The Team to Beat

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​I'm almost caught up...almost.  News that is but a day old appearing on UMTailgate.com is a clear signal that we are up and running.  With a possible "hard hittin' Thursday" on the horizon from The Hammer, and the fact that life begins again in less than a month, it's obvious things are warming up.  And so come the predictions...

Big Ten media days are upon us.  Lloyd, Hart, Henne, and Long made the trip to Chicago, fielded questions, and basked in the glory of being picked as the media consensus #1 team in the Big Ten.  Nice to hear, but preseason honors are just preseason...and not really honors.  Wisconsin was the runner up.  Good for them, I've always liked the boys from Madison.  It's tough not to like them even more now that they've sent the Buckeyes to the #3 spot.

The nation's active leading rusher and 5th place finisher in the Heisman race, Mike Hart, was named the preseason offensive player of the year.  Buckeye LB James Laurinaitis was named defensive player of the year.  We can figure out who's better on November 17th.

Amazingly enough, the kool-aid factory has some slightly off-color interesting coverage.

Tiny Linkfest:


  • Bask in the glory of the tangled web of football lore that comes from Lloyd's (and my) alma mater, Riverview, Michigan.  (McCartney's Grandson Get's Shot at LSU - Detroit News)

  • Carr's Future...He's Tired of Talking About It (Carr dismissive about speculation - Freep)

  • According to my inside sources, Carson's return is a done deal.  We need a TE..and he's not guilty...sounds like a great match.  (Carr considers bringing TE Butler back - Freep)

  • I laughed so hard...that I cried.  Self-proclaimed "helpless romantic" and son of a tailgating legend...it's Goody's MySpace page.  Remember kids, take your number of MySpace friends and divide it by 67 to find the number of real friends you have.  (Goody on MySpace.com)  Hurry before he makes it "private only"!

I Am Sam

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​Never been a big fan of recruiting coverage, but I am a big fan of viral marketing.  Therefore, in another of a long line of stories that should have been on UMTailgate.com earlier, Michigan got the most hyped 4-star commit in the history of the internets.  A bonafied YouTube star, RB Sam McGuffie picked the Maize and Blue this past Sunday night live on the local Houston news.  As pointed out by the Buckmaster earlier this week on the message boards, you must see the videos to believe it.  And don't exit early...watch it all the way through.

How his ability to hurdle over backpedaling DBs and perform videogame-like spin-o-ramas will translate to the college game remains to be seen.  However, the fact that he is the fastest white man in the state of Texas will translate just fine.

Here's some McLinks to get you up to speed:

  • McGuffie Will Keep Michigan on Top (Michigan Daily)

  • Cy-Fair RB Chooses Michigan (Houston Chronicle)

  • The Rivals Stats...benches 355...has a 41 inch vertical.  Basic assessment is that he can kick your ass. (Rivals.com)

  • Gloat a bit...everybody wanted him. (Trojanwire)

  • You need a MySpace page.  I'm getting one...Sam has one.  Get on the Social Networking bandwagon. (MySpace)

Notre Dame 'Til We Die

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​Odd news, really.  It seemed likely that the Notre Dame - Michigan series was destined to end for a little while, if not longer, as of 2011.  2011?  Quite a ways away.  Five more games, two more visits to South Bend, and then perhaps a chance at an interesting home-at-home with SOMEBODY DIFFERENT.  But it was not to be.

As most no doubt have heard (or read on the message board), out of nowhere Michigan and Notre Dame renewed their series...through 2031. That's a really, really long time.  To put it into perspective, despite the national media who thinks we've been playing every year since 1898, Michigan and Notre Dame have met only 34 times (Michigan holding a 19-14-1 advantage by the way), and this new contract adds 20 more meetings.  This extension conjures up a few thoughts and feelings...

The Good:

  • If Notre Dame can actually "Return to Glory" with a little more frequency, this is a pretty cool non-conference opponent.

  • Every other year, we're on NBC, which guarantees we won't be shuffled to the much maligned Big Ten Network.

  • Sweet #1 all-time vs. #2 all-time matchup.  Note: Notre Dame is #2.

  • Getting to see generations of Ron Powlus clones come through the system with big Heismann hype leaving with nothing but a fruity green alternate jersey.

  • 10 more parties with the Godfather in Stevensville.

  • First hand charting of Charlie Weiss's Oprah-like weight fluctuation

The Bad:

  • I would like to play somebody different...travel somewhere different. 

  • 9 out of 10 rednecks and hippies already think Notre Dame is in the Big Ten, negating the cool non-conference aspect for those outside the midwest.

  • Notre Dame's 83-50 record over the past ten seasons ranks them just below Miami of Ohio for that time period.  In other words, they kinda suck.

  • Bo said "The hell with Notre Dame."

  • T-shirt costs from parties at the Godfather's may force the Godmother to get a night job.

  • The unlikeliness that we'll be alive when the contract needs to be renewed again.


**UPDATE**  Transcripts from the negotiation to renew this conract were leaked to Autumn Thunder, and are available by clicking here.

Just Screw It...I Want My Adidas

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​I am no doubt a few days behind breaking this news to you, and in these the slowest two months of the calendar year, I am sure you've already digested the information and implications of Michigan's big move of the summer...from Nike to Adidas. This will no doubt kill your plans to cave and get a jersey for the coming year, but you've already got a "7", "20", and "86" "1", right? I can't imagine there will be more of a change to anyone's closet than my own. I just hope that Adidas is as on the ball with their big and tall sizes as is the swoosh.

The deal, reportedly will net Michigan $3.8 million in cold hard cash per year, more than 3 times the paltry $1.2 million from Duck-lover Phil Knight. In addition, Adidas will outfit all 25 of Michigan's athletic teams. Like me, you're probably uttering an audible "wow" right at your computer screen...not at the lucrative deal engineered by evil genius Bill Martin, but at the fact that Michigan has 25 athletic teams. Does this include Broomball?

I must admit, I've been a Nike super-mark for years...loved the swoosh, loved the shoes. I loved all 12 of my jerseys, from my pre-Nike Wheatley #6 (with full name on the back....I was young) to my now legendary Biakabutuka #21 (first to don the mark of Nike, which has in recent years fallen off allowing me to claim it's a Desmond) to my stretch fit, panel-sided, size 60 Henne #7. But I'm willing to retire them all and move on. It's as if when the deal was announced, a flip switched inside my head, making Nike evil. The Buckeyes wear Nike, so it must be bad. The Oregon Ducks and their damn crowned field are brought to you by Nike. No doubt by the dawning of the 2008 season a swooshed Michigan jersey will be as embarrassing as having one with the word Michigan on the front, or your own last name on the back, or a yellow (reversible) one from Steve and Barry's.

Official Adidas Michigan gear, which will no doubt include a newly designed away jersey (sans piping), will be available next summer. For now, you can get this reminder of the Rose Bowl Michigan slept through and I left my mark on in the CBS Store.

Obligatory links of clothing change...

I'm Huge In Japan...and The Missing Pics

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​Ya, my mouth writes checks my body can't cash. No pictures went up last weekend, due for the most part to a blinding night of imbibing during an international DJ gig followed by what I've now classified as Bird Flu. Hmmmm...international DJing...Bird Flu...not many can make that combo possible. The long and the short of it is I'm in Japan doing "real job" stuff, which is great if you like salmon on your breakfast buffet, poor air conditioning, and scaring small children and the elderly with your very presence. Either way, my hiatuses between posts have been justified, but I apologize anyway. So, if you don't mind taking a break from ruining some poor girl's life (I'm talking to you Johnny Cleveland), perhaps I can catch everyone up on the goings on of at least one UMTailgater experiencing a true life version of Lost in Translation.

First and foremost, tailgater Lisa celebrated a monumental birthday last month, and friends made the trek from all over the country to eat, drink, celebrate, and most certainly see Lisa cry at the prospects of turning 30. She did not disappoint, though the tears came late in the evening, and we have her brother Meatball to thank for that. Birthday party success depends on having a story to remember come from the event, and I certainly got one. In short, it involves holding back hair, wiping puke off of shoes, and conning a cab driver by assuring him that Lisa's state was just from "being tired." It was a great weekend, and the pictures do not do it justice...but they are available here nonetheless.

On the Japan front, let me sum it up quickly for you. It's hot, it's humid, and it's raining. The latter is not so much a problem as it is a nuisance, but the heat and humidity combined with a governmental regulation on air conditioning makes it feel like a retread of UCLA 2000.

Though thoroughly exhausted when the weekend comes, I did manage to make a trip from my home base of Toyota City (near Nagoya, Japan) to Tokyo. More specifically, I spent a night in Roppongi, a ex-pat's paradise touted as "Las Vegas without the casinos." And it was. I would classify it as more of a clean version of New Orleans, following the pattern of bar, bar, bar, restaurant, strip club...repeat 100 times. At 4am, it looked like a bustling metropolis during rush hour. We made our camp at Gas Panic, and 3 tiered club/bar named after the 1995 terrorist attack that centered at a nearby train station. Yes, I said named after a terrorist attack. Anyway, arriving early and commandeering a table, we met people from all walks of life, and from all over the world. In an odd bit of coincidence, I managed to bump into Air Force cornerback Nate Smith, who immediately became my best friend when he declared his hatred for Ohio State and Notre Dame. He went as far as to say he can't wait to lay a hit on Brady Quinn's successor and the latest QB with Ron Powlus-esque hype, Jimmy Clausen. Nice. We hope to break a couple of his ribs early in the season for you Nate.