• Mini Posts via Twitter

  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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I agree wholeheartedly with this sentiment from Reid Buckley on Sarah Palin:

Unlike the Beltway snobs (an insular pathology that now defines the East Coast from Bangor, Maine to Key West), I place my trust in Sarah Palin. Dadgummit, by golly, she speaks the American language of the plains and the frontier. I trust it, and her.

Amen.

Just came across this Jim Lindgren post at The Volokoh Conspiracy on Obama.  The conclusion is rather fascinating and thought provoking:

People should not confuse Obama’s personality with his political orientation: by personality, Obama is the most reasonable, thoughtful, moderate person on either national ticket. He is definitely NOT an ideologue. Yet by political orientation, Obama is the most liberal or progressive candidate to be a party nominee for president in at least a half century - probably ever. That explains why he is in essence a radical incrementalist.

Mark Steyn:

This is an amazing race. The incumbent president has approval ratings somewhere between Robert Mugabe and the ebola virus. The economy is supposedly on the brink of global Armageddon. McCain has only $80 million to spend, while Obama’s burning through $600 mil as fast as he can, and he doesn’t really need to spend a dime given the wall-to-wall media adoration. And tonight Chris Matthews’ doctors announced that his leg tingle has metastasized leaving his entire body like a vibrating cellphone whose ringtone is locked on “I’m In Love, I’m In Love, I’m In Love, I’m In Love, I’m In Love With A Wonderful Guy.”

And yet an old cranky broke loser is within two or three points of the King of the World. Strange.

The Michigan Wolverine’s season so far:

• First lost to a MAC team in 25 games?  Check.
• First lost to Penn State in 10 years?  Check
• Headed to first non-bowl season in 33 years?  Sure looks like it.
• Headed to the first losing season in 41 years?  Ditto.

Next week should be interesting.  Michigan State will be coming off their own butt whooping at the hands of Ohio State.  Michigan State hasn’t beaten Michigan since 2001.  They might just be a tad motivated

Either Michigan State will continue its annual swoon or Michigan will continue its nose dive.  Something has to give.

You would be foolish to bet on Michigan these days.  They simply can’t play a complete game of football.  About the only way I can see them winning a game this year is against a team that turns the ball over and lets them hang around in the fourth quarter.  And even then, as we saw against Toledo (Toledo!!!!), even then they are as likely to blow it as to win.

The question of where bottom is for this team continues . . .

Heading into the Cincinnati Bengals v. Pittsburgh Steelers game this weekend, I figured I would show this YouTube for laughs:

This is a feeling I have never had before. No, not being bitterly disappointed and embarrassed by the play of a Michigan football team, but the feeling that Michigan was just not a competitive football team.

The history is staring me in the face:

• Michigan lost to a MAC team for the first time in twenty-five games.
• Michigan now has as many losses at home over the last two seasons ( 7-6) as the they had in the previous eight combined (46-6).
• Michigan has its worst starting record since 1967 and is headed, IMO, toward its first losing season in as many years.
• Michigan is also likely to miss playing in a bowl for the first time in 33 years.

This feels like the end of an era.  Michigan as an elite program is over - even if it is temporarily so.

For the first time in my memory I am not confident Michigan can beat anyone.  It would not shock me if they lost the rest of their games.  Without significant improvement they will not win another game.  I shudder to think what this team will look like on the road next week at Penn State; quite possibly the best team in the Big Ten and maybe even the top five nationally.

Today the offense looked like a high school team.  The only player who looked like a player ready for the elite level Michigan used to play on was RB Sam McGuffie and Zoltan Mesko the punter.  I suppose this is not that surprising given that every position seems to be maned by a freshman who is learning a new system with new coaches, etc.

I guess I had fooled myself that Michigan had the talent to muddle through with a decent defense and a sporadic offense.  I figured they would go 8-4 or 7-5 and play in a low level bowl game.  But it has become clear that they do not have the talent or the confidence to muddle through.  At times they seem almost there, but most of the time they just don’t approach winning football.  I didn’t realize the lack of depth and the struggle that would come from not having the players needed to run the new offense.  The season has made that brutally clear.

Against a 1-4 Toledo team they came out and promptly got out played in almost every facet of the game (special teams might be the exception - until the last play of the game that is).  Sure the score was close, but Toledo moved the ball on Michigan with regularity and seemed the more confident team.

I am not sure how bad the defense played given the utter incompetence of the offense (three interceptions, one ran back for a TD, etc.) but they didn’t seem to get much pressure on the QB and Toledo WR Nick Moore had 20 catches for 162 yards.

And yet after all that, how deppressing that Michigan would drive down the field and put themselves in a position for a chip shot field goal to send the game to OT and miss it.  The ultimate in poor execution.

Read more

Sad, but true:

Any attempt to list the full dossier of Michigan errors over the past few weeks would provoke a cascade of emotions from the reader starting with rage and ending with full-bore ennui. Along the way we’d touch grim sarcasm, depression, contempt, fatalism, resignation, dread, and a whole host of other things that in no way relate to happiness.

So let’s skip it and just say there have been a lot.

– Brian Cook, MGoBlog

The Steelers, and their star QB Ben Roethlisberger, may be battered and bruised but when the game is on the line they seem to find a way to come up with the big play.  They found a way to win in overtime last week against the hated Ravens and last night they found a way to beat a team, the Jacksonville Jaguars, that has been a thorn in their side for years.

Last year the Steelers lost two heartbreaking games to the Jags, one a playoff game.  They were on a four game losing streak to this heated rival.  Last night they finally stopped Jacksonville’s running game and Ben managed to make plays despite the physical beating he has been taking.

The Steelers are now 3-1, lead their division, and have a much needed bye week to rest and heal for the remainder of their grueling schedule.

The night sure didn’t start out that way.  On the Steelers first drive Ben threw an interception which Rasheed Mathis promptly returned for a touchdown.  You had to wonder if this was going be another one of those games where, under pressure, Ben tries to do too much and it backfires.

Nope.  The argument has always been that if the Steelers have to throw too often they lose, but last night they showed that they can do more than run the ball and play tough defense.  Using a lot of movement and quick passes the Steelers moved the ball on Jacksonville to the tune of 28 first downs and 415 yards.

A number of players were involved. Nate Washington caught six passes for 94 yards and a touchdown while the ever reliable Hines Ward had seven receptions for 90 yards and the winning touchdown.  Mewelde Moore, filling in for the injured Willie Parker, quietly racked up 99 yards rushing.

But Roethlisberger was the hero.  With people drapped all over him, and taking a beating with cruel regularity, he made the big plays when he needed to throwing for 309 yards and three touchdowns.  And when the game was on the line on that last drive he found the open man and kept the drive alive.  He converted three third downs, including a critical third and eight with 6-5 275 lb lineman Reggie Hayward hanging all over him.  And on third and goal he lofted a beautiful fade route to Hines Ward in the endzone.

No matter what happens the rest of the season, and it might get ugly given the offensive line and the quality of their opponents, this is why Steeler fans are happy to have Big Ben leading the team.  He simply makes plays under circumstances few others could handle.

Only time will tell if he can survive the rest of the season, but the fans and the team can savour this win for a while.

That thud you heard yesterday was the University of Michigan football program returning to earth. Yes, the landing hurt.

Coming off an incredible comeback win against Wisconsin, Michigan put together a fine first quarter against Illinois and fans thought they finally had a football team on their hands.  The special teams play was better, the offense was working, and the defense looked good.  And no fumbles!

But it was not to be.  The next three quarters were some of the ugliest and most depressing I have witnessed as a Wolverine fan.  For two quarters the offense could produce nothing.  Eight straight possessions without scoring; seven punts and a fumble.  Five of those were three and out while two of them included double digit lost yardage.

Michigan finally managed a 73 yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter, but they promptly missed the extra point and it went downhill again from there.  Illinois scored immediately in response, Michigan fumbled the kickoff and they scored again.  Game over, as they say.

From up 14-3 to down only 31-20 to losing 45-20.  A depressing and maddening roller coaster ride of a game.

The offense and defense are both on and off again units.  At times the offense looks like a functioning, and occasion, a dangerous unit.  But far more often it seems lucky to gain positive yardage before punting after a three and out.  The spread option requires execution and timing and they don’t appear able to have either for long stretches of time.

The defense can look dominant but gives up big plays with regularity.  Receivers are wide open, break tackles, and get behind the secondary.  Runners get to the second level break tackles and outrun defenders.  The defense over pursues, gets out of position, and misses tackles.

Obviously, the offense isn’t going to win any shootouts and so the pressure has been on the defense from the start.  And the incredible inability to hang on to the ball often puts the defense in bad positions.  No matter how conditioned you are, if the offense goes three and out for a couple of quarters, you are going to be physically and mentally tired.

But this doesn’t exscuse the big plays.  The defense may have felt the pressure but that only highlights the need to be disciplined and play error free.  Time and time again this isn’t what happened.  Over-pursuit, bad angles, and missed assignments plagued the defense all day.  And Illinois made them pay and pay and pay.

I had said at one point this season that Michigan just wasn’t a very good football team.  And then Wisconsin made me second guess that.  Until I see sustained evidence to the contrary, however, I am convinced that is the truth.  They just aren’t that good.  Too many freshman in key positions, and too many stars having left, when combined  with a new coach and offensive scheme means things are going to be ugly this year.  I just have to get used to it. Read more

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