Hail to the Victors. Michigan 40 Ohio State University 34

We have a winning streak of one.  Hail to the Victors.

Didn't get the stomp down I was hoping for, but a victory is a victory isn't it.  And it felt good. 

The Buckeyes played well.  Played up for the game.  Luke Ficknell is a good coach and hope he doesn't get thrown under the bus.  He got thrown into the fire and did well with what he was handed.  Losing the head coach and 5 great players for half the season is hard to overcome.  Unfortunately, this is probably not the time for him and Urban Meyer will be the coach. 

We played a pretty good game.  Giving up a fumble to gift wrap a touchdown to the Bucks, and two blown coverages to deliver two more.  Not good.  We'll learn from this game and improve for whatever bowl bid we receive.  Hope it's against a SEC team. 

Other than the fumble, Denard played within himself with great results.  Toussaint the same.  Refs robbed him of his TD.  How do we not get that call in our own stadium.  

Hoke and the team have accomplished a lot this year.  They learned how to play as team instead of interchangeable parts.  They learned how to win.  They learned how to get better.  They learned how to finish off a season.  Can't wait till next year.  My preseason prediction was 8-4.  Not 10-2 and ranked 16. 

It's great...to be... a Michigan Wolverine!
Go Michigan, beat the Razorbacks, or Bulldogs, or whoever else it is we end up playing.

Michigan vs. Ohio State: I feel a beat down coming!

Tomorrow's the big game.  No football game is as big.  Not Alabama vs. Auburn. Not any others.

Originally I was disappointed when Tressel stepped down.  I wanted another shot at him with a real football coach at the helm of both teams, not the pretend coach we had the previous three seasons and not the not ready for prime time coach they have this year.  As the season wore on, I slowly changed my mind, as I realized that the Buckeye winning streak was due not just to great coaching, but a regular, systemic, rule breaking as well.  The win streak is a facade.  Tressel was a great coach.  Can't take that from him.  But he wasn't playing on a level field either.  I want more than a  victory this year.  I want revenge.

Last week, the Wolverines looked and played like world beaters.  And like the rest of the season, they will have improved even more this week.  This game is a culmination of a season long process to take Michigan back to the elite of College Football.  No one expected a season quite this good, myself included.  I picked them to go 8-4 at best.  Expectations are higher, and not just for the fans.  Expectations on the team are for excellence once again.  "We're Michigan, for gods-sakes!"  Their expectation for tomorrow is victory, and they shall have it.

I know.  The game is a season redeeming game for the Buckeyes and they will be up and ready as they haven't been all season long.  But that isn't going to cut it tomorrow.  This is a season of redemption in Ann Arbor. 

Michigan by 21 points.

It's great to be a Michigan Wolverine!

Michigan 45 Nebraska 17 A Romp in the Big House.

Reporting from Grosse Pointe, Michigan, the morning after attending the game at the Big House, in Ann Arbor.

A romp, against a nationally ranked and prominent program.  Welcome to the Big Ten and The Big House, Cornhuskers.

I'm shocked and thrilled by the blowout victory yesterday.  It's been so long since we've seen such a game.  We were never not in control of the game, and in the second half we put them away.  The Cornhuskers finished the game, confused, demoralized and discombobulated.  Here are my keys to the victory.

1. The Defense played Michigan Defense the entire game.  Only got beat on two plays.
2.  Denard played within himself and as a result played a great game.
3.  Fitz Toussaint gave the Cornhuskers something to worry about besides Denard.  Our offense is multi-dimensional.  Been a long time coming.  Love it. 
4.  And finally, after a long season, we seemed to get some calls from the referees to go our way for a change.

We have momentum going into the Ohio showdown next week, for the first time in a long time.  We'll have some swagger walking in.  Hoke will have to tamp that down or we'll be upset by the Buckeyes.  Next week is their season redemption game.  They will be ready.  We have to be "more ready."

Best parts of the game.
--The F-18 flyover at the beginning of the game.
--The crowd counting the play clock down for for the Wolverine Offense when the scoreboard in the West End Zone wasn't working.
--Great Nebraska Fans.  Hurry back.
--The Defense pounding the Nebraska QB relentlessly in the Second Half.  
--Denard undercenter, signalling Odoms that the ball was coming to him by looking at him and pointing to the endzone, then completing the TD pass.
--Being in the Big House for the first time in 7 or more years.
--At six minutes left the crowd cheering "Beat O--HI--O, Beat O--HI--O!"

It was great to be in Ann Arbor again, watching the game with my friends Steve Kelley and Dan Pierce.  And it's always great to be a Michigan Wolverine!

Go Michigan,  Beat the Buckeyes!

Michigan 31 Illinois 14--Ugly uninspired victory.

Not the bounce back game I was hoping for.  Defense played great.  Offense got lucky.  But it's a victory.  And I'll take it. 

It doesn't make me feel optimistic about our chances against Nebraska. 

The offense sputtered under Denard Robinson's play, despite  the two touchdowns he scored.  After the second one he kinda of just disappeared.  Bad decisions passing.  Ineffective running.  Maybe it's him, maybe it's the play calling by the coaches.  Either way, we still looked miserable and couldn't put the game away.  We were unable to convert two gift turnovers in Illini territory.  Bad play in the red zone. 

The announcers were saying Robinson was pulled after injuring his hand on an opponent's helmet.  Saw it on the replay.  Still,  I say he was benched.  He wasn't making it happen.  The offense was flat. He was responsible for 3 turnovers. 

High points:
--Toussaint's 192 yds rushing. on 27 carries.  We have a premier power back.  Finally. 
--Gardner coolly stepping up in the pocket under a fierce pass rush and delivering a TD pass to Odoms.   

There was a nice article in SI this week about Robinson.  Maybe it's SI jinx this week.  I think the experiment of trying to make him play a pro style offense and a running spread at the same time isn't working.  Too difficult for our offensive line to handle, they aren't good at at either this way.  And he just isn't a sharp enough passer, especially on long passes where he can't seem to lead a deep open receiver.  He keeps getting better, but I don't think he going to get there.  A defense with a strong set of linebackers and a decent front can stop us, just as the Illini did.

Some bad play calling by Borgess too.  Monotonous.  And why didn't he go for the field goal in the first half.  Not scoring didn't really hurt us except as a momentum shift.  Take the three points next time, Hoke. 

Will we get to 10 victories?.  We can by beating OSU.  We should beat them when comparing games with common opponents.  We have to beat them to get to 10 wins.  And that game will be a toss up as it's OSU's "save the season" game. We won't be getting to 10 by playing this way against Nebraska. 

Still, It's good, to be, a Michigan Wolverine.
Go Michigan, Beat the Huskers

Michigan 16 Iowa 24. Tough loss to endure.

Easy to analyze this game:
Iowa and Michigan played each other equally statistically except for the score and turnover.  Our two turnovers handed the Hawkeyes 10 points.  We lost by 8.  Good play by the defense including several 4 and 1 stands, valiant effort even with being on the field longer than desirable.  Offense was inconsistent.  Iowa played a better game than us.  That's all there is to it.

In spite of acknowledging the above.  We were robbed.  By the officials.  No way that Hemingway's catch at the end of the game gets called incomplete.  He had control of the ball when his knee touched the ground in the endzone.  Didn't fumble it either.  Everyone knew it.  Even Lou Holtz said it was a TD.  Refs just didn't want to play an overtime.  On the two subsequent plays the looked the other way on obvious pass interference calls.  In fact the refs didn't seem to think pass interference needed to be called all day. 

But that's not why we lost.  Two dropped easy to catch passes by normally surehanded Junior Hemingway.  other mistakes along the way.  Couldn't get the run going against the stout Iowa defense.  Two turnovers that gave points to the Hawkeyes.  Defense gave us the chance to win.  The offense didn't produce. 

There is reason to be optimistic though.  The final moments of the game were inspriring.  Denard is capable of being a superb field general when he wants to.  He looked great on that drive.  Poised, precise.  Looked a bit like a true pocket quarterback on that drive.  Elsewhere during the game he did as well.  Net year he will be awesome.  We looked like a Michigan team of old today.  Rusty.  But a Michigan team.  We'll learn from this.  Watch out Illinois. 


Nebraska got beat by Northwestern today, in Lincoln.  Welcome to the Big Ten Huskers.  The Big Ten ain't the walkover you thought it would be, is it.  Penn State learned this a few years back.  The race remains wide open. 

Still, It's good to be a Michigan Wolverine.
Go Michigan, Beat the Illini.