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Nothing But ‘Net – Week #07 – 12/12/2016 – Holding Even

Quick Look

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they won one and lost one. On Tuesday (12/06/2016), Michigan beat Texas 53-50 in Crisler Arena, then on Saturday (12/10/2016), they lost at (#2) UCLA 102-84. The win and the loss leave Michigan with a record of 7-3.

What Happened

After losing ground two weeks ago, Michigan broke even last week. They still aren’t looking very cohesive, but at least they showed a little backbone last week. They were expected to beat Texas in Crisler, and they did, although it was a lot closer and harder than expected. They were expected to lose at UCLA, and they did, but they hung with UCLA a lot longer and a lot better than expected, before falling apart at the end. In both games, Michigan played a lot better in the 1st half than in the 2nd. They got away with it, barely, vs. Texas, but they couldn’t keep up with UCLA.

The Texas game was close for the first 8:00, before Michigan went on a 9-0 run to go up by 10, 21-11, with 9:53 left. They still led by 9 (31-22) with 1:56 left in the half, before falling apart and letting Texas back in the game. They let Texas go on a 6-0 run to end the half, with their lead cut to 3 points (31-28). Michigan had a slow start to the 2nd half, and Texas pulled ahead 40-37 with 14:03 left in the game. The rest of the way, the lead went back and forth, with neither team able to pull more than 3 points ahead. Texas led by 2 (50-48) with 1:56 left, but Michigan scored the last 5 points to win by 3.

It was an ugly game, with poor shooting and lots of turnovers. Still, an ugly win is much better than a pretty loss, like the UCLA game. Even though Michigan lost by 18 points, and gave up over 100 points, it was still a “pretty loss”, thanks to a wild 1st half. UM started the game on fire, hitting 12 of their first 15 3-point shots. They actually led UCLA by 7 points (48-41) with 1:22 left in the 1st half, then they fell apart, again. They let UCLA go on a 9-2 run to end the half tied 50-50. UCLA kept the run going, and started the 2nd half with a 10-2 run, which was all the lead they needed, 60-52. Michigan hung around for quite a while, and only trailed by 5 points (77-72) with 8:06 left in the game. They still stood a chance, but UCLA outscored them 25-12 from that point, to win by 18.

Michigan didn’t shoot very well vs. Texas (41.7%, 31.6% from 3-point range), but they shot a little better than Texas, and that was enough to win a close game. Rebounds were close (28-31), and so were turnovers (12-14). The difference was at the free throw line: UM got there more often (7-for-11 vs. 5-for-6), and those 2 extra points were most of the difference. Here are the complete stats for the Texas game.

The stats for the UCLA game are amazing. Looking at just the UM numbers, it’s hard to believe they lost by 18: 29-for-58 (50.0%) shooting overall, 14-for-26 (53.8%) shooting from 3-point range, and 12-for-13 (92.3%) from the free throw line. However UCLA’s numbers are even more impressive: 39-for-58 (67.2%), 15-for-24 (62.5%), and 9-for-18 (50.0%). UCLA won the rebounding battle decisively (30-23), but turnovers were even (8-8).

Who Looked Good

Moritz Wagner is turning into the “go to” player for Michigan this season. He was the leading scorer for Michigan vs. Texas, with 15 points, and he hit double figures again vs. UCLA, with 11 points. He had foul trouble (4) vs. UCLA, which limited his minutes (20), but he still played well when he was in.

Duncan Robinson was the only other player to hit double figures in both games, with 12 and 13. He still isn’t hitting his 3-pointers like he used to (2-for-6 and 2-for-4), but he’s scoring in other ways, and providing a nice scoring threat off the bench.

DJ Wilson had a solid week, with 13 points (and a team-high 6 rebounds) vs. Texas, and 8 points vs. UCLA. He hit 2-for-2 and 2-for-3 from 3-point range.

Zak Irvin had a lousy game vs. Texas (3 points and 3 turnovers), but he bounced back nicely vs. UCLA, with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and only 1 turnover.

Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman also had a lousy game vs. Texas (3 points, all free throws), but did much better vs. UCLA, with 11 points.

Mark Donnal was another player who had a lousy game vs. Texas (0 points), but he scored 12 points (on 5-for-5 shooting, including 2-for-2 from 3-point range) vs. UCLA.

Who Looked Not-So-Good

Derrick Walton Jr. had 2 mediocre games, with 7 and 9 points. He didn’t shoot well (3-for-9 and 2-for-7), and he had more turnovers (7) than assists (4) for the week.

Xavier Simpson played in both games, but failed to score.

Who Else Played

Since the Texas game was so tense and tight, Coach Beilein didn’t play any of the subs and scrubs, but once the UCLA game got out of hand, he put them in. Ibi Watson was the only player to score, with 2 points. Sean Lonergan, Jon Teske, and Fred Wright-Jones all played, but failed to score.

Who Didn’t Play

Brent Hibbitts didn’t get into either game.

The Big Picture

Once again, Michigan couldn’t put two good halves together in either game. They got away with it vs. Texas, but they got hammered in the last 8 minutes of the UCLA game. They have shown us that they have the talent to play with anyone, they just need to figure out how to maintain the effort for 40 minutes.

What’s Next

This week Michigan plays two more games, both in Crisler Arena. On Tuesday (12/13/2016, 9:00 p.m., BTN), Michigan plays Central Arkansas, then on Saturday (12/17/2016, 3:00 p.m., BTN), Michigan plays Maryland Eastern Shore. These are both “guarantee” games against cupcakes, and Michigan should win both games easily.

Check back next week to see what happened, and why.

Go Blue!

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Peppers is ready for the NFL, but will he go?

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Jabrill Peppers is without question ready to start collecting checks on Sunday. In most mocks drafts, he is projected to be a top 10 pick at the safety position in the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft. However, don’t be surprised if he decides not to declare after this season.

After having nagging injuries and being limited to playing only 2 ½ games his freshman year, Peppers was redshirted and sat out the remainder of the 2014 season.  The sophomore technically still has two more years of eligibility left to play at Michigan. The big question is, will Peppers forgo his two years and declare for the draft or will he return to the Wolverines?

After displaying his versatility all year playing multiple positions, it seems like a no brainer that he is for sure going to the NFL. Even the Big Ten took notice of some of his accomplishments as he took home some hardware as he was awarded the Nagurski-Woodson defensive player of the year, the Rodgers-Dwight Return Specialist of the year and the Butkus-Fitzgerald linebacker of the year award. That makes him the first player to win three individual awards in the same season since the awards program expanded in 2011. He would finish the regular season on offense with 3 rushing touchdowns, 751 total yards and 1 punt return for a touchdown. On defense, he recorded 71 total tackles, 48 solo, 15 TFL, 4 sacks, 1 FF and 1 interception that would be his first of his career. That interception would come in the 3rd quarter against Ohio State.

We all knew that losing to Iowa had a slight possibility to end up hurting us at the end of the season. But we also knew that if we had beaten Ohio State it was almost certain that we would clinch a playoff berth. After losing to the Buckeyes 30-27 in double-OT, there was still hope. We had to rely too much on the what ifs and had to cheer for the underdogs in Colorado and Virginia Tech. Peppers was very quick to react after it was officially announce that the Wolverines were on the outside looking in.

While acknowledging their loss and failures he also threw some love back to PSU for getting the job that they couldn’t do. Beat Ohio St. and win the Big Ten Championship.

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Like majority of his life, it looks like Peppers has turned to his mother once more for some guidance.  Earlier this week, per Darren Heitner who is a sports attorney tweeted that Peppers’ mother, Ivory Bryant had delivered a forty-one-question document to all prospective NFL agents.

Now this doesn’t necessarily say that it’s a sure thing that we will make the jump. The way I look at it, is that his mother wants the very best for his future and wants to help explore the options and eliminate any difficulty that her son might be having in front of him. So! Will Jabrill Peppers return to Michigan for one more year? I think so. Should he? Yes. Those answers are not just me being a biased fan and no I do not have any high-end sources telling me this. It’s just what I truly believe.

At the age of 7, Jabrills’ father Terry, the same person that introduced him to the game, was arrested on a weapons charge.

“My father was arrested when I was seven years old. In that split second when he was taken away, I went from having a father who I could work out with and who was on the sideline for all my football games, to being a kid searching for a male role model in his life. And I didn’t know how long he was going to be gone.”

He said in an entry he posted on The Players’ Tribune titled The Game. It’s a must read.

Without a father figure, he had turned to his older brother, Don.

“Don was the guy I looked up to. And even though he was out in the streets like most of the other guys in our neighborhood, doing things he wasn’t supposed to be doing, he would never let me get involved. He kept me on the right path from a young age. And he was one of the first people who told me I had the potential to be something great — that I needed to chase my football dream. “You have a God-given gift,” he’d say. It would be disrespectful to God to not make the most of that gift.”

Like a lot of kids in urban neighborhoods, we dreamed a lot about the future, of better times. Many kids were so caught up in the street life that they couldn’t dream past the city limits. But Don and I talked differently, mostly because of my potential on the football field. That was going to be my way out — our way out.”

In January of 2010, for the second time in Jabrills’ life another father figure was taken from him too soon, when Don was shot and killed. Bryant was left alone to raise her son despite working long hours as a social worker to support her son. Just before his senior year of high school his father Terry was released from prison after serving nearly 11 years.

“We was just trying to get to know each other again,” Peppers said. “A lot of time had passed. Ten and a half years, almost 11 years. At the end of the day, man, that’s my pops. We’re still working on our relationship. It’s going to get better. We’ve still got to make up for that 10 and a half years, but we’re gonna be all right.”

After losing his brother, Peppers never had a type of “brother hood” like he did Don until he came to Michigan. Not just the family and brothers he goes to war with every Saturday but his brothers of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. During the 78-0 rout of Rutgers, Peppers returned a punt for a touchdown that would eventually get called back. After Peppers ran into the end zone he would put up his arms as some may know as “throwing the hooks”.

For those who don’t know, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity (OPPF) is the first international fraternal organization founded at a historically black college. The fraternity was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C on Nov. 23, 1911. Before joining the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity last spring, Peppers wasn’t recruited. He actually reached out to fraternity.

“He sought us out,” says Terence Browner, a Michigan senior and member of the fraternity. “The more he learned about it, the more he felt the connection, the vibe. I could sense the excitement oozing off of him. He wanted to be a part of something.”

He wanted to surround himself with people who reflect him and who he wants to be. Peppers found others that are like him that enjoy community service and giving back. While only being engaged with the fraternity for such a short time, Peppers’ and a few of his friends went across town to Community High School in Ann Arbor and spoke to about 200 students about habits, time management and the transition from high school to college.

“He literally had an individual conversation with every single person who approached him,” says Brandon Jackson, a friend of Peppers who teaches world history at the high school. “I mean, we’re talking about 200 people. He asked every one of them something about themselves and answered more questions if they had them.

“Every kid that day walked away feeling good about themselves, feeling uplifted.”

Not only is Jabrill Peppers the most versatile player in the nation on the field but his play is very similar off the field. Playing for Michigan has been his dream since he was a little kid. So why stop now? Why not one more year? Just imagine the impact that he could do in that time. Not only for UofM but the state of Michigan itself. His talent level is ready for the NFL and his maturity is way above a lot of players at his age. There is a few wrinkles that I had noticed in the last three games that certainly can be fixed at the college level.

Whether he decides to go now or next year his mother is definitely getting the home that she deserves for raising such a humble and gifted young man. If push comes to shove and he decides to go he might want to start shopping around for a bigger trophy case as earlier today he was announced  as one of the top 5  finalist for the Heisman Trophy. His reaction says it all.

Hopefully Peppers recalls what he wrote and rethinks the order of his goals.

“I’m on a mission. And that mission won’t be complete until … I don’t even know when. I guess I have a lot of missions. It’s always changing. That’s how you continue to grow and get better. You set goals that seem impossible, and when you reach them, you set more impossible goals and do whatever humanly possible to reach those, too. I want to win a national championship at Michigan. I want to graduate. I want to go to the NFL and have a long, successful career.”

Make sure you write it down on your calendars as Michigan vs. Florida State in Orange Bowl on Friday, December 30th at 8:00pm as we just may witness Peppers play his very last game.

“Those who stay will be champions”

Hail.. Go Blue!

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Nothing But ‘Net – Week #06 – 12/05/2016 – Losing Ground

Quick Look

The University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they lost one and won one. On Wednesday (11/30/2016), Michigan lost to Virginia Tech 73-70, then on Saturday (12/03/2016), they beat Kennesaw State 82-55. Both games were in Crisler Arena. The loss and the win leave Michigan with a record of 6-2.

What Happened

Michigan is losing ground. At this point, they were supposed to start looking better, and developing some chemistry, but instead they’re looking worse each week. The high point of the season was the two games in Madison Square Garden in the 2K Classic, vs. Marquette and SMU. Since then, they have not looked good. They were soundly beaten at South Carolina two weeks ago, and they threw away the game last week vs. Virginia Tech. Sure, they beat Mount St. Mary’s two weeks ago, and Kennesaw State last week, but they didn’t even look very good in those games. The chemistry is off, and the leadership doesn’t look good.

The VT game was one of the more disappointing losses in a while. Michigan managed to avoid this kind of loss last season, but they were powerless to stop VT in the last 4:00 of the game. They outplayed VT for most of the game, led by 15 in the 1st half, and had a 10 point lead (60-50) with 7:44 left in the game. Derrick Walton Jr. missed the front end of a 1-and-1, VT rebounded the miss, and DJ Wilson fouled trying to get the rebound. The VT player hit both free throws to cut the lead to 8 points, and the momentum had swung permanently to VT. They outscored UM 21-10 the rest of the way, including a 10-3 run in the last 2:44 of the game. It was gut-wrenching.

The stats for the VT game actually aren’t too bad. Michigan shot pretty well (47.5% overall, 37.0% from 3-point range), they were close on rebounds (26-28), and they won the turnover battle (9-14). They lost the game at the free throw line: VT went 19-for-21 (90.5%), while Michigan went 4-for-7 (57.1%). Those 15 extra points made all the difference.

Even though Michigan beat KSU by 27 points, they were in a dogfight for much of the 1st half. With 4:53 left in the 1st half, UM only led by 3 points (30-27). Fortunately, Michigan went on a 17-2 run to end the half up 18 points (47-29), and never let the lead dip below 17 points in the 2nd half.

The stats for the KSU game are much better. Michigan shot very well (56.6% overall, 45.0% from long range), they won the rebounding battle handily (32-19), and they won the turnover battle (7-13).

Who Looked Good

Moritz Wagner was the star of the KSU game, with a career-high 20 points, including 3-for-4 shooting from 3-point range. He also had double figures (11 points) vs. VT. More importantly, he cut way down on his turnovers (1 vs. VT, 0 vs. KSU) and his fouls (2 and 1).

Zak Irvin had two solid games this week, with 23 points vs. VT and 19 points vs. KSU. Unfortunately, he was cold in the closing minutes of the VT game, and missed a key shot that would have won the game.

Derrick Walton Jr. had a quiet game (6 points) vs. VT, but he looked better vs. KSU, with 13 points. He did have 5 assists vs. VT, and 8 vs. KSU.

DJ Wilson had a lousy game vs. VT, with 2 points and 5 fouls in just 11 minutes of play. He bounced back nicely with a double-double vs. KSU: 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman had a pretty good game (13 points) vs. VT, but he was held scoreless vs. KSU.

Duncan Robinson played more minutes (30) than usual vs. VT, since Wilson was in foul trouble for most of the game. He responded with 15 points. He didn’t do quite as well vs. KSU, with 6 points.

Who Looked Not-So-Good

Mark Donnal had a quiet week, with 0 and 2 points.

Xavier Simpson also had 0 and 2 points.

Jon Teske had 0 and 1 points.

Ibi Watson played in both games, but failed to score.

Who Else Played

Sean Lonergan played in the KSU game, and had 4 points.

Brent Hibbitts and Fred Wright-Jones played in the KSU game, but failed to score.

The Big Picture

So far, Michigan has only played 2 good games, with uninspiring wins vs. the cupcakes. They manage to play one good half each game, but that isn’t going to cut it vs. the tougher teams coming up. They have the talent to beat anyone on their schedule, and the lack of focus to lose to anyone. If they can figure out how to play two good halves in a game, they’ll do fine.

What’s Next

This week Michigan plays two more games, one in Crisler Arena and one on the road. On Tuesday (12/06/2016, 9:00 p.m., ESPN2), Michigan plays Texas in Crisler, then on Saturday (12/10/2016, 8:00 p.m. EST, ESPN2), Michigan plays at (#11) UCLA. The Texas game will be tough, but it’s winnable. Texas is 4-3, with a decent win vs. Alabama, and 2 surprising losses, to Northwestern and Texas-Arlington. The UCLA game is virtually unwinnable. UCLA is 8-0, and they beat (#1) Kentucky 97-92 in Rupp Arena last week. They’ll be even tougher in Pauley Pavilion, and I’ll be happy if UM stays within 20 points of them.

Check back next week to see what happened, and why.

Go Blue!

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Jim Harbaugh is Crazy– Like a Fox

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Referees Always Get the Last Laugh

CRAZY LIKE (OR AS) A FOX – “…seemingly foolish but in fact extremely cunning.” From “Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Volume 1.

In the aftermath of Michigan’s disappointing double overtime loss to arch rival Ohio State, Jim Harbaugh went off.

Harbaugh’s post game press conference was a master class is deflecting attention from his team’s failure secure a bid to the Big Ten Championship game and capture a place in the college football playoffs.

“I am bitterly disappointed with the officiating today,” said Harbaugh to a packed room of media.

The story out of Columbus was all about Harbaugh’s sideline theatrics and condemnation of the officials who penalized Michigan 7 times for a total of 59 yards while the Ohio State was rung up twice for a total of 6 yards.

Lost in the mix was quarterback Wilton Speight’s three turnovers which included a pick 6 to get the Buckeyes on the scoreboard after being smothered by the Michigan defense.

Nobody asked about Jourdan Lewis’ dangerous return as regulation time expired when he inexplicably cut back into a Buckeye defender instead of streaking for the sideline and possible game winning touchdown.

Harbaugh dismissed a question about what he didn’t go for two points and a win in the first overtime period.

His quarterback clearly wanted to go for the win before Harbaugh quashed the idea.

Harbaugh’s quick dismissal is puzzling– just a few weeks ago he was touting Speight as a possible Heisman candidate and gushed about he consulted with his quarterback on play calling.

Harbaugh hates hypothetical questions from the media so we’ll stick to the facts– with the game and the season on the line, Harbaugh took the ball out of Speight’s hands and kicked the extra point to extend the game ignoring conventional wisdom that visiting teams should go for the win.

With such a short field, Speight’s murky injury would not have limited Harbaugh’s play selection. Even if Harbaugh was concerned about Speight, he had other options. Michigan had been using Jabrill Peppers in a wildcat formation with varying degrees of success all season. Peppers had been hinting of special plays being held in reserve for just such an occasion. Harbaugh could have put Peppers at wideout as a distraction during the play. Tight end Jake Butt, an especially dangerous short yardage weapon, was also available.

Speight was diplomatic in his comments about his desire to go for the two point conversion.

When Harbaugh was a player he would have fumed at such a decision.

Instead rolling the dice with his offense, Harbaugh put his defense back on the field in overtime after it had been on the field for the practically the entire 4th quarter (11:07).

Nobody is asking why Michigan seems to struggle on the road under Harbaugh, continuing a trend that preceded his tenure.

Michigan is 6-3 on the road during the regular season under Harbaugh. Which appears to be a decent performance except that two of those wins from last season included near disasters against Indiana (6-7) 48-41 in double overtime and Minnesota (6-7) 29-26 with Gophers falling short on the last play of the game.

This season Michigan fell short of the college football playoffs not because of the loss to Ohio State but because it failed to beat a pedestrian Iowa team (8-4) a few weeks before– an Iowa team that lost earlier in the season to North Dakota State, 23-21.

Whine about the referees if you want but Michigan had chances to beat Ohio State during both regulation and overtime.

Harbaugh will need to coach better especially on the road for Michigan to compete for a national championship.

The results so far are discouraging.

Bad referees are occasionally part of the game. It easy to coach when you’re beating opponents 63-3, 59-3 or 78-0. A great coach distinguishes himself when the odds are stacked against him.

Michigan deserved better this season.

And it starts and ends with Coach Harbaugh– not the referees.

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Nothing But ‘Net – Week #05 – 11/28/2016 – Back Down To Earth

Quick Look

The (#25) University of Michigan men’s basketball team played two games last week, and they lost one and won one. On Wednesday (11/23/2016), Michigan lost at South Carolina 61-46, then on Saturday (11/26/2016), they beat Mount St. Mary’s 64-47 in Crisler Arena. The loss and the win leave Michigan with a record of 5-1.

What Happened

It was “back down to Earth” for Michigan. They had looked very good in their two wins the Championship Round of the 2K Classic two weeks ago, good enough that they cracked the AP Top-25. They went to Columbia (SC) for their first true away game, and they looked terrible.   They had their worst shooting game in 6 years, and they got blown out. They came back home and beat a decent Mount St. Mary’s team a few days later, but the damage was done. Hopefully, Michigan will learn from the South Carolina game, and grow as a team.

The USC game was close for a while, and Michigan led (for the last time) 23-22 with 6:49 left in the 1st half.   USC went on an 11-4 run to end the half up 6 points (33-27), and never looked back. Michigan got as close as 8 points (41-33) with 12:04 left in the game, but then USC pushed the lead back up to double digits, and Michigan never really challenged them again.

Michigan lost the USC game because of two things: poor shooting and turnovers. How bad was the shooting? Historically bad. UM shot 19.2% (10-for-52) overall, which is terrible, but much worse from 3-point range: 2-for-26 (7.7%).   Ugh. How bad were the turnovers? Michigan came into the game averaging 10 turnovers per game; they had 16 vs. USC. Here are the stats for the USC game.

The MSM game was much better. The score was close in the early going, and MSM led by 4 (12-8) with 16:33 left in the 1st half, when Michigan went on a 25-4 run to end the half up by 17 (33-16). Michigan let MSM hang around for most of the 2nd half, but finally put them away. The lead never got over 19 points, and got as low as 8 points, but UM answered every MSM run. Michigan shot much better in the MSM: 43.6% overall and 40.7% from 3-point range. They also cut down on their turnovers a little: only 12. Here are the stats for the MSM game.

Who Looked Good

Derrick Walton Jr. was the only Michigan player to hit double figures in both games, with 15 vs. USC and 12 vs. MSM.   Of course, he shot terribly vs. USC (3-for-14 overall, and 2-for-9 from 3-point range), but he was the leading scorer for Michigan.

Mark Donnal was the only other Michigan player in double figures in the ugly USC game, with 10 points. He had 6 vs. MSM. He played good defense in both games.

Moritz Wagner didn’t have a very good game vs. USC, with only 2 free throws in 16 minutes of action, but he did much better vs. MSM, with 13 points, including 3-for-5 shooting 3-pointers.

Zak Irvin also had a (very) bad game vs. USC, with only 5 points before he fouled out, but he also recovered nicely vs. MSM, with 14 points (and no fouls).

Who Looked Not-So-Good

DJ Wilson had a great tournament 2 weeks ago in New York, but he didn’t do much last week, with 2 points vs. USC and 5 points vs. MSM. He ran around a lot, and played some good defense, but he never seemed in sync with the rest of the team.

Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman also had a quiet week: 7 and 5 points.

Duncan Robinson was another player who had a quiet week: 2 and 8 points.

Xavier Simpson played in both games, but only scored 2 points vs. USC and 1 point vs. MSM.

Ibi Watson played in both games, but only scored 1 point vs. USC and no points vs. MSM.

Who Else Played

Sean Lonergan and Jon Teske both played in the USC game, but failed to score.

Who Didn’t Play

Brent Hibbitts and Fred Wright-Jones didn’t play in either game.

The Big Picture

This season is turning into a rollercoaster.   Two weeks ago, before the 2K Classic, things looked pretty bleak, then the outlook was much sunnier after the tournament, and now things are back to bleak. Michigan looked very dysfunctional vs. USC, and not a lot better vs. MSM. Fortunately, there’s still time to get things straightened out.

What’s Next

This week Michigan plays two more games, both in Crisler Arena. On Wednesday (11/30/2016, 7:00 p.m., ESPN2), Michigan plays Virginia Tech, then on Saturday (12/03/2016, time TBA, TV TBA), Michigan plays Kennesaw State. The Virginia Tech game is part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, and it will be tough.   The game vs. Kennesaw State   should be much easier.

Come on down to Crisler for the games, and check back next week to see what happened, and why.

Go Blue!