brady hoke has a new job title

Submitted by matty blue on

He's not the Head Coach any longer.  Now he's the "Ira and Nicki Harris Head Football Coach."

http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/index.ssf/2014/02/brady_hokes_new_job_t…

According to the press release, "This endowed position will strengthen the program for years to come and ensure the future generation of student-athletes will continue to benefit from outstanding coaching and leadership."

StoneRoses

February 17th, 2014 at 7:24 PM ^

I suppose it could be worse, at least these two are apparently alumni and not a corporation, but what type of egomaniac gathers $10 million to put their name before a college head coach? I would love to see how big Nick Saban would handle a situation like this.

BayWolves

February 17th, 2014 at 10:23 PM ^

Hell yeah.  This is as ridiculous as it gets.  What the hell kind of title is that?  On the other hand, as long as it is an endowed position  - why don't we call him the endowed Michigan Football coach?

jtmc33

February 17th, 2014 at 2:29 PM ^

I bet if I offered to pay you $100 you'd change your username to "The jtmc33 sponsored writings of formerlyanonymous"

I would then parlay that deal into ""The jtmc33 sponsored writings of formerlyanonymous, brought to you my Miller Lite and Sprint" and at least triple my investment.

Business, man,  Businessman.

 

 

 

 

James Burrill Angell

February 17th, 2014 at 3:27 PM ^

Endowiong a staff position is common all over the University, particularly in academics. Most of the academic units at most major campuses have not only some kind of endowed chair for their Dean but also for high level professors too.

That $10 million will sit in an account and the 4.5% interest the University will allow out annually will go towards paying a large part of Hoke's salary. The concept both here an on academic campus is to take the staff member's salary off the balance sheet and free up that money for other things (or in many cases on academic side with all of its funding cuts, provide that money to retain a professor we would otherwise lose to another University that is offering more).

I guess my only knock is that the athletic department simply doesn't need the money. That would do much more good elsewhere. Football is so deeply in the black off of PSD's all this does is take them another few hundred thousand into overage.

MORE MONEY FOR SKYWRITING!!!!

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

February 17th, 2014 at 2:22 PM ^

I can't imagine the ego involved in saying "we'll only give the program money if you name the head coaching job after us."

At least when schools name their shiny new buildings after donors, those are actual new, physical things that the donor made possible.

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

February 17th, 2014 at 3:02 PM ^

Exactly, something meaningful.  I hate that this will sound all holier-than-thou, but if I donated a shit-ton of money to my school for a purpose of some kind I'd choose a meaningful name for it and stipulate as part of the donation that it could never be changed.  Not "Me Hall" or the "Look At Me Chair Of Teaching Stuff."

WolvinLA2

February 17th, 2014 at 4:41 PM ^

Maybe this sounds crazy to some, but donating large (or very very large) sums of money is a very honorable and respected thing to do. Sure, some people do it anonymously. And if they don't want any gratitude for their donation, that's their prerogative. But if someone wants recognition for doing something great, why is that a bad thing?

Stuff in this world costs money. In order to get money, you have to give something in return. I don't see what's wrong with this.

WolvinLA2

February 17th, 2014 at 4:57 PM ^

But what happens when the "big, shiny thing" you made possible isn't tangible like a building? You gave the university a bunch of money, which will make a lot of stuff possible that may not have been otherwise. The willingness to do that is one of the big things that enables Michigan to be different than everyone else.