Actual football practice starts soon. I thought it might be fun to toss out a couple of simple, yet relevant questions to get the football juices flowing and the conversation started. The primary goal of this place for both T9 and me is to have some fun and continue the strong MZone community. Based on our web logs, I know we have a lot of readers; I am looking to pull some of you out of the shadows and open the doors for more participation. Don’t be afraid. All opinions are valid. You can answer any or all of these.
What needs to happen for RR to be Michigan’s coach in 2011 ?
As I stated a couple of months ago, I don’t think Rich Rodriguez will ever be successful here. He is the definition of a lightning rod, if by lightning you mean idiotic drama cloaked in an overcoat of controversy dripping in healthy layer of unreasonable hatred. The constant splat of bad news has worn me down -- and I don’t think it will quit. It is getting to the point where I am not surprised any more.
As a Michigan supporter, I want to win. I am tired of being the laughing stock of college football. For those of you that cheer against us because we are a bunch of arrogant pricks, please stop. Rest assured I am comprehensively and perpetually humbled. I just want us to be an ordinary successful college football program again.
That being said, I think three things need to happen to prevent Dave Brandon from holding a press conference and announcing a coaching change after the Ohio State game in November.
1) We need a winning season with a bowl bid.
2) We need to win two of the three traditional rivalry games (Notre Dame, Michigan State, or Ohio State).
3) There needs to be no more NCAA rules drama.
If any of those three things does not happen, we will be looking for a new coach and start this “re-building” process over. I no longer fear the prospect of starting over from scratch, again. You need to look no further than our new siblings in Lincoln to see that a once proud program can crash into the side of a mountain and eventually put the pieces back together again to be respectable. If they can recover from Bill Callahan, we can recover from this.
Realistically, how many wins will this team see?
I have looked up and down the schedule at least a thousand times – and I believe I spot seven.
If things go completely right (offense clicks and defense makes tackles) we may see nine wins. If things go badly from the start (like losing to both UConn and Notre Dame to open the season) we could be staring at another three win nightmare. At that point I will lead the campaign for a complete program meltdown.
UConn: We have no injuries and have better players.
Notre Dame: I never expect a win in South Bend.
UMass: Losing here would be worse than the loss to Appy State.
Bowling Green: We have another MAC win streak to protect.
Indiana: They played us very tough last year.
Sparty: Home game. Time to return things to normal.
Iowa: Who scheduled these giants for homecoming?
Penn State: By the time they play us, their issues will be fixed.
Illinois: My expectation is Ron Zook will be fired by this point.
Purdue: I can’t believe I want to beat Purdue so badly.
Wisconsin: Too much size and talent for our defense.
Ohio State: Our next win against these guys won’t be in Columbus
Denard or Tate ?
I know this will sound corny, but my answer is both… we need BOTH at this point. The teams in the B11 are not getting any smaller or weaker. In this offense, the QB is going to get hit. A lot. Injuries are going to happen when you line up a bunch of smurfs against a bunch of monsters. We need more than one QB to make this work.
My preference is Denard. I am just giddy at the prospect of him running our full offense, he is just that damn exciting to watch. I would love to see him emerge as an accurate passer to go along with his astonishing running ability. Unless something changes drastically in fall practice, I expect him to begin the season as the starter.
On the other hand, I was and could be very satisfied with a productive and healthy Tate. There was no doubt he is an exciting and capable quarterback. Things turned sour last season when he tried to do too much and got hurt. The fact remains, he was a true freshman. Going forward, he needs to make healthier decisions and take care of the football better as a sophomore and beyond.
Did Troy Woolfolk cross the line at the B10 meetings when he called out Tate’s work ethic?
I have to admit, I was a little surprised when I read the comments this week. Senior leadership is an important and powerful thing. If Troy was a sophomore and Tate was a senior, I would be very very concerned with the chemistry on the team. Right now, with all that is going on with this program… whatever.
One thing to remember, he is a cornerback and they tend to talk a lot of smack. I honestly think he intended to highlight the off season efforts of Denard. The “diseased” comments that followed appeared to me to be the unfiltered ramblings of a college kid with a bunch of microphones stuffed in front of his face. He was expressing his feelings and doing what he felt was right as a leader. I can’t fault him for that.
Best case: Tate gets the message, starts to work harder and matures into a leader to match his talent.
Worst case: Tate continues to be lazy, loses his starting job to Denard, and transfers to Stanford.
Likely case: Tate tells Troy to “fuck off” under his breath after he throws at TD over him in practice next week.
Will we ever beat Ohio State again?
It took 40+ years, but Navy beat Notre Dame. Twice.
It will happen. Someday. Maybe. Hopefully.
Candidly, I don’t expect it in the next couple of years and it may not ever be against Jim Tressel again.
Right now, they are good. Really good. We are not. It is as simple as that.
When it does eventually happen… on that day I promise to smile a lot and enjoy it. I just hope I live long enough to experience it again.
What needs to happen for RR to be Michigan’s coach in 2011 ?As I stated a couple of months ago, I don’t think Rich Rodriguez will ever be successful here. He is the definition of a lightning rod, if by lightning you mean idiotic drama cloaked in an overcoat of controversy dripping in healthy layer of unreasonable hatred. The constant splat of bad news has worn me down -- and I don’t think it will quit. It is getting to the point where I am not surprised any more.
As a Michigan supporter, I want to win. I am tired of being the laughing stock of college football. For those of you that cheer against us because we are a bunch of arrogant pricks, please stop. Rest assured I am comprehensively and perpetually humbled. I just want us to be an ordinary successful college football program again.
That being said, I think three things need to happen to prevent Dave Brandon from holding a press conference and announcing a coaching change after the Ohio State game in November.
1) We need a winning season with a bowl bid.
2) We need to win two of the three traditional rivalry games (Notre Dame, Michigan State, or Ohio State).
3) There needs to be no more NCAA rules drama.
If any of those three things does not happen, we will be looking for a new coach and start this “re-building” process over. I no longer fear the prospect of starting over from scratch, again. You need to look no further than our new siblings in Lincoln to see that a once proud program can crash into the side of a mountain and eventually put the pieces back together again to be respectable. If they can recover from Bill Callahan, we can recover from this.
Realistically, how many wins will this team see?
I have looked up and down the schedule at least a thousand times – and I believe I spot seven.
If things go completely right (offense clicks and defense makes tackles) we may see nine wins. If things go badly from the start (like losing to both UConn and Notre Dame to open the season) we could be staring at another three win nightmare. At that point I will lead the campaign for a complete program meltdown.UConn: We have no injuries and have better players.
Notre Dame: I never expect a win in South Bend.
UMass: Losing here would be worse than the loss to Appy State.
Bowling Green: We have another MAC win streak to protect.
Indiana: They played us very tough last year.
Sparty: Home game. Time to return things to normal.
Iowa: Who scheduled these giants for homecoming?
Penn State: By the time they play us, their issues will be fixed.
Illinois: My expectation is Ron Zook will be fired by this point.
Purdue: I can’t believe I want to beat Purdue so badly.
Wisconsin: Too much size and talent for our defense.
Ohio State: Our next win against these guys won’t be in Columbus
| Opponent UConn Notre Dame UMass Bowling Green Indiana Sparty Iowa Penn State Illinois Purdue Wisconsin Ohio State | My Dream Win Win Win Win Win Win Loss Win Win Win Loss Loss 9-3 | My Nightmare Loss Loss Win Win Loss Loss Loss Loss Win Loss Loss Loss 3-9 | My guess Win Loss Win Win Win Win Loss Loss Win Win Loss Loss 7-5 |
Denard or Tate ?
I know this will sound corny, but my answer is both… we need BOTH at this point. The teams in the B11 are not getting any smaller or weaker. In this offense, the QB is going to get hit. A lot. Injuries are going to happen when you line up a bunch of smurfs against a bunch of monsters. We need more than one QB to make this work.
My preference is Denard. I am just giddy at the prospect of him running our full offense, he is just that damn exciting to watch. I would love to see him emerge as an accurate passer to go along with his astonishing running ability. Unless something changes drastically in fall practice, I expect him to begin the season as the starter.On the other hand, I was and could be very satisfied with a productive and healthy Tate. There was no doubt he is an exciting and capable quarterback. Things turned sour last season when he tried to do too much and got hurt. The fact remains, he was a true freshman. Going forward, he needs to make healthier decisions and take care of the football better as a sophomore and beyond.
Did Troy Woolfolk cross the line at the B10 meetings when he called out Tate’s work ethic?
I have to admit, I was a little surprised when I read the comments this week. Senior leadership is an important and powerful thing. If Troy was a sophomore and Tate was a senior, I would be very very concerned with the chemistry on the team. Right now, with all that is going on with this program… whatever.
One thing to remember, he is a cornerback and they tend to talk a lot of smack. I honestly think he intended to highlight the off season efforts of Denard. The “diseased” comments that followed appeared to me to be the unfiltered ramblings of a college kid with a bunch of microphones stuffed in front of his face. He was expressing his feelings and doing what he felt was right as a leader. I can’t fault him for that.Best case: Tate gets the message, starts to work harder and matures into a leader to match his talent.
Worst case: Tate continues to be lazy, loses his starting job to Denard, and transfers to Stanford.
Likely case: Tate tells Troy to “fuck off” under his breath after he throws at TD over him in practice next week.
Will we ever beat Ohio State again?
It took 40+ years, but Navy beat Notre Dame. Twice.
It will happen. Someday. Maybe. Hopefully.
Candidly, I don’t expect it in the next couple of years and it may not ever be against Jim Tressel again.
Right now, they are good. Really good. We are not. It is as simple as that.
When it does eventually happen… on that day I promise to smile a lot and enjoy it. I just hope I live long enough to experience it again.
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