Don Brown now the Matthew and Nicole Lester Family Football Defensive Coordinator
May 11, 2017
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan Athletic Department announced today that its football defensive coordinator position has been endowed through a generous gift by Matthew and Nicole Lester. The position, currently held by Don Brown, will be named for the family as the Matthew and Nicole Lester Family Football Defensive Coordinator.
"We are exceptionally grateful to Matthew and Nicole for this unique gift to the University of Michigan," said Warde Manuel, the Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics. "The Lester family is part of a strong group of donors and alumni that are passionate about this university. Great relationships can lead to these outcomes, and it is our student-athletes who will continue to benefit for years to come. Gifts like this make it possible for us to attract and retain the best coaches and students who participate in athletics."
"This gift represents a long-standing commitment by the Lester family to the University of Michigan and football program, and we have so much appreciation for their generosity," said Jim Harbaugh, U-M's J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach. "This gesture will have a great impact on the coaches and student-athletes who represent our team. We are appreciative of the commitments made by Ira (Harris), Sandy (Robertson) and now the Lester family. Their support and dedication is much appreciated and means a lot. It has been great to spend time getting to know Matt and his son, Asa, and we look forward to their family remaining a part of our program for years to come."
Matthew Lester graduated from the College of Literature, Science and the Arts in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in history. In 1994, following a successful career as an attorney and litigator in private practice, he founded a private real estate investment company that owns and operates commercial real estate in the Midwest and Southeast. He lives with his wife Nicole, daughter Elliah and son Asa in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
Endowed positions include:
- Donald R. Shepherd Director of Athletics
- J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach
- Sanford Robertson Offensive Coordinator
HC endowment was $10M and the OC was $3M per Nick Baumgardner. No word on this one yet.
His middle name is Oliver, too.
One of their kids is Chester, Chester T. Mo. Lester. He's been known to be pretty...grabby...
He also had to overcome a stuttering problem. I always thought that was kind of nifty.
I don't mind the named sponsors as much as other people do. What I really do hate is the word "family" bouncing around in there, in search of a phrase to modify. Is he a Family Defensive Coordinator? Does he coordinate Defensive Families?
The same thing is going on in Mr. Harbaugh's official title as well--"J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach." Better titles would either (a) drop the word "Family," or (b) make it the "Harris Family Head Football Coach."
Matthew
And
Nicole
Lester
familY
Don Brown is hereby the MANLY Football Defensive Coordinator.
There's no "Y" in Lester.
This would also solve the problem of which name stayed in the matter of a divorce.
Extremely sexist. Where's the outrage? Drop "family" and include the spouse, if not all family members.
Recently I offered an undisclosed sum to endow the Mortimer Snerd Family Schembechler Hall Night Custodian position. Was this wrong?
Sounds like we lost our DC who got poached to coach their family team.
I can't wait until the position of Tacopants is sponsored by MGoBlog.
$10 million for the head coach, $3 million for a coordinator... we could do a kickstarter to endow a grad assistant or something, right?
"The MgoBlog Tacopants Grad Assisant for Offense" has a ring to it.
but something from the training side of the equation is necessary, like a therapist.
Maybe some sort of hybrid Analyst / Therapist position could be created?
hmmm . . .
It could be a world-first!
Well, maybe second.
a kickstarter to raise enough to REMOVE the family names from the coaching positions?
Tacocat spelled backwards is Tacocat.
Not this sh** again!
(But seriously, thanks for the gift.)
5 bucks to call it the Kevin13 defensive coordinator job. I guess the Lesters outbid me.......
6 bucks not to call it the 'Kevin13' defensive coordinator job.
Raise ~$1,000,000 to make it so they don't sell the naming rights the assistant coaches' titles
I'm already being outbid.......
Even dumber are the jeers from the cheap seats towards people who are so outrageously generous with their money towards the athletic department that they can have the Michigan Defensive Coordinator job named after their family.
You want to continue to pay like we do? Then you should be graciously thanking Mr. and Mrs. Lester.
We pay Jim Harbaugh somewhere between $5-9 million per year depending on what you count, and this offseason we became the first team in college football to pay three assistants over $1 million. So if you want Michigan to keep paying like that to attract the top coaching talent, you should be very grateful for gifts like these.
I'm 100% sure this will halt any & all projected ticket or, concession price increases from happening indefinately!
Maybe even a price roll-back? Get ready to guzzle those new $1.98 bottles of water.
That's not what he was saying.
He's saying because of the endowments, the football program is able to pay Harbaugh and still have enough money to pay for top assistants like no other program does.
I literally never mentioned any of those things. This is about the level to which we are able to compensate top talent.
that without those generous donors the AD would not be able to pay Harbaugh or Brown whatever they wanted?
The money all comes from the AD whether it's ticket sales, bottles of water, multi-million dollar private donations or even wedding ceremonies on the 50 yard line.
The donations are great, but it's doesn't slow the university from passing costs on to other fans.
Yes, it's not even a question that without our strong donor base we would not be able to pay our coaches what they've shown they're worth, and Jim Harbaugh probably would have been out of reach as a coach in 2014 (Stephen Ross was instrumental in bringing him in).
I get what both of you guys are saying but the fact that we needed a millionaire like Ross to help bring a football coach to a public university at a cost of millions of dollars tells me something is wrong. It seems like another symptom of the problem of money in college athletics.
And everytime I see something like this I think 'for that amount of money, X amount of students who could go to school for free ' (I bet they give a lot to the U for scholarships and stuff too but still...)
I'm with Quailman - I'm not sure now necessary of a move this is. The program has plenty of $ flowing in. This is the AD raising money in a weird way that basically requires them to kiss these people's asses to massage their ego. I think it makes the program and university look like shills. I'm beginning to object to the idea of placating rich people because they want to buy anything and everything and put their name on it.
I'd bet a wooden nickel one of these endowed positions goes to whoever is springing for these spring abroad trips.
I love your comment and then you pair it with your avatar of Mr Rogers. Just the thought of that man saying something like this is quite funny because it's completely outside that man's character.
Put their name on the wing of a building and call it good.
Brown better wear that title with honor!
Nordin & Speight, rockin' the Mr. Owl #3 jerseys!
Welcome back, WD?
thanks for pointing that out... guess i didnt have enough interest to open said thread
They made money. Glad they gave their $$ to something we all support. Could care less if that prefix occasionally makes an appearance before DC Don Brown's name
Could care less implies you do care, and therefore less caring is possible.
it keeps advertising out of the Big House I am fine with it. Appreciaite the donations too. If these naming rights encourage people to donate that's okay by me.
The Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen Big House - endowment $100M
and they would never miss the money