Dantonio a new Carr?
I was always a huge Lloyd Carr supporter, and I think Dantonio is going to be a solid coach for MSU after a few train wreck decades. I am sick of listening to these MSU lackies, though, declaring him a saint and talking about UofM like they are all of a sudden the little brothers in the state. Dantonio seems to me like he will be what Lloyd Carr was for all but 1 year of his career: a solid coach and good guy, likely to run a clean program, be a father figure / good influence for his players, recruit well, win 7-10 games every year and occasionally contend late for a big ten championship. A good career, but hardly elite. RR is a lot of things, but I definately think that he will have us contending for national championships (top 10 in nation) at least every couple of years, and will probably win at least one in the next 5-7 years. Still a big step above MSU and Dantonio and will win more games than they lose against those Spartan choads.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:09 PM ^
Lloyd Carr was always a classy guy. We've already seen a few instances of Dantonio behaving childish. Such as the comments about how tall Mike Hart was, the moment of silence, the list could go on.I don't think I can even imagine Lloyd saying anything like that, EVER.
Maybe Dantonio will be like Lloyd Carr's winning records in the future, but I certainly wouldn't compare him to how classy Lloyd Carr was as a person/coach.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:15 PM ^
Carr was as good an example of what a coach should behave like as I've ever seen. The game seemed to pass him by a little bit toward the end, but you're right, he could never be accused of missteps as far as the media or his behavior goes.
This is evidenced by the fact that I've never heard a State fan say anything bad about him. That's pretty impressive if you think about it. The only group I've ever heard criticize him is OSU fans, but even then it was because they dominated the series for a while before he retired.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:20 PM ^
but you're right, he could never be accused of missteps as far as the media or his behavior goes.
Dear BlockM:
You're joking, right?
Sincerely,
Todd Harris, halftime interview, 2003 Ohio State at Michigan game.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:25 PM ^
Well, no, I wasn't joking... why would you ask a dumb question like that?
I had forgotten about that, but I believe he apologized later. Anyway, you're right, I should have said, "His missteps with the media or his behavior were incredibly few and far between."
August 12th, 2009 at 2:28 PM ^
(JG2112 glares at BlockM and then walks to the locker room. John Saunders berates JG2112 during the halftime show).
August 12th, 2009 at 3:12 PM ^
the next week at the same point in the game, declaring, "It's great to see you Todd!" with a giant grin on his face.
Oh, Lloyd, you rascal.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:46 PM ^
'Twould have been more decent had the media goon been hung, drawn, and quartered by the illustrious Mr. Carr himself. Place the bits on the poles lining the stadium as a warning to the rest.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:48 PM ^
Carr's personal integrity was terrific, and we knew he'd never embarass the school. But he tended to regard the media as a threat, rather than a potential asset, and was more secretive about his program than he needed to be. He definitely got that from Bo (who got it from Woody). Ah, nobody's perfect.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:46 PM ^
Does anyone realize just how sucsesful Carr was? If Dantonio's record is anywher close to Carrs he will be the 2nd best Coach in the Big Ten hands down. Sparty hasn't won a Big Ten title in 20 years. And Carr won 5 in 12 years, he finished worst than 3rd in the confernce 1 time (his 2nd year) Seriously folks, 5 BCS bowls. Basically one every other year. Agian State has gone to exactly 1 BCS bowl in the last 43 years. I know this has a lot to do with the program, but come on. If Dantonio had the exact same winning percentage as Lloyd, he would easily go down as the greatest Spartan coach of all time.
August 12th, 2009 at 4:37 PM ^
The BCS has only been around for 10 years...
August 12th, 2009 at 6:50 PM ^
you know the deal, dont be an ass. rose. plus good enough to be invited to another major bowl.
August 12th, 2009 at 5:53 PM ^
have the same record in 12 years as Carr, I would have been disappointed, not pleased No one has more integrity IMO than Carr, and he was successful, but there were too may 4 loss seasons and disappointing endings for my taste.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:10 PM ^
He seems very intense. Yeah I think they will win 7-10 a year but he will not be as good as Carr was.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:10 PM ^
for use of the word choad.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:19 PM ^
I always thought it was "chode."
August 12th, 2009 at 3:13 PM ^
Chode is the Anglicization of the Medieval French "choad", Dantonio being Italian for choad.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:12 PM ^
I was thinking specifically that he would be a good but not great football coach, but I might have been reaching to compare his integrity and that of his program to Lloyd's.
August 12th, 2009 at 11:14 PM ^
I think his integrity has been shown to be lacking. Welcoming a player directly back from the PRISON to the field?
Somehow I'm not feeling it.
And as noted earlier some of his comments have been completely classless. And tasteless. Did Lloyd ever do anything like him re: the comments about Hart and Bo?
No.
Would he?
Not ever.
End of discussion
August 12th, 2009 at 2:12 PM ^
Dantonio gets into verbal altercations with student athletes from other teams. Dantonio would rather Michigan lose than win, even if it's at his own team's expense. Dantonio's not fit to be in the same room as Carr, unless he remembers to bring his shine box. They will be better with him though, I agree.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:33 PM ^
immature HS prima donna athlete who has a false sense of self importance. The lack of professionalism and maturity (ie bickering with Hart, anti-UM responses) are further indications that Dantonio is good for MSU... as he will continue doing a good job in further magnifying the "inferiority complex" of little brother in EL.
so... good for Sparty, better coach than they have had, but he has many, many limitations.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:39 PM ^
Yeah, 'cause its not like anybody in our fanbase is obsessed with Sparty and their head coach or anything.
Oh wait......
August 12th, 2009 at 2:47 PM ^
Did I miss the relevance to the previous two posts or did you just fail?
August 12th, 2009 at 3:01 PM ^
The whole "inferiority complex" thing is laughable considering just how often we as Michigan fans seem to rehash the same bullshit day after day when it comes to Sparty. Many in our fanbase are just as obsessed with them as they are with us.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:12 PM ^
But I would make a bet that many fans, and members on this board... are... "bored", and excited, and antsy for the season to start... Quite honestly, I dont believe we will have to wait very long for Dantonio to provide "additional" demonstrated evidence of the Sparty inferiority complex... its just a matter when, not if.
August 12th, 2009 at 4:00 PM ^
My thoughts exactly. This whole Sparty meme has gained considerable momentum only in the past few months, and I think it's just because we're all BORED. All of the threads about who is our "real" #2 rival etc. just feed the fire.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:52 PM ^
Why is this negged?
We talk a lot about Sparty on here, maybe more than Ohio State.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:45 PM ^
Also, Lloyd Carr would not force his whole team to pray together after a game on national TV.
You know, the whole separation of church & state thing. Shouldn't see that at a public university.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:57 PM ^
To be fair, we have no idea if Dantonio forces them to pray. My guess is that it's optional, just as it is at any other school.
August 12th, 2009 at 7:04 PM ^
optional... with plenty of peer pressure. Looked like the whole team to me.
August 12th, 2009 at 8:33 PM ^
Yeah, I'm sure that's exactly what it's like.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:26 PM ^
The guy is not like Carr. His W-L might end up being like Carr but Carr had integrity and class, something Dantonio doesn't have at all.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:30 PM ^
if he's winning 10 games every year at Michigan State. MSU is a stepping stone job.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:31 PM ^
He will retire as Sparty's head coach.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:37 PM ^
as Sparty's head coach, but he is the perfect fit for MSU. And I think he is great for the rivalry, so I hope he stays there for a long time.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:15 PM ^
in the same way that I feel Weiss is a good fit for Notre Dame. I wish them just enough success to keep their jobs.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:20 PM ^
Charlie Weiss is not a good "fit" for anything man-made.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:46 PM ^
Like a chair?
August 12th, 2009 at 4:03 PM ^
Who said "man made"? We're talking about Notre Dame here, everyone knows ND was created through Divine Intervention.
August 12th, 2009 at 6:21 PM ^
You just made me spit on my keyboard involuntarily. The monitor was only spared because I wasn't drinking anything at the time. Damn, that was funny!
August 12th, 2009 at 2:50 PM ^
I'd never make that assumption about an MSU football coach. They have a trigger-happy history.
August 12th, 2009 at 2:52 PM ^
Well he is up there in age and he seems to really embrace MSU.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:05 PM ^
I think he more embraces the head coaching job at a place with more media attention and more of a rivalry with the target of his penis envy.
Yeah, I said it. Mark Dantonio has penis envy of Michigan.
August 13th, 2009 at 5:08 AM ^
-2???? TROLLS!!
August 12th, 2009 at 3:32 PM ^
I don't know if wants to stay there long-term or not, but given Sparty's history, I wouldn't assume they'll let him finish out his career. Right now he's popular, but MSU's athletic department seems perpetually convinced that the 1960s are right around the corner and MSU is destined to return to national prominence. If Dantonio never wins a Big Ten title, and his teams start performing worse than RR's, his job security could become shakier.
August 12th, 2009 at 7:43 PM ^
Past Michigan State Coaches:
John L Smith '03-06
Morris Watts '02 (interim)
Bobby Williams '00-02
Nick Saban '95-'99
George Perles '83-94
Muddy Watters '80-82
Daryl Rodgers '76-'79
Denny Stolz '73-'75
Duffy Daugherty '54-'72
Duffy Daugherty was the last Michigan State head coach to retire, and he was forced to retire by the administration after going 27-34-1 in his last 6 years.
Who would have thought that Saban would have left MSU to go to LSU? At the time (and forever before), LSU was average or worse (7 SEC championships in 63 years prior to Saban).
Who would have thought that Rich Rodriguez would have left his alma mater West Virginia?
How about Gary Moeller and his circumstances? etc., etc.
After all of 2 years at MSU and an overall record of 16-10, the past history of coaches at MSU, and the ever-increasing mobility of college coaches these days, the odds that Mark Dantonio "retires" are quite small, IME.
August 12th, 2009 at 8:09 PM ^
The big difference is that Dantonio's family actually enjoys living in East Lansing. Supposedly, Saban's wife hated it here in Michigan.
August 12th, 2009 at 8:22 PM ^
- Money talks (Dantonio gets offers elsewhere)
- Shit happens (Moeller factor, poor record, etc.)
- It's PR, and the weather elsewhere or alma mater beckons and he's gone
August 12th, 2009 at 8:27 PM ^
Agreed*
August 12th, 2009 at 8:37 PM ^
Perles was fired, but I'm pretty sure he just gave up after that.
August 12th, 2009 at 9:54 PM ^
began serving an 8 year term as a member of MSU's Board of Trustees starting January 1, 2007.
I wish I could "give up" as elegantly (and profitably) as that.