Hackett Staying Long Term?
[Eric Upchurch]
Bruce Feldman is reporting that interim AD Jim Hackett is close to dropping the interim title:
Hearing from multiple sources that expect #Michigan's interim AD Jim Hackett to remain on as the #Wolverines AD.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) November 26, 2014 Not saying Hackett decision with #Michigan to remain as AD is a done deal but word is that's the direction things seem to be heading
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) November 26, 2014 That's along the lines of what we'd been hearing from Sam and others—that Hackett is going to be around for X number of months where X > amount of time it'll take to fire and hire a new coach.
The chances that the best available athletic director is a retired CEO who hasn't worked in an AD ever are about 1%, but This Is Michigan. They don't care what the sensible thing seems to be. That's fine as long as you are good at doing things. Michigan hasn't been, and given the way the chips have fallen if Hackett doesn't lock down Jim Harbaugh the fanbase is going to have a fit.
But he's not Dave Brandon.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:32 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 11:44 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 11:24 AM ^
He knows who he needs to get, and he's by all accounts a very personable guy, so this might not be a bad thing. If Harbaugh and Miles both say no, I'd hope that he'd have used a search firm to recommend the best available coaching candidates after that. It doesn't require a football genius to hire a great coach.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 11:37 AM ^
Arrogance or ignorance?
November 26th, 2014 at 1:30 PM ^
How was Hackett "part of the problem"?
November 26th, 2014 at 11:18 PM ^
Wasn't he Brandon's hire? Or at least somone Brandon liked and kept on even after he broomed out a ton of other people?
It does not make him Brandon 2.0, but clearly he and Brandon were on the same page as to what they wanted to do with the AD.
Not exactly a fresh start.
November 26th, 2014 at 2:29 PM ^
hey, I'm standing right here.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^
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November 26th, 2014 at 12:25 PM ^
This is a very intriguing possibility. JH and his dad obviously know Hackett, and if they're comfortable with him as a known quantity—the devil you know and all that—they might have let Hackett know that their consideration of an offer is helped by knowing Hackett will be AD, at least during the critical initial years of a JH coaching tenure.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^
I have a feeling that they have realized the AD search isn't going to work itself out short term. But they will need to hire a new football coach soon. What coach wants to come work for an interim AD in transition? I'm thinking to give the feeling of stability, they are going to drop the "interim" tag, but that doesn't me he's going to be permanent.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:29 AM ^
And I think this is a totally reasonable explanation. If it's not this, then it's not good.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:20 PM ^
It makes sense and is totally reasonable.
Which is why you can't assume it given our track record.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:31 AM ^
While I agree with your thought process it should not be a damn 180 day process to hire an AD. There are CEOs of S&P 500 companies hired in 90 days of evaluation or less. It's ridiculous. It speaks to a bloated organization - which granted most public universities are but UM is making it seem like hiring an AD requires the expertise of sending a man to the moon.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
My only problem with this comparison is we have no real idea on what Schlissel's thought process is on all of this. I don't remember the effort or time it took to hire him as President, but this is his hire to make and he wants to take his time.
He knows how important this decision is for Michigan and instead of just jumping to conclusions and hiring any remotely qualified AD with Michigan ties he is putting what he thinks is a qualified stop-gap in place so he can satisfy his own desire to take his time and hire the best man for the job.
How did all those quick CEO searches turn out? Were more of them poor than the ones who take their time? This could all blow up in his face in spectacular fashion but lets give this a little time to play out before we complain that Michigan can't do this as quickly as a few different corporations hire their CEO's.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:54 AM ^
Well if Hackett is the full time hire his prehire evaluation period is 48 hrs. And his body of work is 30 days.
Is that better than a 60 day evaluation period? And bodies of work that range from 5 to 20 years of other candidates?
Hackett is the epitome of a rushed hire.
Again, this is not that difficult. Organizations lose people from the top of their chart all the time due to any number of reasons. You dont take 18 months to find a replacement.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:04 PM ^
When you have a wealth of experienced and incredibly qualified candidates out there. Yeah, maybe not all of them would take the job, but there would be one. If you aren't willing to outbid Boston College or fucking UConn for the guy who will run one of the biggest athletic departments in the country you seriuosly need to reevaluate some things.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:51 AM ^
I can't say for sure what's going on behind the scenes. While there are several qualified AD's out there that Michigan would love to have, a few of them have already said (at least publically) that they are happy where they currently are and would not make a move. Just because the process could move quickly doesn't mean it will.
I think keeping Hackett permanently would be a mistake. But making a selection of any old person within 90 days just for the sake of quick transition would be a bigger problem. So for now, I'm going to have to hope they have a plan that will bring in both a great coach and AD.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:23 PM ^
UM is making it seem like hiring an AD requires the expertise of sending a man to the moon.
And we'll go to all that trouble and still send a monkey.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:27 AM ^
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November 26th, 2014 at 11:40 AM ^
And he might be a great guy(especially compared to Brandon), but he has no AD experience. This is a very critical time and I would rather have someone who's been there before.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:48 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
This is a "head of state" and CEO type position. How much athletic department experience did Swarbrick have before hiring Kelly therby bringing ND back to national relevance?
November 26th, 2014 at 11:28 AM ^
This doesn't seem like good news to me but I'll reserve judgement until after the Hoke decisions are made and the new HFC is hired. If he bungles that, it will confirm the atmosphere at Michigan is completely toxic with no one in charge being able to do anything other than bow down to the highest bidder.
Hopefully that is not the case.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:33 AM ^
There are successful AD's with Michigan ties out there and we'll stick with a guy that has zero AD experience. I guess we never learn from our mistakes...
November 26th, 2014 at 11:33 AM ^
really isn't warranted yet. If he is so-so at PR but great at building relationships and has common sense it will turn out well. Even if it's not Harbaugh but he rights the ship we need to be positive and supportive from here on out.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
Would anyone disagree that Brandon came to Michigan's AD with the goal of creating an empire with himself as the deity? He didnt even offer the position to Harbaugh or Miles because it would be the easy decision; he wanted to be the guy who drafted Tom Brady in the 6th round. He wanted everyone to eat crow, and no one can eat crow if you make the easy decision. That's why he didnt listen to the students: because he knew better. That's why he sent alumni shitty emails: because we're plebians in his empire.
Hackett isn't that guy.
If you're phenominal at what you do, what do you want out of a boss? You want someone who can get you what you need to succeed, then gtfo of the way. Brandon was a micromanager. Hackett is clearly not.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:01 PM ^
undermine your points. Of Hoke he said he was doing an extraordinary job under very adverse conditions. He also said Hoke's body of work to date was not sufficient to make a decision on him.
Does this sound like someone that is decisive and informed? I suspect had Michigan won the Maryland he would have kept Hoke on for at least another year.
From what I can see to date, Schlissel and Hackett do not want to take on the awesome responsibility of hiring a new AD or coach. They are trying to delay those decisions as long as they can. Only circumstances like losing to Maryland and OSU by a large margin will force them to act.
November 26th, 2014 at 1:09 PM ^
that Hackett has access to information that supports his statements about Brady. Information that is unavailable to you or anyone outside the program, that for any number of reasons he is unwilling to make public.
He hasn't said that Hoke's extraordinary performance dealing with adversity justifies his record. In fact he has said that Hoke is well aware that the team's performance is not acceptable at Michigan.
We each form our opinion based on the information available to us and our expectation of performance. It is conceivable that, if we knew what Hackett knows, we might withhold judgement on Hoke until after the season too. Perhaps that is unlikely in many cases here, but it's not impossible.
November 26th, 2014 at 3:56 PM ^
that Hackett is going to publicly throw Hoke under the bus? I would be aghast if he conducted himself that way during a press conference.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:34 AM ^
is that we really need a take-charge coach, but the interim and newly-minted powers that be may not be willing to do that. Bo really wielded a lot of power through the Athletic Department, even long after he retired. I am worried that while we need/love to have Harbaugh, they will not allow someone like him to come in and "take over." Old saying: A's hire A's, B's hire C's.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:39 AM ^
I actually think that's why Hackett is going to stay on. Not only does the athletic department need some stability for once, but Hackett seems like the kind of guy who knows how to stay back and let a coach like Harbaugh do his thing.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:45 PM ^
you are correct and my concerns are unfounded.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:36 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 11:43 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 11:57 AM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 12:08 PM ^
But it's not likely, and even if he wants to theres effectively zero chance he's the best person to implement those plans.
You and others pretend like there is absolutely no way to have an opinion on something until it plays out in it's entirety, which is asinine. To think that there is a non negligible chance that Hackett is the best candidate for the job is complete and utter lunacy. Sure, this might work out, but that's what people were saying about Brady Hoke. It's yet another in a long line of screw ups by the university with regards to the football team
November 26th, 2014 at 12:24 PM ^
November 26th, 2014 at 12:37 PM ^
There is no way to predict anything and we shouldn't even try because occaisionally things don't work out. Probability isn't even a thing! It's all just fucking random chance! Let's hire a fucking fifth grade to coach football because no one fucking knows anything!
November 26th, 2014 at 2:18 PM ^
Come on man. Instead of making shit up, stick to your guns. You want experience. I would prefer it, too. But experience, or a lack of it, is no guarantee of anything. So, be disappointed, but realize that there is probably no correlation between your feelings and the results.
Alabama's AD hired and fired Franchionne, Price, and Shula before hitting on Saban. Plenty of experience. Most of it bad.
MSUs Mark Hollis made one football hire, Mark Dantonio. No previous experience. Great hire.
I hate to use anecdotal evidence, but I don't know where to find stats for this type of thing.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^
So, her pad level wasn't good?
November 26th, 2014 at 2:14 PM ^
She was great. I had targeting issues. Kept hitting the wrong holes.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:28 PM ^
But its like the perception of Hoover in the White House while the market tanked. There may be all sorts of high level thought and action going on, and there may be serious attention being given to the issue... but it sure as hell doesn't look like it from the outside.
I'll admit my own weakness here and say I'd love it if the administration molly coddled me a bit on this. Come out and say its a top priority, not a time sink and a bit crazy. Have the interim AD form a search committee NOW and start looking. Give weekly updates. You don't even have to name names. Just at least make it look like you're doing SOMETHING instead of making offhand stupid comments about how surprising all the emotion is and then leaving us in an information vacuum.
I think this is especially important given the U's reputation as having alot of internal dissension in the athletic department. Tighten up and make things happen!
November 26th, 2014 at 11:29 PM ^
I'm with you on this.
Given what we just went through, why would you not go out of your way a little bit to make it look like you are not about to do it all over again?
They just need to issue one simple statement: "The AD is an improtant position and there will be a search process that will choose the best person possible. This will not happen in 30 days, but it will happen."
And then, you know, actually mean it.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:59 PM ^
In one sense you have a point but what if Michigan football hired a coach tomorrow that had zero coaching experience (e.g. he was a school superintendent). Would your approach be the same? Let's see how he recruits and the plays he designs before we react? Or would you wonder what the hell was going on even if you allow that it could work out?
November 26th, 2014 at 2:52 PM ^
I would be upset.
But there is a big difference in the scenarios. Hackett may not be the most qualified, but he isn't entirely unqualified. The superintendent would be.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:38 AM ^
I do not like this
November 26th, 2014 at 11:40 AM ^
Why do this now? Why not do an actual search? This seems to me to be a short sighted answer from a university president who has professed a lack of knowledge about athletics who probably thinks the issue is solved and he can move onto other things. I remember John U. Bacon mentioning that athletics is low on the list of items the university administration worries about, especially when it is making money and is clean. If they are going with Hackett, it seems that John U's take is right. Let's hope Hackett surprises many of us.
November 26th, 2014 at 11:41 AM ^
Brian is wrong. Brian is completely wrong. HACKETT IS DAVE BRANDON! MUAHAHAHA! Brandon get's last laugh. Brandon gets revenge.
Ace and Brian's political witch-hunt of Brandon was all for naught. Hackett is a Brandon clone and a Brandon hire.
I can feel their nerd-rage already eminating all over the net. Brian, Ace, when is the big rally at the student union to oust Hackett? Maybe this time, you can invite Al Sharpton. Get some really big press.
What a glorious day! You know Brandon is somewhere warm and comforting right now, with a giant smile on his face. Brandon won. The witch-hunt lost.
Hackett will hire a successful HC, and after that...three years from now, he will do what Brandon always wanted to do...get rid of the student section! Young people, for several years and across the country, are losing interest in sports. Take those seats away from the spoiled, stoned, drunk, non-caring students and sell them to the alumni who actually give a damn about Michigan football.
What a glorious day! Justice can be found in Ann Arbor. Sometimes, it just takes a little while.
November 26th, 2014 at 12:15 PM ^
There is definitely an anti-corporate angle to Mgoblog. Brian quit his corporate job. His favorite references/authors, etc. used to be kind of anti-establishment. He doesn't get into the "suit and tie" dress up for events. The blog itself used to thumb its nose at established media companies, the athletic department, etc.
This is all fine and well. A blog for for university sports and frequented by students in Ann Arbor is going to have that angle if it is going to be popular. I think Brian will always have a natural distrust for people who have chosen a completely different career path (conformity and the business world), but I also think he can see through it if the facts bear out the person is qualified for their gig.
So, we will wait and see.
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