FreddieMercuryHayes

March 28th, 2012 at 8:23 PM ^

Boom.  It's good see a turn around.  The first thing I always though about when looking back on the Tressel years was a bunch of pussies that didn't want to hit people and quit in games.

wolverine1987

March 28th, 2012 at 9:28 PM ^

that he actually had heart problems and had second thoughts about coaching and missing his family? I don't like Meyer much, mostly because he coaches down there, but I have no doubt whatsoever that at the time, he felt that way. It always amazes me that people never take what people they don't like say or do at face value.

M-Dog

March 28th, 2012 at 9:59 PM ^

I Pos'd this.  You did not deserve to get Neg'd for this.

I don't share your blind faith in Meyer's story that accompanied his retirement, but you did not deserve to get Neg'd just for expressing an opinion that did not align perfectly with the prevailing sentiment.  Folks can get a little Neg happy around here.  

Tater

March 29th, 2012 at 12:01 PM ^

There are two versions of what happened down here besides Meyer's.  The first is that Shelley caught wind of him boffing a coed and applied what was being called "familial pressure."  The second is that he didn't like being pressured by powerful alums to scrap an offense that won two NC's and build a pro-set around John Brantley IV.  

I think both stories have merit.  It's easy to have "health problems" when you are pissed at your job and your wife probably wants to chop one of your appendages off.  If, however, the "health" stories are true, then one has to wonder if Meyer will be able to take the 100 hour weeks that elite coaches routinely work from August through NSD.  

ColsBlue

March 28th, 2012 at 8:27 PM ^

This guy may fail at Ohio. Folks down here will know about everything, won't like negative attention. They think treating students like animals is beneath them. Also, the spread.

America

March 28th, 2012 at 10:58 PM ^

Yea I would say Tebow leaving might effect the program a little bit.  All I am saying is he is 104-23 and 7-1 in bowls with 2 NCs.  To think he is going to be anything other than similar tothat seems like wishful thinking.  This is a Michigan message board though so obviously going to be some maze and blue kool aid going around.  That being said, I hope you guys are right and he fails/is average.

Jon Benke

March 28th, 2012 at 11:00 PM ^

Having him helped, and without him, he looked lost.  He had a slew of top of the line assistants, most of which aren't with him now ... so I'll give you that he had a great record, especially in the SEC, but that doesn't mean he's 100% going to have the same success going forward.  Yes, this is a Michigan message board, and last time I checked, the Urban/Tebow combo only lost one BOWL GAME together, right?  Oh, and the talent he had in Florida was way more to his schemes than what he'll find in Ohio, which also will help Michigan in recruiting.  And like RR found, it's not going to be as easy to get those 5* STUDS to leave the south ...... it never is.  That is, unless you're going to let a freakish athlete most are recruiting as a DB, play QB, but how many of those are out there, ya know?  My two cents.

DonAZ

March 29th, 2012 at 12:35 AM ^

As others have said, his overall record can't be dismissed quite so easily.

And I agree with Jon ... Meyer didn't seem very commanding at Florida in 2010.  Being without Tebow and having to go with Brantley at QB didn't seem to work.  But 2010 was Meyers' 6th year at Florida, so he doesn't really have anyone to blame about depth or talent on hand but himself.

He'll be good at OSU.  But I just don't sense he'll be some kind of god among mortals. 

The thing to watch for is how fast the bloom comes off the rose if/when he doesn't deliver OSU back to the promised land quickly.  How quickly with the press, the fans and the recruits start to question him?  Pretty quickly, I'd guess -- with high expectations come ... high expectations.

America

March 29th, 2012 at 1:14 AM ^

Oh I completely agree with your last point.  If he goes 8-5 or something similar next year the media will be right down his throat demanding answers.  I think it is safe to characterize Braxton Miller somewhere between Brantley and Tebow, so it will be interesting to see where this all ends up.  I have a hard time not believing anything less than 10 wins will be a dissapointment for them every single year, so we will see how he is able to handle that.

Ideal situation would involve them losing the first game of the year and him bolting on his team again.  The hiliarity that would follow that would be too much to handle.  This idea is obviously a drunken rambling fwiw.

jscbus

March 28th, 2012 at 11:12 PM ^

Even my grandparents. During the Tressel catastrophe, they admitted everything was very unfortunate but always had SOME kind of excuse to back the sweater vest.



Ohio fans just want to win. Even if they have to deceive, be classless, and never admit to their wrongdoings, they don't care.



This is simply the reason why I hate Ohio, love beating the shit out of them, and know that I can always resort to 58-43 if needed.

M-Dog

March 28th, 2012 at 9:41 PM ^

Nothing seems from the heart.  

Michigan was one of the schools that he was able to break his contract to go coach.  He respected it that much .  Now he's all about detesting that "School up North".  Well which one is it, Urban?   

You get the impression that if he went to Michigan, he would declare himself a lifelong Ohio State hater.  He is all about pandering to the locals.

Brady Hoke would not wear red because it was an Ohio State color.  This when he was coaching at Ball State and SDSU, two schools with red as their primary color.  He had no idea that he would be coaching at Michigan when he did this.  He just did not want to show any support for Ohio State.  This was from the heart.  Brady Hoke is not just reading from a script.

sum1valiant

March 28th, 2012 at 11:28 PM ^

I think this is more of a testament to our guy than a knock on theirs.  Hoke is a "throwback" in his love and admiration for the school he coaches; however the other 99% of coaches out there view their school as a means to an end, and nothing else.  Meyer is no different than the rest, an actor, and he plays the part the producers ask him to play.     

DonAZ

March 29th, 2012 at 12:46 AM ^

Michigan was one of the schools that he was able to break his contract to go coach.

Really?  I didn't know that.  I knew about OSU and Notre Dame, but Michigan as well, huh?  Well I'll be damned.

Your point is a good one -- if Michigan was one of his "dream jobs" then he can't very well act like he despises Michigan now.  Respects, yes ... despises, no.

Hoke doesn't belittle "Ohio" or trash-talk them.  He acknowledges them as a worthy and key opponent.  And that's about it. 

I like that about Hoke.  Hell, I like a lot of things about Hoke.

born1ntheArbor

March 29th, 2012 at 1:56 AM ^

Not to be "that person", but find me a football coach that doesn't pander to the locals. It may be disingenuous but it's part of the job. Hoke may not have worn red, but I have listened to a few of SDSU's press conferences and his interviews with the SDSU media. He may have meant it at the time, but pandering is pandering.

Urban may be a careerist, but most Div I football coaches are. Careerists say and do what they need in order to get to wherever they want to get. Lying, cheating and other morally reprehensible things (even from a non-homer perspective, this is not Hoke at all). Speaking from the heart, for the most part, will throw a wrench into your plans. People love them when they're on their sidelines and hate them when they're not. Don't forget the "let's hire Meyer" talk that happened near the end of RR's era.

Urban has played up the rivalries at every school he's been at. The Ohio-Michigan rivalry is really special. I'm sure Urban saw what happened to RR when it was perceived that he didn't take the rivalry seriously enough. It doesn't take a careerist or a genius to figure out what the most important thing he needed to say was.Heck, even my football illiterate boyfriend knows to do that. 

The one thing that truly puts me off Urban Meyer is that his dream job is Notre Dame. He was offered the job but went to Florida instead. Why? Did he think he wasn't ready? Did he not like what he saw on the roster? If I were at Ohio, I'd be watching what happens in South Bend carefully.

Brady Hoke is an anomaly in the coaching world in terms of pledging his love to one team and having it known pretty publically - to the point that it costed him some other head coaching jobs. And then, taking it up a notch to the degree of obsessive fanatical loyalty by not ever wearing red and calling them Ohio. Some may say juvenile, I say that's hardcore. I have never heard of anyone else doing that. Fans included (more the not wearing red). 

You're right, it goes a long way to prove just how from the heart every word out of his mouth about Michigan is. That's passion for a program that you'd be hard pressed to find anywhere else. And it speaks so much more than words. The best example of talking from the heart and not reading from a script would be his first day at Michigan. I read that Dave Brandon was close to panicking at the podium when he saw that Hoke's notes for his press conference consisted of 3 bullet points with about 5 words each. He had no notes when he spoke to the players.

"He had no idea that he would be coaching at Michigan when he did this." - He may not have known if the opportunity would come up. But the fact that the BSU AD had him sign a mini-Michigan helmet when he was hired at Ball State back in 2002 tells me that he was hell bent on making it happen despite the odds.

DonAZ

March 29th, 2012 at 12:42 AM ^

Doesn't it seem like everything Urban Meyer does feels incredibly forced?

He's touted as a "can't miss" coach for OSU ... someone virtually guaranteed to do everything right from the very start.  So yeah ... he's gotta be on pins and needles trying to live up to all that.  And it's kinda-sorta been that way for him since Utah.

cozy200

March 28th, 2012 at 8:30 PM ^

Lets face it. You gotta be a little fucked up / extra motivated, however you wanna phrase it, to succeed. Ohio's entire history is riddled with these kind of coaches. Usually ends up in flames though. I would be nervous as a fan, about going over the edge given their history. Never seem to do things the right way. Eh fuck em.

no joke its hoke

March 28th, 2012 at 8:36 PM ^

as one of my best friends who is a buckeye fan said last friday,OSU will be in worse shape when Urban leaves.  Now im not sure if i believe that but i dont believe he is winning 2 NC like he did at UF.

Farnn

March 28th, 2012 at 8:36 PM ^

I'm loving this omg spread!!! omg bad ass S&C coach!!! omg toughness!!! from the OSU fans.  They made so much fun of RR, Barwis, and the whole the spread doesn't work in the Big10 4 years ago and now they are acting exactly the same.  I hope they have the same record for the next 3 years that Michigan had.

LSAClassOf2000

March 28th, 2012 at 8:37 PM ^

....like he's trying to prove that he can be successful immediately in making a substantial impact. I wonder how long it will be before he recreates something such as...oh....

snarling wolverine

March 28th, 2012 at 8:39 PM ^

It's astonishing how every football coach ever hired has always been "tougher" than his predecessor, and has led offseason workouts that are "the most grueling yet."

Soon we'll be hearing fascinating updates on how Ohio players are spending their offseason lifting weights and running wind sprints, something that was never attempted in human history before the arrival of Meyer.

MichiganMan20

March 28th, 2012 at 8:40 PM ^

OMG! Im soooo scared. Not really, these Ohio boys are gonna feel the pain on November 24th. Brady Hoke invented toughness and Michigan will be by far and away the toughest team in the B1G. Go Blue!