Blue By Ninety - MICHIGAN FOOTBALL PLAYS FOR A NATTY

Episode Date: January 7, 2024

MICHIGAN VS. WASHINGTON FOR ALL THE MARBLES

All right, welcome back to Blue by 90. I'm Justin, joined by Jack Tanner and Kalen today. I'm in Houston, National Championship game. It has become very real. Michigan plays tomorrow. I don't know when you guys are going to be listening to this out there, but maybe it's on game day and you wake up and it's your Michigan Wolverines are play. It's a game day for the national championship.

That is a wild sentence to say. I was trying to, I was going to ask Lee if we could have Tuesday off to celebrate, but now I'm almost like, should we just have like Monday off because I don't think I'm going to be able to focus at all at work. Why not both? He's a Michigan grad. Come on. I think tomorrow is

for Michigan fans, it's got to be an all-time low for production at work. Signing day is already hard enough. an all-time low for production at work, right? Yeah. I mean, like, signing day is already hard enough. You know what I mean? Like, I'm already not that productive on signing day. You throw in a national title game the day of. And it's Monday. Like, I think this may be the least amount of Sunday scaries anyone has ever had

because I'm so ready for it to be Monday versus, like, oh, shit, I've got to go back to work and do all this. Like, I'm just, you know, the nerves are kicking in now. anyone has ever had um because i'm so ready for it to be monday versus like oh shit i gotta go back to work and do all this like i'm just you know the nerves are kicking in now uh like i was with my wife just now and i was like the nerves are kicking in and she kind of laughed at me and i'm like i don't know what's funny because like this game way that you're like screaming at her are you what's so funny over there No it wasn't that I'm pregnant over here chill out Absolutely

But like the way that I think About it with her is like hey look When you were a kid you thought about your wedding I thought about Michigan playing in the natty bro Like that's what I wanted Like I didn't dream about a white dress I was dreaming about the CFP I'm glad that wefp just honest about this

right we can be honest about this by the way i want to give a shout out to you tanner on uh your your wife's pregnancy that is awesome um now that you guys have announced it so we've got you know what's the what class of what 20 like 2042 20, 40. Yeah. July, July of this year. You know, maybe we'll hold back a year. You know, like I was 17 when I graduated. I wish I would have been held back a year for like athletic purposes. So, you know, like if it's like, so a lot of people assume that it was a boy because I, on Twitter,

I put five-star recruit. We don't know. We don't know if it's a boy or a girl. We're not going to find out. You're just manifesting it. Absolutely. Like six foot seven, 300 pound, offensive tackle, top two, four, seven recruit. Like, you know, I'm six foot five, five 11.

Like, you know. By then there will be like a five-star plus, plus, plus on three. You know, there will be the most insane. Five-star plus super max plus minus plus. Like, yeah. So, well, thank you guys. Yeah, it was crazy. Like, I tweeted it because I wanted to share it with all the people that,

you know, follow. And I don't know. It's like, it's weird to, like, think we're – have some sort of influence or whatever. But, like, dude, that tweet had 100,000 views. Like, my child is more famous than I am. That's insane. Like, yeah, it was crazy also shout out to the ohio state fans who came in with some really weird comments um

pull up dan arbor if you want to have a conversation fucking weirdos i mean what was the best uh so the the there was a couple that made a cheating comment because of Michigan football. And somebody's like, had to hashtag JK. And I'm like, no, you absolutely did not have to make that comment. You absolute weirdo. And then there was another one that really just rubbed me the wrong way because they were like, it's actually a three-star. If it was a five-star, I'd go to Ohio State.

I'm like, you're a fucking loser, bro. Like, no one loves you. Really? What is that? Yeah, I was like, you're a fucking loser, bro. No one loves you. Really? Yeah, I was like, dude, my unborn child got Well, the funny part about that is first of all, talking shit

about an unborn child on Twitter is the most weird thing you can do. Correct. and then to also talk shit and be like you're he's a three star when rod moore was literally a three star and just ended your whole season is just it's so poetic poetic justice baby yeah so that was that was weird man fuck ohio we're i'm so done with ohio we're We're on. We're on to the natty. We are so past it. Since we played Ohio State, we've beaten Bama. It's like – I mean, I don't even want to think about Ohio State.

I'm wearing – I'm sitting here wearing national championship gear. You wish you could do that, Alabama and Ohio State. They've played in them. So, you know, we're doing a lot. But this hat – this hat is, I mean, national championship on the side here, so we're rocking it. Yeah, man, the vibes are so high here in Houston. We're out at the bar, and, you know,

just it's like one of those things where random strangers become best friends. I think we talked about it on the last pod at the Rose Bowl where you're just like instantly best friends with everybody that's wearing maize and blue here. And you're buying people drinks. They're buying you drinks. You know, we were at the bar last night, and just everyone all of a sudden, like it takes two seconds, and you're in the deepest conversation

about Michigan and about the national championship and going after it. So I love it. The maize and blue next to the black and gold of the national championship stuff looks so good. It's branded all over here. It looks awesome. So I don't know, boys.

I can't believe we're here i can't believe it's it's finally here i agree with you tanner like this is the i've never wanted a weekend to go by so fast than this weekend right now to get to a monday you gotta be kidding me it's it's unbelievable and i i keep all weekend i've thought about like kaylin and i like we've been friends for 20 years now and i remember hanging out in his basement just like playing video games and his dad had a 97 national championships flag like hanging in the basement i always thought it was like the coolest thing ever and i'm just like man i can't wait for the new the 2024 national championship flag to come out because i'm to buy that thing right away and just carry it around everywhere I go. Wear it like a cape. I'll be like a little weird, weird kid with a cape, 2024 national championship flag

on for probably the rest of the year. Absolutely. I think Don's probably got one on a pre-order now already. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's been such a long time coming as a Michigan fan. Like so many great moments that have like made or broke our season, unfortunately have gone the wrong way. But like we've just been on the cusp of it. So it just feels so good to finally like make it there as a Michigan fan. Yeah, man. And I think my dad and I were talking about it, which it's so funny, too, when you're like we're on the way here. You know, we had a layover in Chicago flying here even just yesterday, just chatting. And we can be sitting here doing anything. And like I said, in a split second, we're just talking ball.

You could be in any conversation. Then you just go straight into like talking about the Jake Thoff play or something like that. Hold on. Can you guys hear that? Okay. It was the phone. Sorry.

756. Can you clip that? Not going to. Not going to. All right going to all right we're gonna say we'll be fine yeah justin's very popular that's the gist of it my wife so um i'm very popular with my wife she likes me sometimes um but uh you know we were just talking about the rose bowl, the Rose Bowl specifically, but you could, you could do, talk about the Ohio State game. You could talk about the Penn State game. You can talk about any of these games. I mean, there were so many times where we were

inches away from not being here, right? Like it just, I mean, one, that Jake Thaw play and one bounce and we're not here, right? So it's just like, to your point, Caitlin, you know, for all the bad bounces, for all the inches that JTs are short, all those times over the past two decades to be here now where the ball bounces our way, and I'm knocking on wood big time for the ball to bounce our way tomorrow night too. I mean, I, it's just, it's crazy how we got to this point. It's like, you could say destiny is calling us, right?

Team of destiny, you know, America's team, you know, what's crazy too to think about is no matter who wins this game, it's probably the cleanest national title in recent memory. You know what I mean? Like, you know, as much people, as much hand-wringing as there's been about Michigan, it's still a cleaner title than any time Bama wins it or Georgia wins it or Clemson wins it. Like, right? Like, you know, I just feel like this Michigan team has been built

and its identity has been built upon its head coach. And it doesn't have guys that got $5 million to commit out of high school on the team. It's got a lot of star power, but it's been a lot of guys that have been developed by the coaching staff. So it's kind of crazy to think about with this game, with this team. It just feels like they're on a mission. I know they're locked in. I know there are some people that were like,

I hope they moved on from the Rose Bowl. There's no way this team's going to have a hangover, man. They've worked the last three years to get to this point. It's 60 minutes, four quarters, one more game for a national championship. Something that we've been talking about, they have a chance to cement their legacy as the best Michigan team ever. There's been a lot of amazing teams that have come through Ann Arbor that have played over the last a hundred plus years, but no team would have gone through a gauntlet like this to win in a 14

playoff, to, to beat Ohio state, who is number two at the time, to beat Penn state on the road without Jim Harbaugh, like beating Alabama, like the best dynasty over the last 15 years, like maybe the best dynasty in college football since – I don't really know. Miami in the 80s? I don't really know. Nebraska, like, you know, I mean, they've won six titles since 2009. So you slay that dragon.

Now you go up against a team that is amazing at passing. But the thing about Washington, and I know we're going to kind of get into this, but I want to get your guys' thoughts. When I look at their schedule, since they beat Cal in late September, 59-32, I think every single game has been decided by 10 points or less, and I think a majority of those have been one score. So they're kind of also a team of destiny at this point. So it's going to be very interesting, but I would love to get your guys'

thoughts on what you think about Washington. They've given up some points. They've had some close games. They've had some games where they weren't able to move the ball as well, but they found a way to win. I think you guys know and anybody who listens to us regularly knows that I don't know shit about football but I do know that Michael Penix Jr. scares the shit out of me and I think the passing game is the biggest thing that I'm worried about I don't really know much about this team other than that but I think if we can you know just get one turnover get one pick you know one forced fumble I think that you know puts michigan in a

really good spot yeah i've heard some really interesting comparisons for this washington team uh mostly towards like 2021 ohio state but i even heard somebody say 2019 lsu which is a little bit crazy to me um but i mean in terms of having a really good quarterback and some really great receivers I guess I kind of see where they're going um and the interesting thing about Michael Penix I think is he's kind of discovered his ability to run like you know last week um I think he had like 44 yards against Texas or something like that um one interesting thing I can say for all you degenerate gamblers out there the acc officiating crew working this game uh has called the most defensive

pass interferences and washington is second in the country for most penalties. Interesting. Interesting. I think Michigan's top three for least amount of penalties as well. Like it's a huge description. Yeah. Yeah. I like that.

That's a good tidbit. That's a good tidbit for the listeners out there. Yeah. I mean, I think insider info. That's great. Yeah, I mean, I think when you – the thing about Washington, too, is they're very – you know, Tanner, to go back to your team of destiny thing, like they're super likable.

They're like – you know, they're not Bama. They're not Ohio State. I don't think we hate them. It's – honestly, we're the villain in this. And I think it was Thick Stauskas put this out on Twitter of, like, there's nothing more to cement our villain legacy for this year than to beat Michael Penix, who's, like, a super likable guy in Washington. Because, you know, I, we,

they were super nice last night, just meeting Washington fans. I think the majority of, if you're an average fan, you're probably rooting for them because Michigan's the hated people, obviously the science dealing all bullshit, you know, all that stuff. So it's, it's not, not like a slay the dragon, you know, go against that, that super big, bad, tough team. But you do have to get up for it, right, if you're the guys still, if you're the players.

I think that you play Ohio State and then you play Bama, and you're like, all right, there's no doubt in my mind they're wanting to kick the shit out of those guys. So now you've got to figure out how you're going to get yourself hyped up. I don't think they're going to have an issue, obviously. You're playing for a national championship, and that crowd's going to be insane. But, yeah, you know, I think that when you look at this Washington team,

I just don't want to overlook them, you know. I think just because they don't have the Bama or the Ohio State name, they're a really good football team. Pennix is incredible. Their receivers are better than Ohio State. There's no doubt about that in my mind right now. And so this is the toughest test that our defense has had all year. You know, when you think about it, you know, Bama's offense wasn't unbelievable.

That's definitely one of their worst offenses in the past two decades. So how do you guys think our defense fares against this high caliber offense? Definitely the best offense that they've seen all year. Yeah, I think that's what's the most exciting matchup for me is because Washington, they won the Joe Moore Award, right? Yeah. I think it's like seeing like our defense, our defensive line up against their offensive line and then our secondary covering their receivers and, you know, trying to slow down pennants. That's like the biggest thing that like I'm I'm looking at. I think, you know, the offense is going to do their job and Blake Corham is going to have another huge game and JJ is going to make plays and, you know, do everything he can do.

But I'm most excited about the defense and see how they can stop the Washington offense. Yeah, I mean, when you look at – I think when you look at what Michigan is going to need to do to win this game is I think you're going to need to get pressure on Penix. You're going to need to get home because he does a really good job of maneuvering in the pocket, and he keeps his eyes downfield. So maybe where that LSU –

like LSU 2019 is probably the best offense in college football history. Like, this offense is really good, but that offense, like, they didn't struggle. Like, they never had any games where they needed a pick six to beat Arizona State, right? Like, no disrespect to Washington, but like they didn't have those kinds of games. So with Penix, though, it's similar to Burrow where he's looking to make a play with his arm downfield when he moves in the pocket. And he will scramble. He will pick up yardage if it's there. But he's looking to get it to a dunes to pull to one of those guys downfield. So I think for Michigan, it's getting pressure

and it's getting the sack like they did against Milrow, right? There were a couple of times that Milrow was able to get around, get out of the pocket. But if they can get – they don't need to get six sacks necessarily, but if they can just get key sacks in big moments on third downs and force a field goal or force a punt, that's what Michigan's going to need to do. I don't know what the strategy is going to be. I feel like if you sit with two deep safeties, kind of like they did all year preparing for Ohio State,

I don't know what that's going to look like with Penix being able to just kind of dot you up. I think you're going to need to get pressure on him and be able to really kind of, you know, keep him on his toes. Like, you look at that Arizona State game, that's what Arizona State did. And that's not a great defense for the Sun Devils this year. They went 3-9, but they were able to get pressure, and they kind of rattled Penix a little bit. So I think that's what Michigan is going to need to do. And they're going to need to be, you know,

Jesse Minter is going to need to be in his bag again, like he was against Alabama, which I have a lot of faith in. Also John Harbaugh, Mike McDonald are going to be on the sideline. I'm pretty sure. Mike, if you got any tips, brother, please, you know, help, help the Maize and Blue one more time. So yeah, it's, it's a big time matchup, Jack, to your point. And it's going to be great. I mean, it's going to be awesome to see, man. I mean, Will Johnson, Mike Samuels, still Rob Moore, Macari page, Josh Wallace, like one of the best, you know,

maybe the best secondary in the country against the best receiving group in the country. Like it's going to be a battle. Yeah. Yeah. Interestingly too. I'm curious to see, you know, the pass rush, like you don't want to blitz too much, like bring extra extra pressure because then Penix is just going to go to the open receiver or the underneath guy. So that's going to be interesting how they like scheme up getting that pressure. And then the other part of that, too, is like Tanner, like you're saying, key sacks is really important but also just qb hurries i think right just forcing him to get the ball out fast and make a quick decision that could lead to will johnson like skipping that underneath route kind of like

he did to marvin harrison earlier this year um so i think this will be a really interesting like test also like much to be made about the jo Moore award winning line we've had two Joe Moore award lines and they lost so that you know like that doesn't you know I'm not afraid of that I I also with that like I don't know I don't want to discount their offensive line but like their offensive line is going against Pac-12. I just think that's very different than going against the trenches of the Big Ten or the SEC. I just think that the Pac-12 literally doesn't exist next year.

I don't know. It's a very different game. So when you have the Joe Moore award-winning offensive line, they have protected Pennix really well. And that's going to be – that's very, very important. But they're not pushing off the ball. Like we saw – there's a clip of Michigan on – I think it was a third and two or something like that. And they just bullied Bama's defensive line.

And just like – it was third and one and fourth and one or something like that. It was the fourth and one that Blake got. And they got five yards. I mean, they were four yards down the field before he even got to the line of scrimmage. And I just don't see Washington's offensive line being able to do that. Pass protect, yes, we are going to have to figure out how to not let him sit back there for 10

seconds. Right. But like, I, I just don't know that I see them pushing us off the ball. And then on the flip side, I do see us being able to push them off the ball for our offensive line. You know, I think, you know, I think we're going to be able to do, you know, a lot of what we want. We're going to be able to establish the run and then, you know, I think, you know, I think we're going to be able to do, you know, a lot of what we want. We're going to be able to establish the run. And then, you know, is this a J.J. throw the ball all over the place game?

Because their pass defense is not good. You know, so how does how does J.J. dial it up at which let's be honest, we haven't seen JJ really dial it up since like the Michigan state game. Right. Yeah. I think that's fair. Well, that's a question too. Do you even want to dial it up?

Cause I mean, if I want to play a ball control style game and I know I can run against them, I might as well have Blake, you know, go crazy in this game, take away possessions from their high powered offense and then just win by seven yeah yeah i mean i think i i i get i don't

know i just get scared of like when you're when you're going against high powered offenses you know having those close games where they can score in a, you know, in three plays, you know, that was all that was Ohio State in 2019, where we would like play our, you know, our suck the clock dry offense, and then they'd score on a bomb, you know what I mean? And then it's like, Oh, shit, okay, how do we how to, but bomb you know what i mean and then it's like oh shit okay how do we how did but you know if you can get up in this game if you can if you can take the lead early you know jim harbaugh is going to want to play that boa constrictor uh game for sure and so it'll be interesting to see how that plays out um and how harbaugh you know plays that game because he definitely you know he wants

to play the time of possession game. He wants to run the ball. But you also have to, like, you have to be cognizant that they can score quickly as well. Yeah, and I think when you look at Washington's defense, it's just, you know, as we've discussed, it's not great, right? Like, it's not really close either. Like, it's not a great defense.

So I think for Michigan, you know, Texas was getting six yards per carry on the ground. I think Michigan is going to be able to do similar things. You know, we talked about this on the last episode. I thought Carson Barnhart really kind of acclimated himself at guard really nicely over the last month of bowl prep. Like I thought he looked a lot better in the Alabama game than he did in the Iowa game, right? So I think, I think that they're going to be able to move the ball with, with Blake. You know, there's going to definitely be some trickery in there.

I think JJ's legs need to be involved as well. You know, for the potential, just to keep, keep the linebackers honest. Like I'm always a big proponent of having reads on runs just for the simple fact of like watch the Penn State game in 2022 both long touchdowns from the running backs were because the linebackers had a false step and were like oh JJ's gonna keep oh never mind Donovan Edwards is busting it for 65 yards so um I'd love to see more more QB runs QB power I thought was really effective Clell Mullings as a lead blocker has been unbelievable this year so just finding finding ways to get him on the field.

I mean, in the past game, he looks great too. So I think Michigan's really going to be able to move the ball on offense, and I think it really does come down to the red zone, right? Like can you convert on your red zone opportunities on offense? And on defense, can you force them to kick field goals? What do you guys think too about – I believe the stat was that they had – Michigan had motion against Bama on all but two plays, I think it was.

Do you think they're going to do that again? That was very – we have a lot of motion in our offense regularly, but not that much, not every single play, right? Do you think they go with that type of thing again, or was that just a specific Bama? I think you can because I think it creates confusion for the defense, right? I mean, it works against Bama. It's probably going to work against most teams, right,

because you're confusing a Nick Saban-led secondary in defense. Like, I think you can utilize that. Like how many times like both of Blake's catches very subtle, but he just switches positions from one side of JJ to the other. And then he, nobody goes with him. Like the touchdown that he scored on the, on their first touchdown drive, he cuts, he fakes right. And then just goes and nobody comes with him.

He's wide open. And then on the, on the fourth and two for the season, he just flips around and he's wide open. So I think there are definitely opportunities. Like, I've always wanted Michigan to do this more with Roman Wilson. Like, get him going. Like, get him motioning, and then maybe it's a whip route or a drag route or, you know, something where it's an option route where he can, you know,

find a hole in the zone or whatever it is like i think there's a lot of opportunity for michigan to be able to utilize motion pre-snap motion uh and get good matchups like i don't necessarily think they need to but why wouldn't you it's the last game of the year you can't put anything more on film like empty it all out like like go play the go call and play the best offensive game you can at this point. You have eight months until the next game. There's no putting things on film. It's for all the marbles.

You know what I want, too, that we really haven't done in forever is just a deep ball. Honestly, JJ hasn't thrown a legit deep ball in forever. I feel like against this secondary in this game, like this is the time where you have Roman on a double move and you try and get, you know, a 75-yard bomb like Nico Collins had last night. Like that's honestly what I want. I mean, I think you could probably get them on the orgy pass as well.

If Mullings does a double move or even breaks it off, honestly, I think you can throw, like you said, throw all the wrinkles in. But also, don't get too cute. That's what we've had in the TCU game where it's like, all right. And I think we've learned from that, where it's like, yes, you call those wrinkles at the right time, but then when you get down to the one-yard line,

you have Blake do the Superman and jump over the pile, right? Like, just do that, right? And so it's like stay to your lane, right? Stay to what you do well, but throw those wrinkles in at the right time. I thought that they did a really, really good job of that against Bama. And, you know, it worked on so many levels. So, I don't know. Are you guys getting nervous yet?

I'm just talking about this as we go. Yes, yes. You know, never been in this scenario, man, right? Like never been in this situation. I was two in 97 so i don't have any conscious memories of it so this is a first uh but man it's it's you know we've been there with basketball right and basketball's you know i love michigan basketball but it's a little bit different i'm a feeling for football so yeah nerves are kicking in stomach

pains like i don't know that i don't know if you hit up a doctor like my stomach hurts sometimes when i think about it just the nervousness of it all so um yeah man it's uh it's here it's like you're making an urgent care visit have to play tomorrow brother web md i'm gonna self-diagnose this shit but yeah nerves nerves are here man nerves are here nerves are here for sure i think just excitement is is here for me too i mean being down here uh is like everyone it's just if you ever are able to go on you know whether it be just in a way game or a bowl trip or you know a playoff game or obviously if you can go to the national championship, do it. But it's like, it is an unbelievable feeling to, it's an unbelievable feeling to still,

to just be around a bunch of Michigan fans where the stakes are this high, your team is 14-0, and you feel very confident going into this game. I don't know, man. There's no feeling like it. And I just – I can't wait to get to tomorrow where we, you know, get to the bar, are having a few beers with cheers of Michigan fans,

and then we make that trek to the stadium. And the moment I walk into that stadium is going to be a moment I'll remember for the rest of my life, for sure. I mean, I'm really thinking about this. I'm going to try not to get emotional here. But, like, honestly, like, these are times where I'm going to tell my grandkids about this, you know, seriously. So it's, like, it's stupid that i get that emotion about a freaking

football game with 20 year olds but you know that's just that's how it goes so um yeah dude like people i don't know like people sometimes you know that don't understand it's like i think the reason that it happens is because it's like a family thing right like you're a michigan fan because of somebody in your life that you're close with that made you a Michigan fan. For me, it's my uncle. And he took me to the big house for the first time. And we talked about I'm having a child. And it's just like a family thing.

I can't wait to take my child to the big house for the first time. So it's something that is more than sports. It's not just like, yes, you want to win. You want the team to do well. But I think it's more of a deeper deeper thing than people may that don't like sports that don't understand. Like, you know, I'm sure we all have, you know, we're all Michigan fans because of somebody in our lives. Right. And so, you know, I think that's a really cool thing.

And I think that's why it's, it's, it means a lot to people. Like, I don't know, man. It's just, it's crazy to think about Michigan being here. It's something I've wanted literally my entire life, dude. I've wanted this for so long. I remember being in middle school and being like, damn, bro. It'd be so cool to be up there in the BCS rankings, to do anything when Michigan was not good.

To bounce back from that, to bounce back from the first part of the Harbaugh era, the 2020 COVID season, the last three years have been unbelievable. And man, if they could cap it off with the national championship, like, cause I've always wondered like, can Michigan win a national championship in the modern era?

Like I was like, I don't know if they can. And here, here we are. I'm with you. I'm totally with you on that because like, I remember just, I remember like,

like back to 2018, you know, 2016, where, like, we're still trying to get over that Ohio State hump, and I'm watching Alabama and Clemson and all these teams. I'm like, I just – I literally don't know if we'll ever get there. I honestly didn't know if we'd ever get over that hump. We obviously couldn't even get over the Ohio State hump, and I'm looking at those teams and looking at ours. And at that time, I'm just like, man, I don't see us on the same level as them. Right?

Like, I just didn't – it was hard to fathom. It was hard to imagine that. And so now to be here and to be like, we're better than – we're the best team in the country. Like, I can legitimately say that. Like, we're better than Bama. I feel like better than Washington. They're coming to get us, right?

Like, we're the dragon. We're the dragon that's being slayed. You know, like, that's a crazy thought to have, you know, not only from 2016 and 2018 and 2019 and all those, but obviously you look at 2020, like how low we were at that time. Like those were dark times, man. Like you didn't know if Harbaugh was going to be here. Like we're, you know, moments away from him being the Vikings head coach and who the hell knows where this program is at you know so not only are there like bounces of the ball that went not our way but like literally like moments in Michigan football history that like somehow it all has led us to this point and it's just like holy shit like how

did we even get here honestly so I I mean I'm just like grateful and thankful that we're all you know we're a part of it you know i think about like i get emotional again here but i think you're making me emotional now man i'm starting to feel it and that was a really sudden end after that speech i mean you know like i think about just us starting this podcast you know three years ago we're idiots just drinking a six-pack of beer in the middle of covid where there's nothing to do and like we i mean there was that was it it was us three i remember literally going to listen on i would click play on spotify itunes google Spotify, iTunes, Google Podcasts, just so we would get up to three listens. Literally, three listens. And now we're to the point where we've got 25,000 followers on Twitter.

We've got thousands of people that listen to this podcast every day. It's just honestly so awesome to be a part of it and to say that we can share this with not only you guys in this room, but like the people that are listening. Like it's so fun to be a part of this ride for all the people that have come to a tailgate over the past three years. And we've seen at the big house and, you know, just listening, even if you've never been there and you're just listening from home and you take it in, like, I, you know, I'm super grateful for you guys because you guys have made this, like, an incredible experience. And now we're going to the national championship and we're watching it. And you guys are going to be at Pretzel Bell and drinking some Hale IPA, some North Peak Brewing,

some Blue By 90 beer. Like, we have our own beer. Like, it is, like – I don't know. It's going to be an insane experience tomorrow, that's for sure. I mean, I wasn't here for the original three, but I kind of feel something similar, right? Like, 2021, I get engaged, and Michigan football is just – I don't know what to expect, man.

Like, they got some talent, you know, whatever, and they go 12-2, beat Ohio State, win the Big Ten. 2022, 10 2022 i get married uh you know they win the big 10 again go undefeated lose in the playoff game uh and then this year you know we're expecting a child we found out in november and uh you know michigan beats ohio state again wins the wins the big 10 beats alabama now has a chance to win a national championship put a cap on it's like just from like following my personal life with the football program together has like been these crazy moments of joy and sometimes frustration, right? Like not everything's perfect. You get pissed off about the TCU game. Like I'm down there in Arizona. I'm like,

I got a red eye after this and Michigan loses. Right. But like, it's all worth it to, to, you know, be able to go. I've been to 17 games the last two years, man. Like that's, that's crazy. Like that's almost 70% of the games. Like I've been able to see blake quorum jj carthy um like it's it's been awesome dude like moving here and um becoming part of the podcast and and helping it grow like yeah it's been crazy man so we're all just getting on an emotional tangent have we been having a few beers like what's going on here like i feel like

i haven't even had a drink yet yeah i feel like i need one. I will say one really cool thing about this game is no matter what happens, we get to see it again next year in September, which I just love that the SEC is not in this national title. That's a good point. Big Ten versus Big Ten. Yeah. Yeah. You guys, Justin, Tanner, you guys, you know,

I give you shit sometimes for talking a lot, but goddamn, you guys hype me the fuck up. I was thinking, like, while you guys were talking, I'm starting to get, like, the nerves and the anxiety, like, in my chest, and now I'm, like, I'm starting to get a little bit emotional. I got stomach issues now. I might be like Caleb on the pretzel bell floor if Michigan wins this game, just bawling my eyes out. Oh, my God.

So many tears for sure. Got to give a shout-out to my dad. He's in the room here as well. Hey, John. Where's he at? I talk about him all the time. Let's go. There he is.

Look at this guy. What a beauty. He's got his move-on ID wristband. I don't have a move-on ID wristband. We got move-on ID wristbands? It's from 2021. Are we undefeated with that? The only time he didn't wear it was versus TCU.

So he's got it on. And so here we are. So, I mean, being able to experience this with him is awesome as well. And yeah, I just I'm, I'm stoked to be here, man. I hope that we are recording a pod on Tuesday and prying tears with no voice and I'm smoking a stogie or something like that. And I hope we can get there. So, yeah, it's going to be a hell of a ride for all you Michigan fans out there.

Enjoy the day. Enjoy the game. Hug your people. Hug your Michigan fans. Tell everyone you love them because we're here, baby. We're playing in the national championship. So for us, you can follow us at Blue by 90 on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, at Blue by 90 Podcast on YouTube, and Blueby90.com.

We appreciate you. Let's go win an Addy. Go Blue. Go Blue. My heart is beating through my chest right now. Go Blue. Go Blue.