Schlissel to Alumni: Circling the Wagons on the DB Statement

Schlissel had been president what, three weeks? Cut the guy some slack. This shit storm blew up and he's still just getting to know the place. Seems like from his perspective being deliberate is probably a good idea.

They talk of transparency where there is a blatant and obvious cover up. When will someone ask or will it be stated WHEN shane was diagnosed. That's all we need to know about who knew what and when. My bet, we won't get an answer to that. So much for "transparency"

Should we hang on every word? Yes. They have put a consecrated effort into non answers. You can't repeat "player safety" and "transparency" without any real answers, and just expect people to believe that shit.

The only way to fix this is to hurt them in the wallet.  I remember some guy got negbanged two weeks ago for a post suggesting a boycott.  I wonder if that would happen today?

If Schlissel honestly doesn't give a shit about how David Brandon has turned Michigan into a joke that the media can't stop telling, then a boycott is going to be the only thing that gets his attention.

If neither gets canned by the end of the season then we may have to change "leaders and best" to "complacent and mediocre."

Just to be clear: a new president fails to set fire to the Athletic department five days after a troubling incident, and therefore some mgobloggers despair for his leadership and the University as a whole.

That's the long & the short of it?

at this point it is highly unlikely that DB is going anywhere anytime soon. When you talk about the impact of Ross and his contributions you must also take into account that he is the chairman of a $4 Billion fund raising campaign. He speaks for more than just his $300 million (as if that were not enough). Ross is well aware of this and wouldn't be throwing support behind Brandon if there was substantial resistance to that amoung the major donors. 

Relying on the athletic department losing money because of poor ticket sales is a foolish hope. Ross's $100 milion donation to athletics is greater than the net profit of the entire department for between six and eight years. It would be embarrassing if attendance falls far enough below 100K that it can not be hidden by the various mechansms used to make the stadium appear full, but no matter what the bottom line will look fine for a while (probably multiple seasons). 

While the regents and president do care about the "image" of the University, athletics is far from high on their list of priorities. Further, even if they are concerned about that image sufferring over this, it is unclear where they place responsibility. It is at least as likely that they blame a vocal minority of the fans and the media for most of it, as they blame DB. As I said elsewhere, Brandon used to be a regent it is certain that he is aware of their concerns and the hot buttons he has to manage to keep his job. 

As for Brady Hoke. What many of you view as window dressing and spin control surrounding what happened with Shane last Saturday, will certainly form the basis of the University's formal position. Brandon's "opinion" that Hoks is not responsible for what happened because the "system failed" (this failure echoed by the president) means that Hoke will be judged by his over all record at seasons end. This assessment will be made as if the event surround Shane never transpired. The bar for this season remains unchanged from its beginning. 

Each of us would be well served to set aside the emotion of the last couple of weeks and review  where we put the bar for Hoke's retention back in August, because that needle hasn't been changed by recent events.