Who is Justin? Justin is my brother from another mother. Alright that is a lie. He is my real brother. He breaths Michigan as I do. I called upon to join this prestigious round table.


Who is Irish? Irish is the lone Notre Dame fan on Mgoblog. He has been known to be the only level headed Notre Dame fan within a 1000 miles of south bend. He often stops in on our Midnight chats.


1.Why will Michigan Win?


Shredder: Because we Blitz! Oh yeah. No really because Denard goes all 2010 on them. Or we find out that our running back Fitz and Shaw are better then we thought. We also win the turnover war which will be a big deal. Our defense get lucky again and finds its self in the right place at the right time.


Justin: Hype of the first night game tilts Michigan for the win. I do think Denard gets unleashed.


Irish: After watching the UM/WMU game I was feeling a sense of deja vu. Western turned the ball over, made some dumb penalties and really shot themselves in the foot in the red zone.  UM played their game and took advantage when they could.  There wasn't one outstanding play which turned the game but they just executed pretty solidly and it put the game out of reach.  ND played like WMU last weekend, all the penalties, the turnovers, ND could not execute until the 2nd half and by then 2 severe weather evacuations couldn't save them, they had dug their grave.  UM will win on just executing their gameplan


2.Why Does Michigan Lose?


Shredder: Rees dinks and dunks us to death. T-Wolf isn't 100% and Floyd has a field day like 2009 before getting hurt. Teo and the other golden domes stop the run well and cause Denard to use his arm in which he throws INTs that cost us big.


Justin: We suck at getting pressure on the QB. The new offense still has kinks and that cost us big. And  with Brain Kelly Threatening to chop some players heads off it scares his team enough to win for their lives.


Irish: Mistakes, and the trenches.  I wasn't expecting a pocket QB to be able to scamper so easily out of the pocket.  How, HOW can a MAC Oline beat the UM Dline on the goal line?  Thats just manning up and getting lower than the guy across from you.  How about a WMU 4 man rush that gets to the QB, it didn't look like one of the better Olines in the conference.  There was some poor play on both sides of the ball for UM, other people have talked about specific players but just in general, poor tackling at times, not lining up on defense correctly.  Those are 2 things in particular that could hurt more against a team who gets the ball to players in space (when they can catch it at least) and moves at their own pace down the field


3.Does Brian Kelly Need Help?


Shredder: Yes I suppose. If he stays on his current path he will end up like Chris Farlys character in Billy Madison. Driving a School Bus and cursing at kids. "That will stop your field trip...Pretty damn quick".


Justin: Ummm Yes the guy is batshit crazy he gonna burst a blood vessel!


Irish: lol, is there smug counseling available.  I might be in-line for some myself


4.Rees is starting. Should he be?


Shredder: Yeah he doesn't seem to crap his pants when something goes wrong. Crist seems to have melt downs when a INT is thrown or he sees steam coming out of Kelly's ears. Rees is also a good QB who seems to make the right plays and has a hunch for finding Floyd.


Justin: No I think Crist should the guy. He did pretty good last year vs Michigan. I think he gets a bad rap. But I didn't coach GVSU to 100 NC so what do I know?


Irish: At this point Kelly has to start him, I would have been annoyed if he went back to Crist.  You can't get 2 guys ready for the game, he made the decision to change QBs he needed to stick with his decision.  And when you compare the 2 different halves of the game, there was a lot more offense with Rees on the field.


5.Who wins the Turnover Battle and Why?


Shredder: Gotta go with Michigan. They will play it a bit safer. Notre Dame will try to throw it over the yard. Rees is still young and will make a mistake. If Crist is in he may shit the bed. As long as Denard doesn't pat the ball 25 times then he won't throw a INT.


Justin: It doesn't matter who the QB is. The loud crowd and the pressure of Kelly will cause INTs and mistakes. Michigan for sure wins this battle. It could be close if Denard makes a mistake but we will see.


Irish: Well UM is squarely in the lead at this point and I don't expect ND to even the score anytime soon.  There are times that its impossible to hold onto the ball, none of ND's TOs fall into that category sadly.  All are preventable though, can they correct it in 1 week?  Rees can go on a run of ints in a game but has shown the ability to still pull out the win, ND defense will keep this team winning (well eventually I hope) more than the offense, they both will need to make plays this season.  


6.Will Michigan's running backs go over a 100 yards?


Shredder: I don't think. I think Michigan does it if you throw in Denard but straight from the backs? No. If Fitz comes out and does get 100... Start to peg this guy as our starting back going forward. He showed some things in that game but I think the Teo and Notre Dame defense is pretty good.


Justin: Yeah I think Shaw and Fitz can do it. Throw in Hopkins and the new emphasis on running the ball. I think they break a few off. This might be Fitzs coming out party but we will see...


Irish: No way I can answer that.  ND took away the passing game and the RB last season because they didn't respect denard's abilities.  The defense has gotten better no matter how people try to convince themselves otherwise.  They could go with the same gameplan, I think they're more likely to sell out to the RB while trying to contain the QB.  Make Denard win with his arm this time?  


7.A Michigan win will cause you to what?


Shredder: To leave the game with my pants off which will ruin any chance at another night game at the Big House.


Justin: Happy the win and about our chances once the B10 season starts.


Irish: Laugh, no matter how the loss comes it will be a meltdown.  Firebriankelly.com will be registered, new coaching candidates will come up, it will be glorious for all the wrong reasons.  I wasn't looking for a NC team this year but a lot of people massaged themselves to the point that the world would definitely end tomorrow.


8.A Michigan lose with cause you to what?


Shredder: Will cause me to sob as I leave the Big House. At least it will be dark so Notre Dame fans can't try and steal my tears to slurp as they celebrate a big win.


Justin: Let down and to swear off night games. I will also hope the loss doesn't linger from losing another big game.


Irish: It would depend on how it comes.  ND would need to blow out UM for it to even be accepted that ND won and that is really unlikely.  ND has a lot more to lose in this game than UM, but Hoke has the most to gain from a win.  I would be content with a win, it sure would be better than the loss last weekend.  It will be fun to watch the excuses no matter who wins but I would prefer UM fans were making the excuses this year


9.What Notre Dame player are you worried about having an impact?


Shredder: Floyd... Who else? Teo maybe but Floyd for sure. He is a monster in the red zone and was a killer in 09 before getting hurt. He will get his.. I know that with out a doubt. Can Michigan soften that blow he will create will be the question.


Justin: I consider Floyd a top 5 receiver in the country and very scary to our secondary. He may have a field day. At least Boo Boo isn't around to get worked.. Shredder: Yeah he is getting worked in jail! #ZING!


Irish: (UM)


10.No team has won three in a row... Who you got?

Shredder: I hate not picking Michigan but with a new offense and defense and coaches. I think bugs and kinks still need to be worked out. I am not sold on Denard not patting the ball 30 some times and unloading a INT to the safety. If they stop the run game we will be in trouble. Can the Defense blitz like they did vs WMU? and work? Notre Dame looked good beside their dumb plays that cost them the game. I also belive in these dumb stats(no team has won 3 in a row). That is a lot of history to over come. I hate to say it but ND 34 and Michigan 28

Justin: I got Michigan. Hows that Shredder? I like Denard going all Denard to get this win. Coaches are not dummies. He will be used like RR used him. I think the defense will do just enough to secure the win and plus the night game and all the pressure is on Notre Dame. I really like Michigan. No score.. Don't ask.

Irish: Still have to go with ND, still like the matchup on offense and defense despite week 1 results, not that the defense looked bad though

11 Anything else?

Shredder: I will be in A2 all day for this historic game. I can't wait. It should be a fun game. I just want it close. I would hate to have another Oregon experience with such hype. Lets see what this team can do in 4 quarters of game. Show us what you got Michigan 11.

Justin: Thanks for having me and Go Blue Mother f-ers.

Irish: It should be a good game, looking forward to 12:05 early sunday morning (you're always late). 
Shredder: Sorry Irish I will be on my way back from A2 laying in the back on my Ford Escape either crying or yelling cuss words and hail to the victors at strangers in down town A2.