Innocent until proven guilty, which goes for any other human being in the US, regardless of accusations - period.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Haynes_(coach)

Should I take the last line of his bio seriously?

This is equal to, tantamount to, and as terrifying as C.K. going down for the season.  Major blow.

The correct answers are:
If in Bama territory - quick screen to Christion Jones for 11 yards.
If in Mich territory - flea flicker to White for 6.

No offense to the OP, but I didn't note any tone of surprise in the writer's voice, at least no more so than the average person would have in discussing complacency and it's chances of setting in.  It seemed fairly written to me.

This is only true if he failed 3 NCAA-administered drug tests.  If the failed test(s) were school administered, this rule does not apply.

My biggest concern, if I had to nail one down, would be at H.  We've been blessed at the H position for a few years now with NFL talent.  While I desperately hope Calloway will step up, he's VERY new to the position.  I don't think Vogler or the other kid are the answers, at least not from a weapon-in-the-passing-game standpoint.

I actually don't worry too much about the D, as this is college football and turnover from year to year is part of the game.  Having said that, I think we return more than our share of talent and experience, and couple that with the fact that Saban, other coaches, the Bama fanbase, the guy that changed my oil yesterday, and everyone else is talking about avoiding the leadership issues we had 2 years ago, I highly doubt that would end up being the achilles heel of this team, should one exist.

Back to the H, I actually expect this team's identity to be a bit different in years past, in that a higher percentage of our passing attempts go to WR's.  Rumors out of Tuscalossa allude to the new OC's route tree being different and a higher emphasis on stretching the field.  I still think we'll have our traditional 50/50 split between run and pass, but I think our passing game may look a bit different.  I hope it works.

The general consensus among Mich fans is that sophomore Rawls is next in line behind Toussaint.  He's similar to Ingram in size and style, but hasn't proven himself.  He did break all of Ingram's Mich HS rushing records.  There's a bit of excitement around this kid's potential, but he's a one-cut-and-go type of back and the fanbase has a wait-and-see attitude.  If Toussaint is suspended for the game (which is likely), this is a major blow to their offense as they are a run-first O with the RB as the first option.  It cannot be understated that Toussaint is THE guy at tailback for them, and there is a potentially major dropoff at #2.

Tox, thanks.  Great job as always.  Quick question:  Could you estimate the number of recruits you think we'll sign in this class?  Thanks in advance.

Just so that everyone knows, Hep A is transmitted through the fecal matter of the infected individual.  For this to have come out, there had to be at least one infected individual who ate food with fecal particulate matter from the infected person.  Just so everyone knows...

I left a comment, as I have discussed the oversigning issue at length with one of my best buds who is a recent Michigan Grad.  I can assure you that the yankees on that site cannot and will not poke fun at my southern vernacular, as that is a fight they are ill-equipped for.  The South has wordsmiths, too.  Roll Tide.

Family of Brisbane-born NFL champ Jesse Williams get inked with Alabama University logo

(wording not mine)

Only Arky and LSU pose problems if we bring our A game.  However, a number of those teams could pull an upset if we phone one in, and therein lies the danger.

Will not affect his draft status.  Smoking weed is not news.  Being stupid enough to get arrested for it is, however.  He will not drop a single slot as long as he's forthright in his combine interviews.

This is the Michigan fan/friend:


Preparing for the Alabama defense would be much more difficult. From what I've seen, LSU wouldn't be that difficult to prepare for. They're going to come after you with incredible athletes in a solid scheme, but they're not doing anything terribly complicated. Supposedly Bama is a 3-4, but most of the time I can't tell you what defense their in, before or after the snap. I'd be slightly more worried about LSU taking back the inevitable Denard INT, but I think Bama could confuse Denard into throwing more of them. In Michigan's case, Denard will make big plays, the question is the ratio of good/bad. Usually he's way positive, but if you take away the run, it could get ugly. In both these games, Michigan would have to take chances because of the talent deficit, and it probably wouldn't end well in either case. Neither LSU nor Bama is Notre Dame, let's be honest.

Offensively, neither offensive scheme would be anything new. I feel like both of the offenses would be the best in the country if they had an elite QB and/or have a coach that would allow him the freedom to take calculated risks. I don't like how Saban handles QB's. I understand the mentality given the strength of his defenses, but I think you have to give the QB a longer leash to build up confidence for big games. That's how you get 9-6, nobody wants to be the person to mess it all up. I'm not saying that's why OSU deserves to be in, the big 12 doesn't play defense and that's far more damning. With that said, both teams have impressive OL's and good RB's; but Richardson would terrify me in my sleep, and LSU's guys are just good. So in short, LSU maybe won the first game, but I'd rather face them.


In the current class, there are 9 players from Ohio and 8 from Michigan. Of players I would consider "big", 5 are from Ohio, 3 from Michigan, and 1 from each of California, Missouri, and Iowa. So it's not most, but it's pretty close. Everyone at Michigan knows recruiting Ohio is crucial. We probably won't be as successful as we have been this year going forward since Ohio will recover quickly from tatgate, but Hoke is from Ohio and should be able to get enough big recruits to obtain top 10 classes most years. Other keys will be establishing pipelines in CA with the staff's connections there, and dominating MSU in Michigan like we have this year.


The "big" win has me excited for a great finish to an improbable year. We had an incredible senior class that stayed together, stuck it out through the worst years in the 132-year history of the program, and finished as Sugar Bowl Champs. Many signed up to play for Carr, fought to the death for RR, and kept the team together for Hoke. They had the alumni abandon them and blame them for the downfall of the program, and stormed back to show them love this year. This team was better than all but two Carr teams; it's no secret M hadn't been a dominant B10 program for a while, yet most of the Carr guys sure acted like it. Junior Hemingway's tears in the postgame interview were real, this win is all about the seniors. This year is this year, next year is next year. We had an easy schedule this year, it's very difficult next year. We'll be missing an incredible senior class, although we should have one next year. Still, I would be incredibly happy if UM goes 10-2 in the regular season again.