Fox Wismic

Who says he has to have enough to retire on by age 25? He has (or had the opportunity for) a college degree in his field of choosing to make a living with the rest of his life. That's the contract he agreed to. If a person makes 50K a year, which is not a horrible salary, in 40 years he'll have made $2 million. At $100,000, which is a good salary, it would take 35 years to make your $3.5M. Don't you wish you had it so bad? As for "free", when you don't have to pay a college tuition, room and board, which would cost anyone else over $100,000, that's FREE, at least to you. It's not free to the university, it's contributors, or the taxpayers. I don't know what your "vastly different" definition of 'free' could be.

Let's say you SIGN an agreement to play for a college in exchange for a FREE college education that would cost everyone else over $100,000 AND to get a pathway to the NFL where only 1% of people who attempt it are successful - maybe you should have to honor your agreement. They have to honor theirs, right?

I understand them leaving early if they can get a pro job. If I was a journalist and was given a job offer as a sophomore, before I got my degree, I'd take it too. But then my full-ride stops and rightfully so. Contracts are still binding.

Really? All these players are earning their degree a semester early? Over intellectuals who normally graduate in May/June? Come on man.

Jake Butt is a worst case scenario. Yet he received a half-million dollar injury settlement and later signed a $3M NFL deal. He also has a FREE college degree which enables him to get lucrative employment in another field. Not bad for a worst case scenario. Don't you wish you had it so bad? And yes, he's the kind of player and person I would draft.

Nope. They made an agreement. Whatever the future result, they failed to honor their end of the agreement. Why should the university or taxpayers have to honor their end?

My first thought on the Tigers is that they played five months of over .500 ball last season. Their starting premise should be .500 for the season. They replaced injured players (Rogers, Turnbull, Boyd) with equal or better replacements (Barnhart, Ed Rod - likely with more to come after the lockout ends). They took their weakest position (SS) and make it their strongest position (Baez). Baez is about a 5 WAR player. Our previous SSs were -5. That give us perhaps 10 additional wins (not even considering improvement from other young players, Mize, Skubal, Manning, Soto, Fundy, Cisnero, Candy, Baddoo, Hill). All of a sudden we are in the 90+ W range and serious playoff contention.

One thing the Lions have done right is build an elite offensive line. In the upcoming draft, they can build a similar defensive line If they draft Hutchinson/Thibodeaux with their 1st pick and Ojabo with their 2nd. The lines make the rest of the team better. A good O-line gives the QB and receivers more time, and makes the running game better. A good D-line can stop the most explosive opposing offense before they can get their plays executed. The DBs won't have to cover nearly as long. Opposing QBs will make more hurried mistakes. If the Lions build a strong DL to match their OL, they will only be a few players away from success. Perhaps another LB, DB, WR, or QB. And both lines will be young and have several years to perform at their peak.

I suspect players who opt out of their Bowl games are selfish, soft, and affected by our current "snowflake" mentality. They received an undeserved scholarship and potential degree in any field of their choosing because of athletic ability. They were afforded an avenue to a lucrative professional sports career. That in exchange for fulfilling their obligations. If they QUIT on their team before their Bowl game, they haven't fulfilled their end of the deal. They should not receive the benefits. They should not get their degree and not receive a scholarship for that season. A player who opts out of their Bowl game has let down his teammates, coaches, fans, and contributors/taxpayers who have funded his education and future pro-career. That's the definition of an ingrate. That's why I'd draft a Hutchinson over a Thibodeaux, all things being equal. Aiden will be a team player. Kayvon will be about himself. He might be the next Ndamukong Suh who will have a ton of talent, but sign a huge contract and then disappear (until it benefits him in a playoff run). The msu Bowl game is going to be a farce without Walker or Pickett playing because both are opting to quit on their teams, fans, and supporters. If someone is already injured, I understand. Otherwise, it is cowardice.

Which one besides hockey?

Georgia may have the best hockey team in the south, but that's like saying Dopey is tallest of the seven dwarfs. They only play other southern teams.

How about this? Few schools are good in ALL FOUR major sports. The southern and coastal teams don't know what hockey is. The northern teams don't have 10 months a year to play baseball. Many BB schools don't have much of a football team and vice versa. MICHIGAN excels in ALL of them.

Thanks. I probably could've done better had I taken more time but it was fun putting together.

Let's not forget JACK LOUSMA, UM alumnus who headed a Skylab mission, a Shuttlecraft Columbia mission, and was the recipient of the famous, "Houston, we have a problem!" message. I saw a photo of him back then with a "M Go Blue!" bumper sticker slapped onto one of his space vehicles. I have scoured the internet but can't find it.