The New Phonebooks Will Save Us
If this was an editorial cartoon, Steve Martin would have "Michigan" written all over him and the phonebooks would say "alumni." Also it would be terrible.
You know, my immediate reaction to this AnnArbor.com headline…
Former receiver Braylon Edwards impressed by one Michigan coach, down on another following busy Friday
…was "great, more people talking crap about Rodriguez." Turns out Edwards was just talking crap about Mike Hart. Well played, Bigelow. It's good to know that we've stopped taking hardly veiled shots at Rodriguez and are ready to move on—
“Just more about the tradition,” Edwards said of Hoke’s message. “And he appreciates the alums, and he definitely wants to get us involved and do everything we can to educate the players who play there now.
“Because it’s sad to say, a lot of them don’t know the tradition at Michigan. Back in the day, players knew the former players. They knew the countdowns, the titles, Hail to the Victors. I’m sure if you ask some of the kids on the team now, I guarantee there’s a couple of kids that don’t know all of the words in full.”
Son of a bitch. People are talking crap about Rodriguez not respecting Michigan's tradition at the alumni flag football game he started. In related news, this year's Tunnel Of Victors will feature a special version of the MGoBlue banner that says "F.U. RICHROD."
Meanwhile… Braylon Edwards. He should probably stop talking and doing things. When you punch some dude or say your DUI for blowing twice the legal limit was because of tinted windows or that Cleveland "has nothing" while you have a "New York-type essence" or that your teammates quit and the starting quarterback should be different and your OC is bad or that people on the football team don't know the fight song, that doesn't reflect well on yourself or "Lloyd Carr's" University of Michigan. It's one thing to take swipes at current players who might not be great at football collectively. It's another when they're awesome dudes and you're someone people euphemistically dub "controversial" or "outspoken." Because bitching about Charlie Frye makes you Malcolm X.
Mike Hart also said some things about how Rodriguez didn't value the tradition but prefaced that with a statement about how he always felt welcome back; Breaston dismissed the "he wasn't accepted" bit and focuses on winning games; meanwhile, Ron Bellamy:
“We are ecstatic,” Bellamy said. “We know it’s a process. You can’t build up the program in a year or two. You have to give him a chance to bring his guys in the right way and play football in this conference the way it is supposed to be played.”
Edwards before last year:
"He has to make it work," Edwards said. "If he can't -- me being one of the alumni guys -- I want someone that can make it work. We've been patient. If it doesn't go right this year, we'll have to find a guy that can make it work with that winged helmet."
![Facepalm1[2]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/804d06812199_E081/Facepalm12.jpg "Facepalm1[2]")
Since Michigan's tradition quickly became "screw you, Rich Rodriguez," I can't imagine why there was a disconnect there.
Who cares? We just watched a bunch of guys who essentially never beat OSU and/or quit en masse once they didn't like the head coach blame Rodriguez for the program's decline. Yeah, it declined. Yeah, Rodriguez had a lot to do with it. So did they. Jim Brandstatter of all people:
"He had a lot of strikes against him when he walked in the door and that was sad," Brandstatter said.
Whatever Rodriguez's failings were they were amplified by a culture that immediately rejected him. There was a rebellion the seniors on this year's team are pointing to as a Bad Idea. Someone sold him out to the Free Press. He was treated like garbage at alumni outings.
Meanwhile, the complainers were the reason Michigan had to go outside the family. The Great Tradition of Michigan had recently devolved into a 1-6 record against OSU and The Horror. The Great Tradition had produced zero plausible head coaching candidates to continue it. The Tradition is blaming it all on a scapegoat instead of manning up and looking in the mirror. They are collectively Edwards blaming his 0.16 BAC on tinted windows.
That's not a good way to run anything. Without a serious analysis of what you did wrong other than "hire that outsider," with how your culture is messed up, you become Notre Dame. Some guys were willing to be active with the program over the last few years and plenty more didn't sell it out publicly; the decision not to speaks to the player, not Rodriguez. 
Carr's former players aren't the program. A subset of them think it's about them, but it's about Denard and Molk and Martin and Kovacs, the ones who stayed and worked hard and were emphatically not champions thanks in some small part to people like Edwards. Van Bergen:
"You know, it's just kind of unsettling that there's … it's great that they're back, but it's kind of, where have they been the last two or three years?" Van Bergen said. "We've still been wearing the same helmets since they were here."
Despite what they think, the alumni are just fans now. It's hard to imagine a big chunk weren't the loathsome sort glorying in a season-ending blowout.
So you'll have to excuse the rest of us who stood in those stands during the Fandom Endurance III game and are terribly sad about how the last three years worked out: we've got a phonebook to care about instead of Braylon Edwards's glorious return to the program.
[ROTE DISCLAIMER THAT WILL BE IGNORED: This is not a defense of Rich Rodriguez. Rodriguez should have been fired. It is not a criticism of Brady Hoke. I wrote a big long post about how Hoke's three non-MAC coordinator hires constitute a real reason for optimism. Early indications are this staff is taking advantage of the opportunities placed before them in this year's recruiting class, and with what's going on at OSU the hypothetical ceiling on the program could blow off.
I look forward to this being interpreted as an attack on Hoke in the comments. Bring it, reading comprehension failures of America.]
Really? Hmmmmm.
The 406 (now 425 and counting) people who wrote on this topic, or the guy that says it is "tired?"
Read new post " A modest proposal" on the board.
April 20th, 2011 at 12:33 PM ^
You're just adding to it...
With all the talk about former players not fully supporting the team under RR (although many probably were supportive but not screaming from the mountaintops as they are now)...with the ripping of Braylon (again)...What about some current players making statements like this:
"I love everything they're bringing in," linebacker J.B. Fitzgerald said. "It feels like Michigan to me." http://espn.go.com/blog/BigTen/post/_/id/25524/michigan-defenders-responding-to-mattison
"It just feels like Michigan's back...He's made it real easy for us to buy into what he's teaching and what he's doing because he loves Michigan and he loves football," Stonum said. "We love Michigan and we love football, so it’s easy to get on the same page with him."
http://espn.go.com/blog/BigTen/post/_/id/25517/hokes-michigan-roots-res…http://espn.go.com/blog/BigTen/post/_/id/25517/hokes-michigan-roots-resonate-this-spring
Even Denard, in the ESPN video, said something about how "Michigan football is back", "the tradition is back".
Maybe...just maybe...RR didn't connect with some of the former players because he (and it's certainly no fault of his) had no prior connection to Michigan. Hoke refused to wear red when he coached at schools with red as the main color. That's how connected he was to Michigan even when he coached elsewhere. That gives him an immediate connection that RR (or any coach moving into a new role at a prominent program) had to work to build. If RR won more games, that would have been an easier quest. It didn't happen. The rest really shouldn't be a surprise. We're much like the Yankees and any coach knows what he's getting into (and is paid well for the headache).
But....but....but...it's more fun to post inflamatory material especially if you continue to think RR was unjustly fired because of some conspiracy between alumni older than 25, Skelator, and the asshole basketball player from teen wolf.
Based on the quotes you provided, even those current players knew that RR's era wasn't representative of what Michigan was and should be. It's not about scheme. It's about winning and understanding the stories of the teams that came before you. RR and his teams unfortunately didn't do either very well.
Ever consider that they meant "back" as in the positive atmosphere surrounding the program? To those of us who support the program through thick and thin, Michigan was never "gone" in the sense you are implying. Every program has down periods, so don't bother with the "UNACCEPTABLE!!" losing seasons nonsense.
April 19th, 2011 at 10:58 PM ^
Back to back losing seasons are for Spartans. Fielding awful defenses 3 years running is for Wildcats. Being unable to kick field goals is for.....well that one is for Wolverines (Pete Elezovic comes to mind). To reduce yourself to thinking Michigan (its players, fans, and coaches) should have the same expectations as any other program is absurd. WE ARE MICHIGAN. And it isn't arrogant to say so.
And stop with the "support the program through thick and thin" BS. Every single one of us here supports the program through thick and thin. Support is not to be confused with turning a blind eye to failure and the reasons behind it. Unfortunately too many people think like you do and the program has lost luster because of it (that I believe it will get back with a man like Hoke in charge).
April 20th, 2011 at 12:39 AM ^
If you support the school as long as the team wins, that isn't unconditional support. It's one thing to criticize a coach's decisions. It's another to impugn his character or to perpetuate falsehoods because you want to get your way and get the coach fired. It is unfortunate that there were former players who did this and fans who continue to stomp on RR's grave b/c they didn't like him or losing. That's not support. That's hopping off the bandwagon and lobbing molotov cocktails at your school. It's dishonorable and it's not what Michigan is about to me as a former alum and fan. Michigan also isn't about proclaiming we are above everyone else just because. That is arrogance, or it at least seems a lot like it. I'd rather we play with class and humility, win or lose. Our winning before RR showed up created an enormous sense of entitlement that is just as big a reason for Michigan's collapse starting in 2008 as anything else.
(many) fans are happy that Michigan has moved on from the RR era. The only stomping on his grave on this board comes as a response to ardent RR supporters continuing to press the issue of his dismissal and questioning the hiring of Brady Hoke, and even then it is expressions of relief rather to be free from a system and coach who did not perform correctly than attacking RRs character. Expressions like "Michigan is back" and "Michigan feels like home again" from CURRENT and former players aren't a molotov cocktail lobbed at RR. It's joy for the new direction of the program and support for Brady Hoke.
Your last sentence is laughable....basically said winning leads to losing. Ridiculous.
Or maybe they are just trying to be positive about the new guys and no ndermine the team like some of the veterans did when RR came in.
April 19th, 2011 at 11:45 PM ^
Nope. In Dahblue's next post, he will be pointing to all the players who decided to stay on the team and then criticize the coach they decided to stay for. It is the smartest thing they could possibly do.
why this better treatment of Hoke from former players and media infuriates Brian (and others) so much? The argument that they are passionate fans is not a valid defense. it has to be something deeper seeded that would only come out during therapy.
RR wasn't good for Michigan football. Prove me wrong with some facts. Basically Brian is trying to say that if you didn't like RR you weren't a true Michigan fan. I think if you believed RR was going to succeed at Michigan that you were supporting a danger to the future of UofM athletics. Dave Brandon is probably smarter than you. This is by far the best UofM blog, but I will never agree that RR was the right choice to lead Michigan. I read the disclaimer, but that was bullshit. Come on!
Where's that reader comprehension failure award?
You do not have to think RR was the best choice for Michigan to be a true fan (hint, hint, Hokemaniacs).
But if you are a former player who withheld support for the program, openly disparaged the program in public, and sowed controversy through intentional acts, all because you didn't like RR personally or disrespected his background (or hell, even if you just thought he was a lousy couch), then you played a role, however small, in the failure of RR and the inability of current Michigan players to win, and therefore you damaged the program.
At no point will it be considered "dangerous" to think an establish coach with a strong record could be a good coach at UM. Stop being inflammatory for it's sake alone.
April 20th, 2011 at 12:42 AM ^
gave me the exciting, dynamic, score on any play, type of offense I've always wanted to see out of Michigan football. For three straight years, my eyes were glued to the TV for every play, even when we were down big to OSU, Wisconsin, PSU, or whoever else. Good or bad, there was always something really interesting to talk or debate about. The RR era easily gave me my top three or four favorite offensive Michigan plays of all time. IME, RR was good for Michigan football. I had a feeling inside that the last OSU loss was the straw that broke the camel's back. Of course, the loss to OSU hurt, but knowing that the RR era was over hurt much more.
My God. If other fans feel this way (i.e. valuing excitement/style over wins), please kill me.
April 20th, 2011 at 12:22 PM ^
There are Rodriguez fans who value the aesthetics of his offense more than the results on the field.
To me, there sure were some exciting plays in the Rich Rod era. The first half of last year, I was pinching myself pretty regularly. But there were also games against Ohio State where the Buckeyes couldn't even be bothered to hate us we were so fucking pathetic.
April 20th, 2011 at 12:32 PM ^
I hear ya.
Sidney, is that you?
If many other fans felt that way, the only honorable option for the fan base would be mass suicide.
April 20th, 2011 at 10:48 PM ^
take some Pepto.
What can I say, I liked our offense under RR. I didn't like our defense and I didn't like losing. I want something similar to that offense and a better defense. Does that cause you to hurl?
The article is a biting and intelligent criticism of former players.
The principle at work here with the former players is probably the very same one at work with the garden variety fan (not the more serious fans from this blog). The principle is that Rodriguez' era is associated with failure because of the losing. Therefore, everything about RR becomes distorted to the negative. As a counterbalance, the Carr era or something like it, is going to tend to be more warmly received now than in 2008. Rodriguez was a stand up guy who didn't win enough. So he's an easy mark for these guys. They should just pipe down and support the new direction without taking shots at the old.
Brian makes a fabulous point that the ex-players who now seem to be jockeying for a microphone to bbq Rodriguez, and a seat at the Hoke table, should also accountable for their treatment of Rodriguez and his players during his run. He makes an even better point that the lackluster play from a lot of these guys was part of the decline which they view negatively.
These guys were free all along to have their own opinions, and they are free to cry freedom now that they have one of their own in charge. And guys like Brian are free and justified for calling bullshit when they do. That's part of being an ex-player who makes a big deal out of being an ex-player.
It has more perks and pitfalls then just being out here among the fans.
Wow I just agreed with NateVolk...feels weird. If you seriously disagree with Brian on this take a look at one guy who wanted Rodriguez gone for a really long time before it happened and see how his opinion is in lockstep with a guy who supported Rodriguez being the coach till the end(me or Brian in this case).
pure poetry...couldn't agree with this any more...met RR when he came on campus and was VERY impressed with the character and poise. What he did with essentially zero talent was nothing less or more than I expected. I have no issue with those who've complained from day one...it's those as said who suddenly find it convenient to pile on...hindsight is a beautiful disguise...GO BLUE.
Since Mike Hart was one of the players singled out, does that mean he is one of the players who's lackluster play was part of the decline? While I understand the opinions being expressed about the actions of some specific ex-players have said, taking bigger shots at larger groups of players is what has me frustrated the most about this string of posts. I suspect that many of those lackluster players put more of there hearts and souls into the team than all the uber fans on this site
April 20th, 2011 at 12:24 PM ^
It really wasn't the "lackluster play" of those players that led to 15-22. Those players won a lot of games while they were at Michigan. The only factor - though certainly a big one - that links Carr's tenure to Rodriguez's failure is recruiting, not the level of play provided by Braylon et al.
Fantastic assessment Brian. Pretty dispicable that these people disappeared for three years and want to be welcomed back with open arms.
People wont accept that the program was on the decline well before Rodriguez rolled into town. 2006 blinds people I guess, because 2005 & 2007 were absolutely terrible.
You are forgetting about the 6 point win over Florida in the Capital One Bowl. In case you didn't know, narrow victories in bullshit bowls are worth more than anything any other team or coach could accomplish. If you didn't know that, then you are clearly ignorant of the greatest win in Michigan history.
populated by, wait for it, a bunch of freshmen and sophomores.
Imagine the open opportunities for a senior, NFL-bound quarterback and several NFL-bound wide receivers...
Yeah, that was a Top 5 Florida D that Michigan beat that day...
I guess so. When you write a blogpost that you have to caveat at the end with a bitter comment about people's poor reading comprehension, it really might be time to take a break. While there are plenty of points in the post that might have changed some minds if they hadn't been combined with bitterness at players who had never beaten OSU in their careers as if that is some measure of their committment to the team and program, the bitternss makes it come off as a bit of the pot calling the kettle black. You are pissed that Braylon didn't support RR - got it. It is your blog and you can do what you want. Got that too.
<br>
<br>When you aren't bitter, your blog is great.
<br>Can't wait til the football season starts, the team is winning and I can read good insightful posts again, but man, it is gonna be a long summer on MGoBlog
it could mean that he knows that a large segment of his readership is filled with reading comprehension failures of America.
I know everyone wants to "move on", but having BE spew his bile invites a response. Not sure if there's a more self-absorbed star to come out of Michigan football than BE. In his mind, it's all about him - contrast that as Brian does with Mike Hart. One is the epitome of the modern celebrity athlete and the other is concerned with the greater good of the program.
I won't be happy until Rodriquez commits seppaku at the 50 yard line during a TV timeout of the Western game.
I have a soft spot for Braylon. Yes, he's an idiot. But I dont expect him to lie when people ask his opinion.
April 19th, 2011 at 11:13 PM ^
On Monday Night Football.
At least we agree; Braylon Edwards is an idiot.
April 20th, 2011 at 10:02 AM ^
Lloyd Carr's Michigan! /facepalm
Still, 2003 TDs vs. OSU. All American. Belietnikoff. B1G MVP. MSU 2004! You have to at the very least, respect the man's hard work while actually at Michigan. Everything after I could care less about.
April 20th, 2011 at 10:41 AM ^
That's your right, of course. As it is Braylon's right to do any damned thing he wants to.
It's such a pity, though, to compare Braylon's post-graduate life to people like Tom Harmon, Bob Chappuis, Bump Elliott, Fritz Seyferth, Jim Mandich, Dan Deirdorf, Jim Abbott, Barry Larkin or Jason Avant. Those are all guys that make us proud; you want to wallow in the Michigan tradition that they have glorified.
Mentioning Braylon Edwards in most conversations just makes me want to change the subject.
And I only have qualified respect for Braylon's "hard work at Michigan." I have the feeling that Braylon's hard work was performed mostly under the direct threat of punishment from Lloyd Carr.
April 20th, 2011 at 11:19 AM ^
"People are talking crap about Rodriguez not respecting Michigan's tradition at the alumni flag football game he started."
Brilliant.
I always balked when people compared Michigan fans to Yankee fans, but after all this ridiculous blathering about "tradition", can there even be a debate anymore? It is so obnoxious that it almost seems like self parody. Not even Alabama fans are this over the top.
I'm a proud alumni and I can honestly say that I don't give a shit how involved the former players are with the program. It's nice to see them trotted out every 5-10 years, and the Gerald Ford pre-Ohio State 1997 speech was sweet, but the coaches run the team. This is not a democracy, it's a fucking brutal football dictatorship. Or at least it was...
Low times, Brian, low times. Can you explain to me the difference between calling out Obi week after week, under the cover of objective analysis and Braylon calling out Rodriguez under the cover of his own reasons for loving the program? If a fan isn't obligated to swallow their tongue in the name what's good for the program, then why should a former player be held to that standard? Or can it be argued that everyone involved just wants who is best and what is best?
I will never understand how Rich Rodriguez could become the highest paid coach in Michigan's history, inherit a program with more tradition and fans than he'd ever known, be given facilities and resources he had only dreamed of and have some continue to blame the university and shoot any messenger whose opinion they don't like.
Because the belief is that a coach deserves both public and private, behind the scenes support, especially from those with ties to the program. Failing getting private support, at least people shouldn't be creating problems.
Edwards' comments, while public, symbolize the fact that Rodriguez didn't have private support. His behavior with the JT Floyd/#1 jersey issue, which could easily have been handled privately, is further evidence of this lack of support. He went public, created a PR problem, instead of dealing with it privately -- and fully resolving the issue that way.
Your Obi Ezeh example is disingenuous. Edwards' job isn't evaluating coaches/players in public. Brian's is. I wasn't happy when U-M hired Brian Ellerbe and was glad when he was fired, but if you told me, circa 2000, that Glen Rice was running around privately bad-mouthing U-M I wouldn't be pleased. If Rice came out in public ripping on the guy, while he was there, or after he was fired, I think people would wonder why he wasn't being supportive or at least staying quiet rather than allowing his comments to be used to undermine the program.
April 21st, 2011 at 10:12 AM ^
This rationale is objectively true
I agree with the above. Braylon and former players have more of a right to voice their concerns because they actually contributed to the football program for 4+ years. They have way more of a vested interest than even the most ardent fan of Umich.
April 20th, 2011 at 11:47 AM ^
Do you realize the Michigan football program wouldnt exist without fans right? I realize former players worked hard on the field but the program would not exist without millions of um fans, including those who have never played football. Being a former player doesn't give you a right to be a douche and it doesn't make your opinion matter more
Uhm, do you realize that without the players who sacrificed on the field, there would not be Michigan football, therefore there would not be Michigan football fans? Playing for the team trumps you going to Buffalo Wild Wings.
Sure, discussing it might not be the same as criticizing Hoke, but it's still a bit like picking at an old scab.
It's high time we put this one to rest. Rich was a very nice guy who tried to do something daring and risky. At times it was thrilling, at others depressing. Due to a complex set of reasons--some out of his power, but many within it--it failed not only to get us where we needed to be by year 3, but didn't really show there was a roadmap to sustained success beyond it.
We hired someone else, who is also taking some risks that may or may not pan out. Immediate success will--and should--be measured by whether Hoke and his staff can take us to the next level, back into Big 10 contention and relevance. From there, if we get there, we can talk about BCS contention and relevance with a straight face again. But in order to do so, we'll have to watch our offensive personnel adjust to a system that's still a bit of an unknown, possibly even to Al Borges. Is this the right move? What is the potential upside/what are the risks? That's a topic worthy of discussion.
What we really shouldn't waste time on, anymore, is picking at the old RichRod vs. Brady Hoke scab. He's gone and never coming back. Hoke is here and will be for the next 3 years, at least. Let's all HOPE he does a bang-up job.
April 19th, 2011 at 10:17 PM ^
Ok. I get it. Brian still is not over the firing of RR, and he wants everyone to know he still thinks there should have been more time for him to make it work. This is so dumb to even consider at this point. It's like the friend who broke up with this chick months ago and won't stop talking about her. Get over it, dude. I'm sick of hearing about RR, it's time to talk about the future. The past is a horrid, ugly thing I'd rather forget.
April 19th, 2011 at 10:42 PM ^
I think Ann Arbor Torch and Pitchfork has gone into a side business selling strawmen to all the folks with poor reading comprehension around these parts.
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