THATS ENOUGH

i quit. morelli is the worst qb on the planet. fucking sucks.

I Heart Pain Meds

Off topic rant. Never go to a dentist to have teeth removed without the recommendation of someone you know who had the same procedure. I had wisdom teeth yanked 2 weeks ago, and now i have something poking out of my gums. My opinion is that one of the dead roots is stuck.

My second piece of dental advice is that never watch the video for "Geek Stink Breath" before said operation.

Here's why - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsN5ZuQMeNk

More Game Notes

I neglected to factor in special teams. Because they're special. And so am I.

Fig: 1-1: I wasn't that kid. Nope.

Reda is good. Hasn't missed a FG. While kelly is still looking sharp, we think he can't hit anything outside of 45 yards. Which still irks me that Joe took him off the field in Michigan, not letting him attempt a 48 yarder. Rage.

Could this game come down to KR/PR? I hope so-Michigan realized not to punt or kick to us. King and Wallace are just too dangerous.

In short, we know what is coming on offense. Contain, Contain, Contain.

By Sunday I might just be totally bald.

Bring on the Illini

It's sink or swim time. Let's look at what Chief Illi.....oops. What crappy mascot have the pc nazis deemed appropriate again?

Figure 1-1: Another great mascot castrated

Anyhoo-on to the Illini. Since Ron Zook took over, this team has become downright scary. The talent waiting on this team will insure a competitive squad for years, starting with the offensive threats of Juice Williams and Mendenhall in the backfield. Look for the option early and often.

As far as passing goes, I still don't see them as that much of a threat. Even tho' they have top recruit Arrelious Benn waiting, they still need to find a way to get the ball to him. Wait, that sounds disturbingly familiar.

As far as defenses go, PSU will be facing a faster, more competent defense than Michigan's. By the way, MGoblog really had some great insight into Michigan's defense from last week. In a nutshell, they really didn't do anything impressive, outside of the play of the DTs. It really came down to Morelli, the O-line whiffing on blocks, and Scott. Basically a "wait until they f-up" kind of defense. Hey, it worked. We got beat. Let's move on.

On defense, I expect Illinois to rush us early and often. Keep Morelli hemmed in, and make him force throws. Although Morelli didn't throw any picks last week, it seems that tacopants reared his ugly, invisible head more than once. This is assuming that Zook watches the game film, which we all know he will.

On offense, look for an option attack a la Michael Robinson, but with less throwing. Say what you want, but the PSU d held Hart to under 4 yards per carry last week.

For PSU, you know what to expect on offense. If we run up the gut on the first play, i think i will have to punch someone/thing. Probably a hobo. 'Cause they don't count. For once, I would just love to see play action on first down. And for the love of God, do not hand the ball off to Scott when we are driving.

On defense, more of the same last week with emphasis on making plays outside the hashmarks. PSUs DTs i looked pretty solid last week, IMO.

Final prediction? PSU, 14-10.

So what now?

Ok, I'm over the loss. Michigan was the big question, and we found out the ugly answer. Until Joe & Co. provide me with reason to believe otherwise, every game until the season is over is suspect.

The next issue to discuss is how this team will react. In '05, we had Robinson, who forced this team to be better. From that point on, that team played with renewed intensity. We ran the table, and finished 11-1. This year, we have......I don't know.

So let's look forward to Illinois.

Last week showed us what we have. This week will show us where we are going.

The Tao of Joe

I have officially come to an impasse in my career as a PSU fan. It came to me during the 4th quarter of the game on Saturday. I was sitting there, in Michigan Stadium, wondering what actual plans had been changed/adapted/amended during the course of the game. I was looking at the score, the futility, the rage of the fans surrounding me. And for the first time, I seriously asked myself the question, "Does Joe have to go?". I curse myself for even typing those words.

The Art of War is a compilation of quotes from famous Chinese warriors, compiled by Sun Tzu over 2000 years ago. Many of the quotes are obvious, many are subtle. Some are just downright creepy when you apply them to the PSU offense and the game on Saturday.

Figure 1-1: Ancient Wisdom Ignored

"Without deception, you cannot carry out strategy. Without strategy, you cannot control the opponent."

-Mei Yaochen

Quite simply, if your enemy knows what is coming, you can't win. Maybe this is the reason we won our first few meetings with this team and haven't won since. They recognize what we are doing, and know what works to stop us. Thus, we cannot control Michigan.

A prime example of this: we run on first down, usually up the middle. We don't throw over the middle too often with this QB. Early on in a road game, we will not take a risk.

"Determining changes as appropriate, do not repeat former strategies to gain victory."

Li Quan

"Those skilled in military operations are able to change their formations in such a way as to ensure victory based on the actions of opponents"

"Don't let the enemy know where you will clash, for if they know they will mass their strength to resist you."

Wang Xi

See above. Our offense did not adapt, and relied on previous strategies.

"If they are alert on their eastern flank, strike on their western flank. Lure them on from the front, strike them from behind."

Du Mu

Hit them where they are weak. Play action on first down, go deep over the middle.

This is just some of the wisdom that has been available for over 2000 years that we choose to ignore.

I do not wish to denigrate the defense-to me, when the offense turns over the ball on your 10 yard line, it is extremely difficult to stop the other team from scoring. The defense also bailed us out near the end of the first with a great pick by Davis. I thought they played well enough to give our offense a shot at winning this game.

I do not wish to denigrate the special teams. Our defense is stout, yet we opted to punt instead of going for a 48 yard field goal. Punts and kickoff coverage was good enough to give our offense a chance to win the game.

I know Joe's philosophy is defense first, then special teams, then the offense. I question this now. What if your defense can stop their offense 9 out of 10 times, but the offense is ineffective? You lose.

I don't know what to think now. My heart truly goes out to those seniors who played their asses off on Saturday. Yes, we got screwed with some bad calls. So what? We were in their redzone 4 times and only got 9 points.

Does Joe go? I don't think I can clearly make this decision right now while being so conflicted.

Some other game notes:

-while driving in the third quarter, a wide open Williams only caught a pass for 12 yards. If hit in stride, he was gone, a la Chafie Fields against Miami.

-When we hit the red zone, i noticed that Quarless was being subbed out. This absolutely confounds me.

-From my vantage point in the endzone, Hart did not score, and Scott did not fumble. Still waiting to rewatch the game tonight.

-Running a fullback draw on 2nd and 10 is not a good idea. Ever.

-Michigan Stadium badly needs renovations. Especially when it comes to restrooms and concessions.

Finally, I would like to thank all of the polite Michigan fans. There were the token jerks in the stand, but many shook my hand in the stadium and wished us well. That is winning with class, and I thank them for showing us guests a good time.

Coming Tomorrow: Some tailgating hijinx.

O my

...that just happenned. it's 7 am, and i am still in the parking lot. tired, can't sleep, hungry, hurting, dirty, and definately not victorious.

am seriously contemplating my first death-threat email. to lou holtz. i am catholic, but i simply cannot forgive him.

will post the recap tomorrow.