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President Schlissel Announces Dave Brandon's Resignation; Jim Hackett Named Interim AD Comment Count

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Interim AD Jim Hackett speaks as President Mark Schlissel looks on. [Anbender/MGoBlog]

"This morning I accepted the resignation of athletic director David Brandon."

Adam will have the full—and lengthy—transcript of today's press conference up later, but U-M President Mark Schlissel's opening statement obviously contained the most important part. Brandon met with Schlissel on Wednesday to discuss his resignation, saying he thought it would be best for the student-athletes and the university if he stepped down; Schlissel agreed, saying it was best for the department to continue "without daily distractions."

Jim Hackett, incidentally a former M teammate of Brandon's, will take over as the interim athletic director effective immediately. Hackett served as the CEO of Steelcase from 1994 until February of this year; he currently sits on the Board of Advisors for both the School of Public Policy and the Life Sciences Institute.

The search for a permanent replacement will begin immediately; in the meantime, Schlissel made it clear that Hackett has the power to run the athletic department as he sees fit, including evaluating the football coaches, especially if a replacement isn't in place at the end of the season. Hackett mentioned Bo Schembechler and Gerald Ford as personal heroes of his, saying "both would be quite certain the future of Michigan is not in doubt."

When asked if he would be looking for a candidate with Michigan connections to permanently replace Brandon, Schlissel said that he simply wants "the best man for the job," adding that he'll take as long as necessary to find the right person. "I have excellence in mind," he said.

Terms of Brandon's resignation will be released later today, according to Schlissel. 

UPDATE: The terms of Brandon's resignation have been released. Full PDF file is here; the short version:

  • Brandon will receive $3 million over the next four years.
  • Michigan has the right to reduce his compensation should he take another job.
  • The University will pay the cost of COBRA for Brandon and his dependents' health benefits through June 30, 2015.
  • Brandon will retain two "Regents Emeritus" seats for football, men's basketball, and hockey.
  • Brandon retains the use of two company cars through the end of the year.

The rest is mostly legalese; here's the fun part of said legalese:

Fin.

Comments

aiglick

October 31st, 2014 at 3:40 PM ^

May want to wait a little. It is true for a brief time we had the tagline David Brandon's pimp hand which turned out to be too premature.

Still, today has given me hope and yeah may as well wait til the end of the season though I still think Hoke is toast. I don't think he is the main problem in that he should never have been here and Brandon was the one who made that mistake.

Both men are going to be well taken care of but this is the best move for the University and team which are bigger than any two individuals.

Now the task at hand is to get a great AD that realizes the fan base is a partner and not milk cows that can be grabbed and suck dry at any time.

So long Brandon and hope we can reconcile in the future but this really is the best interest for both parties.

Edit: Let me be perfectly clear that so far Schlissel has said and done all the right things in my opinion but that for a time we all thought that way of Brandon either. I applaud Schlissel for making this decision and hope he can get the best possible AD who can then hire the best possible coach to finally get this footbal program out of purgatory.

Joined: 11/27/2010

MGoPoints: 21521

MayOhioEatTurds

October 31st, 2014 at 4:10 PM ^

Now we're talking!

I’m loving Schlissel’s dismissal of Michigan connections, and his emphasis instead on “excellence” and “the best man for the job.”

It’s a thrill to see Schlissel dampen the currently bastardized concept of "Michigan Man" (which these days means a guy with past Michigan connections, instead of its original connotation of a guy from anywhere who becomes loyal to Michigan above all others--like Bo). 

That’s a big step for AA.  It honestly sounds like Schlissel is willing to make the clean sweep many have been hankering for.

I’m excited to see whom Schlissel brings in as the new AD.

I think I’m going to be happy with his selection . . . .

Joined: 06/29/2013

MGoPoints: 5893

snowcrash

October 31st, 2014 at 2:41 PM ^

Schlissel said he wanted "the best man" for the job. There are plenty of women ADs out there, so specifying "man" suggests that they are already well along in the process, and have narrowed it down to just a few people, all of whom are men.

Or maybe it was inadvertent.

Joined: 07/22/2008

MGoPoints: 6620

Go Blue in MN

October 31st, 2014 at 2:45 PM ^

But he also indicated that Hackett would be evaluating the football program at the end of the season, suggesting that he does not think a new AD will be here in 4 weeks.  If he already had someone in mind, you would think the process of hiring him might be quicker than that.

Joined: 09/28/2013

MGoPoints: 7494

Glennsta

October 31st, 2014 at 4:46 PM ^

I'm just hoping that the timing of the AD search isn't going to screw up the process of hiring the best possible coach (whoever it might be) . It might be hard to land the best coach when you don't have an AD in place; who wants to take a coaching position at a high-visibility, high-pressure, high-expectations place like UM where 2 coaches have gotten whacked in the last 3 years if you don't know who your AD is going to be?

Hell, you might wind up with another Hoke.

Joined: 01/28/2011

MGoPoints: 4887

umumum

October 31st, 2014 at 3:23 PM ^

just as I was getting ready to upvote you and the one below because I agree that Schlissel was obviously using the word "man" in its gender-neutral way, you had to go all campus feminist (and pc) bashing on us.  How about just taking on the poster without the baggage?

Joined: 01/06/2011

MGoPoints: 7883

thatsmyjam

November 1st, 2014 at 9:36 AM ^

You don't get points for acknowledging your privilege if you continue to abuse it... The fact that you think it's something you can "take off" means you fundamentally do not even understand its meaning.

Joined: 12/14/2013

MGoPoints: 367

mgeauxblu85

November 1st, 2014 at 6:02 AM ^

This isn't a sexiest comment and only the giant, sweaty, fat bitches can find offense in this statement. Want to support a hate group that reports wildly inaccurate statements as truth? Get a women's studies degree. If you can major in women's studies UofM should also have a bowling degree. Major difference is you might actually learn something from bowling.

Joined: 11/24/2013

MGoPoints: 133

mgoblue0970

October 31st, 2014 at 3:11 PM ^

Except that the original definition of the word, "man" was gender neutral.  Until the PC crowd, like yourself, got a hold of it and twisted it to mean what genitalia one possesses.  Congratulations for continuing to redefine the English language.  Congratulations for nitpicking and creating a controversy where one doesn't exist.

Joined: 11/22/2008

MGoPoints: 18648

bjk

October 31st, 2014 at 5:10 PM ^

but is more associated with an era in which women were considered more like property than people. Social changes, like all others, create the rise of new language to give verbal expression to them, hence the rise of locutions like "chairperson" and "chairpersoness." Just in case, it may be time to start getting comfortable with the locution "Michigan Person."

Joined: 11/26/2009

MGoPoints: 3993

BayWolves

October 31st, 2014 at 5:28 PM ^

The pc cops are in fact running amok. People, it ain't that serious. Relax and stop looking to bust everyone who says "man" in a general way. What is this country coming to?

Joined: 06/21/2011

MGoPoints: 11056

thatsmyjam

November 1st, 2014 at 9:32 AM ^

Your privilege has sheltered you from realizing that it IS that serious. No one is busting the use of the word "man", we are discussing the phrase "Michigan man" which as I'm sure you know carries a whole load of connotations. I don't know what a better sounding alternative is (I think "Michigan person" sounds fucking terrible) but it's important to acknowledge the issue.

Joined: 12/14/2013

MGoPoints: 367