MSU Red Cedar Message Board

I'm not condoning letting racism slide. I'm just not convinced that racism had anything to do with what went down on the field of play or the subsequent "debate" in the media and collective fanbases. I'm willing to be convinced otherwise.

Serious, hopefully not a flame question- who besides Michigan fans and Jon Chait are taking it over the edge? And how do UM fans losing it have any impact on whether Gholston gets suspended?

I freely admit many UM fans, including probably myself, are going overboard- frankly its an easy way to forget about the loss (its also easy when there is a bye).

But I do not understand the meme that there is a UM conspiracy that is going to lead to Gholston being suspended and has led to negative press attention.

Did UM submit plays to the conference? I'm sure they did-every team does it every single week. I think the B10 automatically looks at all PF penalties anyways.

But the actors most in a position to impact pubic opinion and make it into an even bigger story are the UM coaches and players and they have done their best to diffuse the whole thing.

I agree, I think most people acknowledge there were plays that got out of hand but, it happens sometimes, and a process exists to address it. The end. Instead, if you followed M fans on this, you would think Gholston went out and shot someone on the field or something. They don't realize that the more they whine about getting beaten up and calling their lawyers, the more they look like pussies. It's lost on them because they live in a closed circle. It's like the Pauline Kael syndrome ("I don't know how Nixon won, nobody I know voted for him") only applied to football over there ("I don't know why Gholston isn't in jail, everyone I know thinks he should be charged with 'attempt of muder'-sic).

Michigan fans are taking it over the edge, that's the point. Do you think Brandon or Hoke filed a report to the Big Ten on Gholston like Weis and Rich Rod did with Mouton/Reckman? I actually don't think they did (I really doubt Hoke did, and if Brandon did, that's not a very good assessment of his coach...). Therefore who brought the Gholston issue to the B1G's attention? Fans, and members of the Michigan media is the logical answer, which is completely permissible. The B1G does not review every call on the field, and not every unsportsmanlike call. That would be too much of a burden, and really, that's why they have officials. Reviewing Illinois game tapes and reports week after week would shut down the entire operation!

The refs issue a report, but the B1G doesn't usually disagree with their assessments unless they admit in their reports that they didn't see anything, which is really rare. The only penalties they review beyond the call on the field is helmet to helmet, and that because of an NCAA mandate. I doubt it was in the refs report, which are faxed to the league after the games, usually late Sat. night, or early Sun morning. The B1G didn't issue a statement asking MSU to further look into the issue until Tuesday.

Problems is, what happens if fan/media reporting to the B1G backfires and the B1G does nothing, or, as they are able to, heaps punishment on a Michigan player in addition? Not saying that's going to happen, but it's in the realm of possibility.

I'm not too sure Brandon or Hoke are extremely happy that the B1G asked MSU to file a report on potential MSU unsportsmanlike issues, and I doubt Hollis' response was too welcome. I also doubt they blame MSU or Hollis for any of that either.

Yeah. Some of them also wished worse on MD...

I think you are giving Brandon way too much of a free pass.

Maybe, but I don't see how reporting MSU/Gholston's benefits his program in the short or long term. It could open up a can of worms that he probably doesn't want to see. He's generally a dick, and maybe a little too hands on sometimes, but he and Hollis have a pretty good relationship unlike Weis/RR/Hope the last time this rule was brought up.

+1.

This is all that really matters.

Again! Racism!

Oh, wait...

I freely admit I was pissed last night after reading Chait--that was just so over the line, and it was in the New York Magazine. I don't think there's an organized effort by UM, but I do think there's enough UM alums in places that will go out of their way to go after MSU/Gholston. We all know the B1G office had to bring a larger bin to hold the letters.

One thing I won't lighten up on is the racial overtones of this whole thing. I hate when the racist card in played for no reason (you show up for work every day, drunk, you get fired, and it's racist--no you're probably a poster on tRCMB). Anyway the stuff I've read on message boards, "thug," "trash," "jail," "everyone from his school are thugs" without a doubt has racial overtones. When I was a little turd growing up in Lansing, I saw it too many times. Bring a friend to play a basketball game, "naw, we have enough guys, but you can play...." Racism is subtle and nuanced, at times, but don't fool yourself that it isn't there. I honestly believe if Gholston were white, without tats, and wasn't ten feet tall (obviously, height is not racist, but imposing black men make some people feel uneasy), this would not be as big an issue, or at least not garner the extremely hateful diatribes against him.

The UM fanbase has gone too far and needs to be called out. It was a football game, dammit.

I know...I was making the 1,000th "What? Marcus Rush is a white guy?" joke.