Monday, December 2, 2013

Love The Decision...Hate the Call???

Let’s get one thing straight.  I wasn’t happy with the decision and I actually thought Fred was maybe outcoaching Urban a little there to make ohio use their last time out with 0:32 left on the clock and then Michigan would come out and kick the field goal, and more or less force OT.  I mentioned it out loud in the stands and the guy next to me simply stated, “Go for it.”  I was surprised, but that’s the way I was seeing it.  OT at home is the conventional wisdom.  Then they came out and went for the two…And it was a very poorly called and executed play. 

However, in hind sight and after everyone at the tailgate more or less said it was the right decision because Michigan’s defense had not stopped Hyde and Miller for the entire 2nd half, well, I stand corrected on the decision.  HOWEVA, I will dispute and take issue with the call of the actual play.  Devin had to be as nervous as he’s ever been in a game and while I get that it might have been the greatest confidence builder and lead in to next season, you have to call a play that has a high level of success! 

And the MMQ is here to say:  That wasn’t it….

In addition, that wasn’t the first Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot moment of the day for the MMQ.  Last week, just last week, Michigan only had 6 yards of offense in the 2nd half of the Iowa game well into the 4th quarter.  Saturday, Michigan was marching up and down the field against the suckeyes and I’m not sure that 12 guys on the ohio defense would have helped stop what Michigan was doing….

So what gives?  IS that poor play calling in the 11 other games played this season?  Has everyone reached a skill and maturity level that now makes them better for this one game? 

Someone interviewed Barney pre-game and he stated that the offense wouldn’t be leaving “anything in the bag…”  Well, I really wish Barney had opened the bag and reached into it a little more often and in a lot of other games that Michigan has played and lost this season.  Two I can think of right of the top of my head might have been victories with that type of aggressive screen passing getting the ball into open space style of offense.

Again, sour grapes at this point and I am still quite upset with the loss.  There are NO MORAL VICTORIES…You either beat the bad guys or you don’t.  It’s really that simple.  And to come that close and fail, well, in a way I would have preferred a blow-out.  At least I wouldn’t have all of these mixed emotions about what to do with this coaching staff.  I still want to fire Barney…But now I don’t know what to do.  Is it poor game planning on Fred’s part?  Not to mention that the Defense didn’t exactly blow sunshine up my skirt against ohio, either.  I don’t think Hyde is “all that and a bag of chips” kind of tailback, yet Mattison’s Defense made him look like a Heisman candidate….

So, there was an artificial spread of 16 points at kick-off that Michigan nearly overcame….Big Deal.  Great teams find a way to win that game.  The suckeyes were on the ropes.  And that’s when you deliver the death blow….

To make matters even worse, in another WTF moment of the day, Satan’s Warriors go down in what will forever be described as one of the greatest last plays of a collegiate football game to a team that had only won 2, (TWO – Dos, a couple) SEC games last season.  So, the mightiest team in the nation lost to a team that was not only not ranked in the top 25 to start the season, most prognosticators only had them finishing 3rd or 4th in the SEC West.  At best. 

Question:  Knowing how SEC schools celebrate after something like this and knowing how BADLY Bama fan must still feel requiring the need to drown their sorrows via clear and brown liquids……I wonder if there is there any alcohol left in the state of Alabama?

Add to that one of the two new kids on the block is in the other half of the SEC championship!  Mizzou beat A&M and has proven without question that the SEC East is comprised of a bunch of chumps. And any team could go into the SEC East (or west) and be competitive.  Period.  END OF ANY DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ALMIGHTY S-E-C…..

THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE THE ELITE OF THE ELITE IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL!  Ha!

Moving On....Moral Dilemma:  I’m torn as to who, as a Michigan Fan, I should root for Saturday.  I’m sure you all have your opinions that are reading and want to know what to do and which way we should lean at kick-off.  Well, Wiscy losing changed the picture a little for the MMQ.  Let me explain.

Before Wiscy lost, Sparty losing  the B1G Championship would have more or less INSURED that for the entire BCS ERA, Sparty would have NEVER PLAYED IN A BCS CONTEST!  And I would have really liked that.  Let me re-state:  I would have REALLY LIKED THAT.   To be able to say to every Sparty I know for the rest of my life that in the 16 years of the BCS…you never got a taste of what playing in a BCS game was like. 

Now, Sparty is almost assured of a BCS slot with whatever happens on Saturday.  If they win, they’re in the Rose.  If they lose, ohio goes to the BCS National Championship and Sparty still goes to the Rose – thanks for nothing Wiscy.  God…I wanna puke.  And Sparty, how big is that domer loss looking now? 

So, who do you root for?

The lesser of two evils (Even though after what I saw Saturday, I’m not convinced that the suckeyes can even stay on the same field with FSU) I guess is if Sparty somehow finds a way to win the B1G Championship in Indy….At least the suckeyes aren’t playing for the Natinoal Title and Sparty gets what’ll probably be a pissed off Stanford team looking for respect.  And FSU probably handles whoever comes out of the SEC championship game…At least it won’t be Bama.

Oh…what am I saying….Pray for the perpetual tie in Indy. It could happen……

SIDE NOTE:  Coach “Tough On Urban” Crime Meyer will NOT suspend the two players that initiated the 2nd quarter kick-off donnybrook and were subsequently ejected from the Michigan – ohio game.   Why this surprises ANYONE at this point is beyond the MMQ.  I was just wondering how many co-eds Hyde had smacked around the Friday night before the game, but I didn’t see the report. 

5 Stages of Slappy Fan Grief

PRE –GRIEF:  HOPE!  Suckeyes, Duke, Mizzou…And AUBURN!….Those are the last 4 teams left that have the hope of somehow doing the impossible.  For the suckeyes, it’s two fold.  Those fans have to realize they don’t have a defense.  So, they will need to somehow draw up the exact same gameplan against Sparty that they had for Michigan.  Score and score a lot.  Mizzou needs to win and then they are rooting for Sparty to do the unthinkable….meanwhile, if Duke were to somehow pull off the improbable and impossible, well, there’s going to a whole lot of SEC fans that will be doing cartwheels….I actually want to add Michigan fans, Gator Fans and anyone else that feels that their team did less than what was expected this season.  Auburn and Mizzou made it clear that you can turn it all around in 1 season.  That’s all it takes.  Hope…it springs eternal. 

  1.  Denial and Isolation  - suckeyes…the smart fans are here.  They can no longer deny that their team is flawed.  They saw their beloved suckeyes get 600+ yards hung on them by a team that barely beat Akron and U-Conn (that have 1 win between them on the season).  They also barely beat a Michigan team that had lost 4 games and had two games with negative rushing yards.  Suckeye fans can’t be happy with the close victory.  If anything, the suckeye fans are rubbing your buck nuts hoping that you can pull off one more smoke and mirrors miracle in Indy on Saturday. 
  2. ANGER  - Again, I’m right here.  I’m so mad I could spit.  I’m mad that Michigan doesn’t have a better record this season and I’m really mad that we played our arch-rival to the final seconds and then could NOT FIND A WAY TO PULL OFF THE UPSET.  I got even angrier when the Auburn Tigers as 12 point underdogs managed to pull off the impossible and beat the evil empire….Yep, the MMQ wants this stage all to himself today.  If you want to join me, feel free.  But anger it is.  You have to win Saturday.  That’s what rivalries are all about.  I’m sure there are some Bama fans here, too, but I suspect they are all still too stunned to speak and voice any anger over what happened.  They lost everything in 1 second…The SEC Title Shot, the BCS Title Shot….Everything.  They will be looking at the 3rd place SEC bowl (which I think is the Capitol 1 Bowl) and probably not even get a BCS Bowl nod…Hee-hee……
  3. Bargaining –If there’s anyone left out there bargaining right now, it has to be teams that are thinking that there are still some BCS hopes left for them.  Or bowl chances at all.  If your team has 6 wins, you know they’re headed somewhere….but until all of this is settled, it’s tough to know when or where they’re gonna play. 
  4. Depression –Bama fans in here in droves…That fanbase does not do well after a loss as they don’t get a lot of practice losing.  I’ve heard (not seen) that there are actually some “Fire Saban” websites that got put up and that a small group of fans is taking up a collection to have Texas fly Saban in for an interview.  If there was ever a time that Nick would answer that call, now would be it, Texas.  Go get him. 
  5. AcceptanceEveryone not going to a bowl game and that lost to the arch-rival.  It was a crappy year, Gator Fan.  But if Auburn has shown you anything, well, it has shown you that it can all be turned around in a single off-season.   Hokies, Mountaineers, Wildcats, Trojans…you know who you are!
The BCS Mess
 
It had to happen, and it did.  Satan’s Warriors go down in embarrassing fashion and Auburn establishes SEC West dominance.  As for the rest of the mess...

Harris
USAToday
Computer
BCS
Rank
Team
Record
Rank
Pts
%
Rank
Pts
%
Avg
Avg
Last Week
1.
12-0
1
2617
.9970
1
1546
.9974
.990
.9948
2
2.
12-0
2
2488
.9478
2
1462
.9432
.960
.9503
3
3.
11-1
3
2422
.9227
3
1437
.9271
.920
.9233
4
4.
11-1
4
2262
.8617
4
1333
.8600
.840
.8539
1
5.
11-1
5
2231
.8499
5
1315
.8484
.830
.8428
5
6.
10-1
6
2083
.7935
6
1248
.8052
.690
.7629
7
7.
10-2
7
1873
.7135
10
1034
.6671
.740
.7069
8
8.
10-2
8
1841
.7013
7
1100
.7097
.700
.7037
10
9.
10-1
9
1778
.6773
7
1100
.7097
.600
.6623
9
10.
11-1
10
1758
.6697
9
1037
.6690
.620
.6529
11
11.
10-2
13
1277
.4865
13
765
.4935
.770
.5833
12
12.
10-2
12
1398
.5326
12
843
.5439
.520
.5321
13
13.
10-2
11
1444
.5501
11
853
.5503
.460
.5201
6
14.
12-0
15
1104
.4206
18
547
.3529
.670
.4812
14
15.
9-3
14
1258
.4792
14
720
.4645
.320
.4213
17

I’m sure the Big 12 is wishing they had a championship game right about now…I know Okie State would love to have that West Virginia game back.  And we all know Sparty would LOVE to have the domer game back…hee-hee….Acutally, I'm sure Bama Nation wishes we were in the 4 team play-off...but not till next year! 
 
Next week, we’ll be able to review the bowl situation clearly, but early projections have Michigan showing up anywhere from the Buffalo Wild Wings against Texas to theTexas Bowl (?) against Texas Tech….Who knows, really….

Idle Thoughts From Saturday

-Where has this offense been all year?
-3rd play from scrimmage…AND WE SCORE??
-Jeez, I mean I love it…But Jeez…
-This team could have done so much more with this type of game plan every week…
-OR am I missing something?
-Are the suckeyes that bad on defense?
-Could be….
-Which means they will embarrass the B1G if they get to the title game…
-WE NEED TO BEAT THIS TEAM!
-Looking good!
-Stop Hyde fergodsake!
-Stop Miller, too!
-We can’t stop anybody…
-But at least we can score.
-Oh, that was nice suckeye player…
-Flop everyone off in the stadium on National TV.
-That should get you a nice little letter from the B1G office
-At least it better.
-We’ve still got a shot.
-Devin to Devin is working great!
-Butt is having a Big Day!
-Youngest Daughter:  “Let’s Go Butt!”
-Somehow, I think she’s saying that just to tick me off….
-But how can I be mad today?
-All right!  SCORE!
-Two points?  Really???
-The crowd is chanting for 2…but I dunno…
-I have a bad feeling about this…
-Oh no…….Not like this…
-There’s always the onside kick…No…
-Would OT have been so bad?
-Auburn has done the impossible!!!
-Show me Saban NOW AND NOTHING ELSE FOR THE NEXT 5 MINUTES!
-That’s what I want to see…
-That little troll’s face all scrunched up…
-Bama Nation will undoubtedly call for his firing at this point…
-Texas, here we come!

The Hot Seat

I can’t believe it’s over.  The Final Hot Seat Mascot nominee is upon us.  Leryn did great last week and slipped into the finals easily.  This year’s final nominee was a suggestion and also a request that I not end the Hot Seat Mascot Season with a Blonde that would come in and win from behind, so to speak.  Without further ado:  Adriana Lima!







 

Okay, so we know now after multiple “backings” of Muschamp that Florida is off the list with respect to searching for a coach. 

That still leaves USC for SURE and now add to the list Wyoming.  Not a big job, but still looking.  And the USC coach is pulling the same re-treads (Petersen – Boise – Just said no today) that USC tried before they hired Kiffin.  Something about college coaching searches is just wrong….AD’s need to find the inside list of available good guys….

GONE LIST:  They don’t call it Black Monday for nothing…I added one name here today so far, but there will probably be more before it’s over.  Florida dumped a truck-load of assistants, but Muschamp remains. 

  1. LANE KIFFIN
  2. Paul Pasqualoni
  3. Treadwell
  4. Carlson – Valpraiso….(I know, not exactly on my radar, either.)
  5. Ron English – Eastern Michigan. 
  6. Mussman – North Dakota
  7. David Christianson - Wyoming
Hot Seat Rank – Getting Serious as this is the time when the Carousel gets fire up!

  1. Mack Brown – New AD? New Coach?
  2. London – Virginia….Its not a good situation…
  3. Ogeron – All the guy did was win, but an interim won’t have the USC job…Jack Del Rio interviewed last week…
  4. Weiss:  Can’t believe he’s still there…
  5. Paul Johnson – Lost to Georgia…Look Out.
  6. Pelini – It’s not good in Corn land either…
  7. Biliema:  Arkansas Nation does not like a B1G re-treas – no SEC wins
  8. Norm Chow - Hawaii
  9. Holgorensen:  No Bowl doesn’t bode well for Dana…
FMQ Betting Results:

Not a great week, but not terrible, either.  We held our own, but should have stuck with the master plan to take points in rivalry games, no matter what the numbers are telling us….

Iowa (+3) @ Nebraska:  Take the Huskers and lay the 3 for $50

LOSE……
Domers (+14) @ Stanford:  Take the domers and the 14 for $40

WIN!  Bank $76
Miami @ Pitt (+3):  Take Pitt and the 3 for $40

LOSE….One where taking the points bit me in the Butt….
Gophers (+14) @ Sparty:  Take the Gophers and the 14 for $50

WIN!  Bank $95
Bama @ Auburn (+11):  Take Bama and lay the 11 for $40

LOSE….But this one was worth it!
Oregon @ OSU (+21.5):  Take the Ducks and lay the 21.5 for $40

LOSE….What happened to the Ducks? 
Ohio @ Michigan (+14.5):  Take Michigan and the 14.5 for $75

WIN!  Bank $142.50
Parlay!

Why not?  It’s late and doubling up is getting tougher…
Michigan-Huskers-Gophers  $50 – LOSE….

Starting BANK:       $397

TOTAL WIN:             $313.50         
BANK:                       $710.50         

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