Latest / Coach Speak The Return / Episode 4 Quarters 1-3
Transcript
- Joshua: Hello everybody and welcome back to the pod. I'm Matt Seidel, he's Josh Trope, and this is Coach Speak. Josh, happy Sunday. Hey, how you doing, Matt? You got a silly grin on your face. What are you laughing about? I noticed you don't have your Michigan shirt on this week. I was just it's a little k I mean I'm glad you're representing. Yeah, I'm glad you represent a t shirt. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, not Michigan yeah. Hey, they played their best game yesterday, and if one of as I mentioned to you in a text, one of five or six things don't happen, they win. So yes, the football gods were looking down yesterday and saying we gave you one that you didn't deserve and now we're taking one away. I'm sh I will live with that. So Yeah, I believe that. Yeah, I I believe it too. Yep. Painful. That was painful. How the Irish do yesterday? W they won by about fifty. So they're three and in the Big Ten right now, so I I think they have a chance to win the Big Ten and the ACC this year. They are picking and choosing who they're playing in the Big Ten, kinda like they do during their their real you know, in every other sport in the world. They just kinda play who they want, you know. but yeah, go go Irish, yay. So I'm really excited for So All right, man. Well, hey, let's jump right into our topic. You know, we we touched on this in our first our return episode when we were talking about private versus public and it came up as a potential band-aid, but it's probably more than a band-aid, and that was regional seating and really focusing on the sport of basketball close to our hearts, right? So that's going to be our main conversation today. We both, I think, are on the same page that we believe heavily ever since the proposal came out a few years ago that regional seeding would help our beloved sport, MHSA basketball. based on the first podcast go our our reasoning might be a little different and and that and that's fine. You know, my reasoning is is simple. you know, we wanna if the MHSA is not going to address the inherent advantage that private schools have over public with something like a multiplier. or a success factor model or separate tournament which I'm not really that in favor of. I think the next best thing they could do to take the temperature down is to apply regional seating and that was to keep public school teams who are having best seasons ever, great regular seasons, they have great teams and they get knocked out by their local private school right down the road and it's just a bitter pill to swallow. if if that happened in the regional perhaps it would be less bitter. So that's my rationale for let's get regional seeding going. How about you man on that one? Yeah, I I don't agree for the reason, but I understand your reason. And it and I do think you know, I'm not worried about the public versus private, but I understand You're not. I wonder why. Anyway, go ahead. Sorry, I I I I I gotta stop interrupting. Go ahead. ahead. I understand why you are. I mean, I and again, so it's different. But I just think it's the right thing to do. I mean, this is again, let's use some common sense. The best teams should host the districts, the best team should host the regionals, and in every sport We we don't have the one seed play the two seed. We we have the the high seed play the low seed and they work their way through a bracket. I mean, it's just common sense. And again, you know, we can't really take credit for this. We we loved the proposal that B camp put together years ago, and and it's just when we saw that we're like, wow, why have we not been doing this forever? and I just think you're gonna get, I mean, not you're of course you're always gonna get upsets, but that's part of the great part about sports too. But for the most part, the better teams are gonna have. the easier roads and that is how it's supposed to work. Hundred percent. again, you know, I think the one the one that's fresh in our mind is was the girls basketball district last year. at Napoleon, I believe, where Gras Grass Lake and eventual state champion Loom and Christie, instead of possibly playing in a s well, at least a regional final, but that game could have been played that game could have been played at the Breslin Center on the final Saturday of the season. Possibly arguably the two best teams in the state played in a district final and Grass Lake com doesn't even get a district championship of as great a team as they had last year. And again, that can happen it with regional seeding it would not have happened. Those two teams Would have met in the regional final and that bitter pill, maybe maybe it wasn't a bitter pill for Grass Lake. I don't know. It was a bitter pill for me based on my beliefs. But that was tough. So those those kind of things, it would, it would totally prevent that from happening. Another piece with me is just the variety that regional seating would provide as well. So I think that's the Yeah, that's the thing I love about your proposal. I mean, I I think that seeing teams because right now, let's be honest, a lot of of these districts are are basically Cascade league championships or Ann Arbor League championships. Like how many years have we seen Skyline, Pioneer, Huron, Dexter? So it's basically the SEC Red has a league tournament. You know, and same thing in the KLAA with Brighton, Howell, Heartland. It you get a chance to play some different teams. Yeah, and and even if it e you still might have one neighbor school because of the the seating, y you still may be pitted against your rival. It it could happen, but you're not gonna have Pioneer, Skyline, Huron, and Dexter in the same district every year. You're not going to have Grass Lake, Napoleon, Hanover, Eastjacks, you know, every single year. And then of course sometimes you get Lumen in there and sometimes you don't. It would just be, you know, it it would be so much better. The variety piece is great. The N C A tournament. I think about that. They never pit league teams against each other in three rounds. Like they they avoid it for a reason. Now, you know, they they every once in a while you have a a proximity thing where they you know have the small school from Ohio play the bigger school from Ohio. It's kind of cool. But they're not they're not playing each other twice during the regular season, and it's just the there's so much variety in the NC tournament, it's what makes it great. So and I think the that example used about the small school, big school, I think they do that on purpose for you know an off. audience and ratings and and and stories. Like sometimes you'll see a a a coach coach against his former school in the second round. So you know, but it it's it's good stuff. And I know you mentioned Grass Lake and Lumen Christie last year, but how about this year? Columbia Central, Grass Lake and Lumen Christie girls all in the same district? Those might be three of the best five teams in the state. It yeah, it that is that is brutal. And and they still would be in the same region. But that'd be a great regional. That's okay. Yeah, that should be a great regional. And they all should be playing or hosting district tournaments, probably winning district tournaments, and then seeing each other in a regional and and again, I I think it takes you know, you take lumen out of that and you don't have a private school, it it might I don't know, like I say it's less painful. Again, it there are people out there, I know you sometimes want to downplay it, there are people out there that this is a problem for, and it's because they constantly are getting knocked out. Out by the local private school early in a tournament and it just sits with them wrong year in, year out. But yeah, that that is that might be the greatest example of any district, you know, boys or girls basketball this coming year. you mentioned, you know, how you the hosting, like hosting, regional hosting. I think the biggest problem that the state has with this NHSA being one is they need to make revenue, they need to make money off these district tournaments. So that's why they love to keep them low. because the crowds in their eyes and pr rightfully so would probably be a little larger and that's how they they pay their bills because they you they don't charge our our schools to be in the MHSA. So I get that piece. But who hosts these district tournaments? I guess that l let's just get I want curious what your opinion is about there. Who should host the district tournament? If we seeded a regional that had twenty four teams in it, which would be one through twenty four, that would be four districts of six teams. And even if it had twenty three tournaments or twenty three schools, you would have, you know, four district tournaments, one would have six and the other three would have five. But regardless, how who hosts the districts every year? Is that predetermined? 'Cause the the old BCAM proposal. It I think it still it was supposed to be predetermined. It was a little janky in terms of how that was going to happen. but w what are your thoughts on that? Well before I answer that and I love that question so let's let's revisit something you said. So the MHSA needs to make money. So so again we're things are being driven by money, money that the MHSA needs to make and let's do things the right way by kids instead of worried about making money. And then the other Thing, MHSA, I I have a solution for you making money. Stop hosting regionals on a Monday and Wednesday in the middle of the week. Let's use my format that I'm going to propose shortly about when we play these events. and maybe stop having 10 o'clock in the morning weekday games for semifinals. So we can get into all that in a little bit. But as far as your question goes, so the rate NPR ratings come out. About eight days before the districts are hosted. We could easily move that back four days if you wanted to to give schools more time and have a twelve to thirteen thirteen day window and put the final rankings like the you know two Wednesdays before districts if they wanted to. If that's their issue saying, Well, that's not enough time. But to me it's a no-brainer. The one through four seeds host the districts, end of story. And no AD should be complaining about well, you know, I'm busy or you know, our gym. Not available, or that's tough because again, if you're an AD, your job is to fight for your coaches and your athletes. And again, I go back to this. If this is about the athletes, just like I talked about the money, and this is about the the teams, then this is a no-brainer. Instead, you should be ecstatic. We have one of the top four seeds. We get to host a district. End of story. That's how it should be. And we might touch on this a little bit later, so I won't go in depth. But I also think that the best team remaining of The four district champs should host the regionals. Wait a minute, we do that in football. what a shock! We do the right thing in football. I am with you that that is the solution for districts. Let's have the top four seeds host individual district tournaments and go from there. If in the event that a school does not have the facility to host, can't for some crazy conflict that's going on, they've given their their building to some craft show or something and they can't they want that money, I'm just I'm just throwing out possibilities. then maybe again we're not putting the student athlete first. Now we're putting a craft show first. my wife would be offended if I if I ripped on craft shows too much. But anyway, and then if they couldn't then the the two seed would have the option to do it. You just go right on down the line. You know, I know there was gonna be an argument that th then then the same schools because they're stronger in this sport would end up hosting every year. I mean it it kinda is what it is. And soccer Well, you know what, this player we should just higher seed hosts. Just give everybody a district trophy then. I mean why I mean you know okay. Well I didn't go I didn't go there. I'm just saying there there's that's gonna be the the counter argument to it, but I like that. I don't agree with the regional. I think the regional can be predetermined just like it is right now. And you know, every once in a while you might end up hosting your own regional. I think that one can be can be shared a little bit, and then the state could give schools that want to host a big event and showcase their facilities or whatever, that possibility. I'm not saying yours is I'm not I'm I'm I we could go with yours, that would work, but then and I mean the top seed in the regional then he that school is going to host po potentially four games. And you know, I don't go ahead. So I I'll I'll be flexible on this and and because I I don't necessarily I'm not the districts I'm not bending on. With the regional, I I have some flexibility. I don't mind that idea. That's kind of what we do now. We we predetermine a site, but then let's be better about that. And let's here's an idea. This is a committee they might actually let you and I on. Let's pick with a the 23, 24 teams that are in that regional, and let's actually find a True central location and neutral site. Team like, for instance, if the top seed can't host the regional, well, the the lower sheet seed shouldn't be able to either. Like if you're the number one seed and you got to go play at the number four seed school in the regional, that's not right. I mean that that's messed up too. So let's pick, for instance, a school that's not in the regional, you know, that is truly centrally located, and let's make sure that's who's hosting the regional. I like that. But here's your here's your dynamic and this is why it doesn't occur right now, is let's say Lumen Christie is hosting you're hosting a Division II regional because you have a great facility and and and and volunteer to do it, but your team now is playing in a regional game that day. The last thing your people want to be doing is running a tournament at your place while your team is playing somewhere else. You know what I'm saying? So there's the there's the problem with you know they with outside schools hosting that really aren't even part of the region. So that doesn't mean it can't happen. and there's you know, and heck in the semifinal in football, they're not picking host schools until you know the Sunday before the game. You know, six days before the game. So you can get creative in this. but I think I think those are questions that need to be answered. But we're both, I think, both on the same page, and this is a a drum people need to start beating. There is no reason why basketball can't get to regional seating, and the fact that football went to It this year is just the the door being open for it. And I'd be really disappointed if for the twenty seven-28 season that MHSA basketball doesn't move to regional seating. But it it's probably gonna take some conversations, and it would take some people like you and I, maybe sitting with the brass and talking about that. But and I and I don't we like and I hate to be like this, but I don't want you to even give them a crack or a sliver of like, see, this is why we don't do it, Josh. So I'm gonna answer your argument about well. What if that team's playing? Okay, fair enough. I believe, and you maybe you know because you're an AD. so they have two or three sites ready to go for semifinal football in case of such situation. And so we could have the same thing, you know, the committee that they should form for this. So, you know, Holt is hosting the gonna host the regional site, okay. Well, then Holt Holt's basketball team makes a run and they're gonna get into regionals. Okay, well, we already had a backup plan that we're gonna go to Mason or we're gonna go to DeWitt or things like that. And I think that again, very simple solution. I'm not I I'm acknowledging that there could be some problems like that. or the other s again, the other solution is the best seed host the regional. But again, there's no reason I I don't want them to have a s anyone that to have a sliver of crack to say, see this is why we can't seed regionals, you know. Yeah, it's just you're right. It's it's just extra work and it it doesn't doesn't mean you can't do it. I volunteer for free. I volunteer for free to do it. Yeah. Bet you do. Yeah. You know, we we both have played around with what it would look like if regionals were seated. I I know I shared with you I just randomly picked two boys and two girls districts from la or regions from last year and seeded them myself based on on end of the season MPR, which is not totally accurate to the one that's used because that one's done eight days or whatever before the season ends. But it was interesting to see the the makeups of the districts. And in some cases a a lot of the they may have ended up the same way. But in other cases there would have been two different district champions just by the fact of the organization. I again I was I was curious about it and I mean, but just the ver the variety piece, I loved it. Like here's you know, just the boys, the D one boys regional four, you know, Huron was the top seed. Their district with and with regional seeding would have been they would have been the one seed, Plymouth Salem the two, Brighton the three, Northville the four, and Skyline the five. So either two and other schools still ended up there. But wow, like that's that's cool. You know, that's that's totally you know now Salem, Brighton and Northville are all The same conference. So maybe not so cool for them, but that's the way it's the way it worked out. None of them won a district last year. Because you know, here I got beat by so they there would have been a different district champ. Same with Lincoln would have hosted Dexter, Howell, Plymouth High, and Milford. I mean, again, some variety, and it would have been a different district champion. None of those five schools won a district last year, but that would have Lincoln would have been the two seed in the region and would not have whoever they lost. And and I did it for multiple ones and it's all like that. Just the variety was better. It would have changed the results and it would have given the better teams who earned it during the regular season an easier path. So and speaking to your variety piece, I think most years the districts would not look the same, and that's really cool too, not to have the same district every year. You know, and I I think that's that's really neat. Hundred percent. And and we occasionally get some switch ups in districts, but a lot of times it's just it's just, you know, rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat. So All right, man. Well hey, we're gonna move now to our second quarter. And and that's our our we've been going with this, and that might not happen every week, but what we're watching and wait a minute, I I think we're gonna this is only the second quarter. Wow, that was a long first quarter. That was a long first quarter, yeah. We we we're gonna make we're gonna make this one quick and we're gonna make our football picks we're gonna keep those quick as well. But second quarter, you wanna go first, Josh? I won't because we're gonna make it quick, I won't elaborate on either one of these things, but what I've been watching, my favorite show on T V had a season finale on Sunday, The Lioness. Excellent finale on Paramount, kind of a a cliffhanger and and not only a surprise revisit. And then obviously I've been watching the President's Cup because you know, golf's you know, there's no greater sport. And then but the one I'm gonna talk about and elaborate was being able to see the Justin Verlander thing this weekend. Not only his daughter throwing out the opening pitch on Friday, but then a very emotional moment yesterday when his daughter ran out to take him off the mound and and just the the crowd in Detroit. It just reminds me that, you know, Detroit is one of the greatest sports cities in the country. It really is. And and it just for guys our age, you know, we we had 20 years of of being Verlander fans. He obviously wasn't always a Tiger, but we were always a fan and it was nice to see him come home and do Do that. And if I have to be honest, I was kinda hoping he'd pitch a perfect game like you know, Kevin Costner did and and he's yeah, for love for love of the game, right, right. That's right. I was I was hoping. So but what about you? What have you been watching? No, yeah, and that the Verlander thing, I I guess I got a little got a little choked up there a little bit. I had to kind of pretend like I was coughing or sneezing in front of the family the other day, but that that was something. mine is really I I probably should change it to what are we doing? Like in instead of what I'm watching. I mean there's Two things that are coming to mind. And I'm gonna I'll make them quick. The first is can we stop all the cheating that's going on with some of our local basketball teams in Washington and Jackson County? And I'm not gonna call anybody out specifically right now, but sometimes I just have to turn on social media and I can see that teams are cheating because they're posting illegal workouts. Like I I someone needs to review with certain coaches and athletic directors about what is legal and what isn't in the office. All season. And I constantly am getting text messages, even some phone calls, about teams that are maybe pushing the envelope a little bit. Anything from workouts with more than four players run by the coach or sometimes even full fledged practices. They always want to report to me, thinking I'm gonna out them on a podcast. Well, this is the closest I'm gonna come, at least today, to outing them. What are we doing? Like st just stop the frickin' cheating and just coach your kids. the way everybody else is supposed to coach them. You know, and it's it's it's it's I don't know what that's all about. And the athletic directors and the coaches that are kind of allowing this to happen, it's it's kind of it's kind of it's kind of pitiful to be honest. The other one, the two things that I saw in college football yesterday, the USC linebacker was is Desmond Stevens. I think I think the kid's from Clarkston takes off Dante Moore's head and then celebrates it while they're they're there's you know frantically S signaling for the ambulance to come out on the field. The guy's unconscious. And his near brawl on the field, he doesn't read the tea leaves at all and realize, like, I just probably messed up. I need to be a little humble here. He keeps, you know, baiting the crowd and celebrating, got a big smile on his face. Really weird. And then the Texas linebacker who pretended to be using the restroom, urinating on the field, whatever you want to call it. I I don't know, he marking his territory. Wha what was that? Colin Simmons, I think his name, great play he made. Wha what are we doing? Like I don't what I mean I'm laughing about that one. I was not laughing about the the Stevens hit, but it's just like I it makes me shake my head. I get mad when our kids, you know, score a touchdown and get a flag for, you know, a stupid celebration in the end zone. It's just not the right way to do things. And then you see stuff like this. I mean you Yeah. Some of our high school kids are making bad decisions. But anyway, that's that's where my head is right now in the what are we doing or what we're watching, but good stuff. Alright. We're gonna we're gonna go through four third quarter our our football picks this week. We are gonna return after a week off. You currently lead the competition. you're nine and four. I'm seven and six. I need to make up some ground this week. Hopefully, I might have to take a couple upset shots here. but we're gonna we'll make it quick with our announcements. Analysis so we can get to our our our interview. but anyway, our first game, the high school game. We've got a couple speaking of Plymouth at the park over there, we've got Salem two and three at Canton one and four. Josh, what do you think about that one? I think the first thing I want to say is what what has happened to Canton? Once a really proud football program. I mean, just years of great success. you know, and you know, they are one and four. They and it It's just it's been a struggle. they're not scoring. they've except for in their one win, you know, they've had eight, seven, and six points. I mean, this was a a a school that ran the you know, the wing T and nobody knew who had the football and they'd score forty to fifty a game and just pour it on people. So it it's kind of sad to see what's happened there. you know, I you know, I guess everything is in, you know, goes in cycles and they got that chip system over there where they draw the chips, so maybe they're just they've been unlucky and maybe the the band members have been getting the red chips instead of the football players. I don't I don't know. Maybe they got a great band. but it it's kind of been a sad go. So I I am going to and Salem has not won many of these rivalry games over the years, but I am gonna go with Salem this week over Canton. Salem won last year 61 to 6. So that I mean, wow. That that is that's it this that had to be one of the worst teams in Canton history. If you look at their scores from last year, it was that was the norm. Scores like 61 to 6. Canton has some quality losses this year, though. The Northfield loss only 10 to 7. They played Plymouth they played Plymouth pretty tough, tougher than Salem did. I am gonna go with the home team, which I don't know if there is a home team in this game. I'm gonna go with the home team. Canton. I also need to make up some ground on So I'm gonna pick Cannon. our second game is Livingston County Special. Hartland four and one taking on Howell five and I'll start real quick. This Howell quarterback, by the way, I read I think I read the yesterday. he for the season. Now Howell's a ground heavy team and they're really good. Yeah. This kid, Palmer Van Devin, he he is seven for seven. For a hundred and seventy one yards and five T Ds on the season. He's thrown seven passes and has five Ts. Seventy one percent of his passes and resulted TDs. My bad. you know, they've got, I mean, they've got some some dudes. They got a a stable of running backs. Hartland coming off a forty-one six win against Novi. Their coach, who is Aaron Metz, he he did say more maybe more than once that their goal, their main goal this year, and I think they they've beaten Brighton, their main goal is to be the Best team in Livingston County. So this is their chance. Unfortunately, they're not the best team in Livingston County. Ha Howell's going to take it to them on Friday. Well, again, Howell 5-0. Hartland 4-1 with their one loss to Oxford. both teams put up a lot of points. You know, Heartland averaging 38 points a game this year, Howell averaging 43. you know, Howell won the last two meetings and Hartland won three years ago, but that was before Howell really got things rolling. I think the first team to thirty five points wins this game, and I'm gonna say that's gonna be Howell because I think they're gonna score every time they have the ball. but I I see an absolute barn burner, possibly like, you know, forty eight forty, something like that. First team to thirty five wins this game, and I'm gonna go with Howell as well. Okay. Our third game from the Cascades conference. It's the Johns Bowl, I call it. You know, the I don't even know if Tom Johns is still on the staff. He he he was there as a defensive coordinator when he left Napoleon, but he's now the superintendent of the district. I don't know if they're letting him coach anymore or not. But Leslie 4-1 at Manchester 4-1. This could be a pretty good game. Who do you have? Yeah, I agree. I mean, Manchester won the game last year, 30 to 29 in a great game. the common opponent is Jonesville. You know, Leslie beat Jonesville. I'm sorry, Leslie lost to Jonesville in a defensive. battle sixty two to sixty four. And then Manchester just beat Jonesville by thirty. So based on that, I'm going to go with Tom John's University over there, the flying Dutchman with the win this week. I think they actually have two opponents in common. D is it Michigan Center, the other one? 'Cause they so they both have like done the opposite. I did not see the center game. Ma Manchester they Manchester's only played one close game, and they lost that one to Michigan Center. But Michigan Center is a team that Leslie beat. So and then the Jonesville thing is flip flop too. So on paper it's it's a confusing game. y you know Manchester only has a hundred and eighty four students now? They're under two hundred students. Yeah. I just when I look at their enrollment, that was last year's Enrollment. Maybe they got a spike this year, but that's just different than the old Manchester. But they have s they still have some pretty good athletes on football, basketball, and different sports. But do you know anybody that's ever coached basketball in Manchester? I was just kidding. I do. I do, yeah. Yeah, I know a few people, yeah. Yeah. Okay. Okay. So do I actually there's one guy I know, man. He had he almost had it going and then he didn't, and he left. And so yeah. When he had a nice young team there for a while. gosh, stop it. I am too, I'm gonna I g I gotta try to get these games right. I'm gonna pick Manchester in this one as well. I like their Josh Lindeman, the the head coach, and if if if Tom is still coaching, he does a pretty good job as well. So our other game is a college game. Florida, four and coming off a big win at Missouri, three and one. God. I like the Missouri quarterback. I like the lefties, the transfer from from Ole Miss Austin Simmons. He looked pretty good last night. I thought they were gonna pull out that game against Mississippi State, but it did not work out for them, so they took their first L. Florida, what, fifty-two to twenty-eight over Ole Miss. My goodness. Bon Clark the the running back tandem that well, they two hundred and sixty plus yards or something combined. They they put on a a show. They're really good. I I think Missouri has too many holes. Florida is is looks like the real deal. I'm gonna go with Florida in this one. Yeah, I think it's gonna be a good game. I think Florida will have a little bit of a letdown coming off the win in the swamp against Ole Miss. but John Summerlin's the real deal, the coach there. He won at Troy, won it Tulane, now he's got Florida rolling. the key though, hire well I mean, great hire as the head coach, but the key hired by by someone was hiring the offensive coordinator from Georgia Tech, who had a second to none run game the last few years at Georgia Tech, and now that's happening at Florida. I think that a great defense, which Florida does not have, or a great running game travels. And you're not always gonna play well on the road and things like that. But I think Florida can control the cro the clock. They can wear Missouri down and I think it's really close for about three quarters and I think Florida pulls away late. You're starting to talk like a football coach. He must be yes right, you're coaching middle school football. How are the how are the young Bulldogs right now after? Excellent. Just wait waiting for their chance to be on varsity to to take it to the Dominate everybody. Hey, that look real quick, that could be something that we should have watched and a future guest, by the way. Also a Chelsea basketball player, but star football player Gibby Ichesco at Chelsea had four touchdowns against Dexter the other night, a kick return. Return, a punt return, a run, and a reception. Four touchdowns, four different ways. Northwood commit, basketball player at Chelsea. We might have to have that young man on the podcast.