Rick Telander takes a swipe @ UM

Submitted by Bronco648 on

Rick Telander, Chicago Sun-Times columnist (and former Northwestern football player), takes a swipe at UM and the Big House in today's edition (7/15/10).  He even manages to insinuate that Brad Labadie was fired because of the football team's poor record over the last two years.  Sheesh, thanks Rick.

Story here

blueblueblue

July 15th, 2010 at 1:36 PM ^

He even manages to insinuate that Brad Labadie was fired because of the football team's poor record over the last two years.

No he doesn't. He insinuates that Labadie was forced to resign over the NCAA investigation. Which is a fair point.

I don't find anything he wrote objectionable. He questions the money side of NCAA football. Big deal. 

jtmc33

July 15th, 2010 at 1:46 PM ^

Although sports "journalists" and columnists around the nation are paid to stir the pot and not necessarily report on sports... Chicago sports media seems to be the bottom feeders of "shock-sports-journalism".   It's basically a bunch of Jay Marrioti wanna-bes on sports radio and print media.

Rick Telander, IMO, is in the bottom 50% of the Chicago sports "jounalists" - he constantly writes columns that are serious in tone and discuss "the important side of sports" but are basically Look-at-Me controvertial pot-stirring opinions disguised as real issues.

JeepinBen

July 15th, 2010 at 1:38 PM ^

Why don't more people read Mgoblog?

It's not a coincidence that Labadie was fired... he was fired because the sanctions you reference in the next paragraph were pretty much his fault Rick!

I hate idiots...

Section 1

July 15th, 2010 at 3:54 PM ^

It's not a coincidence that Labadie was fired... he was fired because the sanctions you reference in the next paragraph were pretty much his fault Rick!

This was better than anything that Telander wrote.  Packed more information into one sentence, than Telander put into an entire column?

+1 for you, JeepinBen.

Quail2theVict0r

July 15th, 2010 at 1:38 PM ^

I love it how everyone says the althetes are not paid. What is the $60,000+ in tution, food and housing then? Things I buy - food, shelter, transpertaion and entertainment. The only two things we are not basically giving them are transpertaion (even though they can ride the busses free) and entertainment. I think they're just fine.

Keith

July 15th, 2010 at 2:49 PM ^

the only quote you need from that link is:

''Rick Telander is a loser,'' Schembechler said Monday. ''He's been a loser all his life. You wouldn't want him on your team. You wouldn't want him in your organization. You don't want him writing for your magazine. He's a negative guy. Rick Telander? I don't give a damn what he says. I'm glad he played at Northwestern rather than at Michigan.''

M-Wolverine

July 15th, 2010 at 1:40 PM ^

Is if America didn't give an inflated importance to sports....he wouldn't have a job doing what he's doing. (Saying nothing to how much the media contributes to that).  

PurpleStuff

July 15th, 2010 at 1:53 PM ^

We tend to act like sportswriters are "journalists" (in the most dignified, professional sense of the word) who should be held to the same standard as people who cover politics and wars.  The writers/pundits themselves fuel the fire by pretending it is true.  If we viewed it as what it is, an entertaining sideshow to the actual games, I think people would breathe a lot easier and I would be less likely to strangle Bill Plaschke if I ever meet him in person.

M-Wolverine

July 15th, 2010 at 2:47 PM ^

We don't take Mary Hart, and Entertainment Tonight that seriously when they're racking the muck on Mel Gibson.  What makes sports reporters any different?

Especially when you consider dirt mongers like TMZ are scooping them in sports stories...

In reply to by M-Wolverine

PurpleStuff

July 15th, 2010 at 2:53 PM ^

"Little League baseball is one of the worst things you can do to your child."-Bill Plaschke

No tabloid journalist has ever said anything so dumb.

jrt336

July 15th, 2010 at 1:41 PM ^

I was going to say it could have been a typo, but he did say Toledo crushed us. Nice research, Rick. I guess there's a reason most of us have never heard of you.

VAWolverine

July 15th, 2010 at 1:41 PM ^

Former SI writer...Northwestern grad...has always despised M and Bo back to the early 70's...this is America and we need to allow idiots freedom of speech.

Section 1

July 15th, 2010 at 3:48 PM ^

~ He cites the "ear-splitting" roar from Michigan Stadium.  (It's the queitest 110,000 outside of Vatican City.)

~ He cites the cost of the Stadium renovation as though it had been a public cost.  (As we all know, the whole enterprise is entirely willing, enthusiastic, private contributions.)

~ He implies that student-athletes are indentured servants, instead of kids whose main goal in life had been to play college football.  Many of them wanted specifically to play in a Michigan uniform since they were grade-schoolers.

~ He butchers the score of the Toledo game in 2008.

~ He throws out this trashtalk quote:  "The Wolverines football program is under NCAA investigation. Its head coach, Rich Rodriguez, has been deemed a devious mercenary by critics. The team must shed assistant coaches and practice less and already has spent almost half a million dollars on legal fees because of the NCAA probe.

The pressure to win -- and not go to jail in the process -- is immense.

Enjoy, student-athletes!

Just fill 'er up."

I don't know, Bando; I suppose that apart from the compleetly wrong Toledo score (in which Telander seems to have really not known the score, not just a typo) it is all technically correct.  And it is also superficial, misleading and uninformative.  Great writing, I suppose, other than all of that.

"Technically correct" is not the standard that I hold these guys to, Bando.  I expect more from writers than to simply be "not incorrect."  They are supposed to illuminate, to inform, to explain what is important and to shoot down what is faulty or unimportant.

Thanks to douchenozzles* like Telander, and Telander's journalistic comrades at the Free Press, there is an entire nation that has some simple ideas about Michigan's football program.  All of those ideas, thanks to Telander's column and 100 others like it for the past 10 months, can be summarized something like this:

~ Michigan used to great but is now a lousy football team.  It's "tradtion" is history.

~ Rich Rodriguez is an outlaw within the NCAA, and because of Rodriguez, Michigan is facing "an NCAA investigation."

~ Michigan spends profligate amounts on football; something that neither Michigan nor any other similarly-situated school can reasonably justify.

Of course, just like the Rosenberg/Snyder story from August 2009, we know the number of Michigan Athletic Department leaders that Telander quoted in his column:  Zero.

*Thank you, to whoever suggested the term "douchenozzle." 

Section 1

July 15th, 2010 at 5:23 PM ^

That you see some daylight between "The University of Michigan" and "Rich Rodriguez."  You're not "All In" for Rodriguez.

You undoubtedly have your reasons.  They may or may not include Rodriguez's involvement with Cleeg Lamar Greene; or the phony allegations out of Morgantown; or the resolution of the buyout clause; or Boren; or Mallett; or 3-and-9 in '08; or 5-and-7 in '09; or the "Katrina" reference at the football bust; or NCAA/Stretchgate; or the Dorsey commitment.  You may have some thoughtful, considered reasons on your own for "doubting" Rich Rodriguez.

The reason for all of my long and detailed posts on so many of those topics is because I think that there is a careful, detailed explanation and defense for Rich Rodriguez in all of those cases.  You're welcome to offer your own views and come to your own opinions.

There is just one area in which I will not allow you any leeway, and that is on the point that the Free Press has an agenda, which is to criticize and undermine Rich Rodriguez.  And the Freep's methods in that endeavor have been ghastly.

I gather that your considered view is that you might not be a devoted hater of Rodriguez, nor a blind follower of Rodriguez.  You simply want the best for your University.  That of course is okay.  That description might fit me as well.

But Bo Schembechler is dead.  Lloyd Carr is retired and finished in our Athletic Department.  Rich Rodriguez is our head coach.  I'm not blindly supporting Rich Rodriguez.  I'm supporting him based on such careful consideration, that you seem to think that I write way too much about it.

There is a name for my support of Michigan football and Rich Rodriguez in 2010.  It is called, "Loyalty."

WichitanWolverine

July 15th, 2010 at 1:53 PM ^

"Michigan Stadium is ready to hold 109,901 fans after its $226 million renovation. That's a lot of noise -- and a lot of pressure for the unpaid few actually playing the game."

This dude just sounds like a whiny pussy.

Hail-Storm

July 15th, 2010 at 1:53 PM ^

that RR is able to avoid jail time after having S&C coaches present during stretching and not reporting them as countable hours. Does anyone else know what kind of precident has been set for this type of criminal behavior? 

Wolverine318

July 15th, 2010 at 3:19 PM ^

If you email me telander, you just can out of office auto reply.

 

Telander, Rick

 to me

show details 3:12 PM (4 minutes ago)
 

Thanks so much for your email. I will try to respond when I have time.     Best, Rick Telander