* [Update – part II posted] Props to WTKA for getting Desmond Howard on this morning to talk about the big game, his ‘This Isn’t Michigan’ comments on 1460 WBNS in Columbus, Rich Rod and the state of the program. A must listen, thanks to Lew for passing this along while I was out of town (hiding):
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Herbstreit, Spielman talk the game (WDFN-audio)
WDFN’s Stoney and Wojo play some cuts from Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Spielman. Herby basically says this is disappointing, because Michigan doesn’t have a chance and that doesn’t make this a rivalry. Spielman says Michigan screwed it up so it’s our problem:
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On the McGuffie rumors
Update 11/18: mgblog is posting he’s got solid sources confirming McGuffie is gone. [Ed 11/17/08: This is blog, this is a rumor, many insist it is silly. That’s fine, but this is crap that people talk about at Fraser’s and at tailgates and I’m talking about it. I have no evidence that McGuffie is seriously considering transferring and I hope he doesn’t.] Original post 11/16: There’s been a lot of Sam McGuffie talk about and I’ve heard Fred Jackson was puzzled by the freshman’s request to not play Saturday. Here’s the deal–if McGuffie wants to leave that’s fine. There were a pile of backs ahead of him on the depth chart when he arrived. From what I could tell, he busted his ass and in the eyes of Jackson and RR, he did enough to earn a start in the opener despite the political fallback that could have resulted with all the other guys that had been there (and playing for Jackson BTW). What else could a guy ask for? Ninety percent of guys transfer because either they’re not satisfied with their playing time or there’s been a coaching change. These coaches obviously like the kid and demonstrated that if he works hard and performs he’ll get the ball. He was getting a fair shake from the coaching staff so…
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Throw us a bone, man
Noooo….Zoltan Mesko and company’s lead in net punting was slowly salted away in the Ice Bowl Saturday vs. Northwestern. Jokes aside, it’s remarkable how many top tier teams place well in this category. Eleven of the top 20 teams in net punting are in the running BCS bowl slots.
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Michigan Football’s Worst Season Ever? 1934.
Well, quite a few in the media are pounding the most-losses-in-129-years drum. That’s true of course but Rich Rodriguez’s 2008 debut will not be the worst season in Michigan football history. The percentage of games in the loss column is certainly among the worst but consider that Michigan didn’t consistently play more than eight games for the first 62 years of its existence. If we’re going to toss around the 129 years number, the worst season record-wise belongs to the 1881 team that played and lost three games, scoring just four points to 28 for our opponents (Harvard, Yale and Princeton). But since there wasn’t a coach or a conference or any known photos of the 1881 team, we’ll have to look a little further down the line for a comparable loser. Harry Kipke’s 1934 outfit is probably the definitive low point for Michigan football [see my post ‘The Fall of 1934‘ for more on this season]. The Gerald Ford-led team went 1-7, scored just twenty-one points while being shut out in five of the games. Kipke’s 1936 team also went 1-7 but played just five league games and scored a few more points than Ford and company. What’s remarkable about the 1934 skid was that Kipke’s teams had lost just a single game in the previous four seasons, winning…
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Everitt Rules
Former Michigan offensive lineman Steve Everitt (89-92) was one of the honorary captains at today’s game. A few quick stories:* After a bowl game (I believe the 1993 Rose Bowl in Everitt’s senior year), ABC was doing a post-game interview when a deep voice bellowed, “EVERITT RULES!”* He lost his helmet and had his jaw shattered in the middle of the 1991 Notre Dame game. Doctors put three plates to stabilize his jaw and they gave him a special chinstrap. He returned to play 20 days later. One of the screws they used to insert the plates came loose and has yet to be found.* During a trip to the Rose Bowl, Everitt climbed that hill that has the Hollywood sign. Someone got a pic of Everitt dangling from one of the letter Ls.* While playing center he broke his snapping hand. He learned how to snap with the other hand and didn’t miss any action.* The sideline Wok microphones were aimed at the offensive line one game, I don’t know the circumstances. The team is watching the game film. Everitt pancakes a guy from the other team, gets right in his grill, and asks him over and over, “YOU LIKE THAT, HUH? YOU LIKE THAT, HUH?”.
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Broncs Cheer
photo: mgoblue.com I went to Yost to see a rout last night, instead I witnessed a Western Michigan squad gut out a tough 2-1 win. For the biggest run down of notes and analysis you’ll get anywhere, go to The Blog That Yost Built. My takes: * Western celebrated like they just beat the Russians after the game, piling on their goalie Gill and one guy scrambling to grab the puck for a keepsake. I think I saw one guy try to cut the net off the goal (can they do that?) and another dude trying to jam the Score-O board into the team bus. Guys, great win but act like you’ve been there before. * We saw the 2008 debut of the women’s synchronized skating team at Yost, giving a solid performance with only a couple slips. One gal went down pretty hard at the end, tried to get up only to be denied her footing. She finally made it back to the group to the relief of the crowd but her frown revealed she was hurt or pissed or maybe both. I think they should spice up the show by skating in a costume-wearing villain character, perhaps a guy in a wolf getup or a sweatervest and have the girls somehow subdue the rapscallion. * The Michigan players…
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Benny Friedman juggled Chairs
Check out David Davis’ interview on Nextbook.org with author Murray Greenberg on his new book, Passing Game: Benny Friedman and the Transformation of Football. An excerpt: How exactly did Benny Friedman transform college football? In the mid-1920s, at the University of Michigan, along comes Benny Friedman. He had a unique ability to grip the football and throw it down the field with accuracy. As a kid, he had ambitions to become a strongman, so he’d done a series of exercises designed to stretch and strengthen his wrists and arms: lifting heavy chairs and tossing them from hand to hand, things like that. Combined with his physical strength, he had nerve. He was completely unintimidated and uninhibited. He’d throw the ball on any down, from anywhere on the field, when that was practically a mortal sin. later: In the book, you point out that Friedman played at the University of Michigan while Henry Ford was promoting anti-Semitism in nearby Dearborn. How did the anti-Semitism of the day affect colleges and college football? The Jewish college football players of Friedman’s time walked an interesting tightrope. On the one hand, if they were good enough, they were welcomed onto the teams. On the other hand, they knew that schools had Jewish quotas and that, if they weren’t football players, they wouldn’t be welcome.…
