Long Dave Brandon Interview in Detroit News

Submitted by pearlw on
Very long Dave Brandon interview in Detroit News today. It gives perspective on alot of things that get speculated on here such as how the MSU game got changed to a road game and Hoke's status. In it, he recognizes some mistakes such as how silly the skywriting was. http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140728/SPORTS0201/307280027/Amid-h…-?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CSports

umbig11

July 28th, 2014 at 7:38 AM ^

Wojo hit all the hot topics. I had a chance to personally ask DB about a couple of these topics myself this summer and he gave the exact same answers. As a matter of fact, he had some very strong opinions for the B1G with regard to playing at East Lansing two years in a row. He does a very good job of raising money for all of our facility upgrades. Do I agree with everything? No, but I am very happy to have him over Bill Martin. CFB is changing and we need to adapt.

Public_97_Ivy

July 28th, 2014 at 3:50 PM ^

Have you seen what Coach Rodriguez has done at ARIZONA?  Something tells me it isn't all Coach Rodriguez's fault it didn't work out here... in fact, I lay a minority of the blame at his feet.  

jls1144

July 28th, 2014 at 7:38 AM ^

I do get tired of the hot seat talk. I can't imagine doing another coaching overhaul would be the right move. Hoke is gathering the pieces. If in 2-3 years Michigan isn't where it should be, his recruiting will have a full stable ready. He needs a chance to play with an experienced O-line and depth at other positions.

umbig11

July 28th, 2014 at 7:58 AM ^

the major difference was the almighty dollar. If the donors are not "all-in" and you have some portion of the Alumni and fan base against him he was not going to be afforded the same opportunity. The general feeling around the program was described as disconnected, divided, and struggling. Oh well, we have beaten that horse to death. I am moving forward.

Public_97_Ivy

July 28th, 2014 at 3:58 PM ^

When the hell do I get my Big Ten Champions shirt then?  Hoke has had one fluke good year with Coach Rodriguez's players and managed to shit the bed since then.  Ooooohhh recruiting rankings!  Tell me when that matters in November and December.  Michigan couldn't rush the ball forward for TWO STRAIGHT WEEKS and nearly lost to what, three MACish teams in the first weeks of the season?  

Simply being a "Michigan Man" (not even a damn graduate, just being a position coach for a few years doesn't earn you that title in my book) does not buy you unlimited time.  You know what other alumni don't donate money?  Ones who see the Michigan brand and tradition driven into the fucking ground by Dave Brandon and his incompetent hires.

Ohio State got the University of Florida's old coach.  We got San Diego State's.  That should tell you enough about this program's problems.  Dave Brandon and Brady Hoke have watched this team drop from a 1b level program, to a 2b level program.  We got our asses handed to us on a national stage by a mediocre Big 12 team in Kansas State.  Didn't even look like we wanted to be there.  Alumna like me who pay big money to go see a bowl game don't donate to programs who look like they just want to go home.  Great job Coach Hoke, you've really earned your top-5 coaching salary.

BigBlue02

July 28th, 2014 at 10:21 AM ^

While I get it is fun to say RichRod's defense was the worst in 120 years, his offense put up more then negative 48 yards rushing. Every coach has their weaknesses, I'm just glad we learned from the RichRod hire and can give Hoke some time to correct his.

BlueDragon

July 28th, 2014 at 1:02 PM ^

Let's try a zone guru. Oh, he's not a good ol' boy. Not acceptable. Let's go back to man blocking. Oh, we don't have the recruiting profile for that anymore and in-state demographics don't favor building a beefcake OL like Wisconsin without even trying too hard. Let's go back to zone after 3 years of moving from zone to man blocking.

Thanks, old rich white men. Thanks a lot.

ijohnb

July 28th, 2014 at 8:01 AM ^

I do believe that Brandon is being truthful when he says that Hoke's job is safe right now, I think it is foolish to think that this is not a make or break year for Hoke on certain levels.  I think he would all out of excuses by next year, not this year, but he needs to clean some things up before the AD really has no way to defend the extension of his tenure.  His team did not perform last year, and in some cases looked bordering on uncoached and incompetent.  You combine that with certain off the field miscues in terms of the handling of certain events and the choices made by his players, and you have a combination of failures that can prematurely end a coach's stay with a particular program, especially one under a constant unrelenting microscope. 

We are getting the horses again in recruiting.  This program is about a year away from being a very, very desirable head coaching assignment once again.  That seat is going to get uncomfortably warm if this season does not plant the seeds for high level success in the very near future.

umbig11

July 28th, 2014 at 8:07 AM ^

Hoke is in year 4 of 5. We have not heard anything about an extension to his contract. If DB and the administration was completely confident they would be talking about a contract extension to provide security and that translates into recruiting kids for the future. Recruits want to know if the coach will be there long term. I think DB is taking a wait and see approach this year. My sense is that 7-6 will be unacceptable. What the magic number is for Hoke is up to the decision makers.

In reply to by ijohnb

ccdevi

July 28th, 2014 at 8:35 AM ^

I'm not saying 8-4 gets him fired, it doesn't, but I find it really odd (actually sad for the state of UM football) that you're using 8-4 as the hurdle towards and extension, like that's some great achievement. That something an Illinois fan should be saying.

ijohnb

July 28th, 2014 at 8:43 AM ^

not taking into account the power shift that has occurred in the BIG over the last ten years.  There are three, arguably four, more established programs than Michigan in the conference right now.  And we go to Notre Dame, to East Lansing, and to Columbus.  If we had those 3 games at home my bottom line may be different, but those are 3 of the most difficult places to win in all of college football my friend.  This year, 8-4 and a Capital One/Outback bowl will buy him some time, probably not an extension, but some breathing room.  2015 would be the year to do damage (if Sugar Shane can sling like it looked like he could against KSU)

SECcashnassadvantage

July 28th, 2014 at 9:00 AM ^

The other Big teams blow. We used to be ranked top 10 quite a bit in any season. How we forget and accept crap is amazing.

ijohnb

July 28th, 2014 at 9:07 AM ^

Staee beat fucking Stanford in the Rose Bowl last year.  Ohio can compete with any team in the country.  These teams do not "blow."  Get serious.  This is not the toughest conference in the country but it isn't complete bullshit either. 

Man, now I am the one defending Hoke when I said he should be on the hotseat to a certain degree.  No, we are not going to win a national championship next year, let's just get that settled and got on with things.

Needs

July 28th, 2014 at 9:41 AM ^

Hoke pretty much has to be extended after this year if he's not going to be fired. Coaches almost never go into the last year of a contract without an extension. It hurts recruiting too much.

Richard75

July 28th, 2014 at 10:26 AM ^

First of all, Hoke's deal is for six years. An extension isn't an issue until after 2015--and even then, not really. They could just tack on another year or two, which keeps him out of his last year while avoiding a long-term commitment.

The contract won't force Michigan to do or not do anything. It's just a matter of performance.

stephenrjking

July 28th, 2014 at 1:39 PM ^

Garbage. The B1G has been as weak as it has ever been in history in the last three years, and Michigan hasn't even made a championship game. That is Michigan failing, not the conference excelling.

Michigan and OSU traditionally have always been the conference powers. Sure, a Wisconsin or an Iowa or PSU or a State will develop good teams that compete at the top too, but not every year. Michigan is supposed to be there every year.

A major reason (perhaps the biggest one) that the Big Ten has had such a bad run is that Michigan has not held up our end of the deal.

8-4 with losses to ND, MSU, and OSU is unacceptable. I don't care whether they're on the road or not; Michigan needs to win. Beating OSU once in 11 years is not enough. Beating MSU once in 7 years is not enough. And if the season goes like you say, you won't think so either after Michigan loses to a team it should beat and after it is embarrassed by MSU again or OSU again.

ijohnb

July 28th, 2014 at 1:47 PM ^

but it has not been Hoke not living up to his end of the deal for the last 10 years.  He has been here 3.  That is the conversation, what does Hoke need to do.  Yeah, Michigan needs to do a hell of a lot better than 8-4 to be Michigan, but the question is what does Hoke need to do in terms of job security.  If he goes 8-4 this year, with a victory against Notre Dame or Michigan Staee or Ohio, I think he will probably get extended or that he is at a minimum safe for another year.

stephenrjking

July 28th, 2014 at 2:19 PM ^

1. Originally the proposition was 8-4, losing to all three teams, job still safe. I don't agree with that.

2. The Notre Dame game actually not that important this year, because it will either be a negative blip on a decent B1G record that would save his job anyway, or a meaningless plus on a lousy B1G season (like last year) that will still have the wolves howling for his dismissal.

3. If he loses four games but wins at MSU or OSU he probably keeps his job, but remember that by that point he will have a lot of losses and fans will be upset and he may be coaching for his job, not a great situation. But if he beats one do them he ought to have at most three other losses; more than that would worry me. These are regular season records, as I think he should not have his job at stake in a bowl game; we've been there before.

In reply to by ijohnb

stephenrjking

July 28th, 2014 at 2:49 PM ^

How can the fanbase possibly accept two non-rivalry losses? What are they? Do they drop games at Northwestern and Maryland, continuing a trend of horrible play on the road? Do they loss the marquee home game do the year, at night to ascendant Penn State? A fluke non-conference loss to Utah? A dud against Minnesota that ends with the team booed off of their own field?

Do you know how much the fanbase will melt down after any of these losses? A lot. A home loss of any kind completely cancels out any good feelings from the Notre Dame game. So, really, do non-rivalry road losses. 9-3 is the pivot point because Michigan fans believe Michigan OUGHT to win all the games except those road rivalry games which are very losable. So any loss that isn't in South Bend, East Lansing, or Columbus is unacceptable because it would be in a game fans believe Michigan should win if it is developing as it should.

I would hate 9-3, but at the very least I know that beating MSU or OSU would be tough for anyone; losing to a lesser team will result in madness.

Clark Griswold

July 28th, 2014 at 9:25 AM ^

Stop with this "need more time" crap. This is Michigan. You're not given 8 years to win. People were easy to give Hoke credit for the 2011 season. Funny how they don't give it to RR. I personally hope Flounder fails this year but that's just me