Old School

History

Member for

3 years 38 weeks

Blog

View recent blog entries

Karma

Current value

Recent Comments

Date	Title	Body
2 years 17 weeks ago	I'm trying to understand the	I'm trying to understand the sudden emphasis on cornerbacks when 3 were already in the stable together with those already on the team. Can someone help?
2 years 18 weeks ago	These national searches take	These national searches take time, especially if you had no Plan A going in. (or B, for that matter.)
2 years 18 weeks ago	Why didn't DB just fire RR	Why didn't DB just fire RR AFTER national signing day?
2 years 18 weeks ago	LM did not float this story.	LM did not float this story. The athletic director of LSU is quoted as saying so. Would he open himself to lawsuits if his story was incorrect?
2 years 18 weeks ago	The latest from the	The latest from the recruiting services is that M is 36th. If so, DB knew what the consequences of firing RR so late would be. Both DB and MSC ought to be held accountable.
2 years 18 weeks ago	Please don't blame BH. He has	Please don't blame BH. He has been put in an impossible situation. DB put him there!!!
2 years 18 weeks ago	Last I saw, one recruiting	Last I saw, one recruiting service rated our class 36th in the nation. Since replacing the coach, that is worse than RR's class that he was focused on. Some people on this sight are raising their expectations beyond realistic. I've seen one person with an excellent reputation for ranking recruiting classes who said 4 days ago that there was no way M could salvage this class.  He is right on target, unfortunately. Didn't DB know that when he waited 2 months to make this change it would impact the class. If not, doesn't that say something? Have some of you seen the news that LSU is claiming we offered Les Miles - one of those vaunted Michigan men that DB bragged about would save us all and the program - 4 million and he turned us down. What kind of Plan A, B, or C did DB really have??? After the last fiasco, I would think he and the administration would have learned from their earlier mistakes.
2 years 18 weeks ago	Unsolicited advice to BH on	Unsolicited advice to BH on naming his coaches - haste makes waste, and one of the reasons your predecessor is now out of a job is because he named the wrong defensive coordinator. I hope he understands that these decisions set the course for his future - success or failure.
2 years 18 weeks ago	The coaching resumes are	The coaching resumes are underwhelming. Are these the guys that DB was referring to when he said he already has resumes in hand?
2 years 18 weeks ago	Ah, this "Michigan Man"	Ah, this "Michigan Man" stuff is great revisionist history! It never existed prior to a certain clique wanting to dip six the ex-coach.
2 years 18 weeks ago	Interesting to hear that jab	Interesting to hear that jab about Bill Martin. At least he had the courage to go against the Carr clique and choose from the outside. He displayed more character in that decision than some others.
2 years 18 weeks ago	I wish Hoke well for the sake	I wish Hoke well for the sake of the University and its football fans. However, I remain positively stunned by the internal athletic department politics now coming to light. The cronyism is positively amazing and absolutely discouraging. Good luck to someone who has not been in the clique.
2 years 18 weeks ago	He is back, along with others	He is back, along with others from the LC era now unemployed. SC at Florida, for example. Ah, this attempt to recreate the LC era will be very interesting.
2 years 18 weeks ago	Alas, wishful thinking. He is	Alas, wishful thinking. He is not a Michigan man. My heavens, he threw out all that old equipment from the LC era and brought in new stuff! Say good bye - he'll land in Pittsburg with McGee, etc. And expect more of the old LC crowd to show up looking for work.
2 years 18 weeks ago	Please, folks, he was	Please, folks, he was recruited and groomed by the now fired head coach to be the centerpiece of a spread offense. He was in the running for a Heisman under that system. Either he bolts to one of those southern teams running variations of the spread, or BH will adapt the offense to him for at least a year. DB and BH cannot affored his defection - hence the lunch with him. Such a defection would make the criticisms of Mallet's defection under RR a little shallow, don't you think?
2 years 18 weeks ago	He is gone. The rumor right	He is gone. The rumor right after his being declared academically ineligible was that he was transferring to U of Montana to get a shot at starting. Neither RR or BH had anything to do with this.
2 years 18 weeks ago	I'm peeved at MSC for	I'm peeved at MSC for abdicating her responsibility with regard to hiring a coach, ditto with DB who turned the whole thing into a charade, but number one on my mistrust list is LC, whose ego to name a successor has re-divided the fan base for years to come. Finally, someone owes RR an apology for the way that he has been treated. Having said all that, BH hasn't nothing to do with my displeasure with the above three, and I will support him because rebuilding is going to take another couple of years and he will need our support. This isn't going to be a pretty.
2 years 19 weeks ago	Amen. And what about MSC who	Amen. And what about MSC who claimed that she didn't know who the new coach would be? That sure says alot - we are paying her big bucks to know that kind of thing. Time to clean house of the entire administration.
2 years 19 weeks ago	Were the rumors  true that	Were the rumors  true that MSC - who lamely claimed she didn't know who the next head coach would be and she is making big bucks to run the place - and LC didn't want either Harbaugh or Miles from day one. The former because he made remarks about the program, and the latter because of old grudges. Cast about the internet, and you will also find pre-decision rumors that Hoke was the choice from day one. I wish Hoke well because to do otherwise is cutting off your nose to spite your face. But that doesn't mean that I can't be crticial of MSC, LC, and DB for this charade because this is a public university and their course of action seems to have made a public laughingstock of it.
2 years 19 weeks ago	According to rumors, MSC and	According to rumors, MSC and LC never wanted JH from day one - noses permanently out of joint because he had criticized our athletic department and academics. Ditto with the rumors that LC would have nothing to do with LM because of old grudges. In short, LC now has his man. Anyone have the e-mail addresses of the Trustees?
2 years 19 weeks ago	And what about the head coach	And what about the head coach in waiting, Ron English? It seems his players at EM love him.
2 years 19 weeks ago	By the way, Tressel was	By the way, Tressel was 135-57-2, with 4 championships, before that school down south hired him.
2 years 19 weeks ago	This meeting with Miles has	This meeting with Miles has made for great theater. Miles, himself, makes for great theater - clock management and predisposition for grass. Therefore, because M must compete in the national theater of college football, and because their "brand" must be freshened to keep the cash cow Big Ten network buzzing along, I believe that it will be Miles. They recognize it was a mistake to ignore him in 2007, and, now, 3 years later, they cannot afford to be jilted yet again. I trust DB did his homework here, and that you will soon be introduced to your new coach - Miles. Hoke would be an admission that LC's cronies in the athletic department spent the last three years undermining RR, and that will immediately re-open wounds among RR supporters. Unless, of course, he has some other rabbit in the hat - Gruden?
2 years 19 weeks ago	Gruden	Your paragraph one is dead on. One other reason to add - if you are selling brand names - i.e. Michigan, Ohio State, Nebraska, etc., what better way to attract viewers to the Big Ten Network than someone with the name recognition of Gruden. It would instantly revitalize the product. The role of the cash cow Big Ten network cannot be underestimated as a factor that DB is using to make his decision. And, I have no doubt that many of the young recruits of the next few years worship Gruden as some sort of football god. I wouldn't rule him out.
2 years 19 weeks ago	Miles, Gruden, Patterson, Mullen, Dark Horse	This is all about the future, and DB's legacy to M. He knows that football funds the athletic department, and that, at the moment, it and the BT Network are cash cows. This is about tv sets, the NY City market, recruiting, and repairing the defense. We are in the theater of national tv competing for dollars. Sorry, but I think Hoke is an admission of two things: 1) Carr's cronies in the athletic department spent 3 years undermining RR; 2) M is a program on the decline because no top ten coach will come here. The country is watching and anyone less than a coach with a winning track record and charisma is out of the question and will make us a laughing stock and the butt of jokes. Like it or not, Miles makes for good theater - clock management and his predisposition for grass eating. Gruden is a commentator for good reason - ratings. Patterson is what DB is looking for when it comes to defense - have you seen his defensive record the last 5 years? Mullen is charismatic and players will come. Finally, we shouldn't laugh at those Stoops rumors - there could very well be a dark horse. (Even Urban Meyer is not out of the question.) DB did not lie about JH in his press conference. He already knew he was on his way to the pros. So, I think he had been negotiating with him sometime ahead of firing RR. No CEO in his right mind does not have a plan B. In short, let's trust him a little bit here, because I think we are in for a pleasant surprise and a bright future.
2 years 19 weeks ago	Miles, Gruden, Patterson, Mullen	This is all about name recognition and reasons for those outside Michigan to order the Big Ten Network. Remember that cash cow? Brandon is a businessman and must fund the entire University athletic budget from football. His legacy is at stake, not to mention mediocrity or a return to football greatness. So, forget Hoke. If they wanted him they would already have hired him. Besides, if you were from New York City, a market the network wishes to crack, pr Atlanta, would you pay the premium dollar to watch Hoke rebuild the team? This is the theater, guys. The theater of national football. All of the above names are marquis guys who can not only pack the stadium and sell those luxury boxes in the midst of a recession, but keep the fans interested, immediately attract recruits and rebuild the defense. Of the four, Miles has the Midwest connection, played and coached at Michigan, and, makes for good television fodder - clock management and his predeliction for grass. I'm betting he's the first choice and they wish they had not ignored him 3 years ago, or we would not be in this mess to begin with. Failing that, Gruden makes for Network subscriptions. Patterson is the defensive minded guy that would satisfy both Bo and Carr supporters - have you seen that defensive record, and he is no namby pamby developer of talent. I put him 3rd. Then Mullen, obviously a charismatic choice. I believe in DB and fully expect him to sign someone that we can all rally around.
2 years 19 weeks ago	Geeze, didn't know that! What	Geeze, didn't know that! What did DB say about understanding UM rivalries? Making even more sense. Great point!
2 years 19 weeks ago	Gruden	He has national name recognition (common guys, DB is a marketing guy and we are talking Big Ten network and the MIchigan brand which is a key player in that network, before folks begin to cancel subscriptions = $$$, which is what keeps our athletic department going), kids who grew up in the 2000s and are now being recruited recognize his name and would die to play for him, he knows the game and has no UM baggage, unlike Hoke and Miles, and, if I recall, he was in Phoenix when an M plane landed. So, darn logical to me.
3 years 22 weeks ago	This topic is certainly not	This topic is certainly not new. I do recall previous discussions. One name prominently mentioned, other than Notre Dame, was Tennessee. It makes sense, and entry into the Southern market.
3 years 26 weeks ago	I've said some pretty ugly	I've said some pretty ugly things. I was wrong. They were in the Ohio State game. I watched it in Atlantic Coast Conference territory. Those folks love RR!!! They are right. They know that he is a damn good coach. It take TIME to change systems. RR shoudd be given at least two more years to recuit his team. To those whom I pissed off, sorry. Luckily, I am not the coach.

more