It’s here! It’s
here! The First MMQ of the Season!
The season has begun!
The pomp and circumstance, The Bands and all the pageantry rolled out
and accounted for! The big game
Kick-offs for the inaugural weekend!
Some fans are still smiling (Badgers,
Seminoles, Longhorns, Cougars!) and
some fans are hiding and dying(Southern
Purple Kittys, Rebels, Domers, Laters)!
Some teams are riding the high of 1-0 and other teams are picking
themselves up and dusting themselves off as they convince themselves that a
1-loss team can still make the CFP!
Everybody learned something about their team this weekend…
The Question the MMQ wants to answer: What did Michigan Learn?
Michigan Fans learned the following: Michigan can rush the ball (against Hawaii) and Michigan can pass the ball (against Hawaii) for a total of 512 total yards that was pretty balanced. And Michigan is pretty good on defense only allowing 232 total yards (against Hawaii) and the defense scored twice.
For comparison purposes, I pulled up the box score from the
Hawaii-Cal game just to have a looky-see and figure out if there’s anything
that could be gleaned. Keep in mind that
a lot of prognosticators have California on a list for PAC12 Darkhorse team of
the year….
Hawaii had 234 yards passing and 248 yards rushing for just
shy of 500 yards of total offense against Cal.
On Defense, Hawaii gave up 441 yards passing and 189 on the ground to
Cal. Hawaii didn’t score as much as Cal,
but that might have been Cal’s defense hanging tough in the red-zone.
In contrast, Michigan defense didn’t let Hawaii get to
positive Total Yards until the middle of the 2nd quarter. And with the defense also scoring twice, the
Time of Possession was actually lost to Hawaii.
And a lot of the starters were out before the middle of the 3rd
quarter.
And I have no idea if Michigan can Punt or kick a Field Goal…I’m
ASSUMING they can buy we didn’t see it on Saturday.
Does all of this mean anything? Hard to say.
I think Michigan ran a pretty vanilla package on offense because Hawaii
wasn’t able to stop much of anything.
And then on Defense, Michigan was able to play some pretty straight up
man coverage and Hawaii simply couldn’t break the stranglehold that the corners
and linebackers were putting on receivers.
And the Hawaii ground game was non-existent.
I said it last week and I’ll say it again – Give Harbaugh a
single week with a game tape and you’re going to have a hard time doing much of
anything if you don’t put a wrinkle or two in to disguise what you’re trying to
do.
I’ll also say this:
The Wiscy game just got a little more interesting and I’m glad that game
is in Ann Arbor. But the reality is that
it might be difficult to figure out how good Michigan is before October 29th.
Bring on the Central Florida Knights!
The
Rest of the Mess
Lets’ start right at the top and work our way down.
Satan’s
Warriors vs. the Rubbers: I
was interested in this game and it was actually looking like the Rubbers would
hang with Satan’s Warriors until the dam broke…and did it ever break. I believe Bama scored three times in as many
minutes to break open a 17 point differential and never looked back…While the
rest of the SEC is a mess that even Finebaum
can’t sugarcoat (7 SEC teams LOSE in the opening weekend), the Crimson Tide
appear to be okay…I’ll pass along more judgment on the SEC in later weeks after
we’ve seen what becomes of the early losers, but the OVERRATED term may get
used more than once this season when referring to the “Best Conference EVER!” Only issue I have: Bama did not look good early. What if they get better? Yikes….
Clemson
@ Auburn: Malzhan’s seat didn’t
cool off any as it appeared that Tigers of Auburn kind of had the Tigers of
Clemson in a place where they could have beat them. But alas, the Auburn kitty’s simply couldn’t
deliver in the end. Gus’ seat is getting
warmer by the minute and he needs a big win SOON to keep the Torch and
Pitchfork crowd at bay….
Laters
@ Houston: Normally, I only
comment on the games I can watch and seeing as how this game was on at the same
time as Michigan-Hawaii, well, I’ll be honest and say I didn’t see it. But I saw the re-caps and replays. Ouch Oklahoma. You had to know that Houston was bringing
everything to this game. Not to mention
that the Kick-6 reared its ugly head and you didn’t see it coming and didn’t
respond very well. I won’t say the road
is difficult for the Laters at this point, but it certainly didn’t get any
easier. Can Houston plan on a seat in
the 4 team CFP? Look – Lots and LOTS of
football left to be played. When it’s
all said and done, I’ll render an opinion on Houston or a Group of 5 school
making the CFP. Let’s not put carts
before horses yet!
LSU @
Wiscy at Lambeau Field:
So much for worrying about and penalizing Lambeau Leaps Mr. Mad Hatter! The Hatter is going to jump up to the very
top of the Hot Seat List with his team’s less than inspired performance up
in Wisconsin. Not only that, but this CLASSLESS ACT at the end of the gameshould have the Hatter in even more hot water, but SEC fans love this kind ofcrap…
Les made Boutte call Dixon and apologize on Sunday…But just words man…just words…
And all B1G fans can go ahead and add another worry bead to
the B1G West and B1G East crossover schedules for teams that have to play Wiscy
as they looked mighty impressive in the season opener. Maybe I was a little too hard on Chryst in my
pre-season preview. Wiscy looks for
real, at least to this fan, against what was supposed to be superior SEC talent.
Domers
@ Texas: Hee-hee….HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I love it when the Domers lose close! I Really, REALLY do! The domers head coach should also be moved
WAY UP ON THE HOT SEAT for more or less being a complete dolt. Kiser was the QB that was responsible for
250+ yards of offense while Zaier accounted for 30 something…And yet Kelly
couldn’t make up his mind on a starter and kept putting Zaier back in the
game! Hee-heeeee! For the pure vitriol that Domer Nation has
for this clown, visit ndnation and read the boards. That fan base is PISSED! Kudos to Strong and Texas, but even he knows
that they wrap fish in yesterday’s news and he needs to keep it going this
season.
Ole
Miss @ FSU: This
game was starting to look ugly early and I was starting to think that maybe
Jimbo simply didn’t have it in
him any more…you know, getting a team pumped up for a big game. Then the
Seminoles scored at the end of the half, scored quickly to start the 3rd
and really never looked back. Add Hugh Freeze to the Hot Seat list with this loss and all the other crap that’s going
down in the NCAA investigation of Ole Miss.
He might not finish the season.
Furman
@ Sparty: Saw a
lot of this game and, frankly, if I was a Sparty fan I’d be nervous. They didn’t look good. Looked sloppy at times and didn’t have the
same Sparty defiance and attitude as past teams. I’ll chalk it up to opening game whatever and
make a true statement after next week. But Sparty’s schedule early is daunting….
Stanford
vs. K-State: Solid
outing by the Cardinal. Shaw may be the
PAC12 conference’s only hope with UCLA, USC and everyone else in the South
Losing. Washington also won, but the
CFP party demands excellence.
The
Ole Ball Coach:
Normally, after you retire, you’re off the grid with the MMQ. But this caught my eye and I thought thecrowd would get a kick out of it. Theynamed the Swamp after Spurrier in the opening game and here’s the Ole BallCoach doing his “thang”!
The 5
Stages of Slappy Fan Grief
- Denial and Isolation – Anybody with one loss falls into this category. This would be the “We looked great, there’s things we need to work on and this loss isn’t going to hurt us in the long run” crowd. Yes – You know who you are, Domer Fan. And Domer fan seems to feel even worse than most….And it’s odd because once Kelly just let’s Kiser take the helm, I think a lot of the Domer problems might be solved.
- ANGER – Anybody that lost a nail-biter or that got upset on National Television falls into this category. “Jesus Tap Dancin’ Christ! How in the Blankety-Blank did we lose
to THAT Team? They’re not even preseason ranked and we were double digit favorites, fergodsakes!” Add the LSU Kitties, Domers and Laters into this category as well.
-
- Bargaining – If you’re already down here….Well, than you weren’t planning on having much of a season to begin with. I won’t go into names, but any fan supporting a school that was preseason ranked in the bottom of their conference is already bargaining stating things like “maybe we can upset THEM.”
- Depression – Again, see Bargaining.
- Acceptance – Can’t put anyone here yet! Still too early in the Season!
Idle
Thoughts from Saturday (& Sunday and Monday)!
-I know, I know….I forgot a Pre-Season “Idle Thoughts” section
in the Spectacular.
-3 fans mentioned it.
You people really DO read this stuff!
-I missed the pre-season idle thoughts, but how about some
game week and first game stuff?
-I love summer, but the heat does get to me more now.
-I love Ann Arbor in the fall….There’s no place I’d rather
be.
-From September 1st through Christmas. I could live here 4 months a year.
-Once January rolls around, I’d be looking for warmer
places, though….
-Mentioned at the Tailgate:
What happened to the Ann Arbor Canner Corps?
-They need to hang a help wanted sign up somewhere…
-It’s making the Can Game more difficult than usual…
-AP was way below average for Can Game Points in the home opener!
-Noon Kick-Off however does make scoring more difficult…
-LOTS of people swung by the tailgate!
-Michigan Games have become a great Social Event!
-People I haven’t seen in years mosey by the corner of
Hoover and Greene ‘cause they ALL KNOW that’s where the Tailgate Crowd is gonna
be!
-Total Tailgate Head Count: 50+ The Core Crowd was 8 but
the swing-throughs and the “can we leave our stuff here?” crowd was 40+.
-30+ Years in the same spot. I started to think about any PLACE or places I
go to or have been going to for 31 years on an annual basis.
-You know – Same Time, Same Place kind of thing….
-Besides the house I grew up in…
-It was a tough question.
I couldn’t come up with very many.
-However, someone else said it but I truly believe it: Michigan Football is the Religion and
Saturday is the Holy Day of Obligation! - BU
-And as the Tailgate of the Week Shirt
Stated: “It’s Saturday… It’s Ann Arbor… It’s
a BIG GAME!!!”
-Stadium AT CAPACITY for a Labor Day Weekend, Ball (and
Boob) sweating game…
-Even the students are mostly on time….Harbaugh affect?
-It’ll be interesting to see if it lasts…
-New Drum Major NAILED IT!
(Doesn’t matter if she’s female – she did it!)
-Fly-over was cool.
They’re always cool.
-Kick-Off and the 2016 season has begun!
-Defense – extraordinary….
-Offense – I was a little concerned when Speight decided to
hand Hawaii the ball on the first play from scrimmage.
-Shouldn’t have been.
Speight looked pretty good.
-Jeez – Who ISN’T in the Big House? Michael Jordan, Charles Woodson, Lamar
Woodley, derek Jeter, and more Michigan celebrities….
-Hope Michigan can live up to all this hype!
-Band Half Time Show was classic! Please – MORE LIKE THAT!
-For those of you that weren’t there – Great use of Video
Boards, Coach Harbaugh’s recruiting antics and it was humorous!
-Keep telling yourself this is just Hawaii.
-Hawaii travelled ¾’s of the way around the world in the
last two weeks to play football (20,000 miles).
-That’s going to have an impact on anyone at any age.
-This Evans kid looks pretty good, but he had holes the
size of a double wide to run though!
-Ergo - Kudos to the offensive line.
-Peppers is going to be something special.
-I almost wished Michigan had opened with someone where the
starters would have played the entire game.
The Hot Seat
Week
#1’s Hot Seat Mascot is always kind of exciting. Yes, the Pre-season is also exciting, but the
Week #1 is the first time we all get to vote.
And while pretty much everyone worthy makes the HSMP (Hot Seat Mascot
Playoffs), I think it’s the Hot Seat Mascots at the beginning that can endure
the entire season that are the most fun to watch! Without further ado, Week #1’s Hot Seat
Mascot – Actress Margot Robie!
The
Hot Seat
- Miles – LSU. After that un-impressive debut with a Top 5 team, Miles’ seat is gonna be warm this week. If the Tigers lose any more games in September, The Hatter may not make it through October. Those are NOT patient fans in Louisiana!
- Malzhan - Auburn. See LSU.
- Stoops – Oklahoma. Poor Bob can’t catch a break. Even after making the CFP last season, Hard Core Sooner fans want him GONE
- Freeze – Ole Miss. This isn’t a good start for Hugh and again, see NCAA INVESTIGATION and you’ll have everything you need to know about ole Hugh..
- Sumlin – Texas A&M. He won so cooled off a litte….
- Mora – UCLA. He lost so he’s on the list…
- Muschamp - South Carolina. See Sumlin.
- Kelly – Domers. So much hate for Kelly out there. Luckily $warbuck$ loves him. I think he’ll have a job for life or until Domer fans quit buying tickets.
- Whoever’s coaching USC: That loss hurt.
- Jones – Tennessee. You can’t just squeeze by App State in OT and not expect to make the list….
- Hazell - Purdue
- Adazzio - Boston College
- Riley - Nebraska
- Charlie Strong - Texas. I’m keeping Charlie on here cause Texas fans are like SEC fans. What have you done for me lately?
Coaches with desk chairs that
are getting warm:
Richt – Miami
Mullen - Miss State
Johnson – Georgia Tech
Side NFL NOTE: Lions
CUT Jake Ruddock after a 3 TD 250+ yard passing performance against
Buffalo. Vikings TRADE to get Sam
Bradford from the Eagles.
Which was the dumber move?
Discuss!
