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  2009-01-07 20:49:10

  • Coming out of the shadow of death. It appears I will in fact live. Haven't been this sick in a long time.

  2009-01-07 11:41:43

  • Spent yesterday in bed with the chills, shakes, and various other unsavory things. I hope today is the last of it.

  2009-01-06 10:17:17

  • Great. I appear to have caught the stomach bug my wife had and now my daughter is throwing up. Should be a fun day at Chez Holtsberry.

  2009-01-06 09:53:54

  • Decide to ride the bus and we get freezing rain. Nice. Miserable morning.

  2009-01-06 00:56:25

  • UT lost its only game to a last second comeback and the wins its last game in simlar fashion. Sorry Buckeyes, sucks don't it?

  2009-01-06 00:44:36

  • 40 yards in 38 seconds with the game on the line.

  2009-01-06 00:21:02

  • I guess that answers my question.

  2009-01-06 00:01:19

  • Is Tressel giving Boeckman time cause he feels bad or because he thinks it will work?

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Wow.  That was one of the most amazing comebacks I have ever watched as a Michigan football fan.  It was made all the more amazing because the offense looked so pathetic for so long.

It looked like this was going to be a reply of the Notre Dame game but without the offense moving the ball.  Michigan simply could not hang on to the football whether on offense or special teams.

But Wisconsin made that fatal mistake that so many coaches in the Big Ten make: they seemed to shut down the offense with a lead.

The defense had been playing well all day and this combined with a Badger offense that seemed out of sync mean the game never really got away from the Wolverines.  And that is where Badger fans have to be upset.  They should have been up by more than 19 points given the five turnovers Michigan handed them. But they didn’t take advantage when they had a chance to put the game away.

When Michigan scored in the third quarter suddenly it was a 12 point game.  Then in the fourth quarter Wisconsin went three and out.  Michigan had to go 85 yards.  They did just that with a big assist from a roughing the passer penalty.  After all that had happened it was a one score game.

Then the back breaker.  The John Thompson interception return for a touchdown was a killer.  Once again the Badger receiver just failed to catch the pass and it bounced right into the air for an easy pick.  After that it was a convey to the endzone.  Wisconsin went three and out once again.  And miraculously Michigan QB Steven Threet had a keeper that went for 58 yards.  Michigan was able to punch it in and take an 8 point lead.  But a nerve racking finish was left.

To their credit Wisconsin made a furious comeback.  After doing nothing in the second half they suddenly came to life. They marched down to the Michigan 7 yard.  The Michigan defense came up big again in sacking Allan Evridge and forcing a fumble.

After Michigan failed to get a first down, the Badgers rallied again.  With a couple of clutch throws and catches they roared back to seemingly to score, and then tie the game, only to have a penalty wipe it away.  The ensuing onside kick failed and Michigan had the upset.  Wow.  I could breath again.

So what to make of this?  Well:

• Michigan has a decent offense but it requires them to get in a rythym which they can’t do if they are turning it over and making stupid mistakes.  When it clicks, however, it works.
• The defense is also tough if they are not constantly put in bad positions.  They sometimes get out of position or miss critical tackles, but they are good enough to keep the Wolverines in a lot of games if the offense does its part.
• Michigan has no answer on kick and punt returns.

I can’t see this team beating Penn State or Ohio State on the road but they should be competitive with the bottom and middle of the Big Ten if they can find a way to hang onto the football.

As I said at the start, this likely to be a nerve racking season.  But for this week I can savor this huge win.

Well, if the previous game against the Cleveland Browns wasn’t enough to wake up Steeler fans Sunday’s game did the trick.

In the run up to the season fans were all wondering if the Steelers could really compete with the NFL elite

with a makeshift offensive line.  The opening day slaughter of the Houston Texans put the nervous thoughts out of mind for a while and the lack of firepower in the Cleveland game was blamed on the weather and Ben Roethlisberger’s bum shoulder.

There is simply no way to hide the fact, however, that on Sunday the Philadelphia Eagles defense demoralized and embarrassed the Steelers.  Ben was running for his life from the start and didn’t stop until he left the game with a hand injury.  The offense never got on track as a result.  The Eagles blitzed to stop the run and blitzed to get to the QB.  And they did both very well (nine sacks, a safety, three turnovers, 33 rushing yards, etc.).

If there was a bright spot it was that the defense settled down after a few series and played great.  They gave the Eagles a little of their own medicine and harried Donovan McNabb and even forced him to exit the game for a short while (and when he came back in he wasn’t quite as sharp).  They caused turnovers and forced the game into a field position battle when it could easily have gotten away.

In the end, the Eagles managed to score a touchdown and the Steelers didn’t.  That was the game.  The offensive line just couldn’t keep it together long enough to give the playmakers a real chance to do something.  The defense kept it close.

It is also worth noting that the Eagle’s punter Save Bocca, a former Australian rules football player, played a key role with some booming punts that pinned the Steelers back near their own endzone (and resulted in the safety).

The Steelers have a tough schedule which means that if they are to be competitive they had better find a way to handle the blitz.  Because you know their opponent will be studying this game film for strategies.  Baltimore and Jacksonville may or may not be in the elite this year but they both play tough defense and love to come after the Steelers.  These next two games will show whether this was just a bad game or an ongoing problem.

Megan McArdle defines the term:

This is a first class example of what I like to call “Supertwaddle”:  thoroughgoing nonsense wrapped up in just enough technical knowledge to be more thoroughly, amusingly wrong than the ordinary twaddle you buy at your local drugstore or neighborhood bar.  Sadly, it often sounds very convincing to people who a) have no idea what any of the jargon means and b) badly wish to believe the twaddler.

Allow me to use it in a sentence.  There is no shortage of Supertwaddle in comments at the Atlantic these days,

Ross Douthat:

And anyone who believes that McCain is running a uniquely dishonorable campaign for the presidency just doesn’t have enough historical perspective - or enough distance from their own passions - to comment sensibly on contemporary politics. Every successful politician and political movement has to master the art of below-the-belt, us-versus-them political engagement, because that’s how democratic politics works: You can appeal to the electorate’s reason all you want, but you have to appeal to their passions as well, and that means making them dislike and fear the other side as often as it means making them love you.

So if you’re a liberal and you think FDR, LBJ and Bill Clinton didn’t play the same game - and play it damn well, which is why they won elections and the other side lost - then you’re kidding yourself. If you think John McCain hasn’t been playing this game for his whole career, then you’re kidding yourself: It’s just that he used to fight dirty against his enemies within the GOP (social conservatives, for instance, or immigration restrictionists, or Mitt Romney), and how he’s fighting dirty against a candidate that the punditocracy supports, rather than disdains. And if you think that many of the same people who bleat the loudest about the evils of “Rove-style” politics aren’t happy to similarly dirty their hands for the sake of their own causes and candidates - well, you need only look at some of the coverage of Sarah Palin’s family to see how quickly principle gives way to expedience when power is at stake.

Getty Images via Daylife

Well, that was an incredibly frustrating game.  I was prepared to see an offense that continued to struggle and a defense that gave up points after getting tired.  I was prepared to admit that Michigan just wasn’t that good; that the change in coaching and system, when combined with a large loss of talent, would mean a real rebuilding year for the first time since I can remember.

What I was not prepared for was an offense that looked the best they have this season, who moved the ball practically at will, but a catastrophic inability to hang on to the football resulting in an ugly lopsided loss.  That Michigan would gain more first downs, more yards, and control the ball longer that ND and still lose by 18 points never really entered my mind.

As I told a friend, I would rather that Michigan had just played flat out poorly all around and then I could just write the year off.  Now I have no clear idea how good this team is (assuming they could find a way to quit self-destructing).  I know that is a big if but, with all the caveats playing ND involves, even in a downpour that looked like an offense that could actually succeed in the Big Ten.  And the defense is far from dominant, but if they are not constantly put in terrible positions, I think they can hold their own.

Unfortuneatly, we now have to wait two weeks to play Wisconsin and see just how good a team we are dealing with in Michigan.  As I said, frustrating.

Positives:

• I thought Steven Threet played very well.  Some nice throws and generally seemed to run the offense.  Yes, there were the fumbles in a wet game, but I think he should be the sole starter from here on out.  I felt like Michigan could win the game with him as QB; he made some clutch plays under a lot of pressure (big game, on the road, bad weather, down big early, etc.).
• Mcguffie is emerging as a real weapon.  Quick but surprisingly strong.  Dangerous in both running and passing game.

Negatives:

• Uh, the turnovers.
• Giving up some big plays over the top on defense makes me nervous.
• The kick and punt returns continue to struggle.
• I hope the injury to Threet is not serious.
• D line didn’t seem to get a lot of pressure.  ND is far from the best O line Michigan will face and they will have to get pressure.

The other bad news is this puts a dent in Michigan’s quest to make a bowl game.  With nine Big Ten games left they would have to go 6-3 just to get to 7-5.  That is a tall task.  Assume they beat Toledo, Purdue, Minnesota, and Northwestern - no gimmies but not the top of the conference - then they have to find a way to win three games from Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan State and at Penn State and Ohio State.  The most likely scenario is to beat those first three teams at home, but even that seems like a stretch.

The good news is that Michigan has two weeks to get ready for Wisconsin.  Rich Rodriguez is going to have get this team ready to cut out the critical mistakes if he wants to make a bowl game even in a down Big Ten.  And despite the ugly result on Saturday, optimistic fans may have seen just enough to believe such a thing is possible.

I have watched the first two Michigan football games this season and it looks like it is going to be a gut wrenching year.  They have flashed moments of talent but it has been slow going on offense.  Neither QB seems able to get in a rythym and establish themselves as the starter.  And sadly this has meant many a big play oppertunity missed and contributed to the loss to Utah.

The defense seems to have stepped up after a shaky start in the opener and they might be good enough to keep Michigan in a lot of games.  But not if the offense is simple three and out for long stretches.  If that is the case then the defense gets tired and ends up giving up big plays.

So today we come to the battle between two once proud schools in a traditional rivlalry.  Notre Dame versus Michigan would normally be a big game, but both teams have lost the luster they once had.  Michigan is rebuilding with a new coach and a lot of young players while Notre Dame is still seeking the promise Charlie Weiss was once thought to bring.

Whoever wins this game will feel at least for a few days like things are getting better.  The lose will know that they still have a long way to go.

I have no idea what will happen.  Michigan’s defense might step up and harrass Jimmy Clausen all day.  Michigan’s offense may finally click facing a rather mediocre ND squad.  Or ND might dink and dunk their way up and down the field and the UM offense may continue to struggle. Or it may just be an ugly game where neither team looks good.  I really don’t know.

But I will be nervous.  If Michigan can beat ND then I can feel like we may be struggling to install a new offense and with players not ideally suited to the plan, but that we at least haven’t sunk to the level of Charlie Weiss.  A loss means the whole season is going to be an ugly learning process.

Slublog over at Ace of Spades HQ suggests a new theme song for McCain-Palin (heavy on the Palin part):

Hmm, has a certain ring to it.  Lyrics below.

Read more

Image via Wikipedia

(Cross Posted at UFSL)

Watching the Bengals-Ravens game on Sunday I was starting to worry.  I mean Carson Palmer and the Bungle offense looked atrocious.  And sure enough, Palmer ended up with 3 measly points.  (Maurice Jones-Drew was disappointing as well with only 4).  That should teach me to pick a Bengal (I am a life long Steeler fan).

But as fate would have it, I still won (87-68).  Plaxico Burress, Hines Ward, and Lee Evans all had good games; exceeding their projected point levels.  And of course the Purple Jesus Adrian Peterson kicked in double digits even in a losing cause.

But I have to admit what really helped was that Brad had Kevin Curtis and Willis McGahee neither of whom saw action.  Toss in a terrible day for Braylon Edwards, in a ugly loss for Cleveland, and he couldn’t win despite a nice game by Drew Brees.

I will take the 87 points and the win.  That point total would have been good enough to win all but two games in our league.  But I am not going trust Carson Palmer again until I have some concrete evidence that the Bengals can score some points.  Sunday they could barely make first downs.

At least unlike Ben I didn’t lose a critical player for the season.  But I will have to get better at QB to compete with the top teams given that a couple of you topped 120 points.

I won’t tease Brad to hard about the zeros from Curtis and McGahee as I am apt to pull the same thing myself at least once this season.

There seems to be a pattern of troubling connections between Anwar Ibrahim, the rising politician who is seeking to unseat the ruling party, and terrorists.  The World Assembly of Muslim Youth and the International Institute of Islamic Thought are just two examples.  And then there is the prospect of Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) as a defining part of a Malaysian ruling coalition.

One of the first things that Anwar did after being released from prison in 2005 was attend meetings in Turkey with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his advisor Ahmet Davatoglu at the behest of their Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, or AKP). Anwar’s pro-Malay, Islamacist rhetoric has been previously covered here, but relationships with like-minded individuals must be noted as well. Only a month ago, Erdogan and the AKP vary narrowly avoided dissolution in a split-vote constitutional court ruling that found that Turkish secularist principles had not been violated.

But secularists within Turkey remain unconvinced.

In spite of Turkey’s strides towards westernization and the possibility of EU membership, the AKP is a protagonist of ethnic and religious derision. Erogan’s advisor, Ahmet Davutoglu provides a basis for this concern as a concept of governance. Davutglu writes: “The world is composed of cultural blocs, and Turkey falls into the ‘Muslim bloc.’”

From the US perspective, Turkey under Erdogan has proven to be a difficult strategic partner in the war on terror. Does the condition of the US relationship with Turkey foreshadow a decline in the US-Malaysia relationship under Anwar?

We already know that Anwar perceives Malaysia to fall within the “Muslim bloc.”  And so, in the context of the war on terror, the US must question what ground will be lost as Anwar pushes Malaysia closer to Sharia and farther from the West.

So I ask: should we be worried?

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