Satellite Camps

Have you seen Jim Harbaugh's schedule of summer camps? Who are the poor people coordinating this craziness? The Wolverines will hold 26 camps throughout the country in June, beginning June 2nd in Atlanta. On June 8th alone they have camps taking place in Mississippi, Ohio and New Jersey (right here in Paramus). The Paramus Catholic location is extra special--and I am not counting my sister being part of their sports hall of fame--as Harbaugh is even scheduled to be the school's commencement speaker at this year's graduation on June 9. Too much? Probably. There are only so many recruits Michigan can get and without doing these camps they would be unhappy with any ranking outside the nation's top ten. So this will marginally improve on that. Meanwhile Harbaugh's competition is busy trying to negate some of that new-found advantage. Ohio State, for example, just agreed to come to Jersey too on the same day the Michigan camp is in Paramus to run their own camp in conjunction with Temple and Rutgers. So now think of our favorite rivalries as 365-day realities. Wait, we did already.

Michigan Recruiting Update

The controversy swirling around the Michigan football program is fascinating for a number of reasons. To update you, Michigan locked up a bunch of solid prospects awhile ago--at least one was even signed by the previous staff years--and is now pulling those scholarship offers from some players (eight at my last count) to give them to higher-ranked guys. This has been unfolding for a few weeks as the Wolverines continue to attract top talent. There is nothing technically illegal here as nothing is binding until an official letter is signed and the players are free to jump programs themselves. In fact this behavior has been going on for years with some schools not even pulling the scholarships until signing day or, in some awful instances, in the summer (or they will take the scholarship from an older sub if too many players remain on the roster by August). What is fascinating is that the players can now go on twitter and complain about the situation and Michigan immediately gets bad publicity. Let's be frank here. There is nothing positive for the kid to have his offer pulled this late in the game. Sure, most land on their feet but at situations that may not be as positive for them as it would have with the time to fully seek offers. Others get screwed totally. So twitter giving these kids one recourse for some sort of justice is compelling but I also find it interesting that head coach Jim Harbaugh did this at Stanford but received little bad press for it as Stanford receives very little of the coverage that Michigan gets and he could hide there behind Stanford's more rigid acceptance standards (of course he pulled a scholarship from at least one player who could have gotten in without football but I digress). What is also funny is that when this type of behavior happened elsewhere, especially in the SEC, some Michigan fans were incensed. Now that their coach is doing it? They have become the biggest apologists. Do whatever it takes to win. It is the attitude that has dragged college football through the mud for years.

Embracing Michigan's All-White Road Uniforms

In this era of slick packaging and glitz and shine trumping tradition, the decision this week by Michigan--supposedly at the behest of coach Jim Harbaugh--to wear white tops and pants on the road this season is refreshing. The word is that the new coach wanted to pay homage to the 1974 club, along with 1975 the last to sport these uniforms, and anything that pays homage to the college football that I first remember, is alright by me. The 1974 edition of the Wolverines had another magnificent season under head coach Bo Schembechler in finishing 10-1. Why only 11 games you say? Well in losing the final game of the season 12-10 to Ohio State, with Michigan missing a field goal at game's end, the Wolverines could not go bowling as Big Ten rules at the time designated conference-winning Ohio State, via tiebreak, as Rose Bowl representative and the other nine schools as unable to go to any post-season game. That changed right after this season due to the misfortune of a Michigan program that went 30-2-1 over the 1972-74 seasons but never tasted bowl play thanks to the conference's desire to make the Rose Bowl the be-all and end-all and to a controversial vote of conference ADs after the 1973 season. For Michigan seniors in 1974, the heartbreak must have been tremendous. In 1971 they would have been ineligible to play as freshmen when the Wolverines won the conference and went to the Rose Bowl. 1971 was the final season that freshmen were ineligible. Then they played dominant ball for three straight seasons only to be thwarted time and time again from getting to the Rose Bowl, all while playing the final three seasons that Big Ten teams were banned from playing in any bowl other the the Rose Bowl. This is a rare classy move by Harbaugh, who was a young football player in Ann Arbor in the mid 70s when his dad was a coach on Schembechler's staff. This squad is not as good as the 1974 team but they will play hard.

Jim Harbaugh

Harbaugh to Michigan has been a rumor for awhile. Being that it makes a ton of sense it should happen and may even be announced by tomorrow. As a fan of college football I am very happy to have a renowned football coach leave the NFL to return to the college ranks even though it comes with a ridiculous amount of money. Michigan desperately needs this to happen as they are clearly behind their two biggest rivals, OSU and MSU, in the current pecking order. As I have said before, Michigan thinks it is more important than it really is as a football program. That said, this move should elevate them back to challenging for conference titles and possibly inclusion in the national title race. The main potential problem is Harbaugh's reputation as a, well, jerk. That no longer flies in college football as it may have once--and Stanford is not a good example as they were turned around from 1-11 and were willing to put up with their coach. The type of recruit Michigan wants to get will not tolerate too much in your face coaching and Harbaugh has to balance his personality the way that Saban and Meyer do. It had better work for Michigan. They have a lot riding on this hire.

Brady Hoke Fired

Not exactly earth-shattering news but Hoke's removal finally ends the talk. But now comes the hard part as a football program with an interim AD must hit a home run with a coaching hire after consecutive failed effort with Hoke and predecessor Rich Rodriguez. The problem with Michigan is Michigan. The expectations are higher than the results have been and top coaches would rather try to win championships in easier situations. Remember when Michigan man Les Miles was rumored to take the Wolverines job in 2007 and then was wooed again four years later? Sure he would love to coach there but he has the same pressure to win at LSU with access to a greater amount of talent and can run players onto the field whether or not they break the law. He has won a title so running away from the SEC West is not needed. Why leave and face more scrutiny? The athletic director situation is a huge problem. No coach with options is going to take a job without knowing the name of his boss. Good ADs are too crucial to the success of a program. The guy Michigan fans want as much as Miles is Jim Harbaugh, but it is hard to imagine him going back to college. He wants to win the Super Bowl to bad and will want to stick it to the 49ers as soon as they split up. Good luck to the Wolverines as their success is good for the sport. They will need to think outside the box and deliver someone who can return the program to the upper echelon of the Big Ten. It may take awhile but talent is there.

Northeast Hosting Top College Football Programs

As a traditionalist I am not a fan of the many changes being made in conferences around the nation.  But one of the benefits of said change is that a number of top-notch programs will be traveling to my neck of the woods for games this season and I look forward to taking a few short road trips.  Here is a travel planner for the local RV owner:
Labor Day Weekend: After enjoying the Rhode Island at Fordham tilt under the lights at Rose Hill (shameless plug) on Thursday the 29th, head to the Meadowlands for the Penn State versus Syracuse battle as a homage to the old days of Eastern football.  Then head west for Monday's Pitt-Florida State contest, their first pairing since 1983.
Next we jump to September 14 when a Stanford program that has become one of the stronger in the country travels to West Point to play Army.  While the game should be a mismatch--but the Cardinal do have to travel cross country!--it will be a rare opportunity to see a team with top ten aspirations play at Michie.
The following weekend we have rare visits from not one but two major programs, although with differing expectations for 2013.  Rebuilding Arkansas is the rare SEC West program allowed out of their region when they head to New Jersey to play a Rutgers team that beat them in Arkansas in 2012.  On the same day Michigan will play UConn at Rentschler Field in Hartford, where an additional 2,000 seats are being put in to increase the total to a "whopping" 42,000.  There are a large number of Michigan fans in this area but many will have too wait a season to see the Wolverines hit the East Coast as they are scheduled to play at Rutgers in 2014.  Meanwhile I am not counting this one, but if tickets to those two games are too expensive go see UMass host an improving Vanderbilt.
On September 28 if you missed FSU week one you can travel to Boston for their road game against Boston College.  Yeah I know that does not thrill me either.  But you can then go to a local sports bar and watch possibly important AL East games as the Bosox are at Baltimore that evening.
The following week we have one potential top twenty team venturing to the far north for their first time and another that comes annually. Clemson travels to Syracuse for a game that will now be a strange rivalry--again I hate that Syracuse now plays teams like the Tigers but I can enjoy seeing Clemson play football live which I rarely get to do.  If that is just too odd, then head to Philly and watch a Louisville team that is aiming for a 12-0 record take on Temple.
On October 12 we have another Michigan sighting, although more inland.  The Wolverines play Penn State for the first time since 2010 and, well, since all of the madness out in State College.  You'll get some gawkers.
Take a few weeks off to enjoy the national college football scene and major league playoffs.  For the next few weeks there are no notable out-of-town teams paying our area a visit.
On the weekend on November 9 you have a chance for a fun weekend.  On Friday November 8 you can enjoy the fun scene for a UConn home game when they host Louisville.  Then on Saturday you may have to shake off your hangover as you have two options--both requiring a ride west.  Notre Dame travels to Pitt, which they do often.  But we also have another interesting option and that is Texas, another program that rarely heads up our way, traveling to Morgantown to play new "rival" West Virginia.  Again I do not care for West Virginia moving to the Big 12 but I do not think that I have seen Texas live in 20 years or so.  Both of the starting times for those games are to be determined.  Oh, by the way, the Steelers play at home that Sunday against Buffalo.
To close out the fun we have Nebraska traveling to Penn State on November 23 and then if you are desperate for something Thanksgiving Friday, Miami traveling to Pitt on the 29th.
So there are a lot of options for some rare sightings.  Get your field glasses and enjoy.

Remember When

The Penn State-Michigan clash tonight is not getting too much pub, but that has not been the case in the recent past. Although the series has been dominated by the Wolverines, here is a battle pitting then no. 3-ranked Penn State versus no. 5-ranked Michigan from October 15, 1994 as recapped in The USA TODAY College Football Encyclopedia:

Penn State 31 MICHIGAN 24: Battle in "The Big House" drew 106,382, 3rd largest crowd to date in collegiate history. On the verge of putting verdict away, early-striking Penn State (6-0) collected mostly FGs and led 16-0 before K Remy Hamilton put Wolverines (4-2) on board at 16-3 before H. TB Tyrone Wheatley, who had only 9/11y rushing in 1st H, exploded for 67 and 21y TDs on consecutive series, and, in span of 4:19, Michigan suddenly jumped into 17-16 lead. Nittany Lions answered with QB Kerry Collins (20-32/231y, 3 TDs) passing for TD and 2-pt conv at end of 86y foray. After WR Amani Toomer (7/157y) set up 24-24 tie with 38y catch, Penn State forged ahead for good with 2:53 left: WR Bobby Engram made toe-in-bounds catch, TB Ki-Jana Carter (in photo, left, with Collins, center, and TE Kyle Brady) ran 26y and Engram caught 16y TD. Toomer maneuvered himself all alone at Lions 5YL, but lost his bearings and long pass drifted off his fingertips. Michigan soon evaporated possession on 4th down INT by Penn State DB Brian Miller.

Angst in Ann Arbor

Michigan has slapped themselves on the wrist for violations stemming from extra practice time and, as importantly, the failure of their compliance people to protect its athletes (by complying with NCAA rules). Michigan is trying to shape the view of what they did wrong by making these recommendations for their punishment in advance of their meeting with the NCAA on the matter in August. They even let a grad assistant walk the plank, ie, get fired, for lying to the NCAA, which as we know from the Dez Bryant situation is about as bad as it gets in the NCAA's eyes. And new athletic director David Brandon stressed three things during his announcement: that Michigan has always been clean so the embarrassment of these sanctions is worse than any real penalty, that coach Rich Rodriguez may have made some mistakes but does not fail to promote an atmosphere of compliance as charged by the NCAA and that the penalties should not be worse because Michigan did not get a competitive advantage from these wrongdoings.

Where do I begin to poke holes in all of this Michigan logic? Before I begin let me say that the Wolverines really did not do anything too bad and should not be overly punished, especially with all of us still waiting for some shoe to fall in the USC case. But, the problem folks from the Big Ten have with Michigan is their arrogance, and this press conference reaked of it. Let's touch on Brandon's three points to see how this is so. First of all, stretching back to the history of Michigan football to show how squeaky clean you are is a bit disengenous as no one was getting caught back in those beginning 50 years or so and Michigan was as bad as any other power when it came to paying players (see Heston, Willie of the juggernaut teams of 110 years ago). And why cheat when the referees bend over backward for you? Overall, however, Michigan has done well in regards to rule breaking and deserves credit for it, but that should not effect how the NCAA views this situation--unless of course Rich Rodriguez has been coaching Michigan for 95 years. In other words Rodriguez should not get a pass because Bennie Oosterbaan and Bo Schembechler ran clean programs. Secondly, Rodriguez is not winning and these violations are the type that come from desperate times. Brandon has to protect him regarding the overall atmosphere of compliance because that is where the big penalties will come if the NCAA finds him guilty here. Brandon even went so far as taking full responsibility for the problem despite the fact that he was running Domino's Pizza at the time of the violations. So staffer Alex Herron was fired for lying about his involvement while Rodriguez gets to keep his job--for now. As soon as the NCAA does judge this matter, his clock will be ticking unless he goes 12-0 and that's not happening. Lastly, to claim that they should not get punished too bad because they stunk is funny. He has a point, but that is not how punishment works. If you cheated, and they admit to a lot of it, then you should get punished for it whether you win three games or nine. How can you say that practicing more than your opposition was not an attempt to gain an advantage?

So Michigan deserves whatever they get this August for hiring Rodriguez. It has been less than four years since they won the first 11 games of the 2006 season and were playing Ohio State for a spot in the BCS Title game, but that seems like a lifetime ago. They will get the magic back at Michigan--and Brandon was a backup player during the early 1970s when they aimed for perfection on an annual basis--but it will be a few years before they can return to power. And that will only be with a worthy replacement to Rodriguez.

View From Bennett Avenue

With Michigan winning its first four games of the season, more than one college football analyst has made the comment that Michigan’s success is “good for college football.” The idea is that when a Michigan, Notre Dame or Southern California, just to name three of the long-time powers of the sport, does well, the sport garners more attention and the regular sports fan takes more notice. People even voiced those sentiments about Miami of all teams after they won their first two games as younger audiences, instructed by ESPN that sports began in 1979, view the Canes as a traditional power.

Certainly the ratings and media attention attracted by recent clashes of titans, like USC-Texas in the 2005 BCS Title game or Ohio State-Michigan less than a year later, Oklahoma-Texas over the past few seasons or any of a number of Florida games in recent memory offer evidence to that fact. But is it true that the sport suffers when these traditional powers stop hogging the limelight?

As some evidence to the contrary, let’s take a look at the 1970s. That was the decade, one could argue, that professional football pulled away from the college variety to become not only the preeminent form of football in the country, but the nation’s most popular sport of any kind. Yet college football was ruled by Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Nebraska and USC. They dominated the polls, media coverage and won-loss columns. In the NFL, meanwhile, traditional powers the New York Giants and Chicago Bears generally struggled throughout the decade, as too the Detroit Lions, Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers. Relatively new teams like Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders and Minnesota Vikings did very well and the one traditional NFL team to win multiple championships, the Pittsburgh Steelers, were from a smaller city and were previously known more for finding different ways to lose every week. While the NFL set ratings victories with a fresh group of winners, the college game slipped a bit in popularity with the old standard bearers leading the way.

Is this proof that it does not really matter how good Michigan does this year? No. It is just something to think about. And if we are happy that the Wolverines are “back” then let’s not be correspondingly upset about the undefeated seasons being turned in by Cincinnati or Kansas. College football is wonderful because there are great players, stories, events and traditions throughout the sport’s spectrum of teams and divisions. Sure we should be excited about November’s Ohio State-Michigan game, but let’s not forget Harvard-Yale.

View From Bennett Avenue

Indiana was robbed on that call. The Hoosiers already had to fight any doubts they had about winning based on decades of failure against the Wolverines and when it seemed like they could overcome the odds, the refs stepped in. And the blown call, Michigan fans, did not make things “even” for calls that went against Michigan earlier in the game as this one basically ended matters. Sure, Indiana still had to move the ball into scoring position, but they had done so all game. By allowing 467y to IU, Michigan proved that they are not quite ready for re-elevation to the ranks of college football powers. That the Mississippi State Bulldogs failed to end a nine-game losing streak to LSU moments later by a matter of inches made it worse for fans of the true upset.

Despite the spin about yesterday being a day that shook up the rankings, the actual stunners were all of the garden variety. That Virginia Tech and Oregon won at home was no real surprise, although of course the ease of their respective victories was unexpected. And even though Iowa was a big dog on the road, their team’s success in the series against Penn State buoyed well for their chances. South Florida over Florida State on the road and with a back-up QB? A surprise, sure, but the Seminoles are too inconsistent to expect anything but upset wins followed by upset losses. The main reason that the rankings were shook up was that the rankings were incorrect. And the comparison so far is not to 2007, in which everyone continually was upset allowing a two-loss Louisiana State team to win the national title, but to 1983 when the top two teams in the country, Nebraska and Texas, were ranked 1-2 for most of the year while numbers 3 to 20 were continually jumbled. As long as Florida and Texas—or more accurately Florida, Texas and Alabama—remain unbeaten, the craziness of 2007 will remain unique. Of course both Nebraska and Texas lost their bowl games in 1983, which could not happen this year if they face off in the BCS title game. Not that I want to get ahead of myself.

One last note is to congratulate Oregon for getting off the mat from their week one loss to Boise State to become favorites, or at least co-favorites, for the Pac 10 crown. If they had lost to Purdue week two, their season may have spiraled out of control. Back-to-back nice wins however have the Ducks feeling good. And I do not expect coach Chip Kelly to have to offer any more refunds.

Change we can believe in...maybe.

Several college teams put up surprisingly resurgent performances this opening weekend: Michigan, Syracuse, Washington, and Army led the way after poor 2008 seasons. Are these clues to a turnaround year for each team? Perhaps, but it is too soon to tell.

Michigan 31 Western Michigan 7
Wolverines coach Rich Rodriguez ended his hell week with a resounding victory over a decent Western Michigan team. The jury is still out, but we’ll know about Michigan by mid-season after a visit from Notre Dame this coming Saturday and trips to Michigan State and Iowa. If the Wolverines are 5-1 in October, nobody will ever mention over-the-limit practice time again.

Minnesota 23 Syracuse 20
A lot of people felt the installation of former Duke point guard Greg Paulus as Syracuse’s new starting quarterback was simply a desperate act to create buzz about a formerly fine football program that had stumbled into the gutter. Paulus played reasonably well against Minnesota, rallying the Orange as he doled out short passes as if he were a point guard. His one blunder was an end zone interception in overtime that ruined any chance at victory.

LSU 31 Washington 23
In a weekend full of terrible analysis by almost every broadcaster, ESPN’s Bob Davie hit it square when he suggested the Huskies had playmakers on offense but that it would take time for new coach Steve Sarkisian to find defenders who could match the flyers at wide receiver on a team like LSU. Still, as the newly-enthused Seattle fans, many wearing “I Bark for Sark” tee shirts, will attest, Washington’s offense put on a good show and kept the Huskies in the game Saturday night. Washington welcomed back quarterback Jake Locker and running back Chris Polk from last year’s injury list. Sarkasian is an offensive specialist so it figures that sophomore Johri Fogerson, a real flyer in his own right, was moved from free safety to offense.

Army 27 Eastern Michigan 14
Flying far under the radar was Saturday night’s Army coaching debut of Rich Ellerson. Ellerson, the son of a career military officer and younger brother of West Point’s 1962 football captain and a successful advocate of an option run attack, might be the perfect man to resurrect Black Knights football. Beating Eastern Michigan is no great accomplishment, but it occurred on the road by a team that arrived with only 20 wins this decade. Popping off the stat sheet was six sacks by the Army defense.