Good article on Coach Rich Rod
Article gives good perspective on Coach Rod and how he is handling the current situation.
With all the drama and complications Coach Rod has handled everything with class.
Same can be said about every issue he has faced since he has been in Ann Arbor.
"It would sound like I'm lobbying," Rodriguez said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I've got a great job and we're looking forward to finishing it."
Linky
December 27th, 2010 at 10:57 AM ^
He is right it has to be very hard to recruit. We should have this a cleared up by this time Monday next week. I'm going to say a prayer for that man.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:06 AM ^
More than enough time for one of the best at closing on recruits.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:03 AM ^
We FUCK UP mississipii state
Coach Rod is kept
FIRE GERG
Hire new COMPETENT DC
We sign a killer recruiting class
Win the Big Ten
Coach Rod coaches Michigan for the next 10-15 years with 4 or 5 national championships sprinkled in
............aawww shieet I was dreaming wasn't I?
December 27th, 2010 at 11:10 AM ^
Speaking of dreams, I had one a couple nights ago where Michigan crushed Mississippi State 52-21 and Roy Roundtree was on the front cover of ESPN's website after the game.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:15 AM ^
In your dream... how did the MGoBlog Community assess the coaching situation? Did DB make a decision? If so, what was it? Did JH go to San Francisco?
December 27th, 2010 at 11:19 AM ^
I think the decision will have been made for Brandon... although personally I think he knows what he's going to do already.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:19 AM ^
The MGoCommunity exploded after the game.
December 27th, 2010 at 12:32 PM ^
All of the pro RR fans went to bed happy and content. All of the haters said "He didn't win by a large enough score. Bring in Harbaugh."
December 27th, 2010 at 2:06 PM ^
a lot of supporters. Michigan fans all want us to win. I don't think there are really haters, just some who have different opinions of how we'll best win.
A 31 point victory would make a lot of dreams come true.
December 27th, 2010 at 2:11 PM ^
I would hope that all Michigan fans want us to win, but hearing some on boards, not here, and WTKA podcast, you would know that is not completely right.
December 27th, 2010 at 5:09 PM ^
... that "I don't think there are really haters...". That is unfortunately very incorrect. I would not venture a guess as to what portion of the anti-RR crowd felt this way, but I heard from more than a few people that they were concerned RR would win enough games to keep his job. They would rather have UM lose in order to get RR fired. ...Those people are haters, super-haters! IME they tend to be very old alums or fans who don't really know much about football.
But I think the majority of the fanbase is on the fence. Good results force them to lean in RR's favor and poor resutls force them to lean the other direction. It can change week-to-week, or even quarter-to-quarter. A 31 point win would get a lot of those fans, and they would be firmly behind RR until UM has a bad game, or quarter, or possession in 2011.
December 27th, 2010 at 5:21 PM ^
There's some evidence to support the idea that many (not a majority now) of fans can still be influenced one way or the other. From May to December, there was a shift of perception of RR - more have an unfavorable view (38% v 20%), and fewer want him to continue (32% v 51%), but there's a pretty consistent block of fans who are unsure of what they want (33% v 29%).
December 27th, 2010 at 8:10 PM ^
It would be interesting to see the number of pro/anti RR stories in the Michigan media for that time period.
December 27th, 2010 at 9:14 PM ^
As much as we like to credit "the media" with having a lot of power, I suspect the positions taken by "the media" are a reflection of its advertisers' audience.
December 27th, 2010 at 8:07 PM ^
Togaroga-IMHO, you can't be a fan of a team and hope they lose. I think that is a contradiction in terms. You are right, they are not fans, but selfish haters.
December 27th, 2010 at 9:16 PM ^
I would not generally wish ill toward anonymous fans, but I seriously hope that anyone who would root for a loss to get rid of RR trips walking down the stadium steps.
I'm sort of older. I find that my friends children tend to be the haters. In many cases they are knowledgeable about football. One or two could probably have played in a lesser division and at least one coaches. They all parrot the folks on 97.1. One of them even caused me to spew coffee when he began telling me about the Michigan Mafia.
Now, this does not change your experience. I think that it does exhibit once again that sweeping generalizations are inaccurate. It is also possible that if we could quantify hatred we might see trends. I think it is more accurate to say haters gonna hate.
Can someone explain this 31 point win thing to me? This must be the 3rd or 4th time I have seen a reference to a 31 point win. I've watched a game or two, and I don't know that I have noticed that being held out as a benchmark. Would a 28 point game be sufficient? Would they name their kids Rich if it were 34 points?
December 27th, 2010 at 1:18 PM ^
I also had a dream we crushed them. Hopefully our dreams come true.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:14 AM ^
Nice dream. I really hope something like that happens. But I am not confident.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:18 AM ^
Maybe not a dream...Perhaps a glimpse of the future...
December 27th, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^
I think Gerg is more than competent, but I believe not having his own staff and being able to run his own defense puts him at a clear disadvantage.
With RR bringing in most of his defensive staff from WV, I think it puts any DC at a disadvantage unless they are all on the same page. I think the best senerio for RR is to bring in Jeff Casteel.
I know some will say that the 3-3-5 will not work in the Big Ten, but I think it would work much better than what Shafer and Gerg have been able to do with a staff that may not be in sync with.
I believe bringing Casteel will bring some synergy to the defense. They all know each other from their WV days and this in itself would, in my opinion, make our defense more competitive.
December 27th, 2010 at 12:13 PM ^
I think we should hire a team of defensive coordinators this time so that we can spread the blame around a little bit more. Can't ever have enough goats.
December 27th, 2010 at 12:53 PM ^
or, nightmare...
Sorry, just watched Inception with my son... Realized that the last 3 years might have just been a bad dream.
Would be awesome to wake up to a bowl win, some stability for another year, and headlines about buckeyes getting suspended... (was that real, or another nested dream?)
December 27th, 2010 at 7:17 PM ^
I think Michigan should not panic. RR is a solid citizen and a great coach. This crap will all pass, things will settle back to normal, and UM will start kicking ass again as usual. Plus national championships.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:13 AM ^
I really hope that this "evaluate at the end of the season" bullshit and it's aftermath doesn't happen every year. It only hurts Michigan Football.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:20 AM ^
I wonder what Rich Rodriguez would have to do next year (assuming he's here) in order to silence his critics... I mean the last two years we got off to hot starts, so I can't imagine this "embattled coach" meme going away until Michigan beats Michigan State (at the earliest, assuming Michigan starts off 6-1 at the minimum, 2-0 in the Big Ten.)
December 27th, 2010 at 11:27 AM ^
December 27th, 2010 at 11:31 AM ^
Since the issue is his ability to compete with top Big Ten opponents, that is an extremely reasonable scenario. I support RR and want him to stay, but the fact is that he still needs to prove his team's ability to beat quality Big Ten teams.
December 27th, 2010 at 12:47 PM ^
A number of Rich Rod's critics will never be silenced until he drops the accent and goes back in time and establishes some random tangential connection to Michigan, because that's all you need to qualify as a "Michigan Man."
December 27th, 2010 at 12:52 PM ^
If by number you mean some sort of meaningful amount, then this is just a ridiculous assertion. A lot of people around here act like the fact that he has no Michigan connections prior to this is why there's a lot of discontent. It's the fact that we haven't beat anybody in 3 years. When he came in the 'old guard' was apprehensive because they didn't know how the spread would pan out, and they've got all the results in the world to support that feeling now. If we ever start winning, he will be loved by this fan base.
December 27th, 2010 at 1:52 PM ^
When he came in the 'old guard' was apprehensive because they didn't know how the spread would pan out, and they've got all the results in the world to support that feeling now.
No they don't.
December 27th, 2010 at 2:00 PM ^
I disagree with everything in your post, including bringing back Nike. If you have never heard some one say he is not a Michigan man then you don't get out much. This team has not yet beat MSU or OSU but you really do have to like our chances next year that is unless we decide to change coaches again.
Many that hate RR would find a reason to continue doing so and some who are on the fence may come around. The problem is and always will be those who hate him the most have a media pass and continue to drive a wedge between our fan base.
December 27th, 2010 at 4:43 PM ^
You probably disagree with it because you don't get what I said. People do say he's not a Michigan Man, which he wasn't when he came in. That's not the central complaint people have with him/his tenure, its his atrocious performance in the Big Ten Conference. If he ever wins, people will love him. A lot of people here make it seem like people are unwarranted for being upset with him. That is simply not the case. There's no mass agenda against the man. Enjoy your crappy apparel.
December 27th, 2010 at 9:29 PM ^
I understand not being happy about his over all record. My only thing is that year one should not count against him and years two and three were both led by first year starters. If after the 2011 season we aren't handing some people their asses then maybe your unhappiness is warranted. I just think we are jumping the gun a bit in judging whether he can or can't win a Michigan.
Also your last comment made me laugh. Adidas apparel is a bit suspect but the thought of wearing Nike Pro Combat uniforms just scares the shit out of me.
December 27th, 2010 at 2:26 PM ^
The population of people that "hate" Rodriguez for any reason other than his record is negligible. This is an uber-prevalent strawman here.
People will come around to RR when his closest Big Ten analog (by record) isn't Tim Brewster.
December 27th, 2010 at 2:47 PM ^
people who dislike him have disliked him from the start. I have heard "Michigan Man" more often than I have in my entire life - from people who cannot tell me what a Michigan Man is, but that is another story. I can tell which radio station people listen to, or which paper they read by the opinions they spew. After they have presented their opinions, they will invariably end up with mention of the win-loss record, or the fact that they just want the best for the university, just like the so-called writers and hosts.
Slightly OT, but interesting - if you google one of those so-called writers or hosts (Drew Sharp), the MGoBlog Dorsey thread is now the third link, after the paper and twitter.
December 27th, 2010 at 2:56 PM ^
Well, I really, really, REALLY hope we find out for certain.
If RR goes 12-0 next year or maybe a more reasonable 10-2 with a victory over MSU and people still bag on him, I will concede your point.
December 27th, 2010 at 7:15 PM ^
1. A member of West Virginia's 1981-84 teams, Rodriguez was a three-year letterwinner (1982-84) as a defensive back for Don Nehlen; Nehlen served as an assistant coach at U-M for Bo Schembechler from 1977-79.
2. A native of Grant Town, W.Va., in Marion County, Rodriguez grew up just five miles from the birthplace of U-M legendary coach Fielding Yost (Fairview, W.Va.).
From RR's bio on MGoBlue.com. (Not even deep dark secret. And #1 is more than tangential, because RR's often spoken of his respect for his mentor Nehlen.)
EDIT: This was meant as a reply to BlastBeat88 way way up there. Not to respond to intervening comments/arguments.
December 27th, 2010 at 6:45 PM ^
Defeating OSU at home will go a long way in RR security, if he is kept, next season. I would say go 8-4 and beat the buckeyes! The defense will need at least 1.5 more years before they are a good group, especially with a new DC coming in. After the 2012 season, RR better get 10 wins and a BCS bowl game.
I'm a RR supporter but my brother is not. Everyone has their own opinion and we should be able to get along. I like JH, I went to school at UM the same years that JH did and like RL, JH is one of my all time favorite UM QB's. I wouldn't be upset if DB decides to go with JH but if he picks anyone else, it would be irritating. Only time will tell what DB decides to do about the HC gig!
December 27th, 2010 at 8:12 PM ^
I am sorry, maybe I missed something but who is RL? You said that your brother is not a RR supporter, does he favor JH or any other coach just not RR.
December 27th, 2010 at 10:21 PM ^
RL = Rick Leach. My Brother wanted Les Miles from the begining. Yes, he's hoping for JH but will take anyone other than RR. We've discussed this over the past three years, but sometimes it like talking to a wall.
December 28th, 2010 at 12:44 AM ^
Got it thanks. I should have figured that one out. I wasn't a fan of Michigan before school, but I did like JH. I can't fault anyone in wanting RR to be replaced(although I support RR). But JH should not impact the CC decision. It should be all about RR and whether he has gotten the job done and can be successful here in the future.
December 28th, 2010 at 8:47 AM ^
The problem is that there isn't a switch that gets flipped and all the fans say "Gosh, we love him".
If RichRod starts having 10 win seasons, and starts beating Ohio and State over the next few years, more and more folks will jump on the band wagon. Then when he beats Nebraska too a few times--- then he starts getting compared to Carr.
Do it for a few more years, then he gets mentioned as a new Bo. Then the wave really starts and builds huge over a few seasons.
That all starts with 10 wins next year, and knocking off two of Nebraska, Ohio, and State. It doesn't end there, though.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:20 AM ^
The locked in "year end review" won't make any difference when we win the B1G Ten next season...
December 27th, 2010 at 12:37 PM ^
it won't matter when the review is being done. Noone is complaining (at this point) about having to wait until the end of the basketball season to find out if Beilein will be back or not.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:23 AM ^
is a rock... you have to be a tough son of a bitch to go through all this with a positive attitude. Go Blue... kick the shit out of MSU (both of them)
December 27th, 2010 at 11:33 AM ^
I am very frustrated with the criticisms that have been made against RR's character. People are free to comment on the fact that it has taken three years (so far) to retool and compete for championships. Fine. But the guy has been a class act, a true values-driven coach, and he deserves to be treated with respect by everyone in the Go Blue community. Whatever happens this off-season, I will always cheer for him and appreciate him as a man.
December 27th, 2010 at 11:39 AM ^
I agree with you on that. He is a classy guy and hope the best for him regardless of whatever happens. Hopefully he ends up with a big win and gives DB more to think about.
December 27th, 2010 at 12:02 PM ^
You are assuming DB has decided to fire him already. I'm thinking/hoping he's leaning the other way.
December 27th, 2010 at 7:58 PM ^
I'm really hoping that Michigan destroys MSU by 21 points and that Stanford loses. Just to throw a monkey wrench into the plans of many of the anti-RR people.
December 27th, 2010 at 1:20 PM ^
No person is perfect so of course Rich Rodriguez has his flaws but as a whole he has more integrity in his finger than all his detractors combined. I had the pleasure of meeting him once while attending UofM-Flint for my MBA at a leadership seminar in Ann Arbor. He was very warm to our group and even though he was short on time after the brief lecture he talked to all ten of us individually. I found him very engaging and genuine, something you don't always find.