Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

[wolverineTrumpet]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I think the same can be said about Bob Daniels who learned his system at MSU under Mason. Funny how the Ferris fan criticism has diminished since Daniels has been able to secure better and better talent, especially on the back line. His system has to be bought into and enhances a roster that may not brag of so many NHL draftees. Goaltending, like anything, is a great equalizer, too. The other thing, being a long time observer... FSU's discipline has turned 180 degrees. They used to be as competitive but spent too much time gooning which took them out of games.

I remember the goon teams from Ferris. The discipline of their recent teams is quite the contrast.

It was interesting to have a 3 vs. 4 match-up where both coaches have voiced this season that their teams are ranked higher than they should be. Michigan has played a lot of close games that could have gone either way, so it is hard to judge if this Ferris team is a serious national contender based on Wednesday's game. I think they will be the team to beat in the WCHA.

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I remember the goon teams from Ferris. The discipline of their recent teams is quite the contrast.

It was interesting to have a 3 vs. 4 match-up where both coaches have voiced this season that their teams are ranked higher than they should be. Michigan has played a lot of close games that could have gone either way, so it is hard to judge if this Ferris team is a serious national contender based on Wednesday's game. I think they will be the team to beat in the WCHA.

I alluded to that a little when I said I didn't know what kind of team Ferris really was coming in- mostly based on their schedule- but now we have a pretty good idea. (I actually had some troller baiting me in the blog comments because I was skeptical about FSU's SoS, which, surprisingly is on par with Michigan's SoS. Couldn't figure out what he hated more- Michigan, The Big Ten or life in general.) There is nothing wrong with leaning on their goaltending and they appear to have some dangerous wingers like Thompson and Schempp. Czarnowczan and Binkley are two outstanding d-men. Not a bad base to build from. I think I'd grab a favorite beverage and watch them play Minnesota or a HEA team like BC or UML to see how they stand up. I bet they'd stay right there with them- and that wouldn't be such a bad thing for Michigan. We've played a fair cross section of good to better teams in the first half and survived. I don't really see how one team in the country really stands out miles above anyone else. Minnesota and SCSU are really good and haven't played a soft schedule, so if we are in the same conversation along with a few of the east teams and Ferris... that is not a bad thing.

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

they let you sleep in the COY area? wow.

Funny, my initial reaction was that she was passed out from too much pre-gaming...

On retrospect all she would have to do would be go down to the north end of that sideline. It's quiet down there with plenty of room to stretch out...

***A side-note: A couple of Field Hockey players decided to sit by me (there were a couple of empty seats next to me and I was at center ice so I'm positive that I had nothing to do with that decision). We started talking and it came out that they were students to which I replied "Really? When I was a student I never would have sat anywhere other than with the students, it's too much fun over there." But I also rationalized that the current "student section" is a shell of the former "student sideline" when I was in school. I know this has been discussed ad nausea here but the ticket prices have a lot to do with that they said. It's over $20 a ticket now, It was $10.50 a game for me (and people were complaining about that).

streaker- I'm considering joining you in disliking AD Brandon solely for his money-grubbing ways... The ticket prices hurt the team as it majorly impacts what was once a terrific home-ice advantage.

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

streaker- I'm considering joining you in disliking AD Brandon solely for his money-grubbing ways... The ticket prices hurt the team as it majorly impacts what was once a terrific home-ice advantage.

I don't know Dave Brandon personally, so you can't say that I dislike him. What I dislike is the policies he has put in place, making the Michigan brand about $ and not about the experience. What I dislike even further is the exploitation of the Michigan reputation, using it to promote something (such as all the bravado around the football program) when it isn't backed up by the product on the field. I am really slogan-ed out. Using Bo's "the team" to promote his marketing gimmicks and his effort to raise $ for infrastructure improvements. Sooner or later the fanbase isn't going to accept it without results. The students have rightfully recognized it- although the reasons for their departure at Yost may be a little different.

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I don't know Dave Brandon personally, so you can't say that I dislike him. What I dislike is the policies he has put in place, making the Michigan brand about $ and not about the experience. What I dislike even further is the exploitation of the Michigan reputation, using it to promote something (such as all the bravado around the football program) when it isn't backed up by the product on the field. I am really slogan-ed out. Using Bo's "the team" to promote his marketing gimmicks and his effort to raise $ for infrastructure improvements. Sooner or later the fanbase isn't going to accept it without results. The students have rightfully recognized it- although the reasons for their departure at Yost may be a little different.

IMHO, the Yost deal has a lot to do with the product. Students are also displeased with the anti-profanity policy, I think that the students stance on that is wrong but that's just me. Finally, just like football the students have realized that they can stay home, watch the game on TV, get drunk, and "maybe" get laid so why spend over $400? Yes, the ticket prices need to come down to get the students back. A better product would help too, I mean look at bouncy-ball. Bouncy-ball over-sold student tickets and the reason for the abnormally high demand was the Final Four run (read a good team). The football team has been a major disappointment and that has reflected in student attendance, I'm sure that the price increases played a role in that too. He's done a fantastic job of upgrading the facilities but at the cost of ruining the college experience for many. I'm not calling for his head yet but if this keeps up...

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

IMHO, the Yost deal has a lot to do with the product. Students are also displeased with the anti-profanity policy, I think that the students stance on that is wrong but that's just me. Finally, just like football the students have realized that they can stay home, watch the game on TV, get drunk, and "maybe" get laid so why spend over $400? Yes, the ticket prices need to come down to get the students back. A better product would help too, I mean look at bouncy-ball. Bouncy-ball over-sold student tickets and the reason for the abnormally high demand was the Final Four run (read a good team). The football team has been a major disappointment and that has reflected in student attendance, I'm sure that the price increases played a role in that too. He's done a fantastic job of upgrading the facilities but at the cost of ruining the college experience for many. I'm not calling for his head yet but if this keeps up...

If students are upset over anti-profanity, then they need to grow up. It's not a freedom of speech issue. You buy a "license" to enter their premises, so you have to abide by their rules just as if you would at someone's home or at a place of worship. Besides, the chants are old and stale and uncreative now.
When I was younger I used to go to the comedy castle and places like that to see comics perform. Most would incorporate profanity into the act, but the funniest bits only used it as an enhancement, not as the main course. It loses its effect and doesn't take much genius to develop. The COY are trying to be more creative.

The main issue is the cost and, as a marketing man, DB is taking what the market is allowing. He'll know the saturation point at some time. The problem with his policies (like football) is that the product doesn't equal the price. Hockey is the most affordable ticket, though, and with hockey, fans are either devoted or they are not. It's hard to get them back if there are other alternatives. It's too bad because it is the best deal on campus. JMHO.

Frankly, I think the students would be there in droves if the administration wasn't at odds with them on their behavior. They simply priced them out of the arena and other fans have stepped in. That stinks from an atmosphere standpoint but solved another issue that gave Michigan's image a black eye. Maybe they'll relax their stance if the program ever suffers a long term downturn and the profits dry up.

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I thought that the "You're adopted" chant that was directed at CJ Motte Wednesday night was really good. And wT, what is the new word for the C-Ya chant?

 

[wolverineTrumpet]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I thought that the "You're adopted" chant that was directed at CJ Motte Wednesday night was really good. And wT, what is the new word for the C-Ya chant?

Which words do you know?

Ok, let's see how much of this gets * out.

The words added since I was in school are:
ski poler, shake weight, nipple twister (and only some have added this last one) dick socket


edit: ok, none of that has been * out. Let's see if I'm still posting in a few days.

 

[alfablue]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Just got a notification from my College Hockey News app that JT Compher got cut from the US team.

Now that bad news- over on Rivals, Spath is reporting that it's due to a foot injury he got blocking a shot during practice.

The worse news- rumors are that it's broken, and he will be out 4-6 weeks.

Gut check time for the team.

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Just got a notification from my College Hockey News app that JT Compher got cut from the US team.

Now that bad news- over on Rivals, Spath is reporting that it's due to a foot injury he got blocking a shot during practice.

The worse news- rumors are that it's broken, and he will be out 4-6 weeks.

Gut check time for the team.

Pretty much confirmed, at least 4 weeks. Feel bad for the kid since he was playing so well.

My guess is he'll be ready for the MSU weekend in January.

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Just got a notification from my College Hockey News app that JT Compher got cut from the US team.

Now that bad news- over on Rivals, Spath is reporting that it's due to a foot injury he got blocking a shot during practice.

The worse news- rumors are that it's broken, and he will be out 4-6 weeks.

Gut check time for the team.

Yea, I just got that too. As if we didn't have enough of a problem scoring...

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Which words do you know?

Ok, let's see how much of this gets * out.

The words added since I was in school are:
ski poler, shake weight, nipple twister (and only some have added this last one) dick socket


edit: ok, none of that has been * out. Let's see if I'm still posting in a few days.

I knew everything up until "nipple twister". Yea, I should have known "dick socket" as I could clearly see that hand gesture but I couldn't come up with it. Yea, I graduated the year before the c-sucker experiment began (and it took what 5 or 6 years to fully implement that phrase?). I was still hanging with the students, yea I was that old guy, for a couple of years after graduating before moving to Mid-Michigan. Well, I'm back in A2 now but I am way too old to go with the students anymore, I wouldn't really be able to blend in any more and the student section is so small now that it hardly seems worth it. Anyway, I can get seats in section 5/6, right behind the visitors penalty box but up high enough so I can see everything. There is no need for me to go back with the students with seats like those...

 

[kjaskolski]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I don't know Dave Brandon personally, so you can't say that I dislike him. What I dislike is the policies he has put in place, making the Michigan brand about $ and not about the experience. What I dislike even further is the exploitation of the Michigan reputation, using it to promote something (such as all the bravado around the football program) when it isn't backed up by the product on the field. I am really slogan-ed out. Using Bo's "the team" to promote his marketing gimmicks and his effort to raise $ for infrastructure improvements. Sooner or later the fanbase isn't going to accept it without results. The students have rightfully recognized it- although the reasons for their departure at Yost may be a little different.

I am with you 100 %. Take the basketball games as another example. I have been a b-ball season ticket holder (or my family has) for 36 years now. The game on Saturday was a circus/clown show from the beginning. There was no band (so he could sell addl seats), so it was a DJ format, the entire game was a non stop ad for something during the timeouts, and loud blaring music and repeated requests for more Noise throughout. I felt like i was at a Pistons game. The couple next to me were in from Arizona and they were asking me why it was so commericialed and why it really, to them, felt more like a professional game, than a college game. I think we are getting away from that at all three of the major sports venues for UM, and DB is always trying, IMO, to squeeze every last dollar out, at the expense of the overall happiness of his fanbase. Again, i know he has to fund all of the athletic sports from the Big 2 (with a little help from Hockey), but i feel like the atmosphere, especially at Yost has been impacted as a result. I have been going to hockey games for 16 years now, and the atmosphere and experience is WAY different from even 5 years ago. More of a corporate feel and more of a professional feel, rather than a collegiate event.

 

[wolverineTrumpet]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

I heard on the radio this morning that Compher is considered "week to week". I may have misheard though. I'd say if USA didn't want to gamble on it, count him out for the GLI. Even if it is 4 weeks, that only adds the games at Wisconsin for him to miss. Hopefully he heals quickly and is back to full strength. I've enjoyed watching him play so far this season.

I am with you 100 %. Take the basketball games as another example. I have been a b-ball season ticket holder (or my family has) for 36 years now. The game on Saturday was a circus/clown show from the beginning. There was no band (so he could sell addl seats), so it was a DJ format, the entire game was a non stop ad for something during the timeouts, and loud blaring music and repeated requests for more Noise throughout.

*clears throat* No comment.

I felt like i was at a Pistons game. The couple next to me were in from Arizona and they were asking me why it was so commericialed and why it really, to them, felt more like a professional game, than a college game.

This is what annoys me the most. I am a much bigger college sports fan than I am pro sports fan. Most of it is the atmosphere, pageantry, and the connection I feel to my alma mater. I have absolutely no interest in attending a Pistons game, and I'm starting to have no interest in attending a UM b-ball game.

You take away some of those great things about the college atmosphere, such as the marching band, and I may not have selected to go to school here. I saw the band when I was in 4th grade at a Rose Bowl pep rally, and knew I wanted to be in that band. Then there was a decent engineering school to attend, and I still loved Michigan football so despite being bribed to stay in state, I came to Ann Arbor.

I've only been to 2 NFL games ever. My second one was just this week seeing "my team" play. It was fun, but the passion just isn't equal for me. Contrast that to college football where I attend most home games, have been to ~10 away games and 7 bowl games. Although, the way this athletic department is being run, my passion is fading.

I can't remember who initially said it, but it rings true for me, "the more I'm treated like just a customer, the more I feel like just a customer". I'm really hoping next year's pathetic home football schedule causes some low sales (I'd say attendance, but let's be honest, it's sales that Brandon cares about). The prediciment I find myself in, is how do I still cheer for and support the teams - the coaches and student athletes, that I've come to love, without supporting the athletic department that I fear is ruining what I love?

 

[kjaskolski]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

"This is what annoys me the most. I am a much bigger college sports fan than I am pro sports fan. Most of it is the atmosphere, pageantry, and the connection I feel to my alma mater. I have absolutely no interest in attending a Pistons game, and I'm starting to have no interest in attending a UM b-ball game.
You take away some of those great things about the college atmosphere, such as the marching band, and I may not have selected to go to school here. I saw the band when I was in 4th grade at a Rose Bowl pep rally, and knew I wanted to be in that band. Then there was a decent engineering school to attend, and I still loved Michigan football so despite being bribed to stay in state, I came to Ann Arbor.

I've only been to 2 NFL games ever. My second one was just this week seeing "my team" play. It was fun, but the passion just isn't equal for me. Contrast that to college football where I attend most home games, have been to ~10 away games and 7 bowl games. Although, the way this athletic department is being run, my passion is fading.

I can't remember who initially said it, but it rings true for me, "the more I'm treated like just a customer, the more I feel like just a customer". I'm really hoping next year's pathetic home football schedule causes some low sales (I'd say attendance, but let's be honest, it's sales that Brandon cares about). The prediciment I find myself in, is how do I still cheer for and support the teams - the coaches and student athletes, that I've come to love, without supporting the athletic department that I fear is ruining what I love?

Indeed. I am a die hard fan of the three major sports at UM, and have been attending most every game for all three sports for years, and it is getting harder and harder to enjoy the game day atmosphere. I will never stop going to the football games, as it is an event every home saturday with the tailgate party with friends/family as a part of the day. But with the escalating ticket prices, and poor quality on the field, more than a few people I have spoken with or even in our "core" tailgate group are talking about dumping tickets, buying only for the games they want to attend, and just doing the tailgate thing.

For B-Ball, it has truly evolved into a professional setting, other than the maize rage. Crisler is a great place to see a game from an asthetic position, but IMO, the game day atmosphere is getting away from the collegiate atmosphere. Saturday's game was the pinnacle of that.

As for Yost, again, the renovations are nice, but the student involvement is now just the one half of the team bench side, there isn't that loud sustained noise level throughout the arena any longer. The band and students are great, and they actually make the experience pretty good overall. All in all, i would say the Hockey games are the most collegiate atmosphere still, as the band pretty much plays the entire game, and there is not a lot of piped in music. But, the overall atmosphere is down, as are the overall # of students who attend and the total attendance numbers are down from where they used to be as well.

Oh yeah, and then Brandon signs another one of those neuteral site one off games to kick off the 2017 season with Florida. The cost is high to attend (I went to the Alabama game last season). In the meantime, we get a slate next year at home with the headliner game being a mediocre Penn State Team. How about lining up a big time home/home? And, i wonder if he will cry poor again and require a donor to pony up to get the band to be able to attend.

 

[UMICH]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

A NY Times article contrasting Canadian Junior's versus the NCAA. Boo is featured in this article, pretty cool actually.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/20/s...220&adxnnlx=1387529497-JF/WkWX2ofPrxu /OeYWaA

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Tyler Motte was the last cut off of the WJT team USA roster. A minor injury kept him out of both overseas exhibitions and, based on inferences from coach Don Lucia, the roster requires more size and strength. Motte is one of the smaller forwards that tried out. It will be debatable if we see him at the GLI at this point.

 

[UMICH]

Tyler Motte was the last cut off of the WJT team USA roster. A minor injury kept him out of both overseas exhibitions and, based on inferences from coach Don Lucia, the roster requires more size and strength. Motte is one of the smaller forwards that tried out. It will be debatable if we see him at the GLI at this point.

Was he there? I didn't see him/hear his name (of course you really couldn't see anything at the game).

 

[streaker]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2013-14 Season Thread: The B1G Time

Was he there? I didn't see him/hear his name (of course you really couldn't see anything at the game).

Yes he played and obviously so did Compher. If only our defense showed up.

 

[alfablue]

Yes he played and obviously so did Compher. If only our defense showed up.

Sigh.