Pearson/hockey investigative report allegedly leaked to the media
Tweets from Bacon:
Multiple sources have told me the report the University of Michigan commissioned to investigate the hockey program has gotten to numerous media sources. Expect the decision to retain or release head coach Mel Pearson will come to a head soon, probably within the week.
— John U. Bacon (@Johnubacon) July 29, 2022
The report (I don't have it) apparently addresses three main questions:
— John U. Bacon (@Johnubacon) July 29, 2022
1-Michigan's exit from the 2021 NCAA tournament due to Covid;
2-Harassment of female employees by former staffer (who's since been released);
3-Treatment of players during and after their college careers. https://t.co/koIgj9STQl
The timing is interesting, as August 1 is the first day that programs are allowed to contact recruits born in 2006 (H/T to Hoover Street Rag for pointing this out). I hope I'm wrong, but this doesn't seem to be great...
Not sure timing indicates anything here - when would be a "better" time anyway? This might be when the investigation just happened to finish.
Maybe if the Wiseman news is actually connected, but it could be a coincidence.
Even if that date is the “why now” for the leak, I can think of a variety of motivations to get the report out.
Need to see the report, and perhaps the reaction to the report, to guess what comes next.
I agree that they would want to get the report out quickly to be done with this (good or bad).
Edit: the more time passes with no clarification, the greater chance this is all nothing (wrt Pearson, at least). If there was something damning in that report, someone would have broken it by now.
I agree. If multiple media members have the info and we haven't heard anything interesting today...and Mel was just in Plymouth today watching half the team participate in US scrimmages...what's that mean about the report? Probably that it's nothing exciting
If there was something interesting, you know there'd be a blue checkmark or two tweeting "Hearing there is BIG news wrt Michigan hockey coming out this week. Big changes coming" or something like that
Hello again: Brian Wiseman
Are we the only school left that beats itself up over rules that nobody followed 10 years ago much less now?
what does the report say?
Everyone here knows, but we've agreed not to tell you.
My sources tell me the word "hockey" is used in the report at least once.
Mel Pearson also shows up in the report
Blue Horseshoe loves Annacott Steel.....
Does this mean Ms. Lippy's car might not be green? I'm concerned.
Billy likes to drink soda.
It's time to play dodge ball.
here's a LINK to the gist of the whole investigation if you're so inclined. i like the last paragraph though ...
Bancroft's departure may pave the way for Michigan to wrap up the investigation, retain Pearson, and keep the results sealed. According to University policy, a formal complaint may be dismissed if the respondent (Bancroft) is no longer employed by the University.
I think you buried the lead -
"Bancroft's departure may pave the way for Michigan to wrap up the investigation, retain Pearson, and keep the results sealed. According to University policy, a formal complaint may be dismissed if the respondent (Bancroft) is no longer employed by the University."
"I think you buried the lede -"
Thanks I hate it.
Treatment of players during and after their college careers.
I hadn't heard about this allegation before. It's hard for me to believe that U-M Hockey is mistreating its own players.
Ice cream station ran out of sprinkles at the team training facility and no one ever refilled it. Almost inhumane.
Almost inhumane?? Almost???
Living like animals.
I have a hard time believing that one other than it being some issues for a few individuals vs a program wide issue. Michigan has a lot of guys on the roster who could go play tons of other spots if they were unhappy but there really hasnt been a peep of anything like that
I mean, hockey teams and hazing go together like...
Raisins and potato salad?
If there was any real mistreatment of players before and after their career that would quickly spread though the hockey world, There's no way the recruiting would be at the incredibly high level they have achieved in recent years.
In these situations I often try to answer the question of who leaked it and what their motivations were. If it were damning and there was a potential cover up, someone would want to leak it to make sure the truth got out. If it was very little but people were stalling with a decision to the point of hurting the programs ability to move forward, maybe they leaked it to get everyone to move on. This one is very murky.
Here, I would bet that the Michigan athletic department facilitated the leak as a trial balloon. The AD probably wants to keep Mel Pearson, but not at the cost of a substantial public backlash. Thus, some local media outlets get "accidentally" copied on emails about the report. After they run stories, the AD can take the temperature of the fanbase and confirm that they can retain Pearson without creating a public relations disaster.
I believe this is what they call a "Limited Hangout" in the propaganda/disinformation biz.
Did the complainant leak it?
Curious as to why the media recipients of the leak are not reporting on it.
Hopefully because there is not much in it to report on
My general sense has always been that the report isn't going to paint Pearson in the best of light but also isn't going to be nearly enough to justify firing him. The fact Bacon is second-hand reporting the key points and all of them seem benign beyond the sexual harassment claims (and that employee was terminated) sort of confirms that belief. Now, that doesn't excuse Pearson or his behavior, and I hope real systemic changes wrt player treatment and staff harassment occurs, but UM likely knows the contours of the accusations and likely would have acted faster and with more force if they were worried about it being more odious. And to be honest, dumping it on a Friday in July is the definition of trying to bury it because it's not great for you but also not a smoking gun.
If the leaked document suggested that the allegations against Pearson were substantiated, that would indicate a strong likelihood of his dismissal. Which would be big news.
The fact that nobody is reporting this, even as “unnamed sources say that…” is either a sign of an amazing if not unprecedented degree of restraint among news media types, or a sign that the investigation essentially exonerates Pearson of the most serious allegations.
That seems the most likely take on it,
The report was completed in May. If Pearson was "essentially exonerated" of serious allegations then common sense says he would have a renewed contract in place. This whole situation (and the lagging timeline around it) is just weird.