October 29th, 2018 at 4:48 PM ^
I guess I haven't been keeping track... is Chris Webber cool now? I thought things were still a little eeehhhhh there.
October 29th, 2018 at 4:56 PM ^
Webber has always been my homie. Fans are split on him. I'm surprised he agreed to this however. To my knowledge this is the first time he has really ever made an effort to do anything with UofM (yes I know he attended the NC title game a few years ago as a spectator).
October 29th, 2018 at 5:05 PM ^
I fall into the group that like him. I think the reason is that I was too young when that whole situation went down.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:20 PM ^
Webber has always been good in my book. I don't need no apology from him. I'm glad he'll be back on campus and I'm glad Harbaugh made this possible.
October 29th, 2018 at 7:12 PM ^
It sucks that he took the $ and lied about it. But the thing is, the Fab Five had a legitimate gripe about amateurism and having their likenesses monetized. It's an issue that's still being battled in court today, with the NCAA gradually loosing footing.
October 29th, 2018 at 9:57 PM ^
I’ve always been a fan. Glad to see him make an effort to come back.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:44 PM ^
He is gonna get a CRAZY reception. No doubt.
October 29th, 2018 at 9:34 PM ^
It's funny; the MGoBoard took a shot at this subject matter back in 2012, when OSU honored the 10th anniversary of their 2002 National Championship team, and the recently-fired Jim Tressel was among the honorees.
Let's just say that the MGoBoard, uh, distinguishes the Webber case from the Tressel cases. Not sure how, but they are different.
October 30th, 2018 at 12:37 AM ^
Do you seriously believe Webber = Tressel or are you just trolling?
Tressel, BTW, is now a university president in Ohio. But we should swear off Webber forever to prove M has higher standards?
That's not what it would prove. Welcome home, Chris.
October 30th, 2018 at 9:48 AM ^
Do you seriously believe that Tressel's lying was worse than Webber's lying? I am totally fucking serious about that. Tressel filled out a compliance form and failed to disclose what he knew about tattoos-for-swag. Tressel gained nothing in the scandal; he volunteered to extend his own suspension beyond what the length of the suspension his players would have received if they had disclosed themselves.
Webber lied to a federal grand jury under oath, and was charged with four (I think it was four) federal felonies including perjury and obstruction of justice.
The only thing that I would like to "prove" with Chris Webber is the extent to which his crimes were committed on his own, apart from Michigan's coaches, staff, faculty and alumni.
October 29th, 2018 at 4:52 PM ^
Over 101.5 comments is my bet
October 29th, 2018 at 4:52 PM ^
Is he going to call Franklin's TO?
October 29th, 2018 at 4:55 PM ^
It still feels like Too Soon...
October 29th, 2018 at 5:04 PM ^
It's almost better that they didn't win. It hurt at the time but knowing that they would have taken that banner down too might have hurt more. I love Webber and glad he's coming in for this this. Hopefully he gets a lot of love Saturday (and can take a joke).
October 29th, 2018 at 8:18 PM ^
Never thought of it that way, but you're right. To have them take down a NC banner would have made it sting that much more.
October 29th, 2018 at 9:03 PM ^
Yeah.....I’d rather have the temporary NC banner over the runner up banner. The Fab Five played during my junior & senior years. They can take down a banner, but they can’t take my memories. Those memories would have been a little sweeter with a NC.
October 29th, 2018 at 4:56 PM ^
Finally, let us put an end to all the ghosts including webber.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:05 PM ^
I will always have love for CWebb and the rest of the Fab 5.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:11 PM ^
Getting him back in the fold is a big positive as I see it. Way to go coach!
October 29th, 2018 at 6:10 PM ^
Aaron Rodgers = automatic downvote
October 29th, 2018 at 7:00 PM ^
OK, if you say so.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:20 PM ^
Good. Let’s put this mother to bed.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:24 PM ^
Outstanding!
Hopefully he'll stop by Crisler and rehang some banners.
Love the Fab 5
October 29th, 2018 at 6:03 PM ^
"...both sides..." Remind me where Chris Webber apologized and made a clean recitation of the facts and how his private actions were a very large part of the worst violation of NCAA bylaws, by far, in the history of Michigan athletics.
I have no idea why we'd be talking about what a great basketball player he was. We all know that part of the story, and no one doubts it.
Chris is really, really lucky he was not guilty of a felony. He lied to a federal grand jury, and was forced to admit it when he was charged with perjury. I'm not sure if the details have ever been totally clear, but there is little doubt but that Chris lied to the University's investigators as well. He pled guilty in federal court to a reduced charge of "criminal contempt," which was a really fortunate, great deal for him.
I'll feel a lot better about Chris Webber when he steps up and takes the blame he deserves, along with scumbag Ed Martin, for a scandal in which much of the country presumed (without knowing better) that it was due to a dirty Michigan program, when in fact it wasn't about recruiting, or academics, or payoffs by anybody who should have been regarded as a booster in any meaningful sense. Ed Martin's own money, paid to Webber and his family, simply for Ed Martin to curry favor with them. In the end, making Michigan look bad/dirty.
October 29th, 2018 at 6:39 PM ^
You are going off based on one sentence. Let it go. Geez
October 29th, 2018 at 7:18 PM ^
Michigan was bad/dirty. They knew Ed Martin was bad news but continued recruiting players he had influence over and continued letting him have access to the program despite numerous warnings. And if this was just a Webber/Rose thing it would have been a blip. The problem was that it dragged on for another 5 years with Taylor, Traylor and Bullock. By that point it's completely on Michigan. Then to compound it, we self imposed santions way worse than the NCAA would have done, and then burned through two completely inept coaches continuing to self-sanction ourselves.
This whole ordeal was maybe 25% Chris Webber, 10% the other players, 25% Ed Martin and 40% UofM's own ineptness.
October 29th, 2018 at 8:49 PM ^
Chris was a teenager, with no clear idea that he'd even be going to Michigan, when he started taking money from Ed Martin.
October 29th, 2018 at 9:17 PM ^
Don’t drag Jalen into this. As far as I recall he never received loans from/laundered money from Ed Martin.
In those days I was a bigger fan of Webber fan than Jalen. These days it is reversed.
October 30th, 2018 at 10:04 AM ^
Jalen has absolutely and clearly admitted having gotten money from Ed Martin. Jalen says it was small amounts, and I believe Jalen on that. I believe Jalen on that because he has made an effort to be truthful and he has never been charged with perjury or obstruction of justice. And what Jalen has said in the past about Webber is that Webber is a liar and is "delusional."
November 2nd, 2018 at 5:43 PM ^
Thank you for including a citation. While my claim was clearly incorrect as stated, there is a clear distinction between taking pocket change from a neighborhood guy for years and laundering tens of thousands of dollars for a criminal organization. The subject of the investigation was the loaning and laundering of large sums of money associated with an illicit gambling operation. My point (and you may well agree) is that there is a very clear line between Webber's involvement and Jalen's (almost non-) involvement. I am a fan of both, but believe the distinction is real and worth noting.
October 29th, 2018 at 8:11 PM ^
Oh there you are!
October 29th, 2018 at 8:52 PM ^
Forgiveness is a thing. A very good thing. And may it's time, 25+ years later.
October 30th, 2018 at 11:53 AM ^
Forgiveness comes when there is an apology for bad deeds. He is not my favorite alumnus but I am willing and wanting to forgive. But doesn't he have to accept responsibility first?
October 30th, 2018 at 2:09 PM ^
Sure he should accept responsibility for being arguably the best player to wear the uniform. He owes no one an apology. We all understand that he, his likeness and the culture the Fab 5 brought was being exploited big-time by the university, Nike and everyone else. Sure Ed Martin gave them pizza money from time to time. It really falls into the de minimus lex category and our home grown hero should be able to come back and get all the love for what he left on the court as a player for Michigan. If anything, the NCAA is mostly to blame for still not figuring out how to stop the exploitation of players like him. That's why Kobe, Lebron, Garnett and a host of others skipped the f ____ing session and said pay me for my services and if the alumni here can't forgive him for his teenage indiscretions from 30 years ago F__ck them because he could have gone elsewhere or straight to the pros and we wouldn't have those great memories!!!!! GO BLUE.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:28 PM ^
We should be welcoming back Webber back with open arms. People who are still mad at him can fuck off. It's been like 30 years. He's a Wolverine, and he should be treated as such
October 29th, 2018 at 5:29 PM ^
Well now I know who to blame if Michigan loses.
(/s if that wasn't clear)
October 29th, 2018 at 5:30 PM ^
Count me among those who is not even remotely upset with Webber and will welcome him back to campus with open arms. Good news indeed.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:31 PM ^
This may be the only time that he is in a sports arena and he isn’t the most notoriously bad time out manager.
/Franklin
serious note: this is awesome! I loved cweb and it’s long overdue that we bring him back into the fold.
October 29th, 2018 at 5:33 PM ^
The Fab 5 changed bball. Btw, if the schools in the FBI case that was just in court do not get the death penalty, then hang every damn banner and hold a Fab 5 reunion every season.
October 29th, 2018 at 7:20 PM ^
Not until CWebb apologizes to everyone /s
October 29th, 2018 at 8:22 PM ^
Hoke apologizes and he gets crap for it but Webber doesn't and he's resented. It's not about apologizing, it's about hurting some of the fan's feelings apparently. Boo hoo. Welcome back, Chris!
October 29th, 2018 at 5:35 PM ^
Say less, Do more
October 29th, 2018 at 5:36 PM ^
Absolutely surprised by this!! And I absolutely LOVED the fab 5. My dad and I would go watch him play his sr year in high school. And Jalen and Voshon Leonard at Southwestern. Man Detroit was the b-ball capital there for a while.
Anyway, welcome back Webber, it’s all good now!
October 29th, 2018 at 5:43 PM ^
loved the Fab Five - Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson really did change college basketball.
of the teams that they lost to in the Finals, there's only a couple of players i can even remember w/o looking it up - Mashburn... Montross and Hurley (i think)...but everyone knows the Fab Five and they are still considered legends by kids growing up today.
look forward to seeing C.Webb as honorary captain and hope that the fans at Michigan Stadium will welcome him back
October 29th, 2018 at 6:13 PM ^
You named three dudes, from three different programs, across two years. Amazing!
October 29th, 2018 at 7:11 PM ^
lol... like i said, no one was particularly memorable from those other teams...
plus...i am old...
October 29th, 2018 at 7:32 PM ^
You don't remember Grant Hill and Christian Laettner?
October 29th, 2018 at 7:51 PM ^
They weren't memorable to you because you're a Michigan fan, maybe???
And I'm sure there aen't many outside of Michigan who will remember Ray Jackson or Jimmy King.