Tate Forcier keeps showing up in the news, and not for good reasons. He first made brief headlines back in January when he announced that he was transferring away from Michigan. He wasn't eligible to play in the Gator Bowl because of his crappy grades, and stories abounded about him partying too much.
Then, he was going to go to the University of Miami in Florida. The warmer weather makes sense, as he grew up in California and showed marked difficulty playing in the cold Michigan weather.
Last week he decided he didn't want to go to Miami because it was too far from home. He was looking at school closer to San Diego, such as the University of San Diego, San Diego State, and USC. He also was looking at other school like Kansas State, Auburn and Montana. (What? How are they close to California?)
Well, responses are starting to come in. And according to a report on NBC Sports, USC is not interested.
Tate is also going to have problems due to a new revelation that police were called to his apartment last month. He had apparently locked himself in his bedroom and was hanging outside from the window, when a concerned woman saw him and called police. Instead of being arrested, he was taken to a local hospital. Little information is available, due to medical privacy laws, but it is obvious that he needs some help. Is this why he wants to be closer to home? Is he stable enough to actually play football? How much did playing second fiddle to Denard really affect him?
Tate is relatively talented. I watched him in person when I went to the Michigan-Bowling Green game back in September. He is especially good when he is focused. I really hope he can get some help and get his life on track soon.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Reaction to Drew Sharp's Commentary on OSU & USC v. NCAA
Drew Sharp, columnist for the Detroit Free Press is asking Michigan and Michigan State fans to calm down about Ohio State getting spanked by the NCAA for their transgressions. Apparently some are comparing the OSU debacle to the problems being had by USC. Honestly, I wasn't even paying attention to those. I'm not even sure how aware I was of their problems. I tend to focus on Big Ten.
USC didn't admit to their infractions. Ohio State did. I think OSU only did because they knew they were caught and couldn't lie about it anymore. Lies are still being thrown around the story is not yet complete. Ohio State is supposedly doing an internal probe. I could make a comment or two about a probe, but I shall refrain.
I think what annoys me most about this mess with the Buckeyes is that they flat out lied. Tressel said that he had no idea about the infractions, basically because he wanted to make sure they could play in their Bowl game. Or perhaps he thought he wouldn't get caught. It sounds like he had managed to get away with a lot at previous gigs at Youngstown, etc. When Rich Rod got into trouble for violating NCAA sanctions at Michigan, he admitted to it and made immediate changes. He even talked about that on the HBO special reflecting on the changes needed at the NCAA.
I would personally not compare the OSU problems with the USC problems. Each case is deserving of its own investigation and its own appropriate consequences. I would like to see them get spanked for being naughty. And yes, partially because I just have to hate the Buckeyes.
I will be slightly sad to see Jim Tressel get fired, but only because I would love for Brady Hoke to have a chance to lead a team to a victory over them. I don't want Tressel to leave with an undefeated record against us. That isn't fair. But I also would prefer to have an honest enemy.
Read Drew Sharp's commentary: NCAA won't unleash its full wrath on Ohio State
USC didn't admit to their infractions. Ohio State did. I think OSU only did because they knew they were caught and couldn't lie about it anymore. Lies are still being thrown around the story is not yet complete. Ohio State is supposedly doing an internal probe. I could make a comment or two about a probe, but I shall refrain.
I think what annoys me most about this mess with the Buckeyes is that they flat out lied. Tressel said that he had no idea about the infractions, basically because he wanted to make sure they could play in their Bowl game. Or perhaps he thought he wouldn't get caught. It sounds like he had managed to get away with a lot at previous gigs at Youngstown, etc. When Rich Rod got into trouble for violating NCAA sanctions at Michigan, he admitted to it and made immediate changes. He even talked about that on the HBO special reflecting on the changes needed at the NCAA.
I would personally not compare the OSU problems with the USC problems. Each case is deserving of its own investigation and its own appropriate consequences. I would like to see them get spanked for being naughty. And yes, partially because I just have to hate the Buckeyes.
I will be slightly sad to see Jim Tressel get fired, but only because I would love for Brady Hoke to have a chance to lead a team to a victory over them. I don't want Tressel to leave with an undefeated record against us. That isn't fair. But I also would prefer to have an honest enemy.
Read Drew Sharp's commentary: NCAA won't unleash its full wrath on Ohio State
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Expectations of the new Michigan football season
Michigan Wolverine football fans are just coming off of a three year hell under the tutelage of Rich Rodriguez. We had some brief glimpses of promise in Denard Robinson, but it takes more than one man to make a team. Plus he still needs to work on his passing game. Mike Martin WAS the defense, but one man can't stop a train. Big Ten football is full of big players, and he needs help. Plus Rich just had no idea what it meant to go up against our nemeses Michigan State and Ohio State. We are especially bitter that Jim Tressel has beaten us seven years in a row. And now he may lose his job, so we can never regain face.
Brady Hoke is a breath of fresh air at Michigan. He is a Michigan man, having worked for the program in the past. He knows how to run a successful Big 10 team. More importantly, he understands how much we need to beat those Suckeyes. He is actively recruiting some new talent, such as Zach Banner all the way in Washington. He is bulking up the defense and not accepting just one new recruit for each position.
Following the spring football game, Hoke acknowledged that he still had the Grand Canyon to conquer. But fans are putting their faith into him and the promise that he shows. We expect to do better in the 2011 season. After all, it would be hard to get much worse, right?
Check out my spring football coverage:
New era begins at Michigan's spring football practice
Michigan spring game shows promise
Brady Hoke is a breath of fresh air at Michigan. He is a Michigan man, having worked for the program in the past. He knows how to run a successful Big 10 team. More importantly, he understands how much we need to beat those Suckeyes. He is actively recruiting some new talent, such as Zach Banner all the way in Washington. He is bulking up the defense and not accepting just one new recruit for each position.
Following the spring football game, Hoke acknowledged that he still had the Grand Canyon to conquer. But fans are putting their faith into him and the promise that he shows. We expect to do better in the 2011 season. After all, it would be hard to get much worse, right?
Check out my spring football coverage:
New era begins at Michigan's spring football practice
Michigan spring game shows promise
GBE 2 Challenge
I joined a new challenge at the end of May, called the GBE2 challenge. The Group Blogging Experience 2 was started on Facebook as a resurrection of a challenge in the MySpace days. Each Sunday, a topic is posted in the group. You have until Saturday to post on the topic and you are not obligated to do so. I thought this new blog could potentially work with some of the categories. We shall see!
Facebook Page!
Okay, there is now a Facebook "fan page" that accompanies this blog. On that page, we can discuss our beloved Wolverines. I will post my articles that go to Yahoo! Sports, as well as links to blog posts here. And I can even put other articles of interest to Wolverine fans over there, as well.
Come "like" the page at this address: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Andis-Go-Blue/228579937158154
Come "like" the page at this address: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Andis-Go-Blue/228579937158154
Go Blue!
I am a Michigan Wolverine's fan. I have been a Michigan fan since I was a kid. I didn't realize how much I took the games for granted until I moved to NY and could no longer access many of the games. A few years ago, I finally paid for the sports package that gave me the Big Ten Network. Now my Saturdays revolve around the Wolverine schedule.
I am not one to rattle off a bunch of statistics. I do enjoy the smack talk among my friends, even if they are dirty Buckeye fans. I grew up in the Toledo, OH area, where that rivalry is King. If you aren't from the area you just can't understand how intense it is here.
I recently landed a "beat" on Yahoo! Sports covering Michigan football from a fan's perspective. I have the option to write once a day on a breaking news story and have it published on rivals.yahoo.com. But I have found that sometimes I come across a story too late, or perhaps there isn't enough information to fill the word count. So, I decided to create this blog to share my thoughts on some of those other stories. I will also use this to share my articles when they are published.
Happy reading, and GO BLUE!
I am not one to rattle off a bunch of statistics. I do enjoy the smack talk among my friends, even if they are dirty Buckeye fans. I grew up in the Toledo, OH area, where that rivalry is King. If you aren't from the area you just can't understand how intense it is here.
I recently landed a "beat" on Yahoo! Sports covering Michigan football from a fan's perspective. I have the option to write once a day on a breaking news story and have it published on rivals.yahoo.com. But I have found that sometimes I come across a story too late, or perhaps there isn't enough information to fill the word count. So, I decided to create this blog to share my thoughts on some of those other stories. I will also use this to share my articles when they are published.
Happy reading, and GO BLUE!
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