Ross Changes His Tune
![the-godfather-kiss-of-death[1]](https://mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/Ross-Changes-His-Tune_C88C/the-godfather-kiss-of-death1.jpg "the-godfather-kiss-of-death[1]")
The Wall Street Journal's Stephen Ross batphone rang again today:
On Monday, Ross said that he still thinks Brandon can do the job. But he also has promised school president Mark Schlissel that he won’t interfere or oppose a decision to fire Brandon.
“I don’t think alumni should control universities,” Ross said. “We have a great president and he is running the university and not me.”
Ross said Schlissel has “been talking to a lot of people” about Brandon and “has not come to a hasty conclusion.” If he has made a decision, Ross said, “he has not told anyone.”
IS THIS THE KISS OF DEEEEAAAATH?
October 27th, 2014 at 2:20 PM ^
Preach on Daddy Warbucks!!
October 27th, 2014 at 2:20 PM ^
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October 27th, 2014 at 2:38 PM ^
I can handle things! I'm smart! Not like everybody says... like dumb...
I'm smart and I want respect!
October 27th, 2014 at 2:57 PM ^
I'm pretty sure Dave Brandon hasn't had to be reprimanded for banging cocktail waitresses two at a time. As such, I'm hoping he gets the Mo Green treatment shortly.
October 27th, 2014 at 3:49 PM ^
on the causeway.
Sonny was shot so full of lead that if he had survived, he could have used his dick for a pencil.
October 27th, 2014 at 4:48 PM ^
If only Sonny had EZ-Pass
October 27th, 2014 at 3:13 PM ^
I mean, look at that quote. If Hoke finally lost it at a press conference, I can definitely imagine him saying something along those lines. Then, after that, he'd go on the proverbial fishing boat and never be heard from again.
Brandon is more like Barzini. Thinks he's in control, that his clever plan for expansion is foolproof and he's willing to get rid of anyone that doesn't make the most amount of money. But really, he's not the smartest guy in the room, doesn't truly understand the culture he's a part of (e.g., Barzini to drugs is like Brandon to marketing/selling every aspect of fandom) and he can be removed from the situation -- as hopefully Schlissel is Michael.
And yes, I just did compare our new prez to a cold-blooded mob leader. These are dark times, but this is the business we've chosen.
October 27th, 2014 at 7:57 PM ^
October 28th, 2014 at 11:59 AM ^
October 27th, 2014 at 2:20 PM ^
the end is near. Or at least the end of the begining of the end.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:25 PM ^
Or the End of the Beginning.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:48 PM ^
right
October 28th, 2014 at 2:52 AM ^
the end, of the end of the beginning, has begun.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:21 PM ^
I sure hope so
October 27th, 2014 at 2:22 PM ^
It's sad that this is the best news in weeks about Michigan football. Also sad that it raises my spirits and I'll be having a better day as a result.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:22 PM ^
Good that's two fewer boots we have to lick to get DB out of here.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:26 PM ^
and I mean in the next two weeks, the likelihood of both Brandon and Hoke being terminated diminishes, right? There needs to be a new AD in place to find a coach / fire a coach, right?
We can all assume that Hoke will be let go on December 1. The new AD would probably need more than a few days to unpack their boxes before Hoke is fired, or so I would think.
The University cannot conduct a search for both positions simultaneously. I hope the ground work is being done so that when a change is made to the AD, a search can be short and productive.
If this isn't being done, then THE PROCESS 2 (TM) is already shaping up to be another mess and I have no faith in Brandon finding the 'right guy' for the job.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:54 PM ^
I understand everything you are saying, but I feel like there is no way, at this point, they are retained for another season. They're both losing support by the minute, and the more time they spend managing things, the clearer their incompetence becomes. I say no chance, even with the process issues you bring up.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:59 PM ^
Ross clears the last hurdle I can think of. There is no donor big enough to actually stop a firing of this magnitude other than him. At this point any delay or indecision now rests completely in the lap of President Schlissel and I do hope that someone is advising him that failure to act is essentially an endoresement of Brandon and will reflect back on him.
To your point, it just depends. There has been extraordinarily poorly kept secret word that someone with some power has been reaching out to potential replacements like Warde Manuel and Brad Bates. If this is true, waiting until the end of the season to can Brandon isn't quite so bad as the replacement will likely already be in the wings much the way the entire Borges/Nussmeier transaction went down. Most coaches won't be available publicly until the first of the year so as long as Brandon gets removed by not much later than the beginning of December, it should be okay.
October 27th, 2014 at 3:27 PM ^
Not by a long shot. It probably clears the last political hurdle, but probably there remain significant legal and policy challenges which is why it hasn't already happened. Brandon is looking to extract his pound of flesh from the University.
October 27th, 2014 at 4:04 PM ^
Those are not issues of the whether, they're all issues of the how and when.
October 27th, 2014 at 7:58 PM ^
It is a tricky balance to fire an AD and HC and not lose a big time spender. Moods take a while to change in powerful people. Seeds of ideas planted require time to grow.
Since these things take time- this is why it is foolish to rush and fire people now. Powerful folks don't want to look cheap and shabby and execute others in public. Humiliating the current coach is not a winning strategy to getting a great new one. Coaches care how a place treats other coaches.
Things are going in the right direction- patience
October 27th, 2014 at 3:47 PM ^
Feels like no decesion will be made public until after the election. I would say if we get to the end of the season and Brandon is still here to fire Hoke things aren't going our way. Him making major AD decesions is a bad sign.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:24 PM ^
You broke my heart.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:47 PM ^
you should be charged with extortion for parking rates on game day alone!
October 27th, 2014 at 2:51 PM ^
the new AD makes Jim Harbaugh an offer he can't refuse.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:24 PM ^
This is Ross pre-emptively removing himself from the Brandon dismissal discussion.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:39 PM ^
but thanks for helping out those at the back of the herd.
October 27th, 2014 at 3:30 PM ^
My point -- not well made, I admit -- was this: this is more than Ross simply getting out of the way. Ross knows what's going to happen and when, despite statements to the contrary. This is a deliberately engineered story designed to disconnect Ross's name from the events Ross knows are going to take place, and disconnect Ross's name from future discussions about coaches or ADs.
This is not Ross throwing Brandon under the bus, or stabbing him in the back ... it's Ross doing what smart billionaires do, which is make sure their name is associated with good things and not associated with bad things. And it's never managed carelessly. It's always managed with deliberate intent.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:24 PM ^
Hal- Dave, this conversation can serve no purpose anymore. GOODBYE
October 27th, 2014 at 2:25 PM ^
I would like to invest in Ann Arbor Torch and Pitchfork as soon as humanly possible.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:51 PM ^
on Stadium and they were already sold out of pitchforks. Dang!
October 27th, 2014 at 2:26 PM ^
Once Brandon is canned, how long will the process take to name the new AD? I know Michigan is interested in 2-3 guys (Bates, Long, etc). Assuming one of their targets is interested, does the hiring come soon after Brandon is gone or will they have to conduct a thorough AD search, like a coaching search of sorts?
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October 27th, 2014 at 2:47 PM ^
If Schlissel is as intelligent as he is rumored to be, his "people" have already talked to a few AD's "people." I am guessing that it takes 24-48 hours after Brandon's "retirement" is announced for the presser to announce the new hire.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:49 PM ^
to be "posted"?
October 27th, 2014 at 3:02 PM ^
The reason most University jobs are posted is because the University receives public funds and therefore must follow certain hiring laws. The Athletic Department is a separate entitity that does not receive public funding. Accordingly I don't believe those laws and restrictions would force them to post the way that jobs on the academic side of campus are required to.
October 27th, 2014 at 3:53 PM ^
The athletic department is a part of the University of Michigan, and as a result they have to follow certain laws. The sources of its funding are one thing, but the fact that they make as much money as they spend doesn't exempt them from being a part of the University.
After all, they get all protections that result from being part of the University (for example, they don't have to pay property taxes, and they don't have to follow Ann Arbor city ordinances about placement of billboards). They still have to follow all laws that apply to Universities that receive public funds (including, most obviously, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972).
October 27th, 2014 at 11:21 PM ^
October 27th, 2014 at 2:26 PM ^
It would have to be a pretty big coincidence to not be the end, right?
If the conversation was entirely about Brandon that means either Schlissel phone him up, which he wouldn't do if he hadn't made the decision to fire Brandon, or Ross called Schlissel to tell him that he wouldn't interfere with firing Brandon, which would be the biggest "take a hint" message that any booster could give.
The only way it isn't the end is if they happened to be speaking about something else and it came around to the question of Brandon. But then, I highly doubt that he relays the conversation to the WSJ.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:28 PM ^
I think it's safe to say Ross appears to be a football fan on at least some level and probably watched the debacle on Saturday as disgusted as the rest of us.
Now I think it's pretty damn sure Brandon is out. Thank God.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:43 PM ^
He's the majority owner of the Miami Dolphins. I'm guessing he's not buying into an NFL team if he doesn't like football.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:58 PM ^
You might be surprised. I had a company bought in the late 90's by Wayne Huizenga when he was buying every sports team in southen Florida. At the time he owned the Dolphins, the Panthers and the Marlins and I can tell you from absolute first hand experience that he knew nothing about football and cared about it even less.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:29 PM ^
When did Ross say he was going to be involved in or approve any decision? Nothing to see here. Wish I could channel the Brandon Hate to cure cancer.
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October 27th, 2014 at 2:43 PM ^
Your username makes me feel dirty.
October 27th, 2014 at 3:21 PM ^
try working with/reading about Volkswagen Audi Group.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:30 PM ^
The wheels are in motion. My guess, and I have no idea, is that if they are going to fire Brandon and/or Hoke, they already have a firm list established of replacement candidates and possibly already had contact through "intermediate channels".
October 27th, 2014 at 2:33 PM ^
i have the same reaction to this stephen ross comment as i did to his previous, specifically: "what the hell does stephen ross know about the operations of an athletic department, either on a day-to-day or strategic level?"
the shorter version: "stephen ross needs to shut the hell up."
October 27th, 2014 at 2:42 PM ^
Until you give $300 million to the University, you need to get off Ross' back.
October 27th, 2014 at 2:54 PM ^
parts of the fanbase freaked out when it appeared he'd come out on brandon's side, but now that he's on "our side" we're all for his opinion?
if he'd given a billion dollars, would he get to make the final decision and hire the next guy? what's the cutoff here? i'm looking for a specific dollar amount.
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