Real Kato Blog: Football OMG Football

It's here.

Football season starts this week. Thank goodness.

I'd like to be the kind of blogger who posts all kinds of in-depth analysis about Michigan football history, Michigan football recruiting, and Michigan football previews... but MGoBlog does more than I possibly ever could. If you want Michigan football news, screw those ESPN bastards; go to MGoBlog. Seriously. Michigan Sports Center is pretty awesome too. So while I'll still post my football recaps every week this fall, I'll defer to those sites for all the gory details.

Just quickly, I'll say that hopes are high for Michigan this year. I believe the defense is highly underrated... yeah, Michigan lost a lot of starters to the NFL. But there's a lot of young talent there, and Ron English is a remarkably good coach. And the offense? Well, people scream at Lloyd Carr and Mike Debord for being conservative last year. But remember, last year we introduced a new playbook, and the theme of the offense was "keep it simple". This year, my prediction is that, with an expanded playbook and an emphasis on three-receiver sets, all the Debord haters will quiet down.

N.C. State should have an interesting season with new coach Tom O'Brien. My first guess is that penalties will go down drastically. Whether that translates to more wins, well, that remains to be seen.

As for the NFL... many are looking at this year as a breakout year for Detroit, what with Jon Kitna throwing to a highly talented receiving corps (including rookie Calvin Johnson). I'm not sure the head-in-the-ass factor is low enough to make Detroit a good team, but at least maybe they'll move out of the basement. And Carolina? They've been totally written off, especially quarterback Jake Delhomme. But I think Carolina will surprise some people.

Finally, my fantasy football team... I've got Shaun Alexander leading a whole stable of good running backs, plus quarterback Mark Bulger and some decent receivers. I think I'll do okay.

No matter what... I'm just so happy that football is back. The dearth of sports during the summer just kills me. Baseball, even with the Tigers doing well, is simply unwatchable. Why isn't there football all year? WHY?

Permalink 3 Comment

Posted by Ken in: sports

Comments

Comment #1 from MonoCerdo (Guest)
2007 Aug 30 - 6:42 pm : #

Yes! Football, I salute thee! I am sick of baseball and I am sick of the Cubs traffic tripling my evening commute. Also, football means Sunday drinking, so, obviously I am a fan.

P.S. Let's just agree to ignore our respective Big Ten loyalties and stay friends.