A question about Herb Deromedi and U-M

Submitted by The Barwis Effect on

I was listening to The Friday Big Show with Jim and Al on WTKA yesterday. Near the end of the show they were talking about Brady Hoke going up against San Diego State later this year. This led to a brief conversation about coaches going up against their former team.

Jim Stark mentioned that he thought one of the great ironies of coaching was when Central Michigan visited Michigan Stadium and former CMU head coach Herb Deromedi, who according to Stark "was the assistant coach at Michigan the last two years of his career," was on the sideline in his Michigan blue going up against his former team.

Does anybody actually remember Herb Deromedi doing any coaching for Michigan?

Not that it's the be-all and end-all, but Deromedi's Wikipedia page does not have Michigan on his coaching record. It lists that he was an assistant at CMU from '67 to '77 and HC from '78 -'93. It says that he was also the AD for CMU from '94 to '06. Michigan and CMU have only played three times in their history -- 1931, 2003, and 2006. He was still employed by CMU in 2003, so if this actually occurred, it would have had to have happened during the 2006 season, maybe after he retired as CMU's AD?

A quick check of the records on U-M's Bentley Historical Library website shows no record of Deromedi as a coach on either the 2006 or 2007 team. I suppose, however, that it's possible Deromedi served as a volunteer assistant on those teams -- maybe as a favor to Lloyd Carr and Mike DeBord, with whom I believe he was good friends.  If that's the case, then maybe that's why he is not listed anywhere as an official U-M coach.

I don't know myself, so I'm wondering if anyone can confirm the plausibility of Mr. Stark's story, or if he is just, as former WTKA host Doug Karsch likes to say, full of poi.

Raoul

January 22nd, 2011 at 4:01 PM ^

See Central Michigan Life article from August 2006 titled "Deromedi joins U-M, will serve as mentor"

Now, after accepting a position as a volunteer assistant under Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr, [Deromedi] will shift his mindset toward learning. 

“I’ve been removed from football for a while, so it gives me a chance to see how the game has changed,” Deromedi said. “It’s a great opportunity to work with their program.”

Carr and offensive coordinator Mike DeBord made room for Deromedi on the U-M staff where he will serve as a mentor.

eastone

January 22nd, 2011 at 5:28 PM ^

I moved from Mt. Pleasant to Ann Arbor in July 2006. I remember running into Herb on the concourse outside Michigan Stadium I don't think it was a game so it must have been a fan day event. I don't know him all that well - but everyone knows everyone in Mt. Pleasant. I asked him what he was doing there (he had a polo shirt with a Michigan logo). He told me that Lloyd had asked him if he wanted to help out. I think he had family in Ann Arbor too so it was a good fit after retiring as AD at CMU.

umumum

January 22nd, 2011 at 5:01 PM ^

Herb was a classic "John Hughes-style" high school driver's ed/bored gym teacher before leaving an assistant football coaching position in HS for an assistant's position under Kramer at CMU.  He coached my freshman baseball team--I don't think he ever got off the bleachers the whole Spring.  His HS tenure certainly did not foretell his outstanding college career.