Thank You Rich Rodriguez
You showed us a new brand of football that was exciting and, at times, breath-taking. While factors both in and out of your control have led to this day, your ability to handle the myriad of circumstances that came about with class and dignity show a Michigan Man is not about Wins and Losses but, rather, character.
For that I am grateful.
The Best of Luck in your future endeavors.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:12 PM ^
Good luck coach. I don't think any of us wanted it to go like this, but here's where we are. I hope the fates are kinder to you in the future.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:12 PM ^
Michigan is like uptight parents who wont let their daughter date this guy or that guy because they are not good enough for her. They bash the boyfriend she does get because they dont approve, before you know it she has gained the freshman 15 and then the sophomore 30 and no want wants her anymore because she is a cow, and then she gets stuck with Brady Hoke
Jan 4th, 2011 the day Michigan became just like Notre Dame, UCLA, Nebraska, Miami and every other HAS BEEN
January 4th, 2011 at 3:13 PM ^
Dear RR,
If I could retain you as an offensive coordinator forever, I would. Unfortunately your ability to hire DC's proves to be your achilles heels, I can only imagine hundreds of different "what if" scenarios in which Casteel and Schafer played a larger role in the growth of this team. Unfortunately we will never get to see your product come to fruition, because we're an impatient fanbase. I will always root for you regardless.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:14 PM ^
He gave it his best shot, and handled all of the adversity with class. I hope that he builds a juggernaut someplace where he is truly embraced from day one. While the record and the circumstances justify Brandon's decision, the manner in which he was treated by many fans and media alike was deplorable. The man deserves better.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:14 PM ^
Well this just sucks..Not only did we lose a great coach, but we also lost Denard :(, hey I guess maybe Tate will stick around now. RRod got the raw end of a stick since he's been here. Best of luck Coach Rod.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:15 PM ^
Well this just sucks..Not only did we lose a great coach, but we also lost Denard :(, hey I guess maybe Tate will stick around now. RRod got the raw end of a stick since he's been here. Best of luck Coach Rod.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:15 PM ^
Michigan is like uptight parents who wont let their daughter date this guy or that guy because they are not good enough for her. They bash the boyfriend she does get because they dont approve, before you know it she has gained the freshman 15 and then the sophomore 30 and no want wants her anymore because she is a cow, and then she gets stuck with Brady Hoke
Jan 4th, 2011 the day Michigan became just like Notre Dame, UCLA, Nebraska, Miami and every other HAS BEEN
January 4th, 2011 at 3:15 PM ^
Michigan is like uptight parents who wont let their daughter date this guy or that guy because they are not good enough for her. They bash the boyfriend she does get because they dont approve, before you know it she has gained the freshman 15 and then the sophomore 30 and no want wants her anymore because she is a cow, and then she gets stuck with Brady Hoke
Jan 4th, 2011 the day Michigan became just like Notre Dame, UCLA, Nebraska, Miami and every other HAS BEEN
January 4th, 2011 at 3:20 PM ^
to not only win Big-10 Championships but to compete for National Championships. I wanted our team to evolve into the likes ot the past Florida teams, the current Oregon, Auburn and now even TCU's of the college football world. I am truly saddened that this didn't come to fruition. I think he is a great guy along with his staff. Thanks for all of your tireless efforts with coaching, recruiting, but most importantly with Mott Hospital and for helping others more in need then ourselves. I am sure the Mealer family appreciates all that you have done for them. Good luck and GOD Bless you Rich!
January 4th, 2011 at 3:23 PM ^
I don't think he was ever given a chance, and I look forward to him dominating at wherever he goes next, and I fully expect him to have a job so soon.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:24 PM ^
Thanks Coach Rod!
January 4th, 2011 at 3:25 PM ^
I appreciate all you have done. I hate to see you go but I think it will be best for you in the long run, you were never given the chance to show what you could do here but you will be back. Good luck, you will always be a Michigan Man in my eyes. Go Blue!
January 4th, 2011 at 3:26 PM ^
I will always defend Coach Rodriguez against the outside perception that he is some kind of slickster. This guy had character from beginning to end and took way more crap than he ever deserved. I wish him nothing but the best in the future.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:26 PM ^
RR deserved much better than he got here, and in my opinion he left the program in better shape than he inherited it.
January 5th, 2011 at 9:02 PM ^
LOL...amazing
January 4th, 2011 at 3:31 PM ^
January 4th, 2011 at 3:33 PM ^
For staying true to who you are despite all pressures (fair and unfair) that you faced here. Your hard work, class, morals and personality have won you a fan in me. Wherever you go, know that your time here was appreciated by many more than you think. God bless, go blue.
January 4th, 2011 at 3:37 PM ^
January 4th, 2011 at 3:41 PM ^
Thanks coach, it is too bad that people around here don't understand that you need to break a few eggs to make an omelet. But what is new, this part of the country has not been able to get out of its own way for more than 40 yrs. You probably didn't think that you were signing up for ND, but then again I didn't think that I was cheering for them either.
Can we at least get our own FreekBass song so we don't have to use theirs?
January 4th, 2011 at 3:41 PM ^
I look forward to having a second college football team to root for and you will always be a Michigan Man in my mind.
January 5th, 2011 at 8:59 PM ^
Thank you Rich Rodriguez
January 5th, 2011 at 9:09 PM ^
How do you have a meeting with a guy for several hours one day, and then meet with him again the next just to fire him? Especially at this point in time. This whole situation just makes no sense to me. I find myself becoming ambivalant towards the coaching situation. I really don't care whom we get. I can't bring myself to care about Michigan football right now.
In echoing the sentiments others have made several times now; this really feels like Notre Dame. By summer my excitement for the team may, MAY, be there again. But right now, I just don't see how. This is a dark day indeed for Michigan football.
Good luck wherever you end up Coach Rod. They just very well may become my second favorite college football team while you're there.
January 6th, 2011 at 8:14 AM ^
because you're firing him after only 3 years. it gives more "rational thought" behind the process. i feel way better about the firing "after only 3 years" because DB let RR have a full meeting, no time limit, to push his case. it shows much more of a systemic process than a 20 minute "pack your bags."
January 6th, 2011 at 5:23 AM ^
Thanks RR for showing us something different at Michigan. I wish you had been given the 4th year to prove/disprove your work. You are a great coach, and a great man. I wish you and your family the best of luck, and I'm sure you'll be leading another team to wins in no time.
January 6th, 2011 at 9:13 AM ^
Thanks Rich Rod, from one WV Michigan Man to another. I hope you find a big east home and slap all those WVU inbreeds around like they deserve.
January 6th, 2011 at 10:41 AM ^
Agree on slapping WVU around, disagree on coming to the Big East. He couldn't get it done in three years at Michigan, but there's no doubt he can coach. I want no part of him again in the Big East.
Brady Hoke to UConn!
January 6th, 2011 at 11:31 AM ^
Rich Rod never got a fair chance. He was met with vehement opposition from day 1, even before he set foot in the city of Ann Arbor.
I personally thought that we were all on the same page -- with Carr retiring and the mass attrition to the NFL, we'd be a youthful team and likely have a few down years. It was the perfect time to hire a coach to modernize the team, to take Michigan from 9 wins a year to national championships.
So we pull spread guru Rich Rod from his alma mater, WVU, and pay dearly for him. We ask him to perform miracles and then pull the rug out from under him. Two recruiting classes (they're only sophomores, not even upperclassmen) is not enough to guage where the program is. The issue is compounded because Rich has won more games each and every year he's been here. Perhaps the bar was set artificially low, but Rich Rod (IMO) gives us the best chance to get to 9 wins next year versus ... well... whoever the fuck we hire from wherever the hell they are.
Don't get me wrong, I'll always support Michigan and the HC at Michigan, but for Brandon to pull the rug out and have absolutely no backup (as far as we can tell right now) is just awful. Thanks for turning us into a circus.
*le sigh*
Here's to a better tomorrow.
January 6th, 2011 at 11:53 AM ^
He didn't exactly handle the move very well. You tend to piss off your biggest supporters when you stab them in the back and leave (and if I was an alum of WVU, I'd have been pissed too. Though I'd also have half of my teeth and be married to my sister, and read at a 3rd-grade level, but I digress).
January 6th, 2011 at 11:51 AM ^
Like alot of you all know he was not accepted from day 1. I was a RR supporter up till the bowl game. I believe that he is a very good coach, the players supported him. Good luck coach where ever you land. Thanks to you and your assistants for all your hard work.
Go Blue
January 6th, 2011 at 11:48 PM ^
Just wish we all would've seen one of RR's late WVU teams play Michigan. I think we know what would've happened.
Maybe that wouldve made DB and the rest of us do a double take before wanting to get rid of him so easily.
January 7th, 2011 at 12:09 AM ^
I was excited when they announced your hire, and was excited to see what you were going to for a conference that needed some revitalization. May our loss be another teams advantage, you are truly a caliber coach and will see the success you have envisioned. Leave me and the rest of the Michigan faithful to stew in our own shortcomings and purgatorious rebuilding years as our hallowed university stays the resident punchline in college football. Good luck and thank you for the excitement and promise of 3 seasons of improvement as your vision came together for our program. Haters gonna hate, coach, stay gold.
January 7th, 2011 at 9:03 AM ^
...I'm one of those blue-blood snob-types that wasn't all that fond of the aw-shucks-gee-whiz hillbilly act, and missed Lloyd's dictionary and poetry readings.
But, the way Rich handled himself over the past month or two showed me a lot about his character, and his class. I misjudged him, and he deserves more credit than I gave him, for sure.
I also admit that I thought three years wasn't enough, even though these three years have been historically bad in a lot of different ways. I can see why he had to go, but I don't feel good about it.
January 7th, 2011 at 9:16 AM ^
I'm pretty bummed about the decision. I hope he ends up in a better situation at a good program who will appreciate him more than we did.
January 8th, 2011 at 11:23 AM ^
January 8th, 2011 at 12:33 PM ^
I'm sure what I'm going to say has been repeated in some way or the other by the people before me but I'm going to say it any way.
Thank you for showing us an offense that scores in less than a minute and stuns us into speechlessness. Thank you for shoelace. For Wisconsin 08 and for many other moments that I could possibly list here.
Lastly, thank you for staying classy and taking the high ground through the whole thing. You were on shaky ground from the start because of the rather unhealthy "Michigan Man" obsession (who really knows what it means at this point?). And yet, despite all the adversity and the unfair opposition and the extreme bad luck, you stayed classy and showed that you don't need to be from Michigan to show the virtues that we associate with a "Michigan Man".
I still believe that with a little bit more luck (with injuries and recruits), a little bit more support and a better defense, you could have taken this team far. I'm certain now that whereever you go, you'll do a fine job and will possibly get your team upto speed before we will under the new coach.
Thank you and Good luck