Great Expectations
/I'm not an avid recruiting follower. A lot of my fellow Michigan fans are. Knowing of my extreme fandom, these peers often come to me with questions such as "what do you think of (fill in pre-pubescent athlete here) making his visit to Ann Arbor today?" I don't know. I try not to be interested. I only glance at MGoBlog's "Hello" posts. Why? Because I subscribe to Rich Rodriguez's policy of only talking about players that play for Michigan. The amazing class purported to have been assembled for 2013, verbally at least, is somehow indirectly increasing the expectations of the present. We are overrated already. The preseason tv ratings hype machine will try to make us more and more relevant leading up to the nation's biggest game of week 1, so it's not likely that we will be hearing a lot about our current deficiencies until the Sunday morning quarterbacks hit the air waves.
The players that are here, as well as the class that is arriving in less than two-months (remember them?) are being done a disservice. Team 133 does not have Shane Morris dropping back for passes and running Al's pro-style juggernaut. And no matter how many letters from the Buckeyes Logan Tuley-Tillman burns, no matter how many death threats he gets from the toothless assholes of Ohio, he will be going to his high school homecoming dance as team 133 begins to fight its way through the Big Ten schedule, not helping our depth on the offensive line. He's a Peoria Manual Ram...and yes, I had to look that up.
Michigan has a rich history to say the least. In wins and losses, they are the greatest team of all time. They hold significant advantages all-time over every other Big Ten team. Teach that in your classrooms. Explain that (slowly) to a Spartan. Use that.
Michigan had a great season last year...when compared to the last few seasons. But the reality is that they lost handily to a shitty Iowa team, couldn't beat Sparty, and won the Sugar Bowl over the least powerful of the BCS bowl participants on two prayer-filled blind throws. I feel like I'm always saying this, but I will say it again anyway: stay grounded.
It seems the fanbase so aptly known for talking about the past, is now taking to talking shit about the future. Making your point to a rival using players that won't have an impact until 2014 or 2015 (if ever) is a tactic reserved for Notre Dame. Ask them how much recruiting classes matter.
I'm not saying you can't be happy about this....or even this. (#1 nationally in football, #2 nationally in hoops) But know that we are 8 months away from signing day, which is markedly more important than these seemingly never ending verbal days. We'll be talking in the past tense about team 133 by then. And remember, they're not all going to sign...they never do.
79 days 'til Dallas.
GO BLUE!
