Football + Music = ???

We're barely a week away from actual football returning, and next week we'll have actual football content here. For me, the return of football also means it's time for me to create a new mix CD to listen to while driving to Ann Arbor. I did that for the first time last year and we went 7-0 at home, so QED. This is the 2006 Game Day mix:

1. Sleater-Kinney – The Fox
2. AC/DC – Back in Black
3. Neko Case – Hold On, Hold On
4. The White Stripes – Seven Nation Army
5. The Gossip – Listen Up
6. Björk – Army of Me
7. M.I.A. – Galang
8. Idlewild – Roseability
9. Nirvana – In Bloom
10. REM – Orange Crush
11. Franz Ferdinand – This Fire
12. Mirah – Light the Match
13. Pavement – Summer Babe (Winter Version)
14. Sonic Youth – Teen Age Riot
15. Lucinda Williams – Out of Touch
16. The Black Keys – Girl Is On My Mind
17. The Clash – Brand New Cadillac
18. Sleater-Kinney – Jumpers
19. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps
20. Michigan Marching Band – The Victors (Trio)

Several tracks are tributes to other universities. "This Fire" is for Ohio State, "Teen Age Riot" is for MSU, and "Light the Match" is for West Virginia. "Brand New Cadillac" is for Oklahoma, even if it was a Kia dealership that got them in trouble. And I realize now that I should've saved "Orange Crush" for this year, but hindsight is 20/20.

Now it's time to reload for 2007, which I'll be posting next week as soon as I've decided what's going on there. Any ideas, add them in the comments.

No Ned, No Justice

We here at the Hoover Street Rag rarely stray from our focus on Michigan athletics and our beloved marching band, but there are times when it is necessary, nay demanded. Such a time is now. A'Mod Ned, the be-crutched FIU combatant in the Battle of the Orange Bowl, is up for the Deadspin Hall of Fame, and the vote is very close indeed. We are staunch supporters of this American hero, and we urge you to vote early and often. Remember: No Ned, No Justice.

On Maize

HSR details the history of Michigan football season t-shirt design and its effects on the football program.

ON SHIRT DESIGN

Back in 2003, the athletic department offered the chance for students to design a t-shirt for the football season. The incentives were obvious for both sides: Free labor for the U, a chance to make a buck (you don't hate supporting Michigan, do you?) and a portfolio boost for the winner.

The 2003 student-designed season football shirt got the program off to an excellent start, with its now-iconic winged helmet logo, the flashy-but-still-traditional block lettering, the old-school thin block M, and the Space-Bitches list of football facts on the back. The 2004 shirt took a step backward with its absurd lowercase sans serif font and blurry abstraction of a running back (the exact opposite of the iconic graphic from 2003).
The 2005 shirt had an oddly cropped oil painting on the back, but at least the front had an appropriate image and font. Although they took the design out of the students' hands for 2006, that season shirt returned to its proper maize roots. Unfortunately, the listing of University stats on the back made it sound like a collaboration between Nike and the Alumni Association. When I'm traveling the country on road games, sharing the fact that UM has students from 80 countries is not going to convince anyone our football team is great. 2007's shirt is nothing exciting, with a decent logo and just the home games on the back. It doesn't do anything wrong, either, though. Except that it has "Appalachian State Mountaineers" listed among our opponents, which is weird because they're a I-AA team, and Michigan doesn't schedule them. I'll have to contact Bill Martin about that one. ON BLUE

The University started promoting color unification with the 2002 with a "Blue Out" against MSU and "Maize Out" for the Penn State game. However, selling a blue season shirt or encouraging people to wear anything besides maize (jerseys are the one exception) is a terrible idea that should never have happened. Here's why.

1. The 2005 season shirt should never have been blue.

The designer submitted a maize shirt, which, after it became University property, was announced as the winning design... on a blue shirt. They pulled it out from under her. After enough backlash, the athletic department held a poorly publicized vote to determine the winning color. A whole 3,000 people voted in it and blue somehow won by 100 votes.

Of course, this vote was based on something that shouldn't have been an issue in the first place. The t-shirt design contest information packet said "the color of the shirt will be designated by the submitter," which means we were free to choose the color. The winning design was submitted as a maize shirt and then it got mutilated (with the swoosh added and the color changed). The athletic department had no intentions of letting the winner pick the color; they wanted a blue shirt all along.

2. "Blue Outs" have always sucked.

Aside from the entire 2005 season, presumably a year-long Blue Out because of that year's shirt, we've had two officially titled, publicized, big game Blue Outs: 2002 vs MSU and 2005 vs Notre Dame. Here are the results.
Yawn.

The goal of the blue shirts, we were told, was to "unite the team with the student body." Which is not accomplished by darkening the student section. Blue is dark, maize is bright. On top of that, not nearly enough people participated, so it extrasucked.

Even if it had succeeded in draping everyone in blue, it wouldn't have been impressive. You could smear mud on everyone in the section and they'd be 'uniform,' but they'd still all be smeared in mud. The goal should be to stand out in one united block. Notre Dame's student section wears an unnatural shade of green that stands out. When they all wore it, it looked awesome, so the project was a success even though it didn't match the team uniforms. Well, that and their constant cheering and perfect interaction with the band.

Consider some maize out pictures.
Penn State in 2002:
Penn State in 2005: Michigan State in 2006:

3. Consider the team's records for games in which maize was either the season's shirt color, or the promoted "* Out" color.

In maize shirts: 2002 vs. PSU, 2003, 2004, 2006 seasons, 2005 vs. PSU: 22-0
In blue shirts: 2005 season, 2002 vs. MSU: 4-3

22-0 vs. 4-3. Correlation doesn't equal causation, but Q.E.D. Please wear maize, or whatever that color Steve & Barry's makes, inside the stadium.

The HSR Guide for Incoming Freshmen: The Michigan Football Fan

We at the Hoover Street Rag want to make sure that the Michigan Class of 2011 is well served by the Michigan blog community, and we have decided to write up a few guides for incoming freshmen. We're not saying that they are perfect, complete, or even totally accurate, but we're hoping we can do what we can to ease the transition.

0). A presumption.

It is a presumption that this guide will make that we are speaking to the incoming freshmen to Michigan who is not well-versed in Michigan lore and tradition. If you grew up following the Maize and Blue and knowing that you wanted to go to Michigan, this guide is not aimed at you (however, we encourage you to submit additions and corrections to us in the comments section.) We're also presuming that if you're taking time to read this that you're actually going to care about Michigan football.

1). Your Saturdays for the first semester of school are gone.

At some point during your freshman year, you're going to think to yourself "Hey, it's OK, I can just put this off to the weekend." No. You can't. You can probably get away with putting some things off until Sunday, but for eight of the first twelve Saturdays of your college life, you're going to be staring down a game at the Big House and that is a full day affair. Similarly, you're going to find out that even though you'll likely be done by 3:30 in terms of the game, standing and watching for three and a half hours takes way more out of you than you think. You're likely going to end up going back to your room, chilling out, getting some dinner, and watching ABC Saturday Night College Football. I have to say, this is not the worst way to go. Road games give you a little more leeway, but remember to find the person with the biggest television possible and make friends with the immediately. It's as important as making friends with the guy/girl who has the car and the parking permit.

We also need to mention that in looking at the schedule, the very likely possibility of the three straight 3:30 starts in September are absolutely going to demolish your day, even more so than usual. You'll end up sleeping later, you'll kill some more time before the game, and be absolutely exhausted by the time the game's over to the point where you will get back to your room and crash, even if you wanted to watch the late game.

2). You need a Saturday game plan.

As most games start at noon, you're going to need to get up no later than 9:00 AM, you're going to want to make sure you know the weekend bus schedule (Bursleyites, we're looking at you. It's a total rookie mistake, one we made ourselves) and you'll want to be on Central Campus no later than 11:00 AM. Why? Because part of the joy of game day at Michigan is just soaking in the atmosphere, taking in the festival of sorts that happens on campus.

You're going to want to make sure you eat breakfast (even something light) and especially for the early season games, you're going to make sure you need to hydrate and that you wear sun block. (Do not fool yourself, just because the calendar says September that sun beats down upon you like it’s the middle of July. Very rarely do you get a September game with cloud cover, last year's Central Michigan game notwithstanding.)

You need to make sure you have a spot where you're going to meet up with your seatmates so you can all head in together (strength in numbers, especially if you have squatters.) This, admittedly, is much easier in the era of cell phones than it was nigh on a decade ago, but still, it's good to have a starting point. We recommend the steps of the Michigan Union, the bus shelter right next to the steps (if you don't want to get into the masses), or the ATM on the north side of the intersection of Packard and State. Your decision will likely come based on a calculation of where all of you reside.

(Geoff would like it noted, and I do second it: Anyone who gets to the stadium after the band has taken the field deserves to be tarred and feathered. Period.)

Your Saturday game plan will evolve. You're going to meet people; you’re going to figure out things that work better for you and things that didn't work. But you need to go in to this with some kind of plan to start with.

3). Game day rituals.

This is mostly about the nature of fandom, so some of you may find this utterly silly, but bear with me. If you have something lucky, you must wear it to every game until Michigan loses in your presence. The student shirt does not count, because everyone is expected to wear that. It just has to be something that you do that gets into the luck run. We're not saying you, specifically, will be the reason that Michigan's dreams of an undefeated season come to an end, but do you want that lingering suspicion in the back of your mind that it was your fault. (Note: this does not apply to away games.)

4). Don't do anything stupid.

Forgive us for sounding a little paternalistic here, but we like to think it's more about the voice of experience ringing through. You're going to be getting your first true taste of freedom in college, and well, there is a tendency to confuse that freedom with the right to do something utterly stupid. We don't recommend it. We've seen far too many people do stupid things in their lives in college which they would come to later regret. Now, are we saying you shouldn't have any fun, no, not at all. What we're saying is that you should not think just because you can do a thing that it necessarily follows that you must do that thing. Don't let your friends talk you in to doing something you don't want to do, if you have to be the voice of reason for your group, so be it. To wit, do you really want to be the guy/girl who left the '04 MSU game because all his friends wanted to get ready for a party? There will be other parties, there will not be other comebacks like that. (There are other higher level examples here, many involving illicit activity, but we'll leave it to the reader's fertile imagination to see where we're going with this.)

We know damn well we sound like old men here, but we just don’t like the idea of regret and Michigan football being tied together.

Lastly, we realize that we're just a couple of "old guys", and we probably don't "get it". So we'd like to encourage any of you reading to post your own tips in the comments section.

The Hoover Street Rag Presents: A Guide For Incoming Freshmen (Band Week Edition)

Summer is coming to its usual shockingly early end, and the end is so near that freshmen will be reporting to Revelli Hall only one week from today. Only seven days till Band Week! With that in mind, Jeremy has helped me come up with some suggestions for those about to embark on their first year with the MMB.

Training
If you've just been sitting around eating Cheetos this summer, you're about to pay for it. The days when you have three marching rehearsals are going to be deeply unkind to you, and there's not a lot you can do to alter your fate at this point. However, anything you do will help at least a little. Running is a good idea, cycling helps too. Any aerobic activity will help you out. Just make sure you arrive well-rested on Tuesday.

We're Talking About Practice
Learn the audition music now, not the night before you have to perform. The airless closets in the dorm basements misleadingly described as "practice rooms" will not work miracles for you. As a very beneficial side effect, the multiple music rehearsals each day won't wear you out as easily.

Equipment
Your most valuable piece of equipment isn't going to be the Yamaha issued to you by the band, but a pair of broken-in tennis shoes with good support. The asphalt out on Elbel Field is going to be your home, and it doesn't have a lot of give to it. Even worse is the reserve field with its wicked lumpiness, just looking to roll your ankle. Even apart from that, you'll be walking to and from the dorm to Revelli Hall, up to the Union or wherever for lunch, and around campus whenever you have a free moment. Only slightly behind shoes on the list goes sunscreen. You can end up with a really wicked sunburn out there if you aren't careful, especially if you're fair-skinned.

Food, Water, Etc.
Obviously you're going to want to stay hydrated, and the MMB does a good job about giving enough water breaks when the weather is hot. Many people bring their own water, and that usually was fine for me for the first couple of hours, but then the water in the bottles went from "tepid" to "soup", and I turned to what is called The Trough. The Trough isn't actually a trough, per se, but a metal pipe with holes in it which is set on a stand and hooked to a hose. It may taste a little rusty, but it's exactly what you're looking for when it's 92 degrees and you've just gone through traditional step by the numbers for the 16th time. Always drink more water than you think you need.

Also, don't go crazy at lunch or dinner. Remember that you're going to have to march again soon enough, so you need some more fuel, but not so much as to weigh you down. I never really had too much trouble, but I know some friends who deeply regretted overindulging at Blimpy Burger. And drinking more water at lunch is generally a good idea.

Punctuality
This maxim from William Revelli will be drilled into your head soon enough: "To be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late, to be late is to be forgotten." Get everywhere at least ten minutes early and you should be just fine. You'll need the extra time to get your music out, your gloves on, and to warm up. And if you have to get your instrument before heading to Elbel Field, make it more like 25.

Other stuff to keep in mind:

• Make friends with your rank leaders. They usually know a lot of people in the band, and sometimes they have cars. It's hard for a director to know everyone, especially someone brand new to the band, so Boerma will likely depend heavily on the grad staff, the section leaders, and the rank leaders when it comes time for auditions.
• Don't stress over First Look. Yes, it's the first marching/playing audition to determine who makes performance block for the game, but don't sweat it too badly. You've been in the band for such a short time when it happens that it often comes down to luck and the wisdom of crowds. There are plenty of people who are put in the reserves after First Look but end up making block for the rest of the year.
• Learn the traditional songs and memorize them immediately. The top 8, in order of importance: "The Victors", "Let's Go Blue", "Cheer #1", "Temptation", "Varsity", "The Star-Spangled Banner", "Hawaiian War Chant", "Respect", "The Yellow and Blue". Figure out the different arrangements of "The Victors" (Parking Lot, Trio, Pre-Game, etc.) and learn the part of "Temptation" played before 4th down first.
• Get your computer set up as soon as possible. So much intra-band communication depends on email that you're going to miss something if you're not at least catching up in the computer lab.
• Partying during Band Week is a very, very bad idea. The alcohol will already have you dehydrated before practice drains you further, landing you in a special kind of hell with your hangover as you pound your legs down during high step. No one will be sympathetic. Some may point and laugh.
• The medical staff is there for a reason. Make use of them if you get injured, and get yourself taped before practice rather than trying to tough it out. Stretching every night before you go to bed will also make your mornings that much easier.
• Make sure you meet the people on your hall in the dorm. It's easy to ignore them with all the things going on with the band, but you're going to live with these people for 8 months and you might want someone to eat lunch with when February rolls around.
• This isn't really a Band Week suggestion, but bring a winter coat. That first 40-degree day in October will come much sooner than you expect, and you're going to be out there for an hour and a half.

It's that time of year.

In 1952, George Cavender was named the new assistant director of the Michigan Marching Band, and he would remain at Michigan until 1975. Among the members trying out for membership this year was H. Robert Reynolds, who eventually became Director of Bands. This was the letter Cavender sent out 55 years ago today.

HSR Field Trip: CDB goes to the BTN Open House

Last week, the Michigan Athletic Department sent out a mass mail announcing that there would be an Open House at the Junge Family Champions Center with regard to the launch of the Big Ten Network. Since I have nothing but time during the summer, and probably won't get another legitimate chance to see the Junge Family Champions Center, I decided to go. I present to you my report on today's events. (Disclaimer: I am NOT a journalist by trade. I am an historian. What this means for you is that a). I didn't have a digital audio recorder, so there will be no direct quotations in this article. b). I will do my best to work from my nine pages worth of notes to get you the gist of what was said.

Arriving early, as I am wont to do, I park very close to the soccer field, soon to be the site of Newsterbaan, in the hopes of avoiding being ticketed for parking in the Orange Lot without a permit. Seriously, I parked like a quarter mile away from the doors. I arrived roughly 20 minutes before the slated 12:45 start time, where I will soon learn that that is a suggested start time.

12:50...Start pondering the universal truth of the Tom Petty statement regarding the waiting being the hardest part. Hey, there's Jamie Morris! (Quick note: On my way out, I got to say hello to him and shake his hand, which was a big thrill for me.)

12:55...There's Bruce Madej, Michigan Associate AD for Media Relations, filling in for Bill Martin. He notes that this is a wonderful chance for the general public to hear what Jim Delany, Big Ten commissioner, and Mark Silverman, President of the Big Ten Network, have to say. He goes on to note that the big question on everyone's mind is Comcast. He knows that, everyone knows that. He wants everyone to know that the Michigan Athletic Department is completely behind the Big Ten Network, noting that with the increased difficulty in getting the department's message into the media, in particular positive stories about Michigan's 700 student athletes, a group which has a grade point average above a "B" and that features a number of truly exceptional people beyond just their athletic prowess. Mr. Madej also notes that while the Big Ten Network will get those stories out there, they will be approaching things from a news stand point, so there will not be a whitewashing of news by the BTN about Big Ten schools.

12:57...The Mayor of Ann Arbor, John Hieftje, steps to the podium to present a pair of proclamations to Commissioner Delany and Mr. Silverman. The essence of the proclamation includes nods to the meaning of the Big Ten universities to their communities, the Big Ten Network's stated mission of coverage equality for men's and women's sports, it's promotion of "heartland values" (he honestly said that, both the city of Ann Arbor proclamation AND the state of Michigan proclamation said "heartland values" in them. It was so damn earnest.)

Bruce comes back up to the podium to introduce a pair of Michigan coaches to get their thoughts on the Big Ten Network. First up, Debbie Rademacher, Michigan's women's soccer coach. She makes a sound reinforcement of the case for the positive stories about Michigan student-athletes, and similarly, the quality of competition of underexposed sports, such as women's soccer, moving from two games a year on Comcast Local to a much larger potential exposure through BTN.

Next up, hey, it's new Michigan's men's basketball coach John Beilein! He notes that part of the reason that he chose to come to Michigan was that not only is there a wealth of talent regionally which is familiar with the Michigan name, but that the Block M carries meaning on a national level, and that students he talks to from California to Texas to Florida know what it Michigan is all about. He knows that the Big Ten Network will only serve to expand that reach. Statistically, he noted that while he was at West Virginia, they were on national TV five times. During that same period, Michigan was on national TV 79 times. He also notes that the Big Ten Network will mean 33% more exposure for the program as well. (As a side note, I enjoyed my first Beilein experience. He clearly has an ease with the press, and just enough of a Southern accent that comes and goes to make you feel at ease with him. It's a good first impression.)

Back to Mr. Madej, who notes that Michigan basketball was not on television 10 times last season In addition to that, 11 games were only broadcast in regional syndication. What the Big Ten Network means is 21 additional games for Michigan on national TV, all of them in HD.

1:10...Ladies and gentlemen, it's Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany. He notes that he and Mr. Silverman just came from Iowa, where they ran into Barack and Hillary campaigning, and in a way, that's what they are doing, campaigning for something they truly believe in. He then notes that there have been two very major differences in this negotiation than in all of the others he has done as Big Ten commissioner in 18 years. Firstly, it has been a very public negotiation (i.e. with Comcast) and that has presented new obstacles. For instance, when negotiating with ABC/ESPN, it has all been behind closed doors, and while those negotiations have been contentious as well, all the average fan sees is the finished product on the screen. He notes that the Big Ten has gone from 18 football games on television in 1989 to 67 games last years and that there were those who were concerned that this would affect attendance at games. Attendance has moved from an average of 57,000 per game in 1989 to 71,000 last season. (Note: I was impressed by this figure until I pondered it for a moment. If I have done the math correctly, the average attendance increase for the ten members of the Big Ten in 1989 is roughly 4,000 fans per school, with he addition of Penn State accounting for an additional 110,000 fans for each of their four Big Ten home games. Also worth noting that Michigan and Ohio State have both added seating in recent renovations, Michigan adding over 5,000 and at least 7,500 seats to Ohio Stadium. So it's impressive yes, but not as impressive as it sounded on first blush.) Commissioner Delany went on to note that in the recent negotiation with ABC/ESPN, the Big Ten held the line on No Thursday Night Football, no expansion of games offered on ESPN 360 or ESPNU, and it was noted that it is getting harder and harder to find channels willing to carry syndicated regional broadcasts for basketball. He also noted that as a part of that recent negotiation, the Big Ten "got back" over 4,200 classic basketball and football games from ESPN, including bowl games, which they will be making available the Big Ten Network and their cable partners.

The second difference in these negotiations is that there is always high interest for the Big Ten product, and that if they don't like they're hearing about basketball from say, CBS, they can always walk across the street and talk to ABC, or if they don't like what they are hearing about the football coverage from ABC, NBC will happily take a meeting with them. They have options. However, that isn't how cable works. If they don't like what they are hearing from, say, Comcast, they can walk across the street and...get a hot dog and a Coke. (This line elicited way more laughter than it should have. I understood the point, I guess the comedy bar was just very low in this crowd.) The problem is very simply explained: The Big Ten feels that the Big Ten Network is a network that will be of a very high interest to the communities and that it is easily among the 70 most desirable networks on cable. They have channels for jewelry, animals, shopping, and food, and no one seems to complain, even if there is limited interest, and that the Big Ten network easily will generate greater interest than much more niche channels. Comcast disagrees with this assessment, and that's where we stand today. Commissioner Delany also noted that 90% of all negotiations get done in the last 5% of the time before the deadline.

With that, Commissioner Delany introduces Mr. Mark Silverman, noting "He was out #1 draft choice." There was a run here about "What about July, what are you going to do with July?" and Mr. Silverman, who has a background at A&E and the History Channel, said that July will be the time for original programming to shine and if they can't make it work by drawing from the rich history, heritage, and tradition of the Big Ten, he doesn't deserve his job. Mr. Silverman goes on to note that he's a Michigan grad and states that the question that has been foremost in his mind has been "How can we best serve Michigan fans?" He notes that the BTN will have over 60 Michigan games, increased visibility for women's sports, variety that cannot be topped in today's marketplace. He also goes on to discuss the excitement about the classic Big Ten games that they will be showing, starting on Opening Night (August 30) with a Big Ten football preview, and then their first classic game...2006 Michigan vs. Ohio State (wonderful, so much like ESPN Classic, it seems like the Big Ten Network will revel in showing when Michigan fails.) He also notes that there will be a nightly studio show which will focus on student-athletes from the 11 schools, with each school having a mini studio on campus to increase the availability and presence of student athletes and coaches to this nightly show. This narrower focus will allow for greater depth and will showcase the core Midwestern values that are a major part of the Big Ten. In that vein, there will be no alcohol advertising on the network, no beer advertising, no gambling ads, and no informercials (OK, the last part made me smile.), and then asked how many times when you turn on one of those 70 extended basic channels at night or on a weekend is one of them showing an informerical? The Big Ten Network will also have an internship program which will have 10 students from each campus per semester working on the BTN, providing them valuable real-world experience in the television field.

That brings us to the question of distribution. There are LOTS of negotiations currently going on, and again, deals on this kind of thing get done very late. Or as Mr. Silverman put it "very, very, very, very late." Mr. Silverman also noted that if he has his way, he would prefer not to be negotiating, but that is not the case. It is the position of the network that it should be broadly distributed on extended basic. Not on a sports tier, not on digital. It should be part of your 70 basic channels you get with your monthly cable bill. He went on to note that the Network is willing to negotiate on every single other point but they will not move on the extended basic part. Mr. Silverman noted that they have 70 deals done with cable operators, that DirectTV and AT&T Cable are on board and that they are close with several other operators.

(Just a quick side note: I was deeply impressed by Mr. Silverman. I have never met anyone who is as smooth as he is. He stayed on point and on message during his entire discussion, never once got emotional, and made his case as rationally and as eloquently as possible.)

The essential point he hoped people would take away is that there is no other network that has this level of relevance that is on a sports tier. To wit, CSS (Comcast Sports Southeast) has six million subscribers with basic carriage. It carries no live football and a minimum of live SEC or ACC basketball. While there is nothing else like the Big Ten Network out there, all they are asking for is to be treated like everyone else. This is why concerned fans need to call their cable operators or the Big Ten Network's 866 number.

With that, there was some brief Q&A time:

A quick summary.

* I was able to ask about the 60 hours a year of university content that each member school is allocated, and whether or not that had to be non-athletic and what the plans were for the production. Mr. Silverman very politely pointed out that they feel that will be another strength of the Big Ten Network, able to focus on the quality of the academic programs that are a part of each Big Ten school.

* In response to cost concerns, Mr. Silverman wanted it noted that it is the goal of the Big Ten Network not to cost cable customers one cent more, in part by providing unique potential revenue streams, especially with local advertising. It is figured that a Michigan football game, for example, will be the highest rated program for its time period in the state of Michigan. That will create huge potential revenue streams in local advertising for cable operators. Mr. Silverman broke down that it is roughly 1/3 of the customer's cable bill is the company's cost, 1/3 is debt servicing for infrastructure investment, and 1/3 is profit. Oh and by the way, Comcast announced record profits last week, in case you hadn't heard. The Big Ten Network as also offering their HD network at no cost to the operators, which could be placed as an expanded offering in their HD tier, which generally goes for $6-10 a month.

* With regard to classic Big Ten programming, again over 4,200 basketball and football games. Some will be shown in their entirety, others will be two hour pre-production efforts which will include additional interviews with players, coaches, and the like. The plan is currently two classic Big Ten games a week.

* One questioner asked: Why not just give it away until it proves its worth? Mr. Silverman very politely replied that it's just not how it's done, and again, the Big Ten Network knows that there is value to what it is offering. It will be one of the largest television launches in history already, and hopefully, will get largest as we move through August.

* Can we get a phone number so we can talk to a real person at Comcast, which leads to a joke about the negotiation process which was funny, but because I cannot remember it in whole, I won't run with it.

Overall Impressions and Questions I am left to ponder:

I give major credit to this Open House and Commissioner Delany and Mr. Silverman for saying all the right things and making me feel that the Big Ten Network is laden with potential.

The library of 4,200 classic games astounds me, and I'll be interested to see how that rotation works.

The question I wanted to ask but couldn't figure out a way to do it without sounding potentially sexist:

It was very clear from the discussion today as well as the earlier comments from Commissioner Delany that women's athletics will play a major role on the network and will be treated as equals. The contracts obviously favor greatest access to women's sports. However, experience tells us that women's sports do not always draw the ratings numbers. Is this commitment to women's sports a long-term goal, or will adjustments be made as the data comes in? After all, as it was noted, television is, first and foremost, a business.

There was very little discussion about reaching the Big Ten alumni outside the footprint who do not have DirectTV. I think that right now, the focus is on winning the battle inside the footprint first. (So, sorry Will, your Illini will likely stay out of your reach for now.)

I do have some fears about the quality of the production, but I heard the phrase "every game in HD" so often, I no longer care.

This is going to come down to the wire, but I do ultimately think it will get done.

I did not get a parking ticket. Thank you Michigan campus security for your willingness to overlook my lack of parking permit.

Thank you for your time and I will be happy to field any questions you might have in the comments.

CDB

Lloyd "B-Rabbit" Carr

On Media Day, Shawn Crable shows the kind of thinking that makes him the anchor of this year's linebacking corps. Photo taken by Daniel Mears of the Detroit News.

MMB 2007 Shows

2007 Halftime Shows:

M vs. Appalachian State: "Vegas!" Show
M vs. Oregon: "Beach Boys" Show
M vs. Notre Dame: "Guitar Hero" Show
M vs. Penn State: "Bobby Darin" Show
M vs. Eastern Michigan: "Detroit Rock City" Show
M vs. Purdue (Homecoming): "Glenn Miller" Show (plus 50th Anniversary of Jerry Bilik's "Hawaiian War Chant")
M vs. Minnesota: "Modern Broadway" Show
M @ Michigan State: "Modern Broadway" repeated
M vs. Ohio State: "Cirque du Soleil" Show

So we get to hear music from the 1960s, 1960s, probably 1980s (since Nix is arranging it), 1960s, 1960s/70s, 1950s, then Wicked and Cirque du Soleil. Initial reaction: Huh? Plus obvious disappointment that Boerma didn't arrange HOT! HOT! HOT!.

Not much variety there, but there is some potential for great things. Obviously the Guitar Hero show is the student-pleaser, continuing a tradition of catering straight to the students at least once a year (see 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean skull & crossbones set, 2004 Cartoon show w/Mario, 2005 Bohemian Rhapsody and Monty Python, 2006 Patrick Stewart appearance). The Guitar Hero show could be fantastic depending on how many visual gags are incorporated into the drill.

Hopefully they'll play "The Internet is for Porn" from Avenue Q in the Modern Broadway show as well.

HSR Summer Round-up: Playing Harbaugh

It's summer time, and while the news has not stopped coming out of Ann Arbor, we haven't always been right on top of it. We here at HSR are OK with that, Brian at MGoBlog does it better than we ever could hope to, so we're not fretting that you, the Michigan fan, are not getting your recommended daily allowance.
However, there are some things that have come up which, while not worthy of a whole post, I wanted to discuss. So, with that in mind, I present CDB's Summer Round-up.
1). Michigan's new deal with adidas.

Honestly, more surprising than anything else, but as more details come out about it, including the "most favored school" clause and the $6.5 million signing bonus, the more I feel like Bill Martin's experience as a businessman served the athletic department well here. As a fan of uniforms, I also like the sense that adidas will not see Michigan as a laboratory for its sartorial experiments. Rather, I think adidas views Michigan as a brand and a tradition which, if respected, will bring more value to their brand. While leafing through the recent Eastbay catalog, I did note some questionable adidas gear, it was nowhere near as frequent (or as horrifying) as Nike's efforts. (The coach's shirt this season is, interesting, to say the least.) Only time will tell, but a return to the striped sleeves on the away football jerseys that were a mainstay of the 1980s and 1990s would be a nice start. (This is only personal preference, but there's something in me as a Michigan fan that loves that the winged helmet and block M on the pants are the only things the uniform needs to say "We are Michigan." Think about the "classic" uniforms in college football: Penn State, Notre Dame, USC, Alabama, and ugh yes, even Ohio State. They are all so richly steeped in tradition that I love, in a purely aesthetic sense, that what Mike Hart is wearing at Michigan Stadium in 2007 is not that radical a departure from what Tom Harmon wore at the Big House in 1940. When one of your foundations is tradition, you must step very carefully when you go to make changes. As Henry James said: " It takes an endless amount of history to make even a little tradition."

2). Michigan and Notre Dame to renew their rivalry annually until 2031
I know that the feelings are mixed on this, especially as it looks like Michigan was not able to get Notre Dame to flip on the scheduling as so to get Michigan where it did not have the Irish and the Buckeyes at home (or on the road) in the same season (which, by the way, I would like to propose a radical and possible heretical solution to this, one much easier to fix. Flip tOhio State. Within the framework of Big Ten scheduling, it has to be easier to do, right? We played Minnesota at home in back to back seasons, no? Yes, you would need to give the Buckeyes two games in a row at the Horseshoe to make it happen, but if you're really that concerned about it, isn't it a small price to pay (I would feel bad for the two classes of Michigan students who would only get one tOSU game at the Big House, but again, it's a matter of what you're willing to give up to get what you want.)

Back to the Notre Dame issue though, I like it. I always liked that the Notre Dame game was sitting right there, waiting in September. Even if the first years I really followed Michigan football intently (1988-1990), the season was ruined by that game, I still like that there's an important and meaningful game every year in September. Similarly, last season's win at South Bend was one of the purest joys I have had as a Michigan fan this millennium, as it was a perfect storm of Michigan playing the underdog role and actually coming through for a change when faced with that. I also like that Michigan and Notre Dame are as big as brands come in college football and I genuinely believe their playing every year enhances and reinforces the reputations of the other.

2b). Michigan and future non-conference scheduling

In the wake of the somewhat surprising renewal, there has been much gnashing of teeth over the sense that, in the current college football climate, this pretty much ensures that Bill Martin will use Notre Dame as an excuse to not schedule a "name" out of conference opponent to go along with the two MACrifices we know will be on the table. But I feel this overlooks three very essential premises:

a). The "current climate" in college football is always evolving.
Was it not a few years ago that name teams were lining up to play each other because strength of schedule was such a major component in the BCS formula? Two years ago, we didn't even have the 12th game, and now we do. Just because Michigan and Notre Dame will be on either other's schedules until Joe Paterno is 102 years old doesn't mean that that long-term issue will always be a reflection of the short-term realities of the every changing climate of college football.

b). The role that potential Big Ten expansion will play
I'm not going to get into the speculation related to expansion, as it's pretty much been covered here, there, and everywhere during the past week, but building off point a, what if, for the sake of argument, the Big Ten does go to twelve teams, and what if, in that expansion, one of the new scheduling dictates is that there will be a ninth conference game as so to help scheduling. Would you rather have that ninth Big Ten game, or a "name" opponent?

c). Mr. Bill Martin
I get this sense that Mr. Martin knows the landscape a lot better than any of us do. He knows what the coaches want, what the donors want, what the season ticket holders want (and do not want) and what the television people want. He knows that the alumni diaspora means that Michigan will need to play "name" opponents in places like, say, the new Meadowlands Stadium when it opens 2010 to throw a bone to Michigan's large alumni contingent in the Northeast. (OK, it would likely be 2011 for that game at the earliest because Notre Dame is road game even years, but still. Michigan/Rutgers at the New Meadowlands Stadium (capacity 84,000 by the way.) He knows that Michigan has a growing alumni contingent in the Atlanta area and that the big visionary dream of Michigan/Georgia is something that would build brand equity for both schools. I am not saying that Mr. Martin deserves our blind faith, but I do feel that he has been pretty savvy with things lately and that he may still surprise us yet.

3). Jim Harbaugh vs. Michigan
I'm not going to rehash the Harbaugh kerfuffle for everyone, but I would like to make a couple of quick points. For those who feel that Mike Hart's comments went too far or were too harsh, cut him some slack. Conventional wisdom says that sports fans hate it when athletes have no personality, but will immediately jump all over any comment that seems the least bit controversial. Mike Hart is 21 years old, and while I am sure he has more experience than almost anyone reading this piece in dealing with the media, he stated what he thought and what he felt when asked a question, even if it was not precisely polished. More to the point, I applaud him for standing up for being a Michigan man.

While some will argue that being a Michigan man (and yes, in all of these cases, I mean "Michigan man" to embrace "Michigan woman" as well) means being classy at all times and turning the other cheek when others insult you, I will agree that, in most cases, thus is true. But Jim Harbaugh went after the quality of education that Michigan football players receive and the manner in which they are purportedly tossed aside by the Michigan community when their careers are over, and to me (and from the tone of Mike Hart's comments, to Mr. Hart as well), that is hitting below the belt.

To be a Michigan man is to be proud of the fact that you attended (or attended) one of the finest universities in the world and to be proud of the education that you received there. It is, in my experience (which is informed by the fact that I grew up in Michigan wanting to go to U of M from the fourth grade on) that Michigan is rarely is every a student's second choice. You choose Michigan, for whatever reason motivates you, but you choose it, you work your tail off to prepare for it, to be good enough for it, and then, if you're lucky, it chooses you. There will be those who call you arrogant, cocky, or worse, because you so love your school, and you know it is not jealousy, but rather, you wonder, as Nick Hornby did in Fever Pitch: "But I don't know, perhaps, it's something you can't understand unless you belong?" If Michigan men take the leaders and best line too seriously perhaps at times, it is because we know that we mean it, for it is what we are taught to aspire to be. (We rib Chad Henne for saying "Excellence is good....but perfection is better." but doesn't that quote in itself speak volumes about being a Michigan man; aiming for the best possible outcome at all times? Michigan is not unique in this regard, by any means, but the sensibility is right there.) We also know that to be a Michigan man is to be a part of something larger than one's self and something that does not turn its back on members of the family, something which the evidence, even if anecdotal, seems to support. But we also know that Michigan man does not need to knock down others to make himself look or feel better, especially when those knocks are entirely self-serving. And if that was the sense of what bothered true Michigan men, like Mike Hart and Jamie Morris and Coach Carr (he's a Michigan man even if he went to Northern), about Jim Harbaugh's comments, then I applaud each of them for standing up for being a true Michigan man.

(By the way, as a side note, until I heard Mike Hart's comments, I was not aware that Tom Brady has been seen in the Patriots' locker room wearing his Michigan varsity jacket. If so, that's pretty awesome in its own demented way. [Tom Brady still has one of my favorite post-Michigan quotes from a Wolverine. In 2004, shortly after then-New England offensive coordinator Charlie Weis was hired by Notre Dame, a reporter asked him in the locker room as to whether he thought Notre Dame fans were excited to see the Patriots offense perform and Brady replied: "I don't care about Notre Dame fans. I only care about Michigan fans." But I digress.])

So that's pretty much it. We're less than a month away from kickoff, and you know it's going to be Hot, Hot, Hot.
--CDB

MMB and the stadium atmosphere

Varsity Blue asplode at the "despicable" actions taken by outgoing Michigan Marching Band director Jamie Nix! Seeing the MMB beacon shine onto the clouds above the blogosphere, HSR responds.

Both the Varsity Blue post and this response should be taken with the following caveat: Professor Boerma can and will do things differently. He's a legendary arranger who arrives armed with a war chest of music at his disposal. It behooves him to distribute it liberally this fall.

Tim writes:

In Michigan Stadium, the band is placed in the stand within the student section, so that the sound moves away from the students. This makes it difficult for all students to hear certain songs by the band, and nearly impossible for the poor freshmen in row 98, who can hear almost nothing the band plays.

There is no placement that would reach all sides of the stadium at once. Ultimately, they decided the band members are students and should be associated with their classmates. While the upper area of the student section may not be able to hear the band, the entire south side of the stadium suffered under the old arrangement. There is a possible temporary solution; these are addressed at the end of this post. However, the stadium renovations last year removed and flattened two rows specifically to accommodate the drumline and tubas. Relocating the band is not possible.

His next concern is legitimate for the most part, regarding the variety of in-game cheers played:

The students' participation in cheers led by the band is hindered not only by their inability to hear what the band is playing, but by an utter lack of these cheers in general. On any given Saturday, the band typically plays 3-4 songs with participation by students: "Temptation" (3rd down stop, with the claw and the "You Suck" chant – which I despise),

Let's never mention the Claw again; I maintain that it was an attempt by Michigan Daily football writers to rewrite tradition and invent the worst conceivable cheer to reinforce our proud history of not associating with Wolverines themselves (for the same reason we don't have a guy in a wolverine costume on the sidelines). Instead, they got bamboozled.

"Hawaiian War Chant" (I think, it's the one they play on most first downs, with the hands in the air and the "Let's Go Blue" at the end),

That one is just called "Cheer #1." "Hawaiian War Chant" is played during the postgame show immediately after "Temptation."

"Let's Go Blue" (random, with clapping and yelling "Let's Go Blue" at the end), and "The Victors" (With the singing, and the clapping, and the fist pumping, etc.). If there are any others I'm forgetting, let me know, but this is still sparse, sparse stuff.

If you don't get excited when you hear that one song "with the singing, clapping, and fist pumping," that is not the band's fault. Other songs that students get involved in include "Respect" between the third and fourth quarters of every game, and "Livin' on a Prayer" when warranted. "Ironman" may have been phased out by "Kashmir" this year. The Key Play fiasco is then mentioned and its persistence misattributed:

The band endorses the GD3DKPT by remaining silent, and wiggling their hands in the air, without even having keys to make noise. This renders them literally silent, at a time when every soul in the stadium should be making as much noise as possible.

Much has already been said about the GD3DKPT. At the very least it should accompany screaming at the top of one's lungs and never, ever replace it. However, as an "insider to the ways of the band," let me dismiss the accusations that the band remains silent. On third downs especially, it was quite the opposite. I can't speak for every one at every play, but having spent a year in the student section as well as four in the band, nobody ever supported the team as loudly, consistently, or vocally, with the intensity that the band does. This is true everywhere. The students in the band are the most supportive fans the team has.

The post goes on to blast Nix for not playing The Yellow and Blue at the final whistle:

A very important tradition in college football is the playing of the school's alma mater at the conclusion of the contest, win or lose.

In fact, the Michigan Marching Band does this.

Matt Leinart, confetti flowing around him, conducts the Sprit of Troy in "All Hail" after the Trojans clinch the National Championship over Oklahoma in January 2005. Jim Tressel and his fellow coaches and players stopping in front of the Block O to sing "Carmen Ohio," before (while) the students in Columbus stormed the field after defeating Michigan in 2006.

(The cynic's response: You want us to be more like the USC or OSU band?) Nix may have done those things anyway, but during his tenure Michigan never (a) won a national championship, or (b) defeated OSU at home to proceed, undefeated, to the MNC game. Sadly, all we can do is speculate. During his one Outback Bowl victory, I do remember BJ Askew climbing the ladder with his broken arm to conduct the MMB in "The Victors," which was equally poignant. We hope that Mr. Boerma gets to crack open the under-used folder labeled ABSOLUTE VICTORY this year.

[Nix's] (remarkably rude) response was that he would do things the way he wanted, and if fans wanted to hear the alma mater, they could wait until the end of the postgame show. I can only hope that the new director has the respect for college football tradition (and concerned fans) that Mr. Nix so clearly lacked.

A time-honored tradition at Michigan football games is the postgame show. The band incorporates the alma mater into that; as such, the alma mater at the conclusion of the postgame show leading straight into a Victors trio has itself become the MMB's tradition. Perhaps the people who lack respect for college football traditions are the ones who leave the stadium too soon after the game ends. If you really want to hear it, Tim, stick around. It's always a good show, and Y&B always gets played.

Suggestions for improvement follow.

WHAT THE BAND CAN'T DO:

• Move. At least not until the next time they go through and dig up the seats.
• Sell out. We're not going to pipe in German techno, or anything for that matter, nor should the band learn to play some tacky song just because it has words the students might scream along to.
• Play the alma mater during the game. Stay for the postgame show. Y&B is also played during pregame at Homecoming.
• Get the students in row 98 off their damn cell phones. Apathy is a worse problem than being able to hear the band.

WHAT THE BAND SHOULD DO:

• Play more music in the stands. In general. More playing. Between plays, between possessions, and especially if the team is losing. No more frustrated silence. Those who stay will be champions.
• Play fewer traditionals in the stands. This means less of The Victors, Let's Go Blue, etc., which are often played over and over. I understand the rationale for doing so: Calling up The Victors when the team is losing is a very safe bet. It guarantees people will pay attention and respond, but after a few times, it loses some impact. What to play instead--
• Incorporate more halftime show music into stands cheers. This solves the first two problems in an easy way, since it doesn't require memorization above and beyond what's already asked (the main drawback to not learning new music, since we don't use flip folders).
• More directional playing. Professor Nix occasionally would cue a song and instruct the band to turn and project their sound to a side, end zone, or behind them. This would have to be a song familiar to the band, so it can be played without a conductor in view (which may contribute to the "utter lack" of variety), but it excites the crowd that otherwise has not heard the band throughout the day.
• Get students involved in the drum cheers. An advantage to the new location of the band is the students can now hear the drumline cheers. Coming up with unified chants/motions to accompany these drum cheers, which many sections in the band already do, could easily spread throughout the student section.

While some of the accusations were baseless, the bottom line is the band should -- and easily can -- do more to improve the gameday atmosphere. Non tam pares quam superiores, as they say: Each successive year must not be equal to, but better than, before.

The Vault: Michigan vs. Seton Hall, 1989 (OT)

And now the exciting conclusion to last week's Vault. You know you were waiting for it. This was a joint effort between Craig and myself.

1:19:00	Last OT was in '63, which is quite a drought considering that they had 4 OT games in a 20-year span preceding that. Musberger tips us to his age by talking about the 3OT Cincy game in '61. Higgins controls the tip for Michigan. Rice hits a quick jumper in the lane with a guy climbing his back. "Two seconds too late" Billy Packer quips, and dammit, we are forced to agree.
1:19:50	Billy Packer rambles about the first OT game in NCAA history. Utah won, but we all lose.
1:20:16	Michigan plays really good defense for 40 seconds, only to see the ball kicked out to a wide open Andrew Gaze, who hits a wide-open three, his first field goal of the game. We'd yell get a body on him, but it was his first field goal of the game! Higgins rolls all around the perimeter and hits a big shot to put Michigan back up one.
1:21:00	Greene gets a WIDE OPEN three that goes off the back of the iron. Walker, however, gets the miss and the refs unfortunately get it right with a goaltending call on what would have been an EPIC block by Mills. You have to go frame-by-frame, but the ball does pass the peak of its arc.
1:21:30	Greene steals the ball and drives for a layup, but Mills hustles back to make the block this time. Higgins takes it quickly to the basket on the other end and draws a foul from Walker. Hits the first, misses the second. We're tied at 76.
1:22:38	Morton is left alone at the top of the key and drains a three which looks like a backbreaker as a fan, but Matt Millen still thinks he's gay.
1:23:07	They rotate the ball around the perimeter to Higgins, but his 3 is way short. Seton Hall switches to their "double high". 2:03 left, you're up by 3 and PJ is already trying to kill clock? OK, Dr. Goofy... T/O, Buccos. And now we get our first crowd shot of some early adopters of the Jack Sparrow line of menswear. HAAAAA! One of them removes his hook so he can clap. STAY IN CHARACTER, GENTLEMEN.
1:24:18	Morton drives the lane, draws some contact, but no call from the ref and Glen Rice comes up with a huge rebound that we swear ended up being the Sports Illustrated cover that week. Michigan brings it up and Rice gets nicely open near the top of the arc, but fails to knock down the shot. Higgins grabs the rebound and lofts one as he falls away near the block, but it won't go either. Rumeal Robinson immediately fouls Greene. Are we sure Michigan wins this game?
1:24:58	Brent and Billy are convinced Michigan is being stupid for not getting the ball to Rumeal, listing the litany of where it's going wrong, only to have Billy posit that he might be getting tired. Way to cover your bases there Mr. Packer. 1:17 left to go, and things are looking grim, but he bricks the front half of the one and one. Oh and look, now Rumeal has the ball in his hand!
1:25:37	Seton Hall plays good defense, even far out on the perimeter. Rumeal can't get a look, Higgins can't get a look. Mills finally backs his was in, steps out for the turn-around, and goes right over Ramos for the basket, which forces Seton Hall to at least take one more shot. Good effort all around there. 79-78 Buccaneers of the Intercoastal Waterway, 0:55 left.
1:26:22	The Pirates are killing time, but they have to deal with that 8-second difference between the shot clock and game clock. Morton gets into the lane, but he has to go up with four Michigan defenders around him and they don't call the (slight) contact with Rice, who collects the rebound. 0:10 left.
1:26:32	Rumeal sensing the urgency, pushes the ball coast-to-coast and Greene is just careless with his feet, thinking he's got this game in the bag. He knocks into Rumeal just enough to draw the whistle. PJ, to say the least, is displeased. Rumeal was in the process of getting rid of the ball to someone else for an open shot. Instead, we've got him on the foul line. On the replay, Rumeal's push of the ball down court is actually a thing of beauty, executing no less than two crossover dribbles to keep the ball away from slapping hands. The beauty of an explanatory replay. Oh yeah, in case we hadn't mentioned it, one of Rumeal's only weak spots? He's a 64% free throw shooter. Oh boy…Wait, even better, he's 57% for the tournament. BUT…he's 7 for 8 in the game. So that's something.
1:27:52	0:03 left. Rumeal on the line for the one and one. We're tied at 79 all. Rumeal's parents; very pleased. PJ Carlisemo and the small pelt on his chin; angry. Wait, check that, he's just calling out the play. Meanwhile, Steve Fisher looks so relaxed and mellow, it's like he's been road tripping with Bob Hope. Mike Griffin, who can be seen this summer in the upcoming Bourne Ultimatum, checks in and gives Rumeal a word of encouragement. Mrs. Coach is concerned in the stands. Rumeal's all alone on the line, everyone else is back by half court. It's the proper play, but it always looks strange. Rumeal nails the second one – his follow through arm-up looks triumphant and relieved all at the same time – PJ calls time out, and strike up the band. Mrs. Coach is dour until she sees herself on the Jumbotron, which we find kind of hilarious.
1:29:49	Michigan looks in the mood to celebrate, but they still need one more stop. During the time out, we get CBS staying with another round of the Victors. Someone in the stands has a "Say 'YES' to Fisher" sign, echoing the classic Michigan tourism slogan. Hey, Seton Hall has a band too. Who knew? They look kind of old, so I think it might be an alumni band. Oh it has to be alumni, because some tuba player's adorable 3-year-old is asleep on his shoulder.
1:31:27	We get the switch to the Seton Hall fight song, which I believe is the same song you hear at the start of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. Wait, even better irony. We can see from the flip cards that among the songs in the Seton Hall arsenal is "Old Time Rock and Roll". Did Michigan have some Springsteen in the quiver just to balance the Michigan/New Jersey showdown on that one? And now you can actually hear the Michigan contingent signing "The Victors."
1:31:42	OK, so now Michigan will guard the inbound passer, Mills on Ramos. Obviously no one from Kentucky ever watched this game. Ramos makes a great pass all the way to the opposite arc where only Walker and Greene can get to it. Walker comes down with the ball, turns around and fires an NBA 3 over a player I can't identify, off the glass and into Glen Rice's hands. Steve Fisher casually walks down the sideline, cup of water in hand... (This is the part where my mom and I begin jumping up and down in celebration, even though it's way past my bedtime on a school night 2nd Grade! Woo! –GZ). The bars empty out onto South U, some of which won't have their windows in the morning. Final score: Michigan 80, Seton Hall 79. A full "Victors" plays in the background as shots of Michigan celebrating fill the screen.

And that's where the DVD ends, sadly, no "One Shining Moment", no interview with Bo or Glen Rice, just the end of the game.

Sub-40

Less than 40 days until college football season. Here are some desktop-sized images to whet the appetite. Apologies for the compression artifacts; blame Quicktime.

The Vault: Michigan vs. Seton Hall, 1989 (Part 2)

Here we are again with The Vault, taking a look at the second half of the 1989 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship game between Michigan and Seton Hall. You might be interested to know that you can order it from at NCAA On Demand or from Amazon.

Halftime	Michigan has held Seton Hall to 13 fewer points than their average and has forced them to shoot a whole lot from outside, where they haven't connected.
0:36:13	Terry Mills comes over the top with an emphatic block. The Seton Hall player never had a prayer. On the other end, Mills finishes to give us a 39-32 lead.
0:37:20	Ramos looks frustrated, as he commits another foul, this time on the offensive end.
0:38:48	Never trust a man in a sweater-vest. (As true in 1989 as it is today. –CDB)
0:39:00	High-wire act on a Mills-Vaught 2-on-1 that just barely hangs together. Michigan's playing a big up-and-down game fueled by the fast break. That's a motion offense. I didn't know that was allowed in this state, especially during the Bad Boys era. (Given how Vaught was a little surprised by the pass, I don't think it was, they were just hoping no one would notice. –CDB)
0:40:32	BILL WALTON LOOKS LIKE CARROT TOP.
0:41:00	Seton Hall is opening up the offense a little bit, as Morton takes it the length of the court.
0:41:40	Glen Rice is dropping bombs, widening the Michigan lead to 49-37. A Seton Hall player flops on the other end (Upon review, it's Gaze), but it's a good no-call away form the ball.
0:42:20	The crowd roars as Michigan cleans up another offense rebound, this one by Mike Griffin. Brent thinks Michigan's size advantage is showing.
0:43:30	The amount of hustle Michigan is showing, getting to every loose ball, is one of those little things you love to see and I hope will be seen again at Crisler soon.
0:44:45	Big hip-check from Glen Rice puts him and Morton on the floor. Rice just flew sideways through the air, pretending to be going for the ball.
0:45:50	Billy Packer notes that Morton is wearing white "girdle pants" under his shorts. He then says "girdle pants" way more times than I ever want to hear. (It is disturbing to say the least. –CDB)
0:46:00	Mills lays out Greene and Rumeal takes it down low, pauses, drives the basket and finishes with a SICK reverse jam. Awesome basketball to watch.
0:46:50	Crowd shot of Rumeal's adoptive parents in their "MEAL TIME #21" shirts. This is the first time they've seen him play as a Wolverine. Someone donated their trip to Seattle for the Finals.
0:47:14	Shut up Brent, you'll jinx it! He's calling that the breaks are all going Michigan's way.
0:48:30	Ugh. Missed jumper, the rebound goes off Higgins's hands, right back into Walker's, and he hits the layup…but thankfully he traveled before he got hacked on the shot.
0:49:26	Seton Hall's climbing back into this thing. It's 51-43 with 11:59 to go as Rumeal's been sitting on the bench. Yikes, the Pirates have been tough as time winds down. They've averaged under 3 FG's allowed in the last 10:00 of the game or so throughout the tournament.
0:50:40	Gaze is playing soft. He hasn't hit anything from the floor, and he declines posting up after giving the ball off to his teammate.
0:51:43	Rumeal checks back in, so does Ramos. There are bodies everywhere after a partially-blocked lay-up. Griffin is assigned the foul, Michigan's sixth as a team, and Higgins picks up his own shortly thereafter. Morton makes both. 53-47.
0:53:45	Higgins makes up for it on the other end as he drops a wide-open 3 to push it back to 56-47.
0:54:50	CBS is having fun with their graphics package here, employing all sorts of tricks that have since gone out of style. The text telling you we're at the Kingdome flips its way out of sight, I've seen the box wipe before. It's the little things that let you know the director likes these "com-poo-tors." (It's the fun stuff that you can now learn to do in your high school radio and television class. –CDB)
0:57:30	Seton Hall has amped up their defense and Michigan's 3 for their last 14. Hi, Bo. Glen Rice downs a 3. Hi, Mrs. Fisher. Seton Hall gets two back on the other end, and it's 59-51 with about 8 to go.
0:59:20	Glen Rice's 72 field goals are a new NCAA tournament record. Sen. Bill Bradley sent the Pirates a telegram of encouragement, which sounds quaint in this age. Bradley and Lautenberg have a bet going with Riegle and Levin, as politicians are prone to have, and they're betting M&M's against Vernor's. This sounds like the type of bet I'd make with my brother or some neighborhood kid. (You can hear the contempt for the stakes of the bet in Billy Packer's voice. –CDB)
1:00:38	Morton goes coast-to-coast to bring Seton Hall back within four with about 7:15 left in the game. Rice can't get a jumper to fall and Morton comes back with a jumper of his own that drops. Two-point game with 6:37 to play.
1:01:30	Rumeal gets hacked on the whole body as he goes up under the basket. He rattles home the first free throw. He's only a 64% free throw shooter (!), but he gets the second half as well.
1:03:10	Morton's on the line again. Billy Packer notes "this Seton Hall team can bury you on the foul line." Back to within two, but Glen Rice is going crazy and drops a huge three that breaks Bill Bradley's tournament scoring record.
1:05:43	Good, tough play on defense from both sides as they trade possessions. Nothing comes easy. You hear the frustration in a very audible "Come on ref!" by one of the players. Billy Packer thinks we're putting up our shots too quickly, but there's 4:30 left on the clock and all we have is a 5-point lead in an up-and-down game.
1:06:22	What was a good sequence on D turns ugly at the end. Rumeal thinks he's going to get a charge and flops down on the court, opening up a clear path to the basket. However, from the prone position he strips the ball, but it goes right to Walker, who's hammered by Hughes to put him on the line. He hits both freebies. 64-61, with 4:07 left.
1:08:27	Seton Hall is playing defense like a pack of crazed ferrets, but Terry Mills hits a tough bank off the high glass to push it to 66-61. Oh, give me a break. Billy Packer attempts a huge stretch of a metaphor: Bo has said that interim coach Steve Fisher "will get the first interview" for the permanent spot. Packer asks if Bo would get the first interview to retain his job if he won the national championship in football. Do not speak lightly of a legend like Bo, Mr. Packer. Walker's name is apt, as he turns the ball over on a traveling call. And if not, he'd have been emphatically blocked by Mills.
1:09:19	Ramos gets a block inside and Morton beats his man to the ball and the ball to the sideline. He taps it to his teammate and executes a give-and-go that covers half the length of the floor for a dunk that's only contested after it's over.
1:09:50	Turnovers and Morton are killing us. One at half court leads to an abbreviated version of the Seton Hall offense, with Morton burying a jumper before we can get our feet set. It's a 1-point game, 66-65 with 2:30 to go, and we take a hurried three. Morton runs the floor and puts in a tough lay-up. We're trailing for the first time in a long while.
1:11:19	Rumeal's out on the three-point line, looking for an open teammate when they call him for five seconds without a dribble. Unbelievable, but it was a good call.
1:12:10	Vaught gets called for a tap reach-in on Walker way out beyond the arc. We're well into the penalty, and he hits the first, but not the second. 66-68, Seafaring Pillagers.
1:13:22	Musburger notes that the Wolverines have turned it over three of the last four trips down the court. Rumeal brings the ball up and passes to Glen Rice as he turns around knocks down a glorious, game-saving three with Gaze in his face with 1:03 to go. 69-68.
1:13:32	Morton starts driving, pulls up and takes a jumper from near the high post that's way short and Higgins gets it back for the Maize and Blue. 0:46 left on the clock, and we're looking to siphon some time off that. Morton makes a play for the ball, but ends up with the foul. Someone's dad is made entirely of eye-bags. 0:34 left and Higgins on the line, PJ decides to ice him. This cue is tailor-made for Parking Lot.
1:14:53	That sweet, sweet 3 from Rice made him the all-time scoring leader in Big Ten history. Higgins hits both shots, 71-68. Still 0:34 left on the clock and the Pirates push it up court quickly. Morton steps back alone and puts down a 3 with 0:25 left.
1:16:15	0:17 left, Steve Fisher has called a timeout. Failure to get Rumeal open on the in-bounds play immediately results in our LAST TIMEOUT being called, Future Chris Webber. CBS lets the band play a Parking Lot "Victors." as they just do a montage of faces of the evening, including Magic Johnson? (The pep band is in sweaters, and several have that old foam-front school baseball cap with the winged helmet design on it. It's all very 1989. –CDB)
1:18:58	Robinson in the backcourt brings it up, gives to Higgins, who has Rice at the arc, but the shot won't go. Overtime.

The Vault: Michigan vs. Seton Hall, 1989 (Part 1)

We've been away for a bit, getting caught up in doing summer-type things. Sorry. Here we are again with our next edition of The Vault, taking a look at the 1989 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship game between Michigan and Seton Hall. You might be interested to know that you can order it from at NCAA On Demand or from Amazon.

Start of the First Half (as written by CDB):
0:07	I forgot that Michigan's road to the Final Four that year was fraught with peril, whereas Seton Hall not only looks like world beaters, but they get their own cutesy graphics package to explain it to us. (The cannon they chose seems anachronistic. I don't think pirates with buckle shoes had breech-loaders –GZ)
0:55	I also forgot that I hated Andrew Gaze for many years after this game, and I could not explain why.
1:30	Mike Griffin is the name of the fifth starter on the 1989 team you can never remember. OK, I can never remember. (No, it's clearly "we" –GZ)
2:16	The simplicity of the court design strikes me as charming. It's actually not distracting as you try and watch the game.
2:49	Brent points out that Michigan resembles Syracuse, Seton Hall's Achilles' Heel in the Big East. I'm going to have to trust him on this, but clearly, the resemblance does not extend to a comparison between the hairstyles of Steve Fisher and Jim Boeheim. (PJ Carlesimo looks like a shaved bear, or maybe just like Zack Galifianakis. As if there's any difference. –GZ)
4:21	Bill Simmons keeps complaining about the use of non-traditional camera angles when covering the NBA, and yet, here's a long establishing shot for an entire possession. He's right though, the mid-court shot works best.
5:56	Seton Hall is playing some exceptionally tough defense. Not punishing as much as it is tough man-to-man. I'd say they're choking off the passing lanes for Michigan, but that's just a cheap joke at P.J.'s expense.
7:52	Sean Higgins just made a huge mental mistake by tossing to Rumeal Robinson back across the time line. Oy...
8:23	Sweet shooting stroke by Rumeal, but it's only a two...and then, turnover leads to a quick fast break and more Michigan points. 12-8, Maize and Blue, 14:16 left.
9:11	Glen Rice draws an offensive foul, and I guess I just forgot how amazing Rice was throughout this whole tournament, even if Brent makes a horrible "wild Rice" joke coming back from "commercial".
11:00	I forgot that Rumeal was a freshman non-qualifier, back when such things existed.
13:50	Just sort of a sloppy sequence here. Nothing to add, I just hadn't written anything in a while. Seriously, the sloppiness continues for about two and a half more minutes. Rumeal had a 2-on-1 and decided not to make the pass which would have been an easy layup and couldn't make his own shot drop.
15:41	Mike Griffin looks like Opie Taylor's older cousin, while Ramon Ramos looks like he's 50.
16:51	First gratuitous iso shot of Mrs. Fisher in the stands. Michigan's cleaning up on the offensive glass.
17:26	Nice pass by Griffin inside to Rumeal. Brent notes that it feels like Robinson is headed for a huge night. I am loathe to disagree.
18:43	For all of the Fab Five's many flaws, we can thank them for saving us from the tyranny of short shorts and t-shirts under the jersey in basketball.
19:11	Seeing a Seattle with the Kingdome in the skyline just feels strange to me.
20:57	Seton Hall's on a 9-0 run, and in comes Demetrius Calip for...Higgins. 12-0 run now for the Pirates. Yar.
21:52	Apparently Andrew Gaze's father is the John Wooden of Australian basketball, and now Billy Packer is on a rant about the use of rent-a-international players. I don't think he's wrong, but if you look at what ended up happening, Andrew Gaze was the exception rather than the rule. I am left to wonder whether or not Andrew Gaze's father is bigger than Wayne Bennett in Brisbane (Not twenty times bigger! –GZ).
23:47	In watching these older games, I miss the constant score bug. In writing these notes, I've lost the score and it's tricky to pick back up where it is.
24:14	The smallest man in Division I basketball is named Mookie. I find this amusing. (I'm just amazed that the Charlotte Hornets existed in '89, and that Muggsy Bogues was playing for them –GZ)
25:16	Glen Rice just is a sharpshooter, even if it was just a 2.
25:51	I'm now convinced that Andrew Gaze and Christian Laettner share a hairstylist.
26:26	Have you ever, in your life, met or heard of another man named Loy?
26:57	It stuns me how much they actually called traveling back in the day. Another Michigan turnover, but we're tied at 28, with 3:46 remaining.
27:36	Ramon Ramos looks like a Puerto Rican Frankenstein. Seriously, he's scaring the small children. And Glen Rice, Deadeye again. Oh and they just pointed out that Glen Rice is closing in on Senator Bill Bradley's NCAA Tournament scoring record.
29:06	That was a great forced turnover by Michigan, followed by an awful bit of transition work and an even worse no-call.
29:37	Billy Packer was nowhere near as annoying in 1989 as he is today, but this could be a relative thing when paired with Brent. I'm just saying. (Having Brent on this broadcast has actually kept me from putting on this DVD at times. It's a national championship and Brent has dissuaded me from watching, he's that bad. –GZ).
31:16	Gratuitous Bo sighting #1. You get the feeling that Bo will become a leitmotif as this game moves forward.
32:00	That is NOT a "marvelous" story about Rumeal Robinson being abandoned by his mother in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is a nice story about the people who adopted him. Let's please be clear about the difference here.
33:49	Rumeal hits the front half of a one and one near the end of the half. Important for later?
Halftime	Michigan's up 37-32 at the half. We'll see what happens. (You can really hear the old snare rhythms as we fade out, with the reminder that Michigan has a long history of unflattering cheerleader uniforms –GZ)