Brady Hoke Eats Coaching Awards For Dinner
Who's the man? You're the man.
In a world where CJ Barnett is a better safety than Jordan Kovacs, a 10-2 Michigan team must be coached up the wazoo, to the hilt, and beyond. Lo, it is so.
PARK RIDGE, Ill. -- The Big Ten Conference announced Wednesday (Nov. 30) that University of Michigan head football coach Brady Hoke was chosen as the Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year, as selected by conference coaches, and the Dave McClain Coach of the Year, as picked by the media.Hoke is the sixth first-year coach to earn the McClain Coach of the Year award, which dates back to 1972 and is named for the former Wisconsin coach. This is the inaugural awarding of the Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year honor, which pays tribute to Ohio State's Woody Hayes and Michigan's Bo Schembechler.
This will be the only time in the history of the award someone from Michigan or Ohio State actually wins it. This is Hoke's third COTY award in four years. Neat trick, that.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:06 PM ^
Nice job, Coach. I, like most, was not super excited with this hire - everyone had Harbaugh on the brain, but man - anyone who doesn't love this guy has a screw loose.
I had heard from a few friends that the guys would play their hearts out for him, and sure enough they have.
Go blue!
November 30th, 2011 at 3:08 PM ^
Not only did he earn it with his accomplishments, he did it the Michigan way--with ultimate class. His gesture of personally awarding footballs and hugging each of the seniors and their parents before The Game spoke volumes. I've never seen a head coach do that before when the rest of the coaching staff and team were in the locker room. No wonder the kids love him.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:09 PM ^
...but honestly, was there ever any doubt? Jerry Kill did an okay job, but there's no question Hoke did the best coaching job of the year.
/mancrush
November 30th, 2011 at 3:09 PM ^
Congratulations!! the 1st of Many
November 30th, 2011 at 3:16 PM ^
usually teams that are expected to have great years and do don't get many award. i hope we're in that position in the future. this award was quite deserved.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:14 PM ^
He eats coaching awards for dinner, but never on game days.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:14 PM ^
November 30th, 2011 at 3:14 PM ^
for Division 1 as well...
November 30th, 2011 at 3:19 PM ^
I was in the group of people who thought that Hoke was a mistake. I was wrong, I'm sorry Coach. I won't let it happen again.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:19 PM ^
"Brady Hoke was chosen as the Hayes-Schembechler Coach of the Year"
I wonder if he'll just call it the Schembechler Coach of the Year award.
November 30th, 2011 at 10:44 PM ^
considering who his father played for at Miami (NTM).
November 30th, 2011 at 3:19 PM ^
Congrats and well deserved. Not even the Big Ten could screw this up.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:31 PM ^
the NCAA could. If they were deciding, they would call up Gee and Gene Smith and ask, "Who should we give this to?"
November 30th, 2011 at 3:27 PM ^
Congrats well deserved!
November 30th, 2011 at 3:37 PM ^
Well deserved!
And such a classy guy!
Bo Schembechler would be mighty proud of this Michigan Man!
November 30th, 2011 at 3:48 PM ^
Good to see him get recognition!!
Also, Ron English won COY in the MAC.
The Carr coaching tree grew a few feet this year.....
November 30th, 2011 at 3:53 PM ^
Congrats to Coach Hoke. I laughed at the line about this being the only time an OSU or UofM coach will win the award. It's funny because it's true.
November 30th, 2011 at 3:54 PM ^
3 of Coach Hoke's coaching mentors are recognized with those award names: Dave McClain, whom Hoke played for at Ball State and he has mentioned many times as one of his biggest influences in coaching and life... Bo Schembechler, who was on the same team as Coach Hoke's father when they played under Woody Hayes at Miami of Ohio...
November 30th, 2011 at 4:01 PM ^
Congrats to coach Hoke.Its great to be a MICHIGAN WOLVERINE!
November 30th, 2011 at 4:05 PM ^
is indeed a hot coach. 3 in 4 years is impressive.
November 30th, 2011 at 4:15 PM ^
And he is a .700 coach over that time (35-15). People calling him a .500 coach when he was hired may have been nominally correct, but Hoke's career trajectory has been clearly upward. He struggled his first few years, which maybe wasn't surprising given that he had never been a coordinator, but then seemed to figure it out around 2006 and has been an excellent coach since.
November 30th, 2011 at 5:56 PM ^
I would be nervous hiring a coach that didn't start out with at least SOME losing seasons. This isn't the sort of job you grasp right away; what's important is that he's been getting better every year. Next year's schedule is much tougher so I don't know if we'll win 10 games again, but I think in a couple more years a lot of unpleasant memories will be distant ones.
As for winning the award, congrats to Hoke, but to his credit I think he might be the person in Ann Arbor who cares the least. Oh I'm sure he'll say all the right things like "it's an honor", but from what we know of Hoke the hardware's gonna be forgotten on a mantlepiece by next week while he gets back to work.
November 30th, 2011 at 4:10 PM ^
A guy I work with who is a huge Buckeye fan and relentelessly retarded in his inability to admit Michigan is awesome (just yesterday he said things like "it's just one game!" and "OSU doesn't care about Michigan" and "who cares about the record over the past 20 years/overall record" and "but you didn't beat MSU!") was bragging that we got "stuck with Hoke" while they picked up Meyer.
You know what? I prefer Hoke. Yay Brady!
Go Blue!
November 30th, 2011 at 10:53 PM ^
Aboslutely. Hoke is about his players and esp. the seniors.
Meyer is about, well, Meyer, I think. Have to check with his agent.
November 30th, 2011 at 7:29 PM ^
But then they get really good. It's great to have him.
November 30th, 2011 at 4:22 PM ^
November 30th, 2011 at 4:33 PM ^
It's amazing that Carr did not win in 1997. I mean yeah, Joe Tiller did a good job that year, but 12-0 is 12-0.
And how on Earth did John L. Smith win this award once?
November 30th, 2011 at 4:57 PM ^
C'mon, how can you not award the guy who slaps himself in the face at a post-game presser?
November 30th, 2011 at 4:25 PM ^
I don't want to hate on OSU and Braxton Miller, but I don't think he really deserved Freshman of the Year, it's just that he was the most visible fresman that actually played for a big name team and it was just like...yeah here you go.
November 30th, 2011 at 7:28 PM ^
I agree with you completely. However, I couldn't give a name for a someone who should receive the award.
Any suggestions?
November 30th, 2011 at 10:09 PM ^
Blake Countess? Not a sexy pick but he locked down the best opposing wide receivers all year long.
November 30th, 2011 at 4:55 PM ^
which is a travesty of the first order.
November 30th, 2011 at 6:29 PM ^
According to his bio at mgoblue.com, Berenson was named CCHA Coach of the Year in both 1994 and 2008.
December 1st, 2011 at 10:05 AM ^
Fair enough, but it is definately a travesty that Red hasn't won the award more.
November 30th, 2011 at 5:09 PM ^
Clearly nothing but a class act and after watching the travesty of an introduction the other day in Ohio, I couldn't be happier with Michigan's Man. He was on the Huge Show yesterday, and just love his answers. Totally took the MSU loss on his back saying "I did a poor job as a coach preparing them for that game.". Totally humble and recognizes that everyone makes mistakes and can learn and advance from them. This is one Wolverine with a huge smile over this staff. Congrats Coach Hoke!
November 30th, 2011 at 5:18 PM ^
Bo wouldn't have wanted it any other way. Go blue
November 30th, 2011 at 5:28 PM ^
Ten years from now, when Hoke in in his mid sixties, and in the middle of becoming another legenday Michigan coach with X number of Big 10 Championships... if the pictures of him pointing and captions like, "Who's the man? You're the man." are still around as a steady joke... I'll be a damn happy Wolverine fan. Go Blue! Down with Ohio!
November 30th, 2011 at 9:03 PM ^
Variable = X = ten.
I see what you did there.
November 30th, 2011 at 5:46 PM ^
Well done.
He grew a lot as a coach between 2008-10, and has become one of the best. He's secure enough in himself to hire outstanding assistants and let them do their jobs while he spends his time on particular needs, which he identifies well, and setting a winning tone from the top. He handles the media very well, and engenders confidence in the players and other coaches.
He speaks "Michigan Man" very well, while also -- as Brian has noted so literately -- being unafraid to take risks, in both risk-reward decision-making and schematically. He's a 21st Century Michigan Man we've been waiting for ... well, for the whole 21st century.
All indications are that he'll be an excellent recruiter. I have no fears whatsoever that he's somehow doing something with Rod's recruits that won't be sustained, and such a notion strikes me as bordering on batshit insane.
He's a terrific coach.
November 30th, 2011 at 5:53 PM ^
I was hoping he'd get this recognition he is surely deserving of. Another reason why parents should send their sons to Michigan to play football. Top notch coach, top notch staff, top notch program. Let's see if Mattison gets the recognition he deserves, too.
November 30th, 2011 at 6:27 PM ^
November 30th, 2011 at 6:56 PM ^
Great job and congrats on the season and well-deserved award!
November 30th, 2011 at 7:22 PM ^
November 30th, 2011 at 7:30 PM ^
...sounds right to me! Congrats coach Hoke on winning the award.
November 30th, 2011 at 9:05 PM ^
The guy came here and I was really skeptical and almost certain that Brandon had made the wrong move. I was wrong. Hoke and his staff did an amazing job this year. It was apparent in the second half of the ND game, this guy wants to win now. The rest of the season went pretty damn well, hence a trash tornado and some shitty refs in Iowa. Nice work coach. I know you're working right now. Good luck this January. Win our first BCS game for us and I'll go sleeveless for a week.
November 30th, 2011 at 10:24 PM ^
Is Vandenberg a freshman? If so he probably deserved it over Miller
edit: Okay he's a junior... that was dumb
November 30th, 2011 at 10:20 PM ^
I love gloating to my buddies who all called me crazy when I said I would rather have Hoke than Miles or Harbaugh. Who is the crazy one now?
November 30th, 2011 at 10:21 PM ^
i was so pissed when i herd that we hired hoke then i seen the recruits, herd him speak, and seen him point and fell for him fast.
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