MGN Weekender: August 30, 2024

It's Labor Day Weekend

It’s time to do the last cookout, the last family trip, the first tailgate, and whatever other traditions you have going on. I like to do a brisket on Labor Day, which coincides with my birthday most years. My neighbor likes a big family cookout with family from all over so we share some food and grilling tips.

Being in the middle west I have to do my own barbeque-ing as I don’t really like the sauce-heavy stuff they do here. I did get some St. Louis cut ribs and smoked them Texas-style, however. They were a big hit. This weekend is Brisket time, however.

The big news this weekend is the return of college football, of course. The Mean Green play tomorrow in Mobile, Al and we are ready to have the heartache and excitement that being a fan brings. It is a still hobby but I love it.

We wrote a season preview e-book, a couple of blog posts, a game-preview, and a preview podcast of the season and the game. Then I go read something that gave me pause:

Does Success in the Transfer Portal Lead to Success on the Field?

Essentially, NT is pretty mediocre in recruiting rankings and returning production, while South Alabama is strong in those areas. The data suggests that transfers, while good, don’t really help you as much as recruits and having a strong recruit-and-develop pipeline. So it goes.

I will have a good time having some margaritas and brisket anyway. We encourage you to sign up for a subscription (yearly or monthly) as it helps justify the time we spend doing this. We aren’t getting rich, and I very much have to keep my day job. It does help pay for the hosting costs for the forum and the various subscriptions I have to get access to data, stats, film and whathaveyou.

This is the peak time for interest. Every jaded fan, bandwagon guy, and curious on-looker is interested right now. I’ve been blogging about this program long enough that I know this is the last time we will see each other¹ until next season. Basketball should be fun this year, but it also does not draw nearly the same interest as does football. I get it: Football is King. So it goes.

I’ll let you get back to your weekend plans. Thanks for reading and listening, and go mean green!

1. in a manner of speaking