One For the Coach

Thanks to "The Hammer" for alerting me to an article on ESPN.com by Gene Wojciechowski (AKA the other Wojo in local circles) on Coach Carr. Most of us have taken some shots at Lloyd on one occasion or another, about bad playcalling, not getting the most out of his multi-starred recruits, or crazy special teams play at the hands of a special teams coach that went AWOL following the integration of the "fun punt." The reason we do this is because of our year-round investment... emotionally, mentally, physically, and financially... in a team that takes the field about a dozen times each 365 days. And when there is anything less than perfection, our collective fingers have to be pointed somewhere. With some semblance of heart and mind, we find it difficult to direct those fingers at 18-22 year old college students (usually) and find ourselves looking at the man in charge.

We have an elitist attitude, brought on by the unflappable prestige of the University. You can see it in many of our fans, at home among the quietest 100,000+ crowd "anywhere in America today", and even more so on the road, where most of those that can afford to make the expensive road trips (alumni over 60 years of age) have made their loudest cheer a unison belting out of "down in front". We assume that the best of the nation's recruits make their way to Michigan because it's Michigan, and it becomes "Here you go Lloyd, we gave you the players, now win all the games." Nothing could be further from the truth. Coach Carr has been one the best, if not the best, recruiting head coach in college football throughout his tenure. How else can you classify someone that has pulled in such a plethora of talent from around the country, selling them six months of cold and overcast after they visit Austin, Gainsville, or Los Angeles?

Then there is the record book. Lloyd Carr is the 10th winningest active coach in college football, ahead of Jim Tressell, ahead of Joe Paterno. To put this in perspective, if Carr coached the Wolverines at their current pace for as long as Bowden coached FSU or Paterno coached PSU, he would be the all-time leader in wins in college football history. But Lloyd of course is much too old to coach another 30 years, having gotten his break late in his coaching life at the hands of a little too much Grand Mariner.

Entering his 27th season (11th as a head coach) of pacing the Wolverine's sideline, Lloyd Carr is nothing if not a leader of men. Quoting Lloyd from Wojo's article:

I'm going to do what I want to do. The hell with anybody else, what they think. So that's where it all begins with me. I love the game. I love the competition. I love the relationship with the players and the ability to have some kind of positive impact as they try to pursue a degree and play this game.

Wojo follows with:

They (the players) see this Carr; we don't. We don't see the Carr who treats his former players like family, swapping stories over a cold brew. We don't see the Carr who sends personalized notes to retiring Big Ten officials, thanking them for their years of service. "This I can guarantee you," says Dave Parry, the league's supervisor of officials. "He cares deeply about the game, the integrity of the game and the character of the game. That is a fact."

My (or "our" depending on who you are) investment as a fan, a follower that chooses to live vicariously through the success of this team, is substantial, if not imprudent. However, there is something that the Michigan elite need to remember: Michigan's most passionate fan is the one that will run out of the tunnel in less than a month wearing a maize and blue polo and a sinister smile. Because he cares about people, has true passion about the University, the game, and the people involved in it... and because he knows more about what it will take to win than you've forgotten.

In commitment news, Four-Star O-Lineman David Molk has given a verbal to the Wolverines. According to his scouting page, he "plays the game with bad intentions." Not sure what this means, but I think that it is a good thing. Read all about it in the Sun-Times (about half way down).

Way Back When-sday... November 2, 2002

Welcome to the latest weekly column added to the whirlwind of UMTailgate.com postings, "Way Back When-sday", where we take a moment to reflect back on a great tailgate, game, moment in Michigan history, or moment in tailgater folly. This week, we take you back to November 2, 2002. The tailgate...epic. The game...full of revenge.

It was a red-letter day for tailgating, as a trio of big names found their way to "the greatest tailgate on the golf course". Tim Busfield of Revenge of the Nerds fame (Poindexter himself) made a cameo appearance in between gigs on The West Wing and Ed. Future state attorney general Mike Cox got some campaign support from the UMTailgaters, and even got his picture taken with Tim. And perhaps the best of all, Joe Cahn, the Commissioner of Tailgating, graced us with his presence. He spent some time sampling the culinary delights of the day which included the now UMTailgate famousSausage and Cheese Chowder, created from a recipe on his website.

We celebrated the 70th birthday of John Dogan, our oldest living tailgater, and presented him with a plaque indicating such. We also celebrated the birthday of tailgater Emily, who is most famous for her UMTailgate.com t-shirt that I enjoy posting to the front page of this website as much as possible.

As for the game at hand, revenge was on the mind of the Wolverines, who fell to the Spartans in the previous year in the infamous "extra-second" game in Spartan Stadium. Michigan State struck first, getting a 3-0 lead before Michigan went on a 49-0 run to end the game with a 49-3 win, the biggest over the Spartans in 55-years. The game featured a battery of John Navarre and BJ Askew, and included Jason Avant's first career catch, and Tim Bracken's first career touchdown.

Somehow graced by the gods I stood on the sidelines for this contest, and had the honor of meeting Steve Everitt at halftime. Despite his Ted Nugent-esque appearance, it's not often you run into a college football player that won 4-consecutive Big Ten titles. He did so as a starting center during the Maize and Blue's "drive for five" in the early-nineties. Three of his four titles were outright titles, as were four of the five overall, a record unheard of in Big Ten history. For example, despite the "amazing" success ofTressel's Cheaters, they have yet to win an outright Big Ten title. Their last was in 1984. Ok, I'm calming down now, sorry.

As we walked out of the tunnel a Spartan fan held up a sign emblazoned with two simple words, "Fire Bobby". I felt bad for about half a second thinking about the Spartan players filing out under that sign...then I came to my senses and had a good laugh. In the wake of a Jeff Smoker suspension for substance abuse just 10 days earlier, Dwan Moss was kicked off the team for public intoxication and assault on a police officer the Sunday after the 49-3 drubbing. Two days later, Michigan State fired Bobby Williams.  Bobby has gone back to riding the coattails of Nick Saban, both at LSU and the Miami Dolphins.

A simply amazing day both on the field and at the tailgate. Share your memories of this day in the comments section below. And as always, GO BLUE!

Official, UMTAILGATE, Summer TV Guide

With the heat being almost as unbearable as waiting for the "Band to take the field" on Labor Day Weekend, I have put together a survival guide to get you through the days. All you need is an air conditioner and a channel changer. Aware that many of y'all actually chose careers that require attendance in June, July in August, I have decided to come to the rescue. With the onset of Tivo and DVRs and whatnot, most of y'all have unlimited access to view any television program that you wish. However, since I have indefinite time, I have reviewed every single thing that the boob tube has to offer and just for y'all have put together a listing that will save you time and more importantly save your brain from all the shitty offerings on the tele. First we will start with the good, top 5 things to watch until the Commodores come to town.

5. SEINFELD  I know this may seem a little tired, but true fans realize it never gets old. This cast can suck the monotony of off-season boredom a half hour at a time. It's almost on at all hours of the day on various stations and with 180 episodes to view or review, the season will be here in no time. Personal favorites include: "Kenny Rogers Roasters", "The Merv Griffin Show", and "The Puffy Shirt". (Check local listings)

4. FOX NEWS  An obvious choice here, especially with the war play by play. The crew continues to provide us with some truth in an otherwise corrupt state of television news. Note: Is it me or is Shepard Smith is way too peppy lately. Although you should never compare something as serious as war to sports, see Kellen Winslow's son, the coverage definitely gets the adrenaline pumping like a day in the big house.(Fox News is a 24 hour news station.)

3. SPIKE TV  I was as plesantly surprised as you will be when I found this hidden gem on the station formerly know as TNN. These hillbillies have a ball riding the coattails of their son/nephew. I am not going to give away the plot but if you want to laugh your way to September 2nd, tune into "Raising the Roofs"(Thursday's at 10:30.) Right before the Roofs debacle of a show is the original jackasses. "The Dudesons" (Airs at 10 PM Thursday's) Like the American "Jackass" show these Finnish idiots mutilate themselves for your viewing pleasure.

2. A&E You feel pretty pathetic when you find yourself patrolling the "Arts and Entertainment Network" until this great lineup astonishes. "Dog the Bounty Hunter" (Airs quite frequently at an abundance of times, check your local listings) is an obvious pick and even if its really not that exciting you always get to laugh at how big his wife's tits are and how long and rubber banded his sons pony tails are. The real hit on the channel is newcomer, "Driving Force", (Monday's at 9 PM, however this Saturday they are playing all the episodes thus far from 2-4 PM so you all can get caught up) this show I would never have watched considering I have never watched a NHRA drag race in my life. However the preview with his daughters snatched my eye as they looked good. Upon further review, they are really hot and this dude is crazy. Now I have only seen one episode but the guy, Force, is constantly drinking beers and f 'in up. Both of which make me think about most of my tailgating weekends. Did I mention the daughters? Although Force is my favorite, I also recommend "The First 48", (Thursday's at 8 and 9 PM and replayed at 12 AM) which is a real life C.S.I. show where they actually are looking for real murderers. Not nearly as dramatic as C.S.I., but it's real.

1. TIGER BASEBALL  Nothing takes away the feeling of missing college football like following a first place group of Tigs . From the emergence of many youngsters to the return of Dmitri, the Tigers are making this off-season/summer a great treat. If at all possible watch them charge for the banner with the volume off as most of you know the announcers are complete douche bags. The anxiety is as fierce as the fourth quarter in Ann Arbor as late leads are never safe. Much like the famous Michigan "Prevent Defense" allows the opponent back into the games, the striped cats frequently allow late inning miracles that are served up by the venerable Todd Jones. Even though they are making me smoke as many cigarettes as their old school manager, I still watch them every night. Go Tigers, and to hearken back to days of yore, Bless these Boys for making the wait for the Wolverines exciting.

Second Place is Just the First Loser

The Big Ten meetings kicked off today in Chicago, and the votes are in. Ohio State is the preseason favorite to win the Big Ten, followed by Michigan and Iowa. Here's the link from the kool-aid stand. Only the top three vote-getters are listed. Too bad, because I think it would be great if we could see that bottom three, if only to poke fun.

The elusive freshman jersey numbers have also been released. Carlos Brown is the new Chris Perry, and there is no new #1. View the full roster here.

The Bigger House?

For those not on the ticket holder mailing list, an email from Bill Martin has opened the doors on the stadium expansion project, and you can read it all right here. There are schematics (adobe acrobat reader needed), cost estimates, and even some letters between the regents and the athletic department. Bill Martin even has a podcast, which for you old folks is the equivalent of a radio address that is downloadable to your iPod. So high tech!

If you are still bored after clicking through all of that, get a good laugh from Arizona head coach Denny Green:

Matt (Leinart) is going to be a very good player. But I'm still very high on, and I haven't changed one bit, on the future of John Navarre. He's got everything you need to be a big-time player ... You know what? People don't believe a lot of things I say.

Oh, I believe you Denny...I just think you are utterly insane.