Legendary Detroit sports radio caller Linda from Grand Blanc dialed up Mark Copeland and Brian Cook on WTKA 1050AM this evening and summed up Saturday: [display_podcast] . All the podcasts from this afternoon here.

The latest MVictors Power Index:   Interesting, the Buckeyes move back up to share the top spot with the Hawkeyes, with the Nittany Lions lurking.  Michigan understandably took the biggest drop, not losing their 7th slot but sadly moving well into the third tier of this group. Comments from the pollsters: Gilliam the Badger:  Bucky was on a bye, so I’ll let Biggie the Spartan try to talk himself into the value of a well played L. ;^) Biggie the Spartan:  I thought the Iowa game would go down to the wire and it sure as hell did.  I thought State would miss Winston at some point and they did this game when they had to run Baker twice with a 1st and goal from the 1 near the end of the third quarter.  Forget about a Big 10 title, Sparty has to win 3 of the next 4 to have a shot at a decent bowl game or they could be looking at a rematch with CMU in the Little Caesars Bowl at Ford Field…nerves. Schlimmy the Buckeye:  I’m still not convinced Iowa is a legit top 5 team, give them credit for finding a way every week to pull off the "W" but I would say six of their eight wins have came down to the final minutes,…

I got an email from Mike over at the jiMpossible and SarcasMike blog last week, showing me the work they’ve done on this.  Pretty funny stuff. The concept is simple: starting with the first college football game played between Rutgers and Princeton in 1869, what if the winner of that game won a mythical trophy that they held until they lost, passing the trophy to the team that defeated them, and so on?  Could this chain be tracked all the way to today?  Mike has taken on the task and just posted the latest version of the chain (he’s working on a few clarifications in the 1920s and 1930s). In the current revision, Michigan has held the mythical trophy eight times over history, the last time being in 2003 when they eventually surrendered it to Southern Cal in the 2004 Rose Bowl. And the current “trophy holder”?  The Florida Gators. Here’s a snapshot of what it looks like:

Pretty miserable day out there as Michigan was manhandled by the Lions.  I knew it was trouble at 10-7, Clark was making great decisions and always seemed to find a mismatch in our secondary. Hats off to Penn State for giving some of what Michigan has delivered to the Lions much of the past thirteen years—a physical beat down. The best part of the first four games, beyond the record of course, was that they were a complete validation of Rodriguez.  He used the players he had in creative ways, he was winning with his system, and he showed what could happen with even a glimmer of the right quarterback.   Atop that, his success seemed to validate the idea of bringing in a guy like RR to shake things up in the fading conference. The next third of the season has obviously raised old questions about what we’re dealing with here.  The Michigan State and Iowa losses were understandable.  What you didn’t want to see was a clear regression and that’s what you got Saturday.  Beaten in every phase by team that was manhandled themselves, at least in the second half, by Iowa.  Injuries, turnovers, and drops are all important but beyond that, if you thought it looked like last season it’s because it did. The upside?  All signs show…

Another wonderful University of Michigan tradition renewed itself this morning, as the Mudbowl was played at the SAE house at the corner of Washtenaw and South University.  The host fraternity battled Phi Kappa Psi, the victors of a tournament this week that granted them entry into the annual contest. SAE prevailed 19-12, although the game ended in a bit of controversy.  The men of Phi Psi rallied through the mud needing a touchdown as the clock winded down.   On the final play of the game their wily quaterback, who was phenomenal all day, connected on what looked to be a touchdown but it was ruled just short of the endzone.  As time expired, the Phi Psi fans chanted “bullshit” and hurled cans of beer down as the SAE squad celebrated. From my vantage it looked like a score but it was certainly close.  And for what it’s worth, Phi Psi would have need to convert an extra point (either to win or tie) which is about a 1 in 3 proposition in the slop.  Also in fairness, the refs awarded Phi Psi a touchdown in the same end earlier in the game that looked clearly short of the goal (it was a good three feet shorter than the final catch ruled short).  For those wondering about the annual sorority game…

AnnArbor.com is reporting that the Washtenaw County jury acquitted former football walk-on Mike Milano of felonious assault on hockey defenseman Steve Kampfer, instead convicting Milano of aggravated assault, a misdemeanor. I won’t opine on the ruling because I have no clue on the law here or what was argued.   It’s clear though that the judge wasn’t happy with the jury’s decision: Milano faces up to one year in jail on the misdemeanor conviction when he is sentenced Dec. 3. But that doesn’t appear likely, given a rare statement by Circuit Judge David Swartz, who said he believes Milano is innocent of both counts. After dismissing the jury, Swartz looked toward Milano and said: “For what it’s worth, I’d find the defendant not guilty and recommend that you file for an order to have it expunged, which I’ll be pleased to sign.” Would love to hear a lawyer’s take on that.   Can a circuit judge simply state that they don’t like a ruling and honor a request to have a crime expunged from the defendant’s record? A2.com piece here. Related: * Icers Nip Niagara 3-2 * Kampfer, Tropp Zapruder Film, err, Stills  (the other assault incident involving Kampfer)

Ref either is an old A’s fan or a hipster Iron Butterfly maven Great to have regular season hockey once again as Michigan played their season opener tonight, squeaking by Niagara 3-2.   Recap here from mgoblue.com. The Wolverines roared out to a 3-0 lead early on and nearly made it four, before Niagara grinded its way back and just missed a chance to tie the game with seconds to go.  I wasn’t happy with the effort.  It’s easy to understand if they let up after the third goal but the squad just looked sloppy and sluggish for long stretches.  Give Niagara credit for fighting off a bunch of power plays and hanging in there, but the Wolverines weren’t crisp.  Can’t have that at Boston this weekend. Other stuff: If these guys are rocking these outfits all year I’ve got to work something out.  I sit directly across the ice and all I can think about is the inset:   “Oh Billy.  It’s so cold.” The PA announcer said there are tickets available for the Miami, OH series November 6 and 7.  Come on people!  Tickets here.  Don’t know if you’ve checked out Uni Watch, but it’s worth a look.  They obsessively follow sports uniforms and the like, and this week Paul discussed the different designs on hockey red lines including…