AND NOW FOR THE RETURN OF ANGRY CHARLES

Anger trigger number one: Ekpe Udoh is transferring.

To Ekpe i have nothing but questions:

Ekpe, Why did you decide to leave? Doesn't Michigan count as part of your family, weren't you concerned for your teammates? Don't you value a world class education while being able to attract NBA scouts? Was the weather in Michigan really that bad? Was it Beiline's fault?????

To Beiline i have very little other than rage:

Dang you Beiline, why couldn't you convince Ekpe to stay???? Are you still oblivious to the way big ten basketball is played??? Do you realize what position this puts the basketball team in, we have no defense or inside presence without him!!! Do you realize that or are you so obsessed with getting a good outside shooter that you would sacrifice our only great defender???

Do you plan on recruiting guys who can play defense to play with Manny and Wright, because if you do you'd better get them now!!!!


Anger Trigger Number Two: Big Ten softball championships.

I understand that Michigan and Northwestern ended both of their regular season's tied for the big ten championship. What i really don't understand is how they ended up deciding the host of the big ten tournament by flipping a coin. I'll admit i wouldn't be ranting about this if the coin had landed in favor of Michigan, but shouldn't the host spot go to the team that had the better regular season record. If that were the case then the Wolverines would have hosted because they have only lost five games all season compared to the Wildcats eleven. Michigan is also the sixth ranked team in the country they went 5-1 against ranked non-conference opponents before splitting with the 12th ranked Wildcats. I highly doubt Northwestern's record is nearly as impressive.

Anger Trigger Number Three: No Original Six Stanly Cup!!!!

With both Montreal and the New York Rangers falling in five games in their second round playoff matches the only original six team left standing is my own home town Detroit Red Wings. While i love the Detroit Red Wings a lot, i feel that i am an old time hockey fan more. I hate the fact that all these teams started migrating south under Gary Bettman's leadership of the NHL, it just made no sense to me.

THERE IS NO ICE DOWN SOUTH, WHY WOULD YOU PUT A HOCKEY TEAM THERE!?!?!?!?!

This year i thought that things would be different, i thought that if two northern teams were to play for the Cup hockey would at least have a return to some of the former dignity it used to have. And i thought what better way than to have two original six squads duke it out. As of yesterday, it is no longer meant to be and i am sad for it. While i remain happy that the Red Wings are still in the hunt for the Cup and i also am glad to see two northern teams in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia fighting for the Eastern crown, i cannot help but despise the presence of the Dallas Stars in NHL's final four.

How is it possible to play hockey in Texas?

Gary Bettman

A Bitter End

I had two papers due this week and i thought i would cover two games, turns out i would have too many teardrops for one heart to be crying.

Losing that game was the worst feeling i could have at a time like this man. Everything was going cool, and then they give up three goals in the first period. I guess we've learned our lesson, never play Billy in an NCAA tournament game against a team with the initials ND. Sure we made it interesting and forced overtime, but in getting there our team expended so much energy we could not get past there backcheck whenever we got into the Notre Dame zone.

It was a good season, we just came up short. Kevin Porter won the Hobey Baker Award, but it's no consolation for me. I hate losing, and i especially hate losing to Notre Dame. Second to Ohio State, Notre Dame is the team i hate losing to the most. In my opinion they're a bigger rival than MSU because normally i root for MSU when they're not playing Michigan but i can't ever think of a time when i've rooted for the Fighting Irish. Well as an act of vengeance for the hockey team the football team should go into South Bend this upcoming season and blow the Irish out and make them cry 96 tears.

P.S. This is the second time Michigan has left the NCAA tournament at the hands of a Jeff Jackson led team. The Wolverines lost to Lake Superior St. in the second round of the 1994 tournament and the Lakers went onto win the title that year as a fourth seed, coincidence???

Daily Broomball: PLAYOFFS PART 2 a.k.a THE END

We lost.

We lost 8-1.

I picked out the equipment bag before the game. Turned out all the helmets were the wrong size. I don't care what anybody says, that had a factor in the game. True, we were very overconfident going into this game, that was a factor too. But the fact that all of our helmets were either too big or too small really really urked me.

That word urked has been coming up a lot lately in my life. More on that later.

Fact is the season's over and my competitive rage will have to find another outlet for a while now. The Tigers has been loosing without Grandy, Michigan football's not playing, i'm not sure i can count on the Pistons or Red Wings in the playoffs, and i desperately need to find a job soon.

Sorry i haven't posted in a coupl of days, it's a hectic life being a junior at the University of Michigan.

Daily Broomball part 2: a.k.a. frustration

If i were Kevin Borseth i'd be pounding the living crap out of podiums on this blog after this game. But i'm not so right now i'm just pounding the crap out of the keyboard here in the UGLI. What the hell man? Why can't we score a goal? We've got good players, a decent goaltending tandem, why haven't we scored? I know that this is supposed to be intramural sports and it's just supposed to be a fun activity.

...

Screw that, play sports no matter how minor or who it's against creates a release for my competitive impulses. In my previous post i talked about how i nearly killed my cousin in an informal wrestling match, if you think i get worked up on TV you should see me when i'm actually playing something. I once ran over a third baseman in a pick up game of softball at a church picnic, at work and right before the game and right after i'm nice and cracking jokes but once the whistle blows, or the ump yells play ball. GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Speaking of competitiveness please tune into WOLV TV or mgoblue.com to view the first game of what should be Michigan's ridiculously competitive series vs. UNO on Friday.

Stayed tune to the blog after taping on Thursday for my exclusive preview of the series.