UMFan83

Right thumb injury, out for the game. See you in 2009

30+ point lead. The NFL is the NFL and this is a critical game to win. I realize Orton isn't 100% but you have to be secure in victory before you pull your QB.

People weren't all sold of Ramirez either with his poor 2002, mediocre start to 2003 and his horrible defense. But obviously most people considered him an upgrade over Lenny Harris.

It was running into the kicker, not roughing the kicker. I would not have given them a first down, and the kick had the Rams pinned deep. No point to accepting the penalty. Didn't realize there was a difference. I always thought if you made illegal contact with the kicker, it was an automatic first down. Obviously if it didn't result in the first down, it makes sense to decline the penalty.

They were just going to run out the clock. If he didn't break one, it wasn't going to matter what Hester did aside from him coughing it up. He's done it more than just that play dude. He's not turning up the field when he should on many kicks. Hester was always at his best when he took off straight up the field on kicks. He doesn't do that anymore. He always looks for the sidelines. I guess that's what happens when you've lost a couple of steps. The question is...why has he lost a couple of steps?

Why did the Bears decline that roughing the kicker penalty at the end of the half? Isn't accepting that an automatic first down? Sure it probably wouldn't have mattered, but what if the Rams broke a 92 yard TD on that last play of the half? I'd rather be in control of the ball running out of the clock rather than having to rely on the other team to do it.

Our secondary still kinda sucks.

So not to get all cocky, because we still have the Bears defense to worry about today, but what do we need to do to win in the Dome next week? So far its looking like both teams might come in at 6-5 and tied for first.

I would have been so pissed if that wasn't the rule and they got a PI on the play because that ball was thrown at least 5 yards short of the first down. I am going to assume that the tackler (didnt see who it was) knew of the rule though, because if not that was boneheaded. FORTE!

Fox must have screwed up and only gottten 1 camera angle on that play, so they decided to ignore the challenge.

What's Lovie supposed to do? Fox doesn't show a GD replay for 3 minutes while they pad their profits, then they show one bad angle and Lovie has to make a decision based on horrible info. Is that all he has to go on? Fox's replays?

Bad challenge...theres no way he was down I don't think. Or if he was, I'm not positive there is conclusive evidence.

Rams are 8-2 right? (just say yes and we'll move on)

People seem pumped for this game haha

Great game today! Wow a 3-0 start to the circus trip!!?

This is stunning. I expected OU to win, but not like this. 58 points through 3?? They might put up more points than Florida did today against Citadel!

Bulls went from 8 up to 2 down in like a minute of game time.

Is Manny Harris trying to prove he can hit an NBA 3, or does he just not know the first line is the NBA 3

Using which metric? Admittedly, I only have a basic understanding of advanced fielding statistics, but Lee lead the NL (full season) in 1B Defensive Win shares with 2.7, while Tiex had a combined 2.8 with Tex/Atl. That doesn't seem to suggest a huge gap. Maybe there is a statistic I am overlooking (and I'm sure there is). Either way, looking up that number surprised me because it looked like Lee had slipped big time defensively the last few years...and while it looks like he has, again using win shares, it hasn't been a huge dropoff, and he's still among the league's best. 2008: 2.7 (1st) 2007: 3.2 (1st) 2005: 3.0 (1st) 2004: 3.4 (2nd)

Out of curiosity, is this consistent with his career ratings? I remember being told that Greene was the best defensive SS in baseball last offseason. Is there a reason beyond baseball for his dropoff across the board last season?

Is Garrett Olsen the Kevin Hart of the Orioles?

Veal for Greene

Why won't many Michigan fans be at the same on Saturday?

As others have pointed out, that scenario is impossible. A BCS conference champion gets an AUTOMATIC bid, and the top two teams in the final BCS poll get AUTOMATIC bids. So in the theoretically possible, but highly unlikely, situation where two teams from the same conference are 1-2 in the final BCS standings, but a third team wins that conference championship, all three teams are in. That's the one and only exception to the maximum two teams from a conference rule. It won't matter because Missouri won't be winning the Big 12 title game.

This is my problem with most Big 10 fans- especially the ones here. Everything is "conference this" and "conference that," as though "conferences" win anything. I realize that there are tons of SEC fans who flap their gums about being the best conference in the world in football, but the raging inferiority complex that Big 10 fans display is stinking hilarious. Seriously, you've made the point- you have tiny e-dongs. That said, I don't get it. Who cares which conference is better or worse? Last time I checked the Pac 10 doesn't play the SEC. Nor does the Big 10 play the Big 12. And, despite the name of the "challenge", the Big East does not play the ACC. Individual teams play one another, and how Tennessee fares (or UCLA, or Illinois, or Kansas, or... well, you get it) is not a product of the conference. The Big 10 hasn't been humiliated in the National Championship the past two years- Ohio St. has. The SEC didn't win any championships. Florida and LSU did. As a Tennessee fan, what should it matter to me that Ohio State got spanked by those teams? So did UT. The Big 12 is not the reigning National Champion. Kansas is. Why should Texas or Oklahoma or Missouri or any other Big 12 schools fans brag about that? Their team didn't win anything. They just lost to the team that did. I just don't get it. And I know that SEC fans are guilty of it, especially in football. That doesn't make sense to me either. If Florida destroys Oklahoma or Texas in the National Championship game, am I going to walk around pounding my chest about it? Heck no, I hate Florida. It just doesn't make sense to me. NCAA Basketball is completely different. I don't "pound my chest" because Michigan and Illinois won last night. But I am pleased to see it. Why? Because the more good non-conference wins Big Ten teams get, the higher the league RPI will be, plus it means they probably won't get bashed as much on national tv. Conference RPI and conference strength plays a major part in whether or not your team gets a bid to the NCAA's. Likewise beating SEC and Pac-10 teams will hurt their cause a little bit which indirectly can help your team even more. This is why. If I'm a borderline NCAA team in the Big 10, I am rooting for Michigan to beat a Top 5 team and raise their conference RPI so my team has a better shot at getting into the dance. If I am a top flight NCAA team in the Big 10, I am rooting for Michigan to beat a Top 5 team and raise their conference RPI so my team can get a higher seed in the dance.