEECHIGAN wins 26-18.

GO BLUE!

" So is Hart on your Heisman list?"  A co-worker asked me that today and I'm thinking, "WHAT?"  Am I suppossed to keep a Heisman list somewhere and update it every Saturday night?  Hopefully, I have something better to do on a Saturday night or I'm making another kind of list.

I realize this is a fun debate to have among college football fans, but I don't get it.  Quick, tell me the name of the award that goes to the best colege hockey player.  Anyone?  The Hobey Baker Award.  How about college basketball?  Rev, BGL, Shooter, Pete, any fellow college basketball fan?  How about the James Naismith Award! 

Why does the Heisman get so much attention and publicity?  Why would the University of Oregon put a billboard of Joey Harrington in Times Square?  Why would I make a Heisman pose over my little brother as I beat him for a touchdown many years ago and he congratulated my pose by kicking me in man land?  WHY?

Why would any college football player want to win the Heisman trophy this year?  Do they want their team to lose a championship game as former winners have done so lately?  ( See: R. Bush, T. Smith) Do they want to be in the same breath as former winner O.J. Simpson?  Do they want to add to the percentage of Heisman winners who have done squat in the NFL?  ( See: R. Salaam, E. Crouch)

Now that I'm done playing 20 questions with you, I'll provide some of the answers.  Obviously, the Heisman Trophy exsists to recognize the best college football player every year.  That's fine with me, but I could do without the weekly Heisman polls. By far my biggest beef with this award is this: WHY DOES IT ALWAYS GO TO A TOP RUNNING BACK OR QUARTERBACK ON A TOP 5 TEAM?

Does someone want to tell me that Larry Fitzgerald or Charles Rogers were not the best player when they each set receiving records?  Guess how many of the last 20 Heisman winners were either running backs or quarterbacks?  17, which I think is ridiculous.  This award I believe takes away from the team concept, which may play a part in why guys who win the Heisman haven't done so hot in their bowl games.  Too much emphasis on the ME in TEAM if you ask me.

I understand why you may like this award.  I just think it's over-hyped and doesn't really ever live up to the billing.  And I would enjoy the process more if the best players got votes, not just the star running backs or quarterbacks.

Comments?

Questions?

Concerns?

Thanks, Tommy Bowden. You know, I was sitting here watching some pregame Monday Night Football talk when I started flipping thru the channels.  So, I switch over to ESPN 2 and see College Football Live.  I catch a quote from Bowden.

" We won.  That's more than I can say about Lloyd Carr."  Son of a ####.  I guess Bowden was asked a question about why his team didn't beat Furman more handily.  Instead of taking the high road, he takes a shot at Carr for losing to Appalachian State.

Am I upset he took a shot at my favorite's school's coach?  You're damn right I am.  It's one thing if fans or us bloggers call out coaches or players.  But for a coach of a major BCS school to call out another coach like that?  That's absolute bush league.  It's all fun and games when I read post after post about Lloyd being overrated or Michigan flopping.  That's fine, that's why we're on here.  What was Bowden's motivation?  #### envy my friends, serious #### envy.

( Here comes the rant, enjoy)  You see, Mr. Bowden suffers from a serious case of #### envy.  Tommy will never be as good as his daddy, Bobby Bowden.  Hell, he's the second best coach amongst his siblings.  His brother Terry had an undefeated season in the SEC!  THE SEC!  What has brilliant Tommy done in the ACC?  He has won ZERO ACC championships.  Zero.  The football powerhouses that are Maryland and Wake Forest have won ACC championships.  In the two years the ACC has had an ACC championship game, guess how many times Clemson has APPEARED in the game?  ZERO.  At least you're consistent Tommy, congrats!

The #### envy is sad, really.  Now that ol' ballcoach Steve Spurrier is beginning to show serious signs of ruling the state of South Carolina, Tommy is toast.  Tommy got the Clemson job for basically two reasons. #1 He had turned Tulane into a pretty nice squad even going undefeated in 1999.  ( Probably by playing teams like Furman all season, huh Tommy?  Not so easy in the ACC, huh?)  #2 Oh, HE'S BOBBY BOWDEN'S SON.  Anybody want to tell me this numbnut would be where he's at if his daddy didn't pull some strings along the way?  Didn't think so.

Let's compare the great Tommy to the man he kicked while he was down.  Lloyd is on the end of his road, I'll give you that.  BUT Mr. Carr has WON 5 ( that's 5 more than zero Tommy) Big ten titles and a share of a national championship.  So you want to compare now Tommy?

So in summary, Tommy has #### envy of: Bobby Bowden, Terry Bowden, Steve Spurrier, Lloyd Carr, every male blogger on this site, Ryan Seacrest, my two week old nephew ( I knew I'd find a reason to get him in a post soon) and any other male you can think of.

Tommy, you're the reason why you give bloggers something to talk about.  All you had to do was take the high road Tommy.  You might want to start worrying about your own job before you start critiquing some other coaches job performance.

So, ya with me?  Was Tommy's remark uncalled for?  Does he have serious #### envy?  Some things are better left unsaid, right Tommy?

Are you kidding me? I'm not going to pretend I'm happy, sober or anything else related to either of those 2 things. This might not be the most eloquent thing I ever write, but this needs to be said.  Pile on if you wish, you're probably correct in what you say. AND IV'E GOT A LOT TO SAY MYSELF:

• This is when sticking by your team is hard.
• Who in the HELL gets the Big ten network anyway?
• www.sacklloydcarr.com 
• I've stuck by Lloyd.  Thanks a lot you arrogant ####.
• He threw his guys under the bus in the postgame press conference.  He took blame for about OH, about 5 seconds then proceeded to rip his guys for the rest of the time.  HEY LLOYD, HOW LONG DID YOU HAVE TO PREPARE FOR THIS GAME?  You've got a JOB to do, and you failed.
• If this #### doesn't resign or announce his retirement within 2 weeks, ( he can stay on until the end of the year, you're not going to find ANYONE who wants this job right now anyway) I will GIVE away my tickets to the ND-MIchigan game September 15.  Those weren't cheap either.
• This loss set this program back YEARS.  This will be the butt of jokes for YEARS.  How do you ever live this down?  A #### 1-AA TEAM?  IN YOUR BACKYARD?  BLOW ME LLOYD!
• Being serious, U of M better put security around Carr this week.  My buddies and I were witnessing some NASTY stuff on some websites, hopefully cooler heads prevail.
• I love that football is back, even with all this!  I made a comment on someone's blog the other day that I'm a football fan first, U of M fan second, THANK GOD...lol.
• If Michigan is ranked next week, the polls should not exist.
• I do not care if they were the 2 time defending 1-AA champs..............they were 1-AA!!!
• Ron English better not get the U of M job either, he isn't too brilliant either.
• Wierd stat.........U of M hasn't won a game since Bo died......0-3
• IF ( and that's a BIG IF) we win the Big Ten ,we should turn down the automatic invitation to a BCS game and give it App. State.  Odds of either of those things happening-slim to none, and slim just left town.
• The only thing that will make this loss less brutal is if the Lions win the Super Bowl this year.  Hell, if Michigan loses to a D1-AA school, the Lions could go all the way!
• COULD SOMEBODY PLEASE TELL ME WHAT IN THE HELL HAPPENED?!

I know I didn't touch on everything ( like Mike Hart SMILING in the interviews AFTER the game....that guy is really a turd).....but I needed to vent.

There is no way Lloyd keeps his job after this year.  One of my buddies actually said to stick with him....... AND I THOUGHT I W AS DRUNK!!!! 

Lloyd you did U of M well since 1980.  You won or shared 5 Big ten titles and one national championship.   BUT YOU HAVEN'T DONE #### LATELY.  You honestly just set this program back YEARS with this loss.  Please see that the game has passed you by and it would be in your best interest and the university's for a new head coach to roam the sidelines.

Lloyd is a  Michigan man, which means a lot at this school.  But it's time to move on.  Who is the replacement?  I would say Ron English ( hopefully he will coach D better than the last 3 games) Jim Harbaugh ( lol....can you say BAD blood?) or Les Miles ( He could coach HART, they both talk way too much). 

Alright ####es :).......... I'm cranky and I have to help my cousin move tomorrow to ...............ANN ARBOR!!!!!!!!!!  I hope they don't riot tonight, and if they do, I'll bring back pictures.....lol.

VENT!  ####!  WHATEVER! THE FLOOR IS YOURS!

Sigh........Go Blue?  Yeah, Go Blue!  Stick by your teams everyone!

( A more peaceful post to come Tuesday on why I love the Detroit Tigers- because they don't lose to AAA baseball teams!)

www.sacklloydcarr.com

• Michigan Stadium, aka THE BIG HOUSE sits 107,501 people, largest seating capacity in college football.
• Best winning percentage in Divsion 1 history.
• Most wins in Division 1 history.
• Most Big Ten titles in league history.
• The rivalry against Ohio State. Having the lead in the series against Ohio State 60-37-6. DESTROYING the Buckeyes national championship hopes countless times. Remember Ohio, Michigan is always looking down on you.
• The winged helmets.
• 32 consecutive bowl appearances, longest active streak going.
• Maize and blue.
• We tried having an actual wolverine on the sidelines back in the day......results were not favorable.
• One of the Most recognizable fight songs anywhere- Hail to the Victors.
• The rivalry against Notre Dame, pretty cool that the two schools with the most wins and best winning percentage EVER will now play annually until 2031.
• The rivalry against Michigan State.  Because everyone needs a little brother to pick on, right Sparty?
• Bo Schembechler
• Tom Brady
• Charles Woodson
• Gerald Ford
• Elvis Grbac
• Tim Biakabatuka
• Braylon Edwards
• A-Train Anthony Thomas
• Anthony Carter
• Desmond Howard
• And for this year, Chad Henne, "Super" Mario Manningham, Mike Hart, Jake Long, Terrance Taylor, Shawn Crable, etc, etc.
• I could continue for literally days, but I think you get the point.

We all have our favorites schools to root for based on various reasons.  There is no other school ANYWHERE I would rather root for.

Now I know there are those of you who will bring up the following.......You will give us a hard time for losing to USC and Ohio State.  ( Because you know losing to the #1 team at the time Ohio State and this year's preseason #1 USC is somehow  "pathetic" as one blogger stated the other day.  ####.) You will call Lloyd Carr overrated for having a 113-36 record in twelve years, while winning or sharing 5 Big ten titles and one national championship.  ( Think the folks in East Lansing would have traded those 12 years for theirs in a heartbeat? )  Say we don't play to our potential.  Say whatever you want.  We can't really hear you as Hail to the Victors is being played as well as GO BLUE is being shouted non-stop.  It's a beautiful thing.

Go Blue!

Don't cheat.  Don't Google it.  I'm expecting very few people to know where Waldo Stadium is located.  Bonus points to all who truly know.

As you know, I am a fan of the University of Michigan.  It dawned on me though that I've never posted on the university that is right down the road, less than 3 minutes away.  Kalamazoo, Michigan is the home of the Western Michigan University Broncos.

As a member of the CCHA in hockey, Western is in the same conference as Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Notre Dame among others.  Still one of the best sporting events I was ever at was when Western hosted Michigan and beat them back when Marty Turco was the Wolverines goalie.  Michigan ended up winning the national title that year.

Football is where Western gets most recognition.  Driving by Waldo Stadium yesterday, I see the first home game is hosting Indiana.  Indiana was improved last year, but the Broncos are picked to win the MAC West this year.  I figure $20 was reasonable for a ticket, I'll go check that game out. 

The season opener for Western is at West Virginia, yikes.  I figure if they stay in the game thru 3 quarters, the Broncos have nothing to be ashamed of.  Other notable games on the Broncos schedule are at Missouri, at Iowa and the biggest game of the year, hosting Central Michigan.  Western-Central has just as much animosity on this side of the state as Michigan-Ohio State has on the other side of the state.  I'm not even kidding.

Over the years, Western football has produced Jason Babin of the Texans, Tony Scheffler of the Broncos and Greg Jennings of the Packers.  ( Pick Jennings in fantasy football, he's worth it ).  Western also saw the likes of Tim #### ( or Tim Allen as you may know him by), Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski and many more prominent people.  While not attending Western, Lions running back T.J. Duckett was a FORCE in high school running the option every play for Kalamazoo's Loy Norrix high school.  Kalamazoo is probably best known as the city where Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter grew up, playing his baseball at Kalamazoo Central.  Things turned out pretty nicely for him.

Alright, just a little history on the Broncos and the Kalamazoo area.  Let me know if you've ever been in the 'zoo or if you're coming on thru.  Go  Broncos!

News Monday that Notre Dame and Michigan have extended their football series thru 2031, yes I said 2031, triggered this conversation between my friend and I.

Him:  Here Come the Irish!

Me:  Gee, I could barely hear Weis coming.

Him: Damn, that was actually funny. 

Me: I try.  So 2031, how old will be be by then?  Actuually, let's not think about that.

Him:  Good call.  Why don't they just join the Big Ten already?  Aren't they too far west to be in the Big East anyway?

Me: You know why.  Shoot, I wouldn't give up a national television deal either.  Everyone ####es and complains about ND because everyone is jealous of the attention they get.

Him: It would just make more sense if they were in the Big Ten.  But what would you call the league?  Midwest League is taken, Big 12 is taken.  Do they call it the Big Ten plus 1 and another one?

Me: Can't do that, that's too much math for Buckeye fans.  ( BURN!) 

Hopefully you can tell my buddy lives ND football, and as you may have heard, I enjoy the saying,Go Blue! 

Pros to Irish joining the Big Ten

1. Have you ever looked at where Notre Dame is actually located?  South Bend, Indiana in the middle of Big Ten country.  Shoot, Notre Dame already has 4 Big ten teams on their schedule this year.  Let's file #1 as making sense geographically.

2. With NDs addition, the Big Ten rivals any conference power.  Are you kidding me?  Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Penn State.  Nice top 5, huh?  With ND's addition the league could divide into 2 leagues of 6 ( you see where I'm going yet?), add a conference title game, and go against the other conference title games.  Where would this be held?  How about the Colts new stadium in Indy?  Seems pretty neutral. 

3. Both ND and the Big Ten would get more respect.  If you haven't heard, Ohio State, Michigan and Notre Dame all got spanked in their bowl games.  This led to them ALL being labeled as overrated and thus the Big Ten was overrated.  This move would  help both out greatly.

4. Natural rivalries ( similar to geography). As was noted earlier Michigan and Notre Dame will now be playing until 2031! These schools have a pretty nasty rivalry in southwest Michigan and Northern Indiana.  When the 2 wininngest programs get together, that makes for a lot of bragging rights.  Purdue-Notre Dame, Penn State-Notre Dame and Michigan State-Notre Dame makes sense.  So would Indiana-Notre Dame, Wisconsin-Notre Dame and Ohio State-Notre Dame.

Cons

1.  It's all about the Benjamins.  Sure, we're all jealous Notre Dame has their own television contract with NBC.  What school wouldn't want that?  And the better question, why give it up if you're still successful?  People still watch Notre Dame because they're Notre Dame.  They really don't need the Big Ten.  Why spilt that BCS money among your conference allies when you could keep it all to yourself?

2.  Notre Dame is already in the Big East in other sports.  Don't think theBig East wouldn't put up a hell of a fight if the Big Ten came knocking on ND's doorstep.  The Irish are a big part of the Big East and they would push ND to join the Big East in football.  Less teams, better chance to win a title, etc, etc.

3.  Dividing into 2 leagues of 6 would be nice, but not fair.  ( See Big 12 now, all power pretty much in one division.)  I'll put this as what I would best guess the divsions would be, argue if you must.

Division 1: Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Ohio State, Indiana, Purdue

Division 2: Iowa, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Northwestern, Illinois.

Sorry, I think Division 1 is a lot better.  They could tinker around, but some teams need to be in the same divsion to ensure playing each other every year.  Can you imagine if Michigan and Ohio State didn't meet in a year?  Chaos, utter chaos.

So I didn't work out all the kinks.  I see Michigan wouldn't play ND every year, but they still would get a chance to play in the conference title game.  So, what do you think?  What should the Irish and Big Ten do?  

One more thing to think about:  The Big Ten network debuts next month.  This is going to be big for the conference, and rumor is the Big Ten wants another school to join.  12 schools make it even, but what would they call the conference?

So I guess it's pointless prediction time, I'm in! 

I already gave these picks to hogfan, just thought I'd share the rest of them with all of you.  And before anyone goes completely crazy about anyone's picks, just remember Florida wasn't being given a lot of love last year at this time.    Here I go:

#1 Virginia Tech:  The class of the ACC and one close knit campus after the events in April.  The defense is nasty and running back Branden Ore is a darkhorse Heisman contender.  September 8 game at LSU will be a heavyweight fight.

#2 West Virginia:  No defense wants to face Steve Slaton and Pat White.  The Big East gained a lot of respect last year and West Virginia's chance at the BCS title game hinges on back to back games at Rutgers and against Louisville.

#3 Texas:  This program is now ahead of Oklahoma, did you ever think that would happen?  Colt McCoy is only a sophomore and Texas' schedule puts them in great position to have a banner year.

#4 USC: I'll hold off as labeling this one of the best teams ever ( seriously, WTF?) until they can at least get thru their own conference unbeaten this year.  The schedule is nasty and I see similar results to last year.  Not bad overall, but they are not God's gift to football either.

#5 LSU: What's the over/under on how many games LSU loses due to worrying about Nick Saban instead of their own games?  Hopefully that's just a media thing, because LSU could be out of any serious BCS title game talk quick if they don't have their focus on the field.

#6 Florida: Oh yeah, they lost a lot.  They also won the recruitng battle and return numerous players from a championship team.  Maybe they win it all again and all other schools declare for Division 2 based on anger, resentment, bitterness and no hope for their own chances of winning it all again.

#7 Michigan: Offense: Sweet ...Defense: Sour?  The schedule is in Michigan's favor, Troy Smith finally got his #### out of Columbus and the offense is going to be lethal.  The time is now for Big Blue or else people will start calling for Lloyd Carr's job and call Michigan overrated....wait....is this a broken record?

#8 Louisville: So I guess everyone in the 'Ville is happier now that Bobby Petrino went to the NFL.  But will the Cardinals be better in an ever improving Big East?

#9 Wisconsin: Some pretty high expectations in Madison, will they live up to it?  No recent success against Michigan and Badgers biggest game comes November 10 when the Wolverines come to town.

#10 Georgia:  Could this be the year they knock off Florida?  Matthew Stafford improved dramatically last year in the second half of the season and the Dawgs look to be dangerous in '07.

#11 UCLA:  The hype is building for another team in Southern California.  Showed everyone they can beat the Trojans last year, can they do it again with possibly a BCS bid on the line?

#12 Penn State: All those freshman that lost just once in 2005 look to be a sleeper team in 2007.  Don't be shocked if Joe Pa and the Nittany Lions win the Big Ten.  Schedule is toughest in September/October, they better be ready.

#13 Nebraska: Here you go Keller.  September 15 game hosting USC should be one of the best scenes all year.  Big 12 North is Nebraska's to win, good luck against the South though.

#14 CAL- Forget trying to catch USC, they better worry about UCLA driving right past them.  The September 1st revenge game against Tennessee will be a preview of how the Bears season develops.

#15 Auburn: All you need to know is they beat Florida and LSU last year.  The talent is obvious, is the focus?

#16 Oklahoma:  Have they fallen behind Texas yet?  I believe so.  Don't bet against Stoops though, he's a grinder.

#17 Florida State- Will the real Florida State please stand up?  This isn't right, the 'Noles struggling to win ACC games.  I think they will be a force again soon.

#18 Ohio State:  The NFL draft and graduation gutted this program like no other.  Don't feel too bad for Mr. Sweatervest though, you know the Buckeyes won't fall too far back.

#19 Hawaii:  Do they play in the Arena League?  Looking at Colt Brennan's numbers you might think so.  A BCS bid is Hawaii's to lose.

#20 Rutgers:  What do you do for an encore?  Hand it to Ray Rice, good call.

Living 90 miles west of Ann Arbor, if any news about Michigan football is breaking news, I hear about it rather quickly.  I check out the local morning sports talk radio everyday at work. 

Talk is about the Tigers mostly, but football talk is begining to heat up.  People outside of  Big Ten country have this idea Lloyd Carr is about to get canned.  They couldn't be more wrong.  No one around here is picketing around Michigan Stadium calling for Lloyd Carr's job.  Sure there is frustration in losing to Ohio State 3 straight years and also losing another bowl game. 

Let's make one thing crystal clear though.  Lloyd Carr will decide when it's time to go and no one will kick him out if he wants to stay.  After going 7-5, yes 7-5 in 2005, Lloyd had pressure going into last season.  Michigan improved from a 7-5 record to an 11-2 record.  They went from the Alamo Bowl to the Rose Bowl.  So where is all this talk about Lloyd not doing his job good enough coming from?  It's coming from people who watch Michigan play a few times a year and coming to the conclusion that if Michigan loses big games, it's Carr's fault.  How about saying the other team has more talent and better coaching?  That is bound to happen a few times a year even if you've got the greatest coach in the world on the sidelines. 

A couple criticisms of Carr are that he is old-school and stubborn.  So using that argument, old-school Michigan football would be 3 yards and a cloud of dust, right?  Under Lloyd Carr, Brian Griese won a national championship, Carr coached some kid named Tom Brady ( heard of him?), Drew Henson, John Navarre and now Chad Henne.  All of these guys ( assuming Henne gets to the NFL) have been drafted to the NFL as quarterbacks at MICHIGAN.  The school that runs on first down, second and third.  If Lloyd were so stuck in his ways, he'd say "Screw it, we're Michigan, we're only going to run the football."  He doesn't do that though, he sees the talent and uses that talent to give Michigan the chance to win every game.

If Lloyd is so stubborn, how did he let Charles Woodson play virtually every play on offense, defense and special teams?  Lloyd saw having Woodson on the field gave Michigan the chance to win and it paid off quite nicely. 

You know who was stubborn?  Bo Schembechler.  The coach all Michigan coaches are measured against.  Lloyd did something Schembechler never did though by winning a share of the national championship in 1997.  Did anyone ever call for Bo's head because he never won the championship?  NO. 

"A Michigan man will coah a Michigan team."  The famous quote from Schembechler in 1989 when he decided that Bill Frieder could go to Arizona State and that Michigan would be led to the national championship in basketball by Michigan man Steve Fisher.  You know who is a Michigan man?  LLOYD CARR.  Lou Holtz offered him the defensive coordinator job when Holtz was at Notre Dame, Carr stayed at Michigan.  Carr was there to pick up the pieces as new football coach when then head coach Gary Moehller had a few too many drinks and embarrassed himself and the school in a local restaurant resulting in his dismissal.  Carr led Michigan against Ohio State in the biggest game in that storied rivalry one day after Schembechler died, and I still wonder how he did that one day after losing one of his best friends and the man who brought him to Michigan in 1980.

Is Carr a great coach?  It's debatable.  Is he a #### sometimes?  Sure.  Do you hold your breath when he talks to national media?  Yes.  IS HE DOING HIS JOB?  YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I must admit one of my first posts was calling for Carr's job after the Rose Bowl.  I asked for either defensive coordinator Ron English or then San Diego University and now Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh to take over for Carr.  I believe one of these guys will take over when Carr decides it's time to go.

What I now realize and hope you realize is this.  Michigan isn't going to change just to change.  Carr does his job by filling the largest stadium in the country every home game.  Carr does his job by being at the top of the Big ten every year.  Under Carr's leadership, Michigan has improved.  Michigan has the most wins all time and the best winning percentage and Carr has done nothing to tarnish what Michigan football is.  If anything, Carr has exceeded expectations from when he first got the job. 

Go Blue!

First off, have you voted on my previous post about which Miyagi avatar is best?  If you haven't, do so after reading this post.  It might be the most important decision of your life.

I'm walking around campus in between classes this morning, and my phone rings.  The person I'm having the conversation with is beyond boring and has no reasoning as to why they have called me.  So, my mind wanders.

My ringtone is the fight song of my favorite school, the Univeristy of Michigan.  ( Come on, who else on here has your favorite school fight song as your ringtone?  I know I'm not the only one)  While still having about 10 or so blocks to walk to my class, and this person still talking about absolutely nothing, I begin to think of the words to the Michigan fight song.

Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan
the leaders and best
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan,
the champions of the West!

Now that I've made all the Buckeye fans run to the bathroom, here is the part they will enjoy.  Let's critque this a little bit.

First off the fight song is called The Victors.  When you name your fight song The Victors, the jokes come in fast and furious when you lose.   Now, let's look at Hail!  This is representing that no school measures up to Michigan.  That sounds just a little cocky.  ( Although Michigan does have the most wins in college football history, yeah chew on that!)

Next, let's look at conqu'ring heroes.  Why don't they spell out the word conquering?  And are conqu'ring heroes really what you want to call students who just won a sporting event?

Now we have the leaders and best.  This is actually the university motto.  Again, sounding a little cocky here.  A great school it is, but you open yourself up to a lot of criticism when you call yourself the leaders and best.

Have I gone all Simon Cowell on my school fight song?  Maybe a little bit, it's all in good fun.

Lastly we have champions of the west.  Not exactly.  Sadly, we aren't even champions of the Midwest right now.  And whenever our football team goes out West lately, we either lose or our fans complain about having to go out West. 

Ok, your turn.  I took some digs at my school fight song, now it's your turn.  Either post your school fight song and give it an HONEST critique, or make fun of any other school fight song.  Either way have fun with it.

I almost forgot, Go Blue!

Is this foreshadowing or ironic?  Tell me later, I have a quick true story to tell.

My mom answers the phone this morning

Mom: Let me guess, a birthday wish?  ( She says this in a voice that is trying to make me feel guilty for not calling her enough)

Me: (Stammering) um, no? (Damn she's good! Then comes up and endless debate on age and cracks which lasts a good hour, don't ask)

Mom: So what else is new?

Me: I am OBSESSED with this new sports blog I found.

Mom:  Not a huge surprise since you never can be quiet and since you love sports.  Have you gone overboard yet on anything?

Me: I plead the fifth

Mom: Remember the one time in school when ( she is cutoff quite rudely)

Me: (defensively speaking) Why do you always have to bring this up?

Mom: Just let me finish.  The call I got at work when you were in KINDERGARTEN, telling me you were being disciplined for talking too much.  Please tell me the reason you gave the teacher and I why you shouldn't have been punished.

Me: (laughing) Because I have so much to say, and I'm an American, I have the right to talk.

Mom: Honey, just admit you've always had diarrhea of the mouth.

This conversation goes from this topic to countless others.  I will spare you any more waiting.  Here we go.

For those who are unaware, I've been debating with SEC fans on this blog about who the better conference is in college football.  Is it the Big Ten or the SEC?  ENDLESS debating followed, but you knew along the way someone was going to make me a bet. I believe it was SoCalSportsFan who stepped up to the plate. The wager was that if Florida won last night, I had to write a post on how superior the SEC is to the Big Ten.  SoCal agreed to write a post on how superior the Big Ten was to the SEC if Ohio State won.  Do I really need to tell you who won?  I must admit I got a little joy out of the beatdown last night.  If you need to ask why, check out the avatar and come to the conclusion.  This is going to hurt!

Diarrhea of the mouth!

What's that Big Ten?  Is that silence I hear?  Where are you fans of the best conference in the land?  Maybe SEC fans were right.  OH HELL NO They were 100% right.  That was your conference champion last night?  I don't know which blowout was worse.  When the national champion Florida Gators delivered a beatdown to Ohio State last night or when the national champion Florida Gators delivered their own beatdown to UCLA last March to win it all in basketball.  And do you remember ANOTHER beatdown, when Greg Oden and the boys from Columbus were DOMINATED by the Gators December 23? 

 All I heard was, oh the Big Ten is 2-0 against the SEC.  What does that matter?  Just because 2 members of a conference happened to beat 2 teams from another conference doesn't make the 2-0 conference better. How many teams are in  each conference?  I'll tell you.  More than 2! The SEC is by far the deepest conference in football, it's pointless to even argue that.  And if you STILL want to complain about it, just repeat after me.  2006 National Champion Florida Gators    What?

Ohio State is 0-8 against the SEC all time in bowl games.  The SEC went 6-3 this bowl season.  The Big Ten went 2-5.  OUCH    And if I hear this #### anymore that the Big Ten has better schools than the SEC, I have a question.  If your braintrust is so smart, why can't they come up with a new conference name that equals how many teams you ACTUALLY have?  It's not like Penn State just joined the league.  How much time do you people need?

I thought I'd be done by now, but I've got more for you to chew on.  The 2006 Florida Gators are the first school ever to have the reigning national champions in basketball and football.  And don't come with this petty argument Florida won their title in 2007.  That's your defense? Losers

In conclusion, the statement I heard that is most true is this.  It is the Big 2 and Little 9.  The two are Wisconsin and Penn State. 

How you like them apples Big Ten? 

The Big Ten should be renamed the Biggest Loser Conference.

I'm out!