Rick Leach's support

You make it sound as though he's done so on multiple occasions, and the reality is he's been virtually silent during RR's tenure. That's been his stated intention from the get-go, and he's kept to that. The primary dividing lines within the M football community—inside the AD and outside—occur right at the point where Carr retired and RR was hired. Given that the most strident RR critics look upon the Carr era as one that was sullied by RR's hire, and that the most strident Carr critics look upon his era as fossilized and correctly abandoned by RR, I think the program— I don't mean the team, since this is stuff that's beyond their immediate concerns—would benefit tremendously from some authoritative and respected voice, whether inside the AD or out, that can bridge the gap publicly and behind the scenes. That would have to be somebody who's not a reflexive critic or shameless slappy for either guy, but somebody who's been evenhanded and Michigan-focused. Either that, or Carr and RR could get together and try to publicly put an end to the constant sniping between both camps.