Michigan recruiting high character kids
Just read the great post from tomcat re: his flight next to recruit Kellen Jones. (http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/my-flight-kellen-jones) Kellen is yet another example of a (future) Michigan player with strong character and values. Denard and Roh and Mealer clearly are just a few of the players at Michigan who want to be on a team with others who work hard and have high personal integrity. IIRC, this was part of the concern voiced by Woolfolk regarding Tate back in August.
I think we are not going to have the spate of character issue problems seen at various Thug U's and Party On Schools out there. I think having an LB like Kellen Jones on board is just tremendous.
One of the quotes from Kellen's visit to Michigan and time with Denard implied that if Denard wasn't hosting Kellen, or at the game, he would just be in his room by himself, probably studying. He said being all in for Michigan meant being all in for academics.
I'm curious, for mogreaders who are in the dorms with guys on the team: is my observation about our team on the mark? Obv., I don't need or want to know anything personal. Having said that, reading between the lines, I get the sense that we have not only a bunch of great athletes on the field, we have a bunch of great guys on the team who represent the University well OFF the field.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:08 PM ^
As a former TA for general 100 level science courses, I can say that a lot of athletes are good students and a lot are awful students. News at 11.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:23 PM ^
same here. I have GSI'ed alot a few athletes through the chem department. I am also a Deker member and go to a lot of the events to meet the team. We recruit some awesome guys on the hockey team. Jon Merril is my favorite freshman on the hockey team right now.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:29 PM ^
I've had nothing but good students from the hockey and volleyball teams. From a former TA, a big hat tip to Red and coach Rosen, you're student athletes are a joy to have in class.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:10 PM ^
"Denard said he hates losing, and if we wouldn't have been there he would just be by himself in his room," has nothing to do with studying.
just sayin'
October 11th, 2010 at 3:13 PM ^
What else would a college student be doing alone in his room?
October 11th, 2010 at 4:00 PM ^
he would be hating losing
October 11th, 2010 at 4:07 PM ^
We called it "making a long-distance phone call" when I was in college.
October 11th, 2010 at 5:14 PM ^
Well, he said he doesn't watch TV, so he's either doing homework or looking at porn.
October 11th, 2010 at 4:09 PM ^
But unlike Tate, I don't get any sense of Denard being the party animal.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:22 PM ^
the risk of speaking prematurely. This teams record or non record as it were of non arrests/suspensions or other disciplinary actions is evidence that this coaching staff is spot on in that regard.
October 11th, 2010 at 3:30 PM ^
...discipline case is on you.
/Obviously.
October 11th, 2010 at 4:00 PM ^
Because it felt like thread-sh*tting and was overly wordy to boot
October 11th, 2010 at 4:05 PM ^
Yep, all it takes is one incident for your name to be dragged through the mud. No one's perfect. But knowing that, I 'm still impressed with what I've seen. While I'm sure there are good kids everywhere and on every team, I simply have been very impressed with what I've seen out of the classes RR has recruited, and believe this bodes well for the future.
There is such a thing as "making your own good luck." It seems that when you have a critical mass of guys who care about doing thing the right way, it can have a very positive impact on the balance of the team, and can help avoid the stupid stuff that happens.
Actually, my kid's 4th grade football team has had several bad apples, and weak coaching. Partly because of this, there is little to no camaraderie. In contrast, his Little League team last spring was made of great kids, who played well together and had fun. Even though I don't think they were the most talented team in their particular league, they managed to win the championship.
October 11th, 2010 at 6:09 PM ^
I live next door to two football players (not sure if I should say who, so I won't) and they're both great guys. I had a long chat with one about the team chaplain and all of the players that have a routine Bible study together. the other one took my friend on a date and she said that he was a real gentleman. Obviously this is a case-to-case type of thing, but these 2 I know are both really solid guys
October 11th, 2010 at 6:32 PM ^
Please, don't tell me who the guys are, it is none of my business, and I'm not interested in personal information.
But can you tell me something about the team chaplain? Brian or TomVH had quoted a recruit, OL, IIRC, who was very impressed by this being instituted. I am trying to track down more on this aspect of the team. I'm getting the sense that this is not isolated, but a significant subset of the football team, and reflective of the coaches, particularly Barwis. Maybe you could ask the guys about Barwis, because I've read a few things about him and this whole angle.
October 11th, 2010 at 7:47 PM ^
I don't know that I'd agree with Coach Rodriguez recruiting high character kids. There have been plenty of slip-ups or players with questionable backgrounds (Justin Feagin, Demar Dorsey, Austin White, etc.).
However, I will say that the character problems seem to be dealt with rather quickly. Some kids are booted, some are asked to transfer, and some just never see the field.