Michigan sucks at football
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by Suckatsports
I saw the loss, and I had an immediate reaction. So what really happened in Michigan yesterday? For the record, I'm not a Michigan fan, in fact I'm an OSU fan.
As I'm sitting at the game ( OSU vs. YSU), I'm watching the score, Appalachian State is up almost the entire game, and I'm torn on how I feel. No matter the result yesterday, Michigan is the far superior team in talent; that's what makes this loss so inexcusable. Do I really want them to lose? It would make the Big 10 the laughing stock of college football, this is the kind of loss that will resonate with the league and all of its contingency. On the other hand, I really don't like Michigan, so how greatly would a loss humiliate that program. The result of course did the work for me.
This doesn't happen in college football, it just doesn't. There's too many moving parts that all have to fall in place. The stars have to align, and the other team has to be caught so surprised that they never recover, and it all happened. This isn't the first time a 1-AA team has ever beaten a 1-A team, but there's never been a more grand stage to do it on. The first thing that came into my mind, is that this is the most shocking loss/win (all depends on your perspective) in college football history. I stand by it, I think this is a severely damaging loss to a program with a pristine history, save the last 5 years. Lloyd no longer has his swan song to walk out to.
The worst part for Michigan is that this was no fluke. Did anyone else see flashes of Troy Smith running through the Michigan defense when Armanti Edwards took off? There's been one thing that's been able to consistently beat Michigan - the moving quarterback. Troy Smith, Vince Young, and Armanti Edwards all single-handedly brought the always-vaunted Michigan Defense to its knees. Not to adjust to this after 3 years is all kinds of embarrassing.
Sure, if they play 50 times again Michigan wins no less than 49 of them, but that's only because they'll be ready. The truth is, Appalachian State didn't get some sort magical last second play, the diligently moved the ball all day, they had a plan and it worked. Michigan on the other hand, was never prepared mentally, and that edge is hard to regain when you come into a game thinking your second-best effort will get the job done (see: Ohio State vs. Florida 2006). It just doesn't look like Ron English was the genius everyone said he was last year.
There's not one part of UM that wasn't at fault that night, or the following morning. The coaches were out coached, the players were out played, and the fans were out... fanned. And that's why I don't put everything on Carr's head; he won't be fired, but he won't be there next year. There's no reason the players, with such superior - if young - talent couldn't get to the quarterback, couldn't shake loose a defender, couldn't make just one more play better than Appalachian State. Above that, this is the first time UM has even played a 1-AA opponent, that in itself is equally embarrassing - same goes for OSU.
If that doesn't sting enough, here's something I'm sure we've all already seen, but it really brings the point home.
Best of the Rest. Besides this shocker, there were plenty of other good games this Saturday, and it was great to sit by the TV all day.
California out muscled Tennessee in a high scoring game in Berkeley. During the first quarter, I thought the prevailing thought would be the physical play of the SEC once again dominating the finesse offenses of the Pac 10. I'm glad this didn't happen to feed the SEC Football ego.
Texas had a much close game against Arkansas State then anyone could have ever imagined. I wasn't able to watch it because of what it was, but that's scary. Maybe the rebuilt defense without Gene Chizik may hold the team back more than we thought.
Auburn got away with one over Kansas State. They were lucky to win this game, even though they were completely outplayed, and out gained. To their credit, the made the big plays when they needed to, and the home crowd was the difference. What's Michael Wilbon doing on the sidelines?
Virginia Tech had an emotion [barely win over ECU]. I chalk that up just to the sheer amount of teams that went through that campus in the last couple of months. The defense led the way, but the offense brought up the rear.
Wisconsin over Washington State was one of the most entertaining games of the afternoon. I knew this was going to be no cakewalk, but Washington State really punched Badgy the Badger in the mouth to open the game. Tyler Donovan looked really good, and Wisconsin looked like the most complete and best team in the Big 10.
Georgia Tech embarrassed Notre Dame in South Bend. This couldn't have gone any better for everyone that hates the Golden Dome - like I do. All quarterbacks looked horrible on the ND sideline, and maybe Charley Weis isn't the genius those blinded by the light called him to be.
To wrap things up, there's a great amount of response to this Michigan debacle, and some are ready to live up to it. But what's with mgoblog? He took the site down! It's not technical issues, it's personal issues.
Appalachian State gets released from Big House [SI.com] Week 1 CFB scores [SI.com] '
Like what you read? This post is cross-published from We Suck at Sports.
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