Thursday Morning Brews: Post bowl blues

Happy Thursday, folks. Welcome to Morning Brews. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking to put the bowl game in the rearview mirror. Alas, it won’t be an easy game to forget. There’s much to learn from Michigan’s untimely collapse, as several of my colleagues have pointed out this week in their columns. But it’s also a game that I’ll carry around for a long time, like some physical graffiti. There are also some rumors out there about Coach Harbaugh making some changes in light of the bowl game and the season, so stayed tuned to Maize n Brew for some potentially breaking news over the next several days.

Enough about the bowl game. Since I skipped Tuesday Brews this week to make room for post-bowl coverage, I want to use today’s edition to catch up with the non-football teams I often cover. This morning we have tidbits from men’s and women’s basketball, plus hockey. There’s also a little bit of football content, which is what we start off with.

As usual, there is a song referenced in this morning’s article. There are at least two clues. Clues may be words, phrases, or pictures and may reference lyrics, the title, the album, or the artist. If you think you know this morning’s song, fire away down in the comments.

Let’s get to it:

The season and bowl game didn’t end the way we would have liked, but don’t lose sight of what this senior class has accomplished and what they have done for Michigan football. This class spanned the conclusion of the prior coaching staff and the beginning of the current staff. They stuck it out through a losing season, losing conference seasons, and coaching turmoil, and when Harbaugh came to town they decided to stay and play for a coach that didn’t recruit them - some of them, like Chase Winovich, agreeing to change positions. There wasn’t a conference championship or playoff appearance for them in the end, but sure as the dust that floats high in June, they’re Michigan Men.

Michigan signee and 2018 RB recruit Christian Turner isn’t waiting until he gets on campus to start getting ready for the college game. The three-star prospect is apparently working with Elite Sports Academy down in Georgia to prepare for the jump to college. Turner shows good explosiveness and power on his film, but adding weight and muscle is something that even the most developed recruits must do when transitioning from high school to college football. Turner received offers from numerous Big Ten, ACC, and SEC schools before committing to the Wolverines. He was one of the 16 members of the 2018 recruiting class to sign their NLI during last month’s early signing period.

Michigan hockey had a mixed week playing in the 53rd annual Great Lakes Invitational. In the Wolverines’ first game, Michigan found itself facing a 4-0 deficit to Bowling Green. The Wolverines rallied scoring the next two, but Bowling Green added a fifth goal before Michigan scored two more in the third period. The Wolverines pulled the goalie to try for the equalizer late, but Bowling Green found the empty net and won 6-4. In the second game, Michigan was on the right side of a 6-4 victory against Michigan State. Overcoming a 3-1 deficit, Michigan scored three goals in the second period and three goals in the third period. Michigan stands at 8-8-2 (3-5-2) on the season. They’ll be back in action tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m. against Notre Dame. The game will be broadcast on BTN.

John Beilein hit the 100 Big Ten win milestone with Tuesday’s road win over Iowa. He is the second coach to reach the 100 conference win plateau for Michigan basketball. Johnny Orr is the longest tenured basketball head coach in program history, and he also holds the most conference wins with 120. Beilein will surpass Orr in terms of longevity next season, and Beilein has already passed Orr in terms of overall coaching victories in Michigan basketball history with 228. Orr finished his time at Michigan with 209 wins, two Big Ten championships, and one Final Four appearance.

Katelynn Flaherty has added herself to the Michigan record books in yet another way. With her four three-pointers this past Sunday, Flaherty has now made more threes than anyone in Michigan history. Unfortunately, the Wolverines lost the matchup against Iowa by the score of 82-72. Michigan was led by Flaherty with 24 points. Deja Church and Kayla Robbins both contributed 11 points. The Wolverines are now 12-3 (1-1) on the season. They’ll be back in action this evening at 6:00 p.m. when they travel to Wisconsin. The game will be televised on BTN.