FOX News

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Michigan State

Mark Danatio is the head coach at Michigan St.Dantonio, who served as head coach at Cincinnati for three seasons prior to his arrival in East Lansing and also spent six years as an assistant coach at Michigan State from 1995-2000, became Michigan State University's 24th head football coach on Nov. 27, 2006. He has worked for some of the top coaches in the game, including Nick Saban, Jim Tressel and Earle Bruce.

A Zanesville, Ohio, native with Midwest ties, Dantonio has 28 years of collegiate coaching experience and coached in his 14th bowl game as the Spartans faced Texas Tech in the 2010 Valero Alamo Bowl. Before last season he had led Michigan State to three-straight bowl appearances - a first for the program since 1995-97 - and had already won 22 games at MSU, the second most by any Spartan head coach in his first three seasons.

Last year, however, was not a very good season for the Spartans. They were 4-4 in league play and they were 6-7 for the season.

Michigan State likes to pass and they are have been at the top of the league in passing with Danatio.

Michigan St. plays Notre Dame in 2010 in a non-conference game.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Greatest Dad That Ever Lived!


My dad was the greatest dad that ever lived. If I could change anything about my dad, what would I have changed? Nothing. I have thought about this may times and I honestly can't think of anything.

Dad had many passions. He had a passion for his wife, my mom. He had a passion for his kids and grandkids. He had a passion for his family. He had a passion for fishing and hunting. He had a passion for visiting with people. He had a passion for his garden. He had a passion for his faith.

Dad loved life but we lost him on October 4, 2006. Now when I say we lost him, but he is still here living in us. Many businesses have a mission statement and core values that drive their decisions. For myself, since dad's death and even before that, my decisions are made by asking myself "What would dad do?". By using this for my driving force in life, decisions have been better and easier because I end up making decisions that are right, even if everybody does not agree. I always know that if I do what dad would have done, God would be very happy because he was a great example of how we are to do things.

On this Father's Day, I think about all the great memories I have of my dad! I think of stacking hay as dad brought in the bales with the farmhand. Irrigation was a big part of our summer and when we had a break in the ditch, dad and I would pitch the dirt towards the break where my sister was laying in the ditch trying to keep the water from running so fast. A big part of my life was all the fishing and hunting experiences I had the pleasure to be a part of with my dad. They were events. There are so many memories. My dad was the best hunter and fisherman I have ever seen but he was always more happy when us kids were successful. He was proud of his family.

Even though it is Father's Day, I feel very grateful that I have a mom that although she is different in some ways, she is just as great. Thanks mom!

I miss my dad. I miss him calling me and wondering when I was coming to Orleans again even though I had been there three times in the last week. I miss driving up to mom's house and not seeing him sitting at the patio table. I miss working with him in his garden. I miss the hunting and fishing experiences and talking about previous hunting and fishing experiences. I missed dad at my two daughter's weddings. He was ALWAYS so proud of his grandkids. He loved them very much. I miss all his stories. I just miss visiting with him.

I just miss him because he was the greatest dad that ever lived.

So if your dad is still alive give him a big hug today and tell him you love him. Our time on earth goes so fast.

Monday, June 14, 2010

Michigan

TEAM-MICHIGAN
COACH-RICH RODRIQUEZ

Michigan is one of the two top teams in football in the Big 10 over the last few decades. Ohio State is the other. Michigan has been down the past couple of years and they went 1-7 in league play in 2009.The lost seven of their last eight games last year.

Rodriguez graduated from North Marion High School in Grant Town, West Virginia in 1981 where he played four sports and was an all-state football and basketball player. After high school, Rodriguez attended West Virginia University. Playing as a defensive back, Rodriguez recorded 54 career tackles over three seasons.

After Rodriguez's return to WVU as a volunteer coach with the outside linebackers for the 1989 football season, he left again to take over as head coach at Glenville State College.

Rodriguez left Glenville State at the end of the 1996 season to serve as assistant coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback coach for Tulane University from 1997 to 1998, under head coach Tommy Bowden. Rodriguez was part of Tulane's success, including their 12–0 season in Rodriguez's last season at Tulane, mainly for his spread offense with quarterback Shaun King. When Bowden was hired as the head coach at Clemson University, he retained Rodriguez on his staff. Rodriguez served as the offensive coordinator and associate head coach until the end of the 2000 season, traveling to a Peach Bowl and Gator Bowl.

On November 26, 2000, WVU's athletic department announced that Rodriguez would again return to West Virginia, this time as head coach to replace the retiring legend Don Nehlen.

Rodriguez was one of the most successful coaches in West Virginia history.[citation needed] He was credited with the first back-to-back Top 10 finishes in school history, four consecutive New Year's bowl appearances (joining USC as the only program at the time to do so), the school's first BCS bowl win, three Big East championships, eight wins over Top 25 teams, twenty-six straight weeks in the Top 25, a 30-6 record from 2005–2007, and a home-attendance average of 98% of capacity. [citation needed] Rodriguez brought his unique offensive style to WVU and after a disappointing first year, led the Mountaineers to four straight winning years, in three of which (2003, 2004, & 2005) the Mountaineers won or shared the Big East Conference championship. Rodriguez led the team to five straight bowl appearances (the 2002 Continental Tire Bowl the 2004 and 2005 Gator Bowls, the 2006 Nokia Sugar Bowl, the 2007 Gator Bowl, posting a 2-3 record in those bowl games.

On December 16, 2007, Rodriguez informed players at West Virginia that he was leaving to succeed Lloyd Carr as the University of Michigan head football coach.[11] Rodriguez's decision came on the heels of a loss to the unranked Pittsburgh Panthers, which eliminated WVU from national championship contention.[

Rodriguez was introduced by Michigan as their new coach at a news conference held on December 17, 2007.

Rodriquez has a record at Michigan of 8-16, a Big Ten record of 3-13, and a career record of 113-78.

Michigan plays at Ann Arbor, Michigan with a capacity of 106,201. Rodriquez runs the spread offense and a 4-3 defense.

This is a huge year for this coach to be successful or they may be looking for a replacement. With the coaches history, the bet is they will show much improvement in 2010.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Next stop-Iowa!

IOWA
HEAD COACH-KIRK FERENTZ

The 2009 roster shows Shaun Prater from Omaha Central and Jeff Tarpinian from Millard North.

Kirk Ferentz is in his 12th year as head football coach at the University of Iowa. His tenure as Iowa's head football coach trails only Hayden Fry, who led the Hawkeyes for 20 seasons (1979-98). Ferentz ranks second in longevity among Big Ten Conference football coaches.

Ferentz, a two-time Big Ten Coach of the Year (2002 & 2004), led the Hawkeyes to a third place Big Ten finish in 2005. An overtime loss to Michigan and a last-minute, one point loss at Northwestern is all that kept the Hawkeyes from sharing a third Big Ten title in four years. Following the 2005 season Iowa was one of four teams (Southern Cal, Georgia, Florida State) in the nation to play in four consecutive January bowl games. The overtime loss to Michigan ended Iowa's 22-game home winning streak, the fourth longest in the nation at the time.

Ferentz is 81-55 the past eleven years. He is 49-39 in the Big 10. His career record is 93-76.

Ferentz coaches one of the Big 10 old school teams, similar to Wisconsin. They run the ball and emphasize a very strong defense. Last year they were 2nd in the conference in points allowed and 1st in pass defense in the league.

Ferentz joined the Iowa staff after serving as assistant head coach and offensive line coach of the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He had been a part of the Baltimore (Cleveland Browns prior to the move) organization for six years. He has been mentioned many times the past few years as a possible NFL coach.

Iowa will probably become a big game for NU. It is apparent that they will be in the same side of the conference when they split it into two divisions. We will likely become an annual game and they will be a formidable opponent.

Iowa beat Georgia Tech in this year's Orange Bowl 24-14.

Introducing the Big 10 coaches.

Our next school is Indiana

INDIANA
HEAD COACH-BILL LYNCH

Indiana has no current Nebraska players on its roster. The Hoosiers played their home games in Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana.

Bill Lynch is a native and lifelong Hoosier with 32 years coaching experience in the state, Bill Lynch will be entering his fifth year at the helm of the Indiana football program. In his four seasons, the Hoosiers reached the postseason and won seven games in a season for the first time since 1993 and won the Old Oaken Bucket for the first time since 2001. IU has boasted three All-Americans, two second-round NFL Draft picks, eight NFL Scouting Combine participants, nine All-Big Ten selections, one Academic All-American and 52 Academic All-Big Ten honorees.

Lynch completed his first season as Indiana head coach in 2007, leading the Hoosiers to a 7-6 record and a trip to the Insight Bowl. He is the only head coach in Hoosier history to guide a team to a bowl game in his debut season and just the fourth coach in IU lore to patrol the sidelines for a postseason contest. The team's seven victories were the second most for a first-year Indiana head coach, behind only James M. Sheldon, who went 8-1-1 in 1905.

With the Hoosiers' trip to the Insight Bowl in 2007, Lynch made his third appearance in a bowl game as a coach. He was the quarterbacks coach (1993-94) under former Hoosier head coach Bill Mallory when Indiana faced Virginia Tech in the 1993 Independence Bowl. Lynch served as the Ball State head coach and led the Cardinals to the 1996 Las Vegas Bowl.

In 2009, Indiana was 4-8 overall and 1-7 in conference play. They lost the last five games of the season. On offense, they run the "PISTOL" offense.

Let's meet the new players in 2011.

Over the next several days we'll talk about the Big 10 football coaches. The coaches represent the culture of the league. After 2010 we won't see the likes of Bob Stoops, Mack Brown, and Turner Gill. What is Turner Gill thinking right now. He gets the chance to go to the Big 12 and now Kansas is going to be looking for a new conference, most likely. The excitement of the matchup of Bo Pelini and Turner Gill on an annual basis is now gone.

Sure we can play some of these teams in our non-conference schedule but realistically we won't have an annual game with Kansas or Oklahoma. Perhaps a non-conference game with Ohio is smart as this area may become a key recruiting area.

The Big 10's top two coaches in the past, in this writer's opinion, is Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes. They were huge in college football and are know nationally as two of the best coaches of all time.

Let's start with Illinois in the Big 10.

ILLINOIS
HEAD COACH-RON ZOOK

Illinois has no Nebraska players on its roster. The Illini played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois. Ron Zook is entering his sixth season as head coach.In 2009, the Illini finished the season 3–9 (2–6 Big Ten). The Illini failed to live up to the lofty preseason expectations, receiving almost enough votes in the AP Poll to be ranked (and were said to be the unofficial #26 ranked team in the AP Poll because of this).

Ron Zook was named the 2007 National and Big Ten Coach of the Year. Known as a tireless worker and recruiter, Zook led Illinois to the biggest turnaround in college football in 2007 and looks to reestablish the Illini among the elite in the nation. However in 2009, they had a set-back to reach that goal.

Zook was the head coach for Florida for three years before going to Illinois in 2005. His overall head coaching record is 44-53. He is an offensive minded coach as Illinois has let the Big 10 in rushing and passing over his five years. Zook's 2007 team defeated No. 1 Ohio State 28-21. Zook has never played against Nebraska.

"When someone came up with the statement `He has the fire in his belly, to be a great coach,' I think he was evaluating coaches that fit Ron Zook's profile. I had the opportunity to get to know Ron as well as watch him coach while he was at Ohio State and Florida. I recognized a coach with tremendous passion for what he does and a real compassion for those he works with and coaches."

- Dick Vermeil, Long-time NFL Head Coach

Thursday, June 10, 2010

OSU is going to the PAC 10

Now its Oklahoma State to the PAC 10 as things are starting to unravel in the Big 12. Nebraska looks headed to the Big 10.

The fact that Nebraska is headed to the Big 10 is a lot more than athletics. It is about academics, research money, money for the athletic department and a long term stability in a strong conference.

Northwestern is all but the Midwest Harvard. Michigan gets tons of research money. The Big 10 TV conference is worth $10 million a year for each conference team. If they go to a playoff, which they will, that will bring in another $10 million.

Where does this leave the rest of the conference. The Texas schools except Baylor could go to the PAC 10. They are trying to tie up two BCS playoff teams.

Iowa State will go where. Time will tell. They might be a good fit for the MAC conference where Ohio plays.

Kansas is an elite basketball school so will they form a new conference with the Big East teams; maybe with Kansas State? Where will Missouri go? Big 10? Interesting. Could Texas go to the SEC? I don't think so. I am surprised that the Big 12 is deciding to disintegrate. If Tennessee left the SEC would they have split? I don't think so.

What's your comments. I still wished we would have stayed in the Big 12 but now the Big 10 is the way to go.

Maybe NU can make the league more offensive mined. I have been to a couple of Big 10 games are they are sort of boring with the strong defenses and unimaginative offenses. Great defensive coaching may be less of premium. What are all our defensive back recruits going to do? The linebackers should be happy as we may be back to the base defense in 2012, which is probably when our new schedules begin.

So much more to talk about. Will we play Kansas, Oklahoma, or Texas in the next few years. Turner Gill has to be disappointed. Will the Big 10 boycott Notre Dame in scheduling beings they didn't join the Big 10? I hope politics aren't that bad.

Sunday, June 06, 2010

Sport Shorts!

Alex Gordon is hitting .372 at Omaha. How long before he goes to Kansas City. He is just one injury away from heading there.

Remember the big deal about Simi Kuli a couple of years ago. He was one of the top recruits in the country and he never attended Oregon State where he committed. What a waste.

Dr. Lehr, who I have heard speak a few times, says the present cleanup in the Gulf is presently like using a teaspoon to clean up a 200,000 cattle lot. What a mess. The oil is coming out at 4000 psi compared to a well in Nebraska on a pivot that would have a psi of 80. 4000 psi is like 50 wells pumping oil in the gulf.

Top movies I have seen lately is Ironman 2, Seven Pounds, and Taking Pelham 123.

The Big 10/Big 12/PAC 10 talk is interesting but it would be nice to know what is going to happen. NU is a key to what happens. I vote we stay in the Big 12.