What's Up This Weekend? The Hangover Edition: 2/15-2/17/13

Today (2/15):

• Baseball (0-0) vs. Cal (0-0):  It's opening day!  New head coach Erik Bakich (youngest in BCS) will skipper the Wolverines against the Cal Bears on the road in Berkeley.  Peanuts, cracker jack...68 degrees and sunny.  Michigan is not quite a media favorite in the Big Ten, as prognosticators have them from the middle to the middle-bottom of the Big Ten's 12 teams, but they do have a couple of players on a preseason watch list.   The guy to watch is Michael O'Neill, who lead in a survey of coaches in several categories, including "Best Power Threat."  4:30pm ET first pitch.  

Tomorrow (2/16):

• Women's Basketball (18-6/8-4) vs. Sparty (19-5/7-4):  Avenge me!!!!  Avenge me!!!!  Noon tip at Crisler Center.  Live audio here.
• Baseball at Cal:  Game 2 of the series.  4pm ET first pitch.

Sunday (2/17):

• Basketball (21-4/7-4) vs. Penn State (8-16/0-12) :  I'm anticipating a sloppy game...and I am envisioning these kids not quite being over the loss to Sparty.  I'm expecting to win of course, but if you have the means, take the Lions and the points.
• Baseball at Cal:  Game 3 of the series.  2pm ET first pitch.

Housed

Michigan fell 75-52 to Sparty on Tuesday, decreasing their all-time lead in the series to 94-76 (87-76 if you are into the Ed Martin adjusted record).  The win was only the 2nd in 5 tries overall for the Spartans, but the 32nd in 33 tries at Breslin as well as the largest margin of victory in over 10 years.

• UMHoops recap
• MGoBlog recap
• ESPN Game Center

Losing to Sparty sucks.  Getting crushed by Sparty causes depression.  This year, unlike most seasons since the late 90's, you really care, and you've probably been talking shit to your Sparty neighbors leading up to Tuesday's game.  Now they own you, at least until March 3rd.  

The emotional investment and the pride we felt for the most of this campaign seemed to disappear in one game, and that is sad, because something has been built here.  The problem is, the foundation of it is based on the fragile psyches of freshman.  Freshman that have never felt the pressure of a game in Bloomington, or the power of stupid people in large groups they experienced in East Lansing.  The swagger is gone.  This team is tired, scared and scarred.   We need a break.  We need to come home.  We need Penn State to be Penn State...twice.

How they react now will define their legacy.  When March comes in college basketball, nobody remembers February.  There's another month of growth to be had before the Big Ten tournament, and it's open for debate whether that conference tournament really means something, even though it will be an amazing set of matchups.  

The goal is to show up in the big dance.  This season begins on March 21st (yes that is a lot later than usual) and involves 6 games.  Avenge last year's debacle by winning on opening night.  Make the sweet sixteen to get the national relevance we've been pining for.  After that, it's all gravy.  Win the first four, and you've got what the Spartans call a championship.  Win six, and you grab something that the Spartans haven't held in 13 years, and something that is very rare in Big Ten country,  a national championship in a revenue sport.  

This team has a chance to do that.  Not a great chance mind you, given their youth and streaky play by everyone not named Trey, but a chance nonetheless.

We went from this...

To this...

...in a very short amount of time ( and an amazingly brutal slate of games).

What we need is to find a way to become this...

...but by the rules of course :)

Keep calm and GO BLUE!

Weekend Roundup: That's a Bad Weekend Edition 2/11/13

Here's what happened around the internets while you decided to clean the kitty.

• Hoops lost a heartbreaker in Madison.  UMHoops recaps.  This one hurt.  But we move on and look to beat down little brother on Tuesday.  
• Awwww, you Paternos, you made your own report.  That's so sweet.  I had almost forgotten about this whole thing, but then you put it back in the news.  Good idea.  Let's talk some more about your involvement in child rape.
• Cool roundup of the Detroit News blue chippers, where they are going, why they are going there....as well as why they are not going to Michigan and/or Michigan State.  
• Hockey lost Friday at Notre Dame, 7-4.  Then a 6-4 Saturday loss completed the weekend sweep.
• The home game on February 17th against Penn State will feature throwback uniforms...which normal people refer to just as uniforms.
• Despite the loss Saturday, Michigan still controls its own Big Ten destiny...Rod Beard discusses.
• Hoke discusses staying in state to recruit.

Go Blue!  Beat Sparty!

What's Up This Weekend? Taste it again for the Third Time Edition

Tonight (Friday 2/8/13):

• Ice Hockey (7-13-2, 10-16-2) at #12 Notre Dame (12-7-1, 16-11-1):  Your fair Wolverines have moved out of the basement and up to an 8th place tie with Bowling Green in the CCHA standings...yet the Wolverines 96 goals-against leads the league (in the bad way).  Notre Dame is in third place in the conference and #12 nationally, but is coming off a win-less weekend in Columbus.  Puck drops at 7:35pm in South Bend.  It's live on your TV if you have the CBS Sports Network.  Live audio lives here. 

Tomorrow (Saturday 2/9/13):

• Basketball (8-2, 21-2) at Wisconsin (7-3, 16-7):  For the third time this season, a Michigan win means a #1 ranking on Monday.  We're 1-1 in such games so far this season.  Someday we'll not care about such trivial things in February...we're not quite there yet, this is still new (relatively) and fun.  The Badgers are coming off a Wednesday night win over Iowa, and a big win Sunday at Illinois (which is more than I can say for Indiana).  The Badgers also beat Indiana...at Indiana.  Anyway, in a perfect world where I didn't have to work today and tonight, or where the game wasn't at 11am locally, I'd be making this trip.  I miss Madison.  This is a big road game. I feel like Wisconsin is just barely outside of the top tier in the Big Ten this season, which means this is a VERY losable road affair.  Tipoff is Noon here in the east.  It's on ESPN, so its also on Watch ESPN.  Live audio will be here. 

• Ice Hockey (7-13-2, 10-16-2) at #12 Notre Dame (12-7-1, 16-11-1):  See above.  Puck drops at 7:05pm.  Live audio here.   Televised in A2 on Comcast local (channel 900).

Sunday 2/10/13

• Women's Basketball (6-4, 17-6) at #13 Purdue (7-2, 18-4).  Noon tip on BTN.

This Signing Day Infographic is Today's Winner of the Internets

This post from Maize and Go Blue has an infographic that won't leave you feeling dirty for wanting to know information about a group of boys that were born in the mid-90's.  

It's comprehensive as hell, yet simple enough for The Godfather to understand (he loves pictures)...I'm posting it here but you should click through and spend some time on their site...it's a good one.