<p>lets just pretend we could A2 haha, cause right now it seems like we have nothing to look forward to..</p>
<p>yes A2, michigan's not going to win the big ten because indiana (big ten 1-1) is going to win it. hahahaha</p>
<p>A2Wolves, Duke is not a good team, but they almost beat Miami (the one in Florida mind you) the last couple of years. Miami is not great, but they handled Texas A&M with much greater ease than Duke, and that's saying something.</p>
<p>And the final score vs NU was misleading. Michigan could easily have scored more points if it weren't for a couple missed field goals and Carr's reluctance to run up the score in the last drive. Michigan could easily have won 41-16. And the yeardage was also misleading. Michigan had great field position because of those 5 turnovers, which means that they didn't really have to drive down a long field.</p>
<p>This said, I agree that it is way too early to be talking Big 10 championships. We will know more about this team vs Purdue. If we can beat Purdue, we can start talking about a Big 10 title. Even then, it would be a long shot. Trips to Illinois (I have said all along that they will be tough), MSU and Wisconsin will all be tough and OSU is very good (as usual). I would be pleasantly surprised if Michigan finished with a better than 6-2 Big 10 record this season.</p>
<p>Yeah but Northwestern racked up 410 points (I think they also have more first downs) against us, whereas they only managed 120 points (0 rushing) against Ohio States. Our defense is still a big question mark. Let's hope the coaches can get them ready in time before we face a team with decent offense like Purdue.</p>
<p>"Let's hope the coaches can get them ready in time"</p>
<p>wait what??we have a coach?? now that's news</p>
<p>" wait what??we have a coach?? now that's news "</p>
<p>hoping we get actual coaches very soon..</p>
<p>What are they saying about Mr.Carr in Ann Arbor? Is the guy retiring for sure?</p>
<p>Most of the actual coaching are done by the offense and defense coordinators. What do you guys think of the two guys we have... are they any good?</p>
<p>Ron English was one of the top coordinators last year and was considered for the msu head job. So far this year has shown he relied on the talent of branch, woodley, harris, hall, and biggs.</p>
<p>Mike Debords middle name might as well be predictable. He was the OC in the late 90s-early 00s before being replaced by the "more innovative" Terry Malone. After 2005, Malone was released, and MDB returned after a bismal tenure as head coach of central michigan. His record at Michigan, especially when the defense holds the opponent under thirty points, is exceptional, but his playcalling ticks people off.</p>
<p>Nothing infuriates me more than when people call for Lloyd Carr's head. He is an absolute gentleman and has run a great program with class, consistency, and honor. Is he a great x's and o's guy? Maybe not so much anymore...but his record amongst active coaches, and his overall consistency would leave many top programs begging for a coach like him. He is a great representive of the University, and he is one of the few remaining links to Bo Schembechler, the savior of Michigan football. He will step down when he is ready, and yes, it will probably be after this year, but those who say Lloyd should be fired know nothing about Michigan football and what it stands for.</p>
<p>dkschrute,</p>
<p>I don't think Carr should be fired, like you I know he is a gentleman and is a guy with tremendous amount of dignity, and loyalty. So he should be able to retire on his own with some pride after this season. But his job is to coach, and lets be honest he is not a good coach at all. You say many top programs would beg to have a coach like him but I hardly doubt programs like Florida, USC, Miami, Texas would even come within a 100 miles of Carr if he were to become avaliable. We all love the guy as a person, and you know what I am sure he is the nicer guy than any of us, but if he is still coaching next year I think fans have the right to seriously question his decision and the state of Michigan Football.</p>
<p>I couldn't agree more dkschrute. A head coach's job is to manage the team and represent the university. Carr excells at both. He is classy, well spoken, uncompromising when it comes to disciline and in my estimate, one of the top coaches in the nation. Let us face it, his teams conduct themselves well, his players look up to him and he still manages to win. He has the 4th or 5th best record among active coaches and his record vs top 10 teams and top 5 teams is quite possibly the best among active coaches.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, most people today want flashy coaches who kiss up to the media. Those coaches are better than Carr (not where it matters anyway), but they are more colorful.</p>
<p>FUTBIL, when I said other programs would love to have Carr, I meant the longterm consistent success he has had. Miami was the shame of college football last year, USC had at least one, if not more, losing seasons in the early 2000s, and Florida struggled slightly with Zook before they got Urban Meyer.</p>
<p>Save for 2005, which was attributed to ridiculous injuries and terrible gameplanning by the former DC Jim Herrman, Michigan rebounded every year from the previous season's graduations to have top 15 finishing teams. I don't have the exact stats at my disposal now, but I think Michigan may be either 2nd or 3rd in overall record since Lloyd took over (streak may start in 97, not sure)</p>
<p>dkschrute,</p>
<p>I agree Carr has been consistent and I believe Carr deserves credit for that among many other things. And also like Alexandre said, he has been a great representation of University of Michigan. But you can't disagree with me that under Carr Michigan is no longer a great football team (prestigious? yes great team? no..there is a difference). The guy just doesn't have it, just look at earlier this year against USC, the guy has the same game plan he did against the Trojans in 2004. And listen to some of these players talk about Michigan after the games, "We knew what they were going to do". It's the same story every year, heck the whole crowd knows what Michigan is going to do on almost every play. </p>
<p>You can see that I actually agree with you on a lot of points. I realize Carr is a great guy, I realize the kind of personal respect he generates in the community. And I don't agree with people who say he should just be canned. But I don't think he is a good coach at all, sure people say he is a good manager and knows how to handle things with class and is a good role model for the athletes, but the bottomline is the guy is here to coach the games. Let me just ask you a question are you happy with 9 3/4 loss seasons out of 12? Do you not get pressure at your job even if you perform underwhelmingly just because you are a classy guy or because you did something really well a decade ago? I am not trying to bash your comments as I agree that Carr deserves to get a chance to retire (hopefully this year) but the criticizms coming from many fans are not totally undeserved.</p>
<p>We pretty much are arguing for the same thing haha. You're dead-on on these points, but just a little bit more negative than i. Am I happy with 3 loss seasons? Absolutely not, but many new coaches in big progams fail, so I am more nervous that the new guy will struggle and do worse.</p>
<p>Also, I think UM's talent development is putrid. No one does less with more than LC and Co. When Lloyd steps down, I hope strength and conditioning coordinator Mike Gittleson goes with him.</p>