thisisme08

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:09 AM ^

Couldnt have said that better myself.  Granted his father may have taken a turn for the worse but on the face of it since Baggat was let go this screams that "I made a decision because of 1 guy rather than actually liking the school I commited too and now I'm taking my ball and going home".

Oh well all said and done now and more than likely he will end up at MSU which is fine.   

blue in dc

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:18 AM ^

Did he make a big deal out of it before or after je wasn't granted a full release? Maybe he did have a conversation wiith Dooley In which he did say the things you suggested. Maybe it was Dooley's unwillingness to grant a full telease that led to him making a bigger issue out of the health concerns?

Magnus

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:22 AM ^

If - and that's a big if - Arnett comes to Michigan, he will be a redshirt sophomore in 2013 by the time he can play.  If he transfers after that, he will have to sit out the 2014 season and only have one year left to play in 2015.  I doubt he'll transfer again after he leaves Tennessee.

As for the question of if we want him...I've never been a big fan of Arnett.  There are some personality issues that I don't care for, but it's a fair request to ask to go back closer to home while still playing at a school that gives him a good chance of getting to the NFL.  He shouldn't have to choose "Stay at Tennessee/be three states away from my dad" and "Go home to Central Michigan/be close to my dad."

It seems like Dooley gave in to human decency and/or public pressure.  Regardless of Arnett's reasons for wanting to transfer, it was probably the right think for Dooley to do.

CAwolverine

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:25 AM ^

You are WAY off base. Questioning his motivation for returning home to be near his sick father shows you have no empathy. There is more to life than football dude.
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<br>Rethinking the decision a 17 year old made to go to out of state in the face of his father's poor health does not need to be questioned. At 17 you are not the most mature and don't always make the best decisions. Heck, you can't even vote yet. Last time I checked you only get 1 father.
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oriental andrew

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:27 AM ^

Have you ever had an ill parent?  I did.  My mother had Lou Gehrig's disease when I was in college.  It was an extremely difficult decision to go to school out of state (Michigan), but it was progressing very slowly and she was still mobile.  By my junior year, she was in a wheelchair.  A year later, she was pretty much immobile.  I moved away to Chicago for a job after graduation. I had a good job, a great girlfriend (now my wife), and loved being where I was, but realized I had to move home as my mom's condition was deteriorating.  I grudgingly left everything behind after a little over a year to go live in my parents' house in Atlanta. 

I'm not saying it's the same situation as Arnett's, but it is possible that he decided he couldn't be that far away from home anymore because his father's health is deteriorating and he realizes that time is precious.  Are you being harsh?  Maybe, maybe not.  I, however, prefer to take a more sympathetic view given my own past experiences. 

CRex

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:40 AM ^

My mother has had two brain tumors over the past few years.  It's one of the reasons I've evolved a policy of never living more than 8 hours from her.  

I think DeAnthony has a perfectly valid reason to want to return to Michigan.  However I dislike how he says"Dooley is inhumane" as opposed to something like "I made a mistake to leave my sick father and now Dooley isn't helping/being a dick".  He skips the first half of that sentence and goes right to the second half.  Character is admitting the role you played in bringing this about as well.    

Think back to when McGuffie or Vinopal leaving.  When they asked for a transfer from Day 1 they both admitted they made a bit of a mistake when they moved so far from home at a time of ongoing issues at home/medical issues.  I'm not seeing that from Arnett in his open letter.  Instead I see him citing things like the cuts to welfare checks, which he knew were happening before he left.  

As Magnus said, Arnett has always had some personality issues.  I guess I'm just a pessimist who sees Arnett not admitting he played a role in all this happening as part of those issues.  

Erik_in_Dayton

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:50 AM ^

I honestly can't tell from reading the letter why he brings that up other than to say that his family is facing hard times.  Is he saying that he needs to transfer b/c of the cuts (or in part b/c of that)?...As a side note, the checks were going to stop once he turned 18 regardless of what school he went to. 

stetgor

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:32 AM ^

As you said, your post may not be popular but I have no problem with it.  Any decisions should be made on all available information and it appears you were simply presenting additional information.  I appreciate that.  My only retort would be that I do leave a little room for the fact that kids at that age can become starry-eyed or not have a full grasp of what his decision is going to mean.  I have no idea if that happened here, just saying.

I don't know enough about Arnett's situation to have a competent opinion, but what I will say is if he wants to come to Michigan and Hoke & Co feel he's the kind of kid they want, I'm all for it. 

Thanks for your post!

Blue2000

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:02 PM ^

You raise some good questions, but remember he was also 17 or 18 when he made his initial decision about where to go to school.  Perhaps he didn't realize the enormity of the decision, or how difficult it would be for him to be away from his parents until he actually was.  I'm not sure how many comparably difficult decisions I had to make when I was 18, but I'm also pretty sure I was an immature kid back then and might not have given enough weight to the various factors that go into such a decision.  I think the kid deserves the benefit of the doubt here. 

Feat of Clay

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:21 PM ^

Those are valid points. 

That said, I'm not ready to dismiss this as "playing the family health card."   I bet he didn't make the decision to go to UT lightly, and it might have been a close call, where he thought that the sacrifice was worth it to be with a coach/team about whom fe felt good.  We don't know how that sacrifice turned out once he got on campus. Maybe it was okay, maybe it was even harder than he thought.  Maybe he'd been thinking about it for awhile.  Regardless, when the coach left & the program struggled, the equation changed for him, in a way that it might not for the other players on the team.

Given that he needed to bring some public pressure to bear to make a transfer happen, it wasn't a surprise that he would make his father's illness a top issue in the PR battle.  I see how that may appear to be manipulative, but I get why he did it.

So in sum, I think you're right that the reality is a lot greyer than the black-and-white issue he's making it out to be.  But I think it's too soon to question the kid's character.

And a Confession:  My own dad has had some worrisome health issues over the past few years, and I know that influences my read of this situation.

FrankMurphy

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:26 PM ^

I don't agree. I'm sure that choosing UT over MSU was a difficult decision for him at the time. I also think it's entirely plausible that his father's health recently took an unexpected turn for the worse that has made him re-evaluate that choice. None of us are in his household or privy to the discussions he had with his family in making these decisions. I see no reason why he shouldn't be given the benefit of the doubt.

Blue in Yarmouth

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:47 PM ^

and son of a Father who passed away 2 years ago from a sudden MI, I can tell you that things can deteriorate quickly where heart disease is concerned. These days people can live quite comfortably (and long) after having heart attacks. In many cases they live on and die of something unrelated to their heart altogether. But when people have multiple heart attacks in close proximity it is an omnous sign. I'm just saying, we don't have nearly enough information to think the kid is making this up just to get out of Tennesse and it seems a bit of a stretch to think that is the case.

A persons health can deteriorate a lot in a year, especially if it is in relation to heart disease. I say give the kid the benfit of the doubt.

lhglrkwg

January 3rd, 2012 at 10:57 AM ^

I'm glad Arnett won this one even if he goes to MSU. Schools should not be able to dictate where you transfer to. At all. Kids sign a LOI not a contract to be an indentured servant

Sinsemillaplease

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:18 AM ^

it comes down to who we have at QB and not who MSU doesn't have at receiver. If Arnett wants a prolific qb, going blue is his only option. Robinson, Gardner, Bellomy and Morris... all good/great options. Who is MSU even starting at qb next year... do they even know?

Magnus

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:41 AM ^

You're simplifying it way too much and looking at it like a pure Michigan fan.

MSU has been better than Michigan at passing the ball for the last several years.  Their receivers have also had more production over the last few years than Michigan's.

Furthermore, Denard Robinson doesn't even figure into the equation, since he will be a senior in 2012 and Arnett will most likely have to sit out the 2012 season.

MGoblu8

January 3rd, 2012 at 11:44 AM ^

Ah, the power of public perception and negative press. They will likely spin this as they made a decision to go against university policy and do what's best for the young man. If so, so be it. I don't care where he goes, hopefully he'll get more time with his family. Good for him.

Mr. Yost

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:13 PM ^

Why does "Mich and Mich St." come off as a special favor? Neither play UT in the coming years to my knowledge, I don't see why this would be an issue.

Now if it was a team Tennessee plays next year or an SEC team, then I can see. But what does Mich and Mich St. have to do with the Vols?

FrankMurphy

January 3rd, 2012 at 12:29 PM ^

This is now official: http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7419080/deanthony-arnett-granted-release-tennessee-volunteers

Arnett still praised Dooley and UT, even though it took a public outcry for Dooley to relent. He seems like a quality young man. I wish him the best even if he ends up at MSU (which seems likely, given that he has a relationship with Dantonio and his staff). 

lukebunge131313

January 3rd, 2012 at 1:13 PM ^

The biggest reason I see is because of the immediate opportunity to play. I believe that is one of the main reasons he decided to go to UT because he could play his freshman year, rather than redshirting behind 3 seniors at msu. I believe the claim could be made he wants to get to try and get to the NFL as soon as possible to help out his family financially and at UT he saw a better opportunity to than msu. With that in mind he can immediately start at msu and play in the pro style offense he wants to be in. Plus, he use to work out with Maxwell in high school.

InDee

January 3rd, 2012 at 5:44 PM ^

MSU doesn't even have a legitimate QB. I don't remember anyone of their back-up QB's got significant action on the field this year. If Arnett wants to have an immediate impact, there is no reason for him to go to Michigan State.