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The four coaches before…

The four coaches before Smith at Columbia: 2 seasons of .500 or better in 23 years

Smith at Columbia: 4 seasons of .500 better in 6 years

He won 20+ games in each of his 3 seasons at San Francisco. That was definitely a better program, but they'd essentially been around .500 with a season here and there that spiked.

Smith can coach.

Fellow Bears fan here. He…

Fellow Bears fan here. He needed an organization and coach that could potentially tap into his skill set, but yeah those issues plagued him the entire time and didn't get better. I think of that terrible MNF game that the Bears won, but he fumbled twice in the 4th Q when the Vikings couldn't get anything going on offense and almost cost them the game.

That bracket and recent…

That bracket and recent changes are why I probably won't be as invested as in years past.

Michigan could play Ohio State three times in 4 games: season finale, B1G Championship rematch, CFP Quarterfinals. 

I'm sure the TV networks would salivate over that, but I don't know that I would. 

This is a depressing write…

This is a depressing write up, but entirely accurate. I start to get concerned about head coaches when the arrow keeps going down. Even the best coaches have a bad season or two or at least one not up to their standards. Michigan basketball has gotten progressively worse over the last three years. Outside of the Elite 8 team (which if we're discounting Harbaugh's 2020 - the '20-'21 CBB season was still a little off given the imbalanced schedules, COVID absences, etc.) there's nothing indicating that Juwan is a) good at identifying talent and b) maximizing the talent he does have. 

There are plenty of assistants across numerous sports who excel at a particular facet of coaching, but don't have the ability to lead a program. I'm sure Juwan was an excellent assistant in Miami, but it's clear he's out of his element in trying to maintain a level of excellent at a big time college basketball program.

 

Here's the thing, Juwan is…

Here's the thing, Juwan is technically right. 1st year they were on track for a 6 seed and playing well. 2nd year they did make the Elite 8 and probably should've made the Final 4 if not for the Livers injury. Hell, maybe they win it all. Third year, yes, they made the Sweet 16, but they BARELY got in and a lot of people felt they shouldn't have. Last year they barely got over .500. This year? It's abysmal.

His teams have gotten progressively worse every year since that Elite 8 season.

Another Michigan coach who saw their teams get worse and worse? Brady Hoke.

Hoke got 4 years. Juwan got 5 (incl. 2019-20 which is unfair to judge anyone by).

And that's not even mentioning him jawing at Turgeon, or slapping Gard, or apparently getting into an altercation with Sanderson.

It's time.

I keep coming back to Brian…

I keep coming back to Brian’s column immediately after the game because it resonated with me. 

The wallowing, the BPONE, the 3-3-5 ran by a guy who never ran it before. There’s a wine bar somewhere outside of LA that might remember me as the person who seemed very angry when Michigan lost a game to Michigan State - I don’t remember which one because there was a time where Michigan lost to Michigan State. And it was expected. 

I’m also a Cubs fan. I’d love to say Monday was my favorite moment as a sports fan. It’s not. Running out of a bar to call my Dad with tears in my eyes because the Cubs made the World Series is. Not won it, but simply made it. That’s not a slight. The Cubs thing was generational trauma, passed down through a century from grandparents to parents to kids. And when they did win, it wasn’t the same as Monday. Nobody hated the Cubs (outside of Cardinals fans). Nobody mocked them for the same reason you don’t laugh at a homeless person. 

I’m old enough to remember ‘97 even though I was still a kid. Monday was cathartic. All of things they said: you can’t beat Ohio State, you can’t beat the SEC, you’re cheaters. Washed away in three years. This was a journey. 
 

I don’t know if I’m going to continue to really follow college football going forward. The things I love about the sport aren’t fading away, television executives are massacring them for a few extra dollar signs. Michigan vs USC as a conference game hits different than Michigan vs Illinois. I gravitate more towards soccer now, which has its problems, but when a bunch of suits tried to murder the beautiful game - fans rioted outside their own clubs stadiums until they relented. 
 

And a part of me wants this to be the last real college football season. The truth is that season probably happened in 1997 before the BCS came into existence. Before Dr. Pepper commercials and Nebraska throwing away century old rivalries for B1G money and the transfer portal. Michigan won the title that year. They won it again this year. Hail.

 

Side note: Chris Fowler fucked up twice - first with 30 seconds left he says something like “is this legitimate that’s for you to decide” and then instead of going for the easy Michigan are champions of the West and now college football throws out some generic line. Great job!

Jesse minter deserves a…

Jesse minter deserves a raise. 

I thought I was losing my…

I thought I was losing my mind. 3 straight plays he’s jumped a half second early. 

If this was a 3 score game,…

If this was a 3 score game, I’d say it’s done.

It’s 14. 
 

But we desperately needed that. D gets a breather. Get a cushion. 

I mean marginally better…

I mean marginally better execution and Michigan is up 27-10. It goes both ways. 

One score. A FG, a TD. Give…

One score. A FG, a TD. Give me a 10 play 75 yard drive that eats up 7 minutes. Please. 

15 minutes away. Up 7. It’s…

15 minutes away. Up 7. It’s right there for them. 

Weird. Wonder why that…

Weird. Wonder why that worked. 

Man those two false starts…

Man those two false starts killed the drive. Mistakes happen. Got a free 3 points. Will feel comfortable if they can get another TD or two. 

Back in the days, they had…

Back in the days, they had the letter R in a circle with a feather sticking out. Change the R to a W and go with Warriors and it's perfect.

But I'm sure some corporate consultant who got paid hundreds of thousands of dollars was super proud of themselves for coming up with Commanders. 

I honestly don't remember,…

I honestly don't remember, but it's been a journey. I was here during the RichRod era when the program was at its absolute worst and the tone of the blog was still hopeful, I think (culminating in the masterpiece that was "Sometimes When You're On"). And I stayed with it during the initial success of the Hoke era into the Harbaugh years when BPONE became the rallying cry of this blog and the larger Michigan fandom.

I'm happy for all of the folks who contributed to this site over the years. Back in 2015 after Ohio State won the title, I tweeted something at Brian that was along the lines of "I'm just going to keep repeating Harbaugh over and over to soothe the pain". It took a little longer than expected, but this is what everyone wanted when he was hired. Win or lose tonight, Michigan football is playing for a national championship.

Michigan playing with both…

Michigan playing with both hands wrapped around their own neck for the 2nd straight CFP semifinal. 

Honestly, we and all CFB…

Honestly, we and all CFB fans missed out on what could’ve been an epic, generational Michigan-Georgia trilogy. Thanks Bama and TCU!

I think teams play it up too…

I think teams play it up too often, but there is value in the motivation of feeling slighted. Michigan heard all month how yeah yeah good season, maybe they cheated, but Alabama is going to beat them. 
 

Have to imagine they want to prove everyone wrong.

 

I’m of the firm belief that…

I’m of the firm belief that there is a lot of recency bias in the Vegas line. Alabama beat Georgia! Michigan couldn’t move the ball against Iowa! A week before that - Michigan took care of Ohio State and Alabama needed a miracle to beat Auburn. 
 

If this game was played on December 5th or whatever, Michigan would be a 4 or 5 point favorite. 
 

However, Michigan’s history in bowl games is not great. Last year, they were flat out better than TCU, but they hurt themselves again and again and again with timely mistakes. Two times inside the 2 with zero points. Two pick-sixes. 
 

If Michigan plays a clean game, I think they win, but if they outthink themselves or once again pick the worst time to make the biggest mistakes, then they’ll lose. 
 

 

I mean, I get Alabama just…

I mean, I get Alabama just beat Georgia. They also should’ve lost to Alabama and barely got by Arkansas.

Think there is some recency bias going on with how Michigan shut it down against Iowa vs Bama beating Georgia.

Is Alabama better than Ohio State? 

Imagine how we'd feel if we…

Imagine how we'd feel if we beat Iowa let's say 14-3 because JJ got hurt in the first quarter. Undefeated, B1G Champions. And the committee decides to drop us to 5 because he got hurt. Yes, we'd probably lose the playoff game. Does it mean that they shouldn't get to go?

 

Should do is fairly obvious:…

Should do is fairly obvious:

There are 3 undefeated P5 champions and two with 1 loss. Of those two, one beat the other one on the road by 2 scores.

1. Michigan

2. Washington

3. FSU

4. Texas

ESPN broadcasts the CFP and put out a "prediction" of what the committee's rankings will look like and had FSU behind both Alabama and Georgia at #6. So, yeah, that's probably what they will do.

And what was the score at…

And what was the score at halftime of that Penn State-Iowa game?

Was it 10-0?

Oh, it was?

 

Win the game, but Michigan's…

Win the game, but Michigan's margin for error looks like it's about to evaporate. If Georgia had won and FSU lost, pretty sure the Top 4 would've been Georgia, Washington, Texas, Michigan.

Now? If FSU and Michigan lose, you're definitely getting Georgia and Alabama in the CFP.

The turnaround in like 3…

The turnaround in like 3 years is amazing. Coming out of COVID in March 2021, Juwan Howard had Michigan as a #1 seed in the tournament, made the Elite 8, and was recruiting like Duke and Kentucky. A lot of people wanted Harbaugh fired.

Now? Juwan is the one on the hot seat (2 straight missed tourneys is pretty hard to swallow unless you're Tommy Amaker) and Harbaugh is the one who's built a juggernaut (outside of 1 bad loss to TCU).

 

 

I’m confident in Michigan,…

I’m confident in Michigan, but DeBoer is a really good coach and those three WRs are terrifying. If it is Michigan and Washington in the Rose Bowl, Jesse Minter is going to have to earn his check. 

Honestly OSU’s moved the…

Honestly OSU’s moved the ball because of two big throws to MHJ, one to Stover, and a couple of penalties. Flip side is Michigan’s offense has been dreadful for the most part. 

Most bizarre game plan I’ve…

Most bizarre game plan I’ve ever seen unless JJ really can’t throw the ball for some reason. Like yeah the ends are good so keep a back in to chip or something. 

My advice would be to take…

double post

My advice would be to take…

My advice would be to take this with a whole container of salt. If other teams were doing this, it seems unlikely they’d push so hard for the B1G to clamp down on Michigan. 

And presumably Michigan would’ve already at least leaked this idea to someone with a bit of a higher profile. 
 

Teams were definitely trading signs, but yeah hard to envision this particular thing being true. 

I mean the coaches and ADs…

I mean the coaches and ADs can bitch all they want. If Michigan calls up FOX and CBS and NBC and says we’ll be leaving this conference effective immediately and fight any contractual obligations with our well-paid lawyers, I guarantee you they’ll force the B1G to stand down.

And I’m sure there’s no alternate motivation outside of sanctity of the game for wanting JH gone. Certainly couldn’t be they’ve destroyed this conference for the past 2.5 years. 
 

That said, conference rivalries and tradition mean absolutely nothing anymore. Join the ACC, join the SEC, go independent and join the Big East for basketball. The networks and conferences want to ruin this sport? Fuck any sort of loyalty to the B1G. 

I think the biggest…

I think the biggest misconception is that Michigan is going to take this lying down. The only part of the “scheme” that’s unique is the videotaping portion and Stallions, ahem, enthusiasm for the team. 
 

Everyone is stealing signs and has been for a while now. If the AD’s office hasn’t been digging into every potential violation that led to an on-field advantage for every other program, then Warde should be axed immediately. Dig up all the dirt. Every school, even those not in the Big Ten. 
 

They want a war? Give it to them. 

I was thinking about the…

I was thinking about the logic behind the claim that this provided some overwhelming competitive advantage and it falls apart the more you think about it because what they want to prove is:

a) Michigan cheated and this is the reason they turned everything around

b) Except in the cases where they didn't.

If Michigan was cheating to the degree it's been alleged, then why did they need a lucky forced turnover in the final minutes to beat a shit Nebraska team? Was KWIII so good that it didn't matter? They had all of Penn State's signals and needed All's catch and run in 2021 to survive? If teams thought their signs were stolen, why was Michigan a 2nd half team last year? Wouldn't it be the opposite? They got into a dogfight against Illinois last year because reasons?

UFR breaks down each game in minute detail. Brian and Seth didn't catch that Michigan knew play calls in advance?

It's super easy to say that all the games they dominated were because they stole signs and all the games they didn't were because they didn't have them.

 

This is the point I think I…

This is the point I think I have to stop reading about college football for a while.

If this was basically nothing and a smear campaign: great job by whoever orchestrated it and proves Michigan’s success is no different than any other team’s. 

If this was a vast cheating network that totally broke the rules: great, if you aren’t cheating, you aren’t trying. Michigan played by the rules for so long and where did it get them? 

Jesus, some of you need to…

Jesus, some of you need to read up on PR 101. The WSJ is farming for clicks if the last paragraph and other reporting is accurate.

Which is: your program is currently being dragged through the mud because of a coordinated campaign. You don’t sign or announce an extension of the face of that program.

Every report from reliable Michigan people seems to indicate they feel like this is going to be minor. Let it die down, then get the deal down.

100% agree. This is a PR…

100% agree. This is a PR fight now. The clearest sign to me that Michigan feels like they did nothing wrong/will be vindicated is they suspended Stallions with pay. You do that to bide time until this all blows over outside of the OSU fanbase who will cling to it for dear life.

When programs really get caught, they immediately cut bait. 

I’ve made the mistake of…

I’ve made the mistake of looking around the internet and people earnestly believe that a) nobody else is doing anything remotely like this, b) Michigan should vacate wins and be barred from postseason play for multiple years, c) that somehow no one at Michigan thought to make sure this guy wasn’t using his public accounts to conduct this super secret operation, d) that even though this has been an “open secret” for years that JUST NOW someone has decided to spill the beans even though Michigan has been curb stomping the B1G for 2+ years and e) this explains the CFP losses as if not having signals resulted in two drives inside the 2 resulting in zero points and two pick sixes. 
 

D is the most unbelieveable to me. So all of these coaches were aware this was going on and said nothing while they were getting their doors blown off. 
 

It’s why Alabama didn’t say shit about Cam Newton. Burglar doesn’t tell the cops to check out those other burglars because burglary is a crime. 

It’s like Lenin said, you…

It’s like Lenin said, you look for the person who will benefit and uh…

No, but seriously, this is probably coming from OSU. I admire the pettiness, especially since they’re probably doing the same thing. 

And when you put it like…

And when you put it like that... a trick play for Indiana and a supremely lucky throw and catch for Minnesota. Rutgers (who is the best team we faced) was the only offense to even show signs of life against the first team D.

Didn't go to either school,…

Didn't go to either school, but I have a bit of experience in this area (journalists). Michigan is definitely a print school as Seth mentioned. MSU, to their credit, is more of a broadcast school. I'd imagine the odds would be evened up if you included MSU's other journalism students in the mix.

Is it possible this team…

Is it possible this team still finished 9-3? Sure. It’s possible, but when Jim Harbaugh took this job, this is what we all wanted.

31-3 over the past 2.5 years with two of those losses being of the unlikely variety (seriously there’s a universe out there more likely than this one where Michigan runs the table in ‘21 until Georgia and then completely runs the table last year). Two wins against OSU, both demoralizing in Columbus. Two B1G Championships. Only a handful of games against lesser opponents that ever felt in doubt.
 

It was a longer trip to get here, but I’m glad we’ve finally arrived. 

It's all about unintended…

It's all about unintended consequences which seems to be driving the majority of the concerns from people in the field.

After all, modern social media was created largely to connect you to people you know. It turned into a massive disinformation machine that arguably impacted global politics for the last seven years and it's not getting better.

And that was something without the ability to "learn".

I've seen people compare AI to the nuclear bomb and that's bullshit because the end use of that was obvious.

I'm not worried about a Terminator or Matrix-style machine revolution. I worry about people with bad intentions who use AI for nefarious purposes.

This is the 2nd time in more…

This is the 2nd time in more than a decade Michigan won’t be in the tournament and it sucks, but I still think it’s the greatest long weekend in sports. Hoping for a bunch of classics in the first and second rounds. 

If Kobe and Jett get first…

If Kobe and Jett get first round grades, I can’t see either sticking around. Hunter is a different story since as everyone has pointed out - the NIL $$$ is more than he’ll probably make elsewhere. 

But, Michigan probably need one or both to come back to be any good next year unless they strike portal gold. 

I mean what’s the rotation look like if Jett and Kobe leave and Hunter stays?

What’s it like if all three leave? 

I know Matt has broken it…

I know Matt has broken it down somewhat, but I see no semblance of an offensive or defensive identity to this team. They can’t really shoot 3s. They don’t get out in transition. Don’t force turnovers. Don’t rebound like crazy. 
 

It’s starting to feel like Juwan is an NBA coach trapped at Michigan. Everybody sort of stylistically is the same in the NBA. Similar strategies and concepts and the quality of the individuals matters more than the team dynamic. In college? Doesn’t work. 
 

He may be a good coach, but when you can’t do the basic shit? When your team has to fight for every bucket? Seriously, how many easy shots was this team able to generate? That’s an indictment on the coach. 

I’m glad the season is over because Alex was right - this team was thoroughly unenjoyable to watch even when they played well. 

I don’t even know what to…

I don’t even know what to say at this point. If I’m Dickinson why would I stick around for another year of this? Is the money that good.

I’m like an addict. Why am I even watching this game? It’s a miserable experience. 

Ah here we go. Bad shots,…

Ah here we go. Bad shots, turnovers, giving up a bunch of offensive rebounds. Seen this script before. 

I’m a little nervous because…

I’m a little nervous because Rutgers has been garbage and Michigan is only up 6. Hunter and Kobe have been good. Still no one who can hit a 3. Tschetter hustles but is just woof. Baker saving a couple of possessions is good to see! 

Seems like most likely of…

Seems like most likely of these is Ohio State and Oklahoma. Oregon State is abysmal. BC and VT are below average but who knows - they could spring an upset. GT is pretty bad too.