2009 Big Ten Football Preview

#9 University of Michigan (5-7)
Yes, its the Wolverines in at #9 in the countdown.Um has weeded out all the weaklings so far with transfers and I think the exodus from Michigan is over, thats assuming that all the speculation on NCAA rules violations pertaining to workouts and such dont hamper Rodriguez best plans. With the loss of Justin Boren to Ohio State ( what world do we live in? ) arguably the UM O-Line hasnt gotten better. Minor in the backfield and a few seniors on defense will not be enough, and I feel that the damage that UM's vaunted reputation has suffered in the coaching transition will not equal easy "show up" wins against weaker teams in the league. The freshman and soph's at UM are a year away from ever being able to gel into any threat to the league.
The losses will come at the hands of Notre Dame,MSU,IOWA,PENN STATE,ILLINOIS,WISCONSIN, and the final insult OHIO STATE. Granted Notre Dame and Illinois could possibly go to the victory column, but at this point I m gonna have to see it to believe it.
5 wins is obvious improvement, and those wins will come from Western Michigan,Eastern Michigan (seeing a trend here), Delaware State (apparently D St, wasnt satisfied getting creamed by ANOTHER winged helmet team, so they opted to play a weaker team) and last but , well, last The Great Satan (Purdue).
Things wont be so Rosy for the Wolverines and I think you'll see more of the sideline explosions and violent eruption from Rodriguez that we all witnessed last year. I see a bleak and stormy future for UM, due in large to the fact that the cycle of Bo disciples has run out, and that spells doom for the winning est ( is that a word even?) team in NCAA football.

2009 Big Ten Preseason Countdown

Yes, its that special time of year when all sane and seemingly normal folk turn into raving lunatics in fanatic support of their favorite Big Ten school. I am no exception to this phenomenon and I am here to run down from the bottom to the top, my humble opinions on the who and what and how they get there of the upcoming football season, so here we go-





10.(tie)

In a tie at a dismal 2-10 record. The Hoosiers and The Great Satan (Purdue).

Indiana has a TON and I mean a TON of freshman, including all the QB's I saw listed on the team roster. This automatically means failure. The mistakes that freshman make are difficult enough to deal with let alone freshman on a team of freshman. Bill Lynch has some serious holes to fill with graduation and the demise of Kellen Lewis.Although the lineman on both sides of the ball seem to be catching up size wise with the rest of the Big Ten, it wont be enough to salvage any joy for the Hoosier faithful this year.The schedule includes predicted losses to Eastern Kentucky,Akron,UM,OSU,Virginia,Illinois,Nothwestern,Iowa,Wisconsin,PennState with the only wins coming against hapless Western Michigan and The Great Satan in the season finale. If fortune were to smile on IU, I could see maybe Eastern Kentucky(not likely as EKU had a pretty good year by IU standards) and Akron(5-7,very inconsistent) being victories, but the Big Ten schedule will chew up, spit out, step on and so forth the Hoosiers.

The Great Satan has no easy row to hoe either. With the retirement and departure of the venerable Joe Tiller, the cupboard is pretty much bare at PU( how fitting , PU, as in "whats that smell?"). As with Indiana, the roster is chok full of freshman, just waiting to make mistakes and forget all that the coaching staff struggled to pound into their heads during the spring and summer camps. With a respectable share of 300 pounders on the offensive line, the Purdue O will no doubt have some time to get run over,instead of steady retreat down after down. One thing that looks interesting , is the defensive end position. With a bevy of lighter 240,250 somethings all at 6'4" and taller, the Purdont outside pass rush and blitz combos could present some issues if your tailbacks are asleep or decide they dont want to block. That being said, any decent jumbo package or a well rehearsed "Packer Sweep left", "Packer Sweep right" will probably mince these light weights into chum.Predicted losses will come from a trip to Oregon,Northern Illinois, Notre Dame,Northwestern,Minnesota,OSU, Wisconsin,UM,MSU and a bitter pill in the season loss to rival Indiana. Wins shall come from the mighty Toledo and , you heard it here first, ILLINOIS at Ross-Aide. Dont ask me why, but I just feel Purdue will spoil Illinois' trip to West Lafayette. One travel note. I loved my trip to Boilerland, and the hospitality was impressive, even if the hotel manager charged me twice and then took 4 months to credit my money back, dont make the mistake of driving over the river to Lafayette. Its like driving from your average upper middle class suburb into a third world country with narrow one way streets and LOTS of scary people loitering in front of burned out cars and houses.

Stay tuned football fans, next is number nine..see ya tomorrow!

Summer in decline!!

Ahh yes my friends. First off, apology for all the loyal readers and friends. I have been MIA again, but that is the nature of me, King of the Jagov tribes. Anyway...

Its time once again for football. Golf season was wrapped up today, with a blistering 27, yes you read it right, 27 net in the league scramble. ONE stinking stroke short of bringing home the bacon. Scored me a TaylorMade GreenBay Packers cap for a door prize, so Im happ-happ-happy!

What pray tell is that picture at the header of this blog? Its the invitation to this years installment of the L.O.S.T Tailgate tuneup.

Cary, what is a Tailgate tuneup?

Answer: The Tailgate Tuneup is a party hosted by the previous seasons Boccee tournament champion. It has a long tradition that was started by one of L.O.S.T's founding and most beloved members, Mickey Tropiano, the resident stud Italian guy. All the season ticket holders and various guests of the tournament champion gather to discuss away game plans and settle matters of order pertaining to the tailgate club. Then we eat. A LOT. Then we drink. A LOT. Puddles of Jagermeister and beer vomit all over. The tailgate tuneup is a party to get completely wasted off your ass and throw up all over yourself and grab up your friends and say " I lush you man..." , then pass out to be vandalized physically by all the other party goers, so a person can get their drinking bearings BEFORE we enter Spartan Stadium. No one has ever puked (in the stands.blowing chunks in the mens john HAS occurred, but there is speculation as to whether it was alcohol or under cooked shrimp) or been escorted out of the stadium for drinking in our history, except for one token UM fan who tried to pawn off some 50/50 tickets as his gate pass (moron) and the one time Tropiano's guest (another token UM jagov) was not allowed entry because he had beers stuffed in his shorts (moron).

Let it be said, that scribes and historians have on record L.O.S.T margaritas that almost single handily wiped out the student section of MSU when on the road at Camp Randall.Puke did fly, Spartans were escorted out by Dane County sheriff deputies, and Badgers were slapped in the mouth that day. It was awesome. We survived, but the poor 20 something kiddzies who partied with us before the game learned the hard way about hanging out with the "OLDER" crowd. The football team got whupped like 56-14 or something like that, so we were surly afterward, but the beers I had concealed in the trees made the walk back to the tailgate more manageable. The Tune UP is a right of summer indicating the beginning of our favorite time of year.Get ready Big Ten football fans...it almost time to suit up, get your mean on and go into battle. More to come..........