AP athlete of Yr: UM alums win 3 of last 6

Submitted by michelin on

For 6 years, former UM students have now won half of all the AP male athlete of the year awards.

Phelps just beat out Lebron James, winning now for the second time.  Brady also won in 2007, joining athletes such as Jordan, Bird, Woods, Montana, Mays, Mantle, Dimaggio, and---another UM alum: Tom Harmon.

Note that former UM students also won 3 of the last 9 SI Sportsman of the year awards (Brady, Phelps, and Derek Jeter—who said he may yet return to UM to get his degree (see link).

 

*ADDENDUM REVISED: Is Phelps a "Michigan Man"?

The link below provides some additional evidence suggesting that

1.       Phelps took courses in marketing and management at UM for 2 years (2004-6)—and it is hard to believe he did not do at least one semester’s work in those two areas over a two year period--which technically would make him an “alum” according to most  universities’ definitions.

2.      Indeed, even if that were not the case, many of us did not do in our later careers exactly what we did or studied in school.  In fact, many who came to Michigan—like Brady Hoke—were not even students at all.  Yet, their experience at Michigan molded their characters and contributed greatly to their future successes.  Just ask Brady.

3.      Moreover, Phelps actually came to Ann Arbor because that enabled him for many years to work with the UM swimming coach.  So, from a training perspective, he was as much a product of UM as any other UM athlete.  So, not only can a good case can be made Phelps is an alum but, for all intensive purposes, a “Michigan Man.”

 

(PLEASE READ LINKS IF YOU NEED TO VERIFY THESE STATEMENTS)

 http://baltimore.about.com/od/sportsrecreation/a/MichaelPhelps.htm

ww.mcall.com/sports/mc-phelps-swim-male-athletes-20121221,0,2591614.story

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associated_Press_Athlete_of_the_Year

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Phelps

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Where_does_Michael_Phelps_attend_college

http://www.examiner.com/article/remembering-derek-jeter-s-days-at-unive…

michelin

December 22nd, 2012 at 1:11 PM ^

and not just grads.(I did not want to make the title too long by writing ""former part time students who did not necessarily pursue a degree")

I did provide several links to verify that Phelps and Jeter were former students.

I stand by my title.  It is accurate.

GoWings2008

December 23rd, 2012 at 4:30 AM ^

Phelps came to Michigan to train with Bowman, which he and a number of other swimmers also did.  He didn't come to get a degree.  So how is this any different from all those freshmen basketball players from Kentucky last year?  I would hazard a guess than neither of them went to college thinking that they would actually finish four years with a degree, so who cares what classes they took as long as they completed the minimum requirements?  

Phelps trained with the Michigan coach, the Michigan team, benefited from the school's facilities and went to Michigan classes.  I don't see that as a stretch at all. 

WolvinLA2

December 23rd, 2012 at 8:04 PM ^

The "taking classes" is the key part here, and I agree Phelps should be included.  However, I don't agree with your analogy to the UK basketball players.  

The kids at UK go there in the hopes they can leave after a year to become pros.  In the meantime, they're attending the university, staying at least a little eligible and competing for their school.  When Phelps came to UM, he was already a pro.  There were no consequences for him ever even showing up to classes and he never competed as a UM athlete.  

If your point was simply that both Phelps and UK basketball players had little interest in an actual degree, then you're probably right, but that's where the similarities end.

GoWings2008

December 27th, 2012 at 9:53 AM ^

Since the Olympics started including "professionals" and the loose definition of pro swimming or what not, I'd agree to an extent...the lines always seemed a little fuzzy to me. 

But as far as no consequences for him ever showing up to classes...wasn't that the one way he was allowed to keep his stay in Ann Arbor the way he did? 

I read Colleen Thomas' article from back in August about it, and she has a very good point about why he shouldn't be included.  She mentions that the Wolverine community claims him as one of their own, possibly because he's the most decorated Olympic athlete ever.  I don't see any other schools as potential competition for his claims as "his school" so...although Bowman I think was associated with UMBC. 

Its a dicey subject for sure...but I appreciate your response.

Edit:  Link for the story

http://www.michigandaily.com/sports/colleen-thomas-michael-phelps-%E2%80%94-gold-not-maize

michelin

December 22nd, 2012 at 3:21 PM ^

According to the link above Jeter qualifies “He left after that one semester (at UM).”

I believe that Phelps qualifies too, as he attended a number of classes while he served as a vol asst coach at UM from 2005-8 (and trained for the Bejing games in AA).   Although I do not have his transcript in hand, it's hard to imagine he did less than three or four classes (the equivalent of a semester) in three or more years.  And, all alumni semantics aside, by serving as a UM coach for three years--like Brady Hoke-- he more than qualifies as a "Michigan Man".  So, it is appropriate to consider him as part of Michigan history.  Accordingly, there are abundant references to Phelps in the Bently Historical library.

http://bentley.umich.edu/athdept/olymp2/ol2012.htm

http://www.vpcomm.umich.edu/features/olympics/#gold

maizenblue87

December 22nd, 2012 at 4:19 PM ^

What jumped out at me from the list is how many winners in the last 30 years have subsequently been tainted by scandal - Ben Johnson, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods.

jasonmkeith

December 22nd, 2012 at 4:40 PM ^

 

If we are judging Phelps for "taking classes but not pursuing a degree", then by the transitive property, 90% of the Buckeye football team didn't attend Ohio State.

"We're not here to play school!!"

Optimism Attache

December 22nd, 2012 at 9:21 PM ^

To the extent that you are going down the list and adding a university to associate each athlete with, then I guess we say Jeter and Phelps are UM. However, we shouldn't suggest they are similar to someone like a Tom Brady, who played a number of years and actually graduated UM.

michelin

December 23rd, 2012 at 5:13 PM ^

--a response to xs growth hormone.   However, Phelps has repeatedly passed some more than usually rigorous tests for artificial growth hormone. 

So, one must ask whether other factors contributed to this appearance.  I have heard that he has ADHD--and for some time, pediatricians believed drugs used to treat ADHD would stunt growth. So they sometimes gave growth hormone injections to children.  If that happened to Phelps, then that might have contributed to his bone growth patterns and unusual appearance.

I am just speculating.