D. Howard with scathing indictment
When you've lost Desmond Howard, have you lost your job as Head Coach of the Michigan football team? Today, on Gameday, Howard ripped into the Michigan team saying that after attending a practice he saw maybe one player, Jabril Peppers, that wanted to be great. The rest were just pretenders.
Without stating as much Howard, a Hoke supporter from the word go, has removed that support. As a team is a reflection of its leader we should all feel comfortable knowing that the vast majority of the players are good guys just like their coach. But also like their coach, they have become at best a .500 team.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:17 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 2:17 PM ^
Give. Me. A. Fucking. Break. This is one of the most insanely idiotic things I've read here ever. What a gutless, cowardly, disingenuious thing to say. What have you done in your life to question Hoke's "fire?"
Hoke started coaching at the HS level in 1982 and worked himself through the ranks (GVSU, Western Michigan, Toledo, Oregon State) before winning the Michigan DL coach job in 1995. He then left to earn his dues as a HC at Ball St in 2002, and then SDSU before coming back to Michigan.
You have no fucking clue the amount of dedication it takes to grind for 30 years to reach your dream job in a cut throat, merciless profession like coaching. You have no idea the sacrifices he, and his family, have had to make along the way. It's all too easy for you, guy behind the keyboard, to question his effort and dedication, isn't it?
September 27th, 2014 at 2:38 PM ^
Ok ok take it easy fellows I am just kidding. Hoke obviously has worked hard. Once it goes sour though people will say the darnedest things.
September 27th, 2014 at 3:38 PM ^
mmm hmmm. Keep it up. The guy is a career sub .500 coach in the MAC and MWC or whatever SDSU is in. He lucked into the job because Brandon couldn't find anyone else with Michigan ties who would take the job or that would be his yes man. Tressel and Kelly dominated during their times at lesser conferences for years. Hoke, not so much. So ya, no he didn't really earn it.
This was a buddy buddy hire from the beginning.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:19 PM ^
after attending a Michigan practice. Said they did not have any football players because they are not being developed.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
Where'd you hear this?
September 27th, 2014 at 12:22 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:27 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 12:47 PM ^
you got this bit of info from that piece of shit cowherd. that clown knows less about sports than my 6 year old son. he always pulls the 'i know a guy that told me this' crap just to make crap up. find a better source for your posts.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:20 PM ^
I'm shocked a team that looks like crap in 2 of the 3 phases doesnt practice well! Shocked!
September 27th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
we've had a great week of practice. I know this, because he says it every week. We're totally undefeated in practice for over 3 straight years.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
Agree! We are top 10 in recruiting and top 5 in practices, we'd qualify for the playoffs in practices. Now if we could only figure out the whole "games on Saturday" thing.
Game play on Saturday is a reflection of what you do the other days of the week. So there is no disconnect here. Anyone watching the spring game or fall scrimmage saw what the defense does this to this offense. I am sure those are not outliers.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:45 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:29 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:22 PM ^
More specifically, this team misses a guy who could override some of the hard-wired entitlement that creeps into 4 and 5-star guys who have spent much of their young athletic lives being The Man in high school, being showered with sycophantic praise, and need to be broken down a little and rebuilt.
The kids seem to love Hoke. That's cool. But I've said this before and I'll say it again, I'd rather see the trajectory of feelings Bo's former players said they had about him:
As a freshman, you hate his goddamned guts.
As a sophomore, you accept him.
As a junior, you respect him.
As a senior, you love him like he's your father.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:59 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 1:03 PM ^
The program needs to be destroyed and rebuilt completely...looks like Hoke and DB almost have the destroyed part done.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:05 PM ^
We know that guy's name: Jim Harbaugh.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
Sad days for Michigan football and its fans
September 27th, 2014 at 12:25 PM ^
No matter what happens after this season, Hoke constantly emphasizing "toughness" is even more embarassing and full of hot air than Charlie Weis's cocky statements about a "decided schematic advantage" on scheming offense at Notre Dame.
At least Weis knew how to call plays on offense. Hoke's teams have been soft as pillows.
RR failed because a lack of attention to detail, and Hoke will be much the same. Hoke's talent development failures are far more glaring, however. RR couldn't recruit, and Hoke couldn't develop.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:07 PM ^
He failed because he wasn't given enough time or budget to right the ship. Can't wait to see what happens 3 years from now when AU is a perennial top team in PAC 12 and we are still farting around with the Michigan man bullshit hoping for Harbaugh to come save us.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:43 PM ^
Why are you as a Michigan fan looking forward to this supposedly inevitable occurence again?
September 27th, 2014 at 5:14 PM ^
Because it means that those who have been holding us back (the "old guard") will have finally been swept out of the program and we can finally come out of the darkness and into the light.
There is no hope this current staff can or will do anything with the talent they are stockpiling. They look completely incompetent and overmatched after 4 years of recruiting 4* players.
We need a fresh start and the sooner, the better.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:23 PM ^
If he could evaluate talent and motivate, he'd be coaching instead of straightening his pocket square and mugging for the camera.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:27 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 12:35 PM ^
So, because as an ex-player he's chosen the far easier career of a TV personality over the life-consuming rat race of a college football coach, he doesn't know anything about football? OK.
September 27th, 2014 at 2:10 PM ^
Well, maybe he does recognize a lack of drive and taking the easy way out after all!
Do you really believe Peppers is a practice MVP and team leader already, cut and dry ahead of all upper-classmen? I think Howard just looked at his old position group, picked out the physical specimen, and threw the rest of the team under the bus.
September 27th, 2014 at 2:19 PM ^
His old position group? Peppers is a defensive back. Howard was a wideout. I know there has been talk of Peppers doing some things with the offense, but he has yet to take a game snap doing so.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:24 PM ^
I think we've all observed that this team has lacked fire and intensity in recent years. Other teams just seem to want the win more than we do. *sigh* Hopefully today's game will help turn the corner in this area!
September 27th, 2014 at 12:27 PM ^
I think he is getting at the atmosphere/attitude reflecting players just showing up versus trying to improve each week. From the time I was there I remember the thought process of the big time players/recruits was to keep getting better to make it to the league. The few times I got to work out at Schembechler Hall with a couple buddies that played for coach Carr you would see guys coming in on their own without any coaches or trainers working out.
Part of the problem has been that when you come in and play as a freshman or sophmore for a struggling team, it is easier to get complacent because no one is challenging you for your spot. Think about teams like Alabama who have stud Jr's or Sr's that set the tone for the younger guys to learn the ropes and compete to possibly replace them one day. As the depth continues to improve, I think you will see guys working and pushing themselves even harder to keep or earn playing time. Think about a guy like Magnuson or Braden who ideally should still be 2nd team players for a team with an O-line like Long, Krause, etc.
At the end of the day, the head coach does set the tone, so it is a reflection/responsibility of the coach to correct that if what Desmond is saying is true.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:29 PM ^
The team is a reflection of its coach. All good guys, all undoubtedly love Michigan, but from what we can see, there is just little to no intensity, no drive, no passion. No anything. I can't say that with certainty because we don't see what goes on behind closed doors, but there's no sense of urgency. Maybe that changes today. But it hasn't changed one bit since last year, except for maybe the OSU game. Don't know why it would change now.
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September 27th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^
like every week...
But seriously, Desmond calling the players out like that is uncool.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:00 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 2:42 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:31 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
I think that is his way of trying to light a fire under the team's ass to get them motivated.
September 27th, 2014 at 12:35 PM ^
Worse than Desmond's outrageous dress code are his ridiculous opinions. Didn't he pick UM to be the #6 team in the country at the end of this season?
And who picks out his clothes?
September 27th, 2014 at 12:36 PM ^
what he said isn't an indictment—it's opinion.
Were players loafing? Not running at full speed? Goofing off? Not listening to their position coaches? What exactly does "not wanting to be great" mean in the context of practice? Without details, what Howard said is hot air and nothing more. Which wouldn't be the first time.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:27 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:38 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:53 PM ^
Roidin' at the NFL combine
September 27th, 2014 at 1:13 PM ^
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September 27th, 2014 at 1:42 PM ^
Add the data point to the set. It counts against the player development side of the ledger. Press "save" on the hard drive with your index finger, powered by musculoskeletal fibers under control of voluntary nerve cells.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:07 PM ^
Not jealous of them but appreciate their player development. Remember when they were getting it done with a very young o-line? I do. They did and still do continue to give it to people. The youth excuse holds water but only goes so far when you see other teams with "less stars" playing as if they were al 5 stars.
September 27th, 2014 at 1:59 PM ^
Just about every MSU fan i know wanted Dantonio and Narduzzi fired after year 3 because thus far in his career he was terrible..
Hoke after his first 3 years has more wins than dantonio did and he was responsible for completely overhauling from a small spread team to a power manball team.
The difference was Dantonio's 4th year where they coasted on an easy schedule to 11 wins.. and a complete gutting by Bama in the bowl game which brought them back to reality..
They still have a young team and it was appualing to me when Herbstreit said 74% of our roster is freshman or sophmores.. Marcus Ray made a pretty obvious statement about the difference in our Defense and Offense noting all the mistakes because of all the under classmen on offense.. Notably the O-line and everywhere else outside of Gardner.
It sucks that this is where we are at, and the coaches are def at fault for a lot of things, but i could also see us imrpove a lot next year if Hoke still is the coach just because of maturity of the team.
The one thing i really question is the in game decision making and development. Should the O-line be better by now? idk..
The defense is gonna continue to be better next year as well as we are only losing a couple guys correct?
September 27th, 2014 at 12:39 PM ^
September 27th, 2014 at 12:41 PM ^