When you just need to get by, Altes is the answer. A perfect pairing with tomorrow’s Detroit themed tailgate and the game that we should have never scheduled. Cheers to you all, and Go Blue!
Sync up with the tailgate with the Week 2 Tailgate Playlist on Spotify. The Tailgate theme this week is “Detroit” so we are having Coney Island diner-style breakfast and Coney Dogs for lunch before heading to the stadium to take down Army. Enjoy!
No man is more important than the food.
No coach is more important than the food.
The Food, The Food, The Food
-Bo Schembechler (probably)
Hawaiian Pork Sliders
Pretty good all around day behind the grill. Came in with pre-prepped Hawaiian pork sliders, which were basically a riff on the massive Cubans we did last year for the Western Michigan Pancake Breakfast (obviously for the lunch after pancakes) and at their heart are blatantly stolen from the folks over at MGoBBQ (aka Go Blue BBQ Joe Pichey). I deviated with provolone, Famous Dave’s pickles, and sweet hot mustard. Also charred the onions and put them inside.
After we got set up and settled in to a couple of drinks, we fired up the fryer basket to make fresh chicharrón. They kind of stole the show for the day.
I dream of them becoming a UMTailgate staple, but sourcing skin and the 2-day prep makes that a bit unrealistic. Of course I will try anyway. Recipe is adapted from Sean Brock’s Heritage cookbook. I hear there are easier ways… like this recipe from Food and Wine. So maybe that’s the answer. But go against Sean Brock at your own peril.
Pork Belly Burnt Ends
The Chicharrón went fast, and the all day snackers became the pork belly burnt ends. I had made a massive batch of Wicked iQue Rub and dry marinated the cubed belly (that I harvested the skin from for the chicharron) in that for a half day, then smoked it the morning of the tailgate on the rack at 275 for two hours, then covered in tin foil in half sheet pans for another two. At that point we transported all 25 pounds of them to the tailgate, where the pans got uncovered and set on the grill and doused with BBQ sauce. They were perfect and withstood all day cook, getting better as the day went on.
An early dinner included three butterflied pork butts prepared Aaron Franklin’s style, which has an Asian flare to it. I did pretty much everything as written in that recipe, but added sliced pineapple on site while grilling.
Aaron Franklin Pork
Pre-prepped some Kale and spinach by starting with a base of onions and coconut oil, and finishing with coconut milk for that steakhouse creamed spinach vibe.
Also on the side was a massive pile of fried rice, studded with bacon, scallions, and the occasional chunk of pineapple flung over from the grill.
Nobody left hungry and nobody was as satisfied as this guy…
Detroit Theme next week. Greek diner breakfast with THE TRIUMPHANT RETURN OF HASH followed by coney dogs before we head in for kickoff. FEED IN FACE.
Preseason quotes are like Canadian dollars: you can get by with them, but you’re really screwed if you are trying to get something substantial. The submarine has to surface in order for games to be played, and that’s what it takes to find out nearly everything you’ve been told is a lie. Tru Wilson is not going to be the running back, or the second running back. DPJ is in a boot. Two redshirt freshman are starting on the O-Line. The receiving core drops the shit out of some on-target balls. Ambry Thomas is completely fine. Shea and McCaffrey are on the field at the same time sometimes.
The only truth? Ronnie Bell. Ronnie Bell is the friggin’ truth. Okay, he dropped one too but dude’s a dude.
The best 1.6 Million this program spent since removing the halo. My humble request is for all openers to be against teams of this caliber and at home. All the big boys do it. Opening at Utah in ‘15 was dumb, opening last year at ND was dumb, and opening next year in Seattle is DUMB. Give me late August non-Power 5 in our friendly confines moving forward.
Moving in to “what we saw…” I give you the annual obligatory “we’re not going to show anything against (enter lower-tier team here) …and we didn’t. And we won’t next week. And then there’s a bye, and then the Big 10 slate starts on the road in Madison. And after we perform under expectations out there (but me thinks in victory), and in the subsequent several weeks (still winning), we’ll talk about how we haven’t really pulled out the real playbook. Man, I just want a different narrative this year. I’m not interested in waking up in late November stewing in anger wondering why the real speed and the real space never showed up. There were flashes on Saturday. I enjoyed them. I understand the season-long chess match and holding back for later, especially considering the gauntlet coming late. But man if you hold back and sacrifice my comfort, you better deliver in November. On behalf of a irresponsible, dumb, and impatient fanbase, as well as a group of elite athletes that want to flaunt their talents…I ask only that you give us some more, please.
More positives you say? You like true frosh running backs? Zach Charbonnet gives me a little Mike Hart vibe: low center of gravity, bouncing off of tackles, seemingly a good eye for running lanes, but with superior athletic talent to MH. That makes him significantly better than advertised, considering he was advertised as a guy 2nd or 3rd on the chart behind Tru. He’s the starter clearly and will be taking the load. Turner is behind him and thanks for the memories Tru.
Hey, ya, some things were a hot mess, but maybe that’s to be expected? I am happy to give a pass to the sloppiness from yesterday, but a couple of different ball bounces and we would have been on the brink of a disaster. In games like this, I prefer no question, no chance of being uncomfortable. But to be fair, there are less fall practices than there used to be, a brand new offense was installed, new dude is calling the plays, AND a couple of ball bounces in the other direction, and this is 56-0. Perhaps you saw Florida-Miami last week?
I do have questions:
How does speed in space conquer short yardage? Turnovers on downs are like daggers to the heart. I’d rather just fumble.
Speaking of that, what if the dumb fumbles become an official case of the yips and we spend the season on pins and needles yelling at people to hold on to the ball? That would suck. I’ve changed my mind I’d rather turnover on downs.
When Shea and Dylan are both on the field, wouldn’t our 5th or 6th receiver down the depth chart be a better choice than another quarterback in every conceivable situation outside of a double pass? Yes. And we are never running a double pass. WAIT, ARE WE SETTING UP FOR A DOUBLE PASS JOSH?
While Jim said that both QBs would have time in the game, the timing of Dylan’s under center entry in to the game felt like a Shea punishment. So now there’s controversy. Now there are camps. The crowd gave that “oh, I prefer the new quarterback” cheer when DM entered the game.
Next Week: Michigan vs. America. Who will you root for? You unpatriotic bastard. Go Blue.
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