Malik McDowell Update
He might visit OSU and FSU, also UM is still in the picture.
IMHO They seem to be handling this correctly. It is OK to take the time you need and make the right decision.
OP EDIT: They seem to NOW be handling this correctly. Seems to be an issue inside the family and they are taking their time to figure it out. Obviously they did not handle things well leading up to his announcement.
OP SECOND EDIT: Nevermind. After further review, nothing has been handled correctly.
http://www.mlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2014/02/report_michigan_state_pledge_m.html
February 10th, 2014 at 2:57 PM ^
I can understand the parents' concern. If I thought my son was mixing in with the wrong crowd, I would definitely try to do something about it especially at that age since he is still a kid. Just hope MM ends up at the school that is best for him whether it be MSU, OSU or wherever.
February 10th, 2014 at 3:15 PM ^
Yeah, thats also the only reason I can think of for being that adverse to MSU but fine with OSU/FSU, all of them fall in roughly the same ball-park.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:45 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 2:07 PM ^
"That's on them a bit..."
It seems to me that the fact that it's so public is entirely on the parents, as both his mom and dad seem much more willing to talk to the media than Malik, himself. I can't remember a single quote I've seen from him that wasn't a tweet along the lines of "My top X are..."
There's going to be interest and some media-driven drama when a kid as highly touted as Malik doesn't sign on signing day, but the intensity of the over-the-top drama is the parents' making.
February 10th, 2014 at 6:56 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 2:10 PM ^
Michigan academics may be better than the other schools on this list, but realistically, you can get an excellent education at any of these schools. You largely get out what you put in.
I think many of us who attended Michigan look at our reasons for doing so and put too much weight in this category because of OUR values which may not be prioritized in the same way as a HS kid who sees his future in the NFL.
I hope I am wrong, but I can't see this kid ending up at Michigan and if he doesn't go to MSU, it will be OSU or FSU. I'd bet his mother has pushed Michigan so much that he will go out of state before he comes here just to spite her. Just my gut on this based on having a couple of kids who didn't always agree with me or their mother, to say nothing about the success on the field that OSU, FSU and MSU have had on the field recently.
February 10th, 2014 at 6:01 PM ^
my username out of respect for you. I'm thinking Terd Ferguson.
February 10th, 2014 at 6:55 PM ^
But if it's true that MSU players were talking about not having to go to class, that means a lot more than the school's academic rankings. Parents that care about their son's education should want to send them to programs that care about it too.
February 10th, 2014 at 7:19 PM ^
^^^This.
Even Harvard is a poor academic institution if you don't go to class.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:29 PM ^
Good for his parents not allowing him to go to that second-rate school in East Lansing. Frankly, I'd hope my kids get a good education and not party 24/7. I'd take MSU over that terrible place in Columbus, though. I'd love this guy at UM, but realize it's a small chance.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:31 PM ^
and ONLY that as a consideration, I'd prefer Columbus over EL.
NOW, outside of that...I'd need to de-loused daily.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:35 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 12:37 PM ^
because....2014.
Wait...what meme are we on this week?
February 10th, 2014 at 12:40 PM ^
I'll take a U of M education over quite a few places in the Big10, yes.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:51 PM ^
Right, because football players are getting the same education as regular undergrads...
February 10th, 2014 at 1:06 PM ^
...but given there are over 700 student athletes at the University of Michigan, this indicates that roughly 12% are pursuing a BGS.
While this number is significantly higher than the precentage of the general student body, I think it is important to note that 88% of student athletes are pursuing degrees similar to those of the other students.
Another disclaimer: BGS degrees should not be looked down upon and are not an indicator of course difficulty.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:15 PM ^
The fact of the matter is, they are not coming here to be a doctor, lawyer, engineer, etc. Whether you get your BGS from M, MSU, OSU, Iowa, wherever, doesn't matter.
February 10th, 2014 at 2:03 PM ^
So anyone who isn't studying to become a doctor, lawyer, or engineer at the University of Michigan is basically wasting their money? They could get the same education, resources, and experience at Wayne State or Oakland U?
I'm yanking my son out of classes today and enrolling him over at Eastern,.
February 10th, 2014 at 2:10 PM ^
Neither Wayne St. or Oakland is in the Big Ten.
And quite honestly, if you're going for a General Studies education, go to a community college. Wayyyy cheaper. And IMO, the jobs you're likely to go after are less likely to be concerned with where you got your education, and more concerned with the fact you have a degree.
February 10th, 2014 at 9:00 PM ^
Wherever U is in the B1G either, but you've included them as an equal to the others you listed.
February 10th, 2014 at 3:13 PM ^
The truth is a BGS requires 60 or more 300 or above level credits. That is more than I had with a biology degree and I doubt there are many people who think a biology degree from Michigan is a joke. If I could do it all over again I would probably get a BGS only because there is no foreign language requirement and my Spanish courses were a complete waste of time.
February 11th, 2014 at 11:10 AM ^
You do realize that a BGS is just a humanities degree without the language requirement, yes?
Arguing that the quality of classes don't matter for the BGS student but do for the english, or history, or anthro major sitting next to him/her is asinine. There is no significant difference between a BGS and any other humanities bachelor's degree, except, perhaps, when it comes to getting into a grad school.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:18 PM ^
First nice graph mgobaran... that is the entire athletic department, of which many 100s are people who will play non scholarship (volleyball, swimming, soccer, et al) and realize they have no pro career so I assume are taking a higher level degree, so I'd love to see how that chart breaks out just for football and basketball.
To SkeytoAA - this goes back to the "is a LSA degree harder than (insert whatever degree)" that is prevalent on campus. I will say that is an argument I have an opinion on having taken classes in LSA and in both engineering and the B-school (there is a difference), but overall even a History class at UM is more difficult than a class at Wayne MSU or Central. Some of my friends at those schools said it is not much different than HS which basically consisted of waking up at 6 AM, cramming for an hour and that was good enough for most classes not named AP Something. A lot of it is also curve - I took a physics class one summer at Wayne and got the same grades that would have gotten me a C at UM and it got me a A at Wayne St. Bell curves are cool like that.
That said you CAN go to MSU or wherever and take the harder work load, if you wish. And I am sure the same can be said for a LSA or General Studies program. There is a LOT more variability geting a LSA degree then getting an engineering or B-school degree where there is a much smaller menu of classes with specific requirements.
Personally I think most high level athletes (not all) in those 2 sports are taking easier courses and frankly I have no idea how the relatively small proportion who do not, do it at UM. The guys doing pre-med, or engineering, or B-school while putting so much of their hours into the football or basketball program, with the travel on top of of it is beyond my comprehension - takes a lot of dedication, intellect, and time management skill. When your body is exhausted at 7 PM it really takes a lot to mentally get going to study for 4 hrs.
Anyhow as all the athletes say in their recruiting process it is CLEARLY "about academics" (wink wink)
February 10th, 2014 at 3:02 PM ^
As a student who started in SNRE and ended up in Engineering, I found that Engineering was easier. Although, this has a lot to do with what my strengths are against what other students strengths are.
LSA has plenty of very smart students. All of my 8 roomates were in LSA my junior year, and I am pretty sure that most if not all, were smarter than me, even though I was successful in the engineering school.
I do believe you can get just as good of an education outside of UofM, but I do feel you need to work harder to achieve better grades at Michigan. Some of my friends at MSU had study habits that allowed them A's at State, that would have yielded much lower grades if they had attended Michigan. They still got a good education, but did not push themselves as much as they may have if they had attended Michigan.
It is all a fit thing though, if McDowell feels MSU is his best fit, then I hope that is where he ends up and does well 364 days of the year.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:14 PM ^
The fact that many athletes are in BGS does not mean it's a joke. A big reason why people declare a BGS concentration is so that they can graduate on time, because when you have a time conflict (like football practice for four hours a day), you may not be able to take some required classes for specific majors. That makes it hard to complete all your credits in time for the end of your eligibility - and after your eligiibility is expired, your scholarship does too,
Basically, most people in BGS are following a general concentration path, but because they couldn't fit a course or two into their schedule, they can't officially graduate under the specific program name and thus get a BGS degree. But they generally are still well-qualified to go on to grad school.
February 10th, 2014 at 3:10 PM ^
Kids don't have to go to Michigan for the same reasons... all the academic purests should really just grasp that concept. As someone mentioned the degree and other things you did while in college are all that remain after the rest has evaperated as relevant to employers (grades, what level of calculus, etc). There are many kids on the team that probably would not have gotten into Michigan if they weren't athletes - it was their God-given skill that got them in just like many of the academic kiddies got in because of their mental genetic foundation.
I dare say there are not too many pure students who would put in the time the football players do to have their school "payed" for. Someone said 4 hours a day... if their lucky. Take winter conditioning for example right now. Team is meeting for lifting/conditioning 5 days a week and most of these are at 6:00 a.m. Then they go to classes. The committment of these players to meet all of the team requirements is a significant part of each day whether it is a formal requirement or done of their own accord.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:58 PM ^
Ah yes, the old General Studies degree argument. How Spartan-esque of you.
GS is in the school of LS&A and requires 60 of your 120 credits to come from 300 level or higher classes IN LS&A. Are you trying to say that the majority of athletes don't want to take Organic Chemistry, Molecular Biology, Mandarin Chinese, or Linguistics? Well duh. They're football players. BUT, they were still accepted into the school of LS&A. If admissions was concerned about the students ability to "hang" in LS&A, they'd swing them over to.....the school of Phys Ed.
If you want to present an argument for a lame cirriculum, choose Sports Management & Communications from the school of Phys Ed.
Or Criiminal Justice at Michigan State.
February 10th, 2014 at 2:01 PM ^
I don't think it's just the education. If the athlete has enough foresight (and many times the athlete doesn't), it is also about networks. I know some of these athletes get jobs later in life simply because they were Michigan athletes. For myself, I know that having two Michigan degrees helped me with other alumni in opening doors. Just having the name on a diploma is not going to break open any barriers, but it does help nonetheless if you play the cards right.
And with respect to General Studies, I don't think that matters all that much. I was a history degree, and it's not like that made me better prepared for my current profession. If the athlete takes his future seriously, he or she will have opportunities later in life whether it is a general studies major or something you self-righteously deem more worthy.
February 10th, 2014 at 2:23 PM ^
points on a graph. Each and every one is different, unique, and individual. How pompous of you to lump them into one group to prove some asinine point.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:45 PM ^
Nope, totally a myth, and Cardale Jones can attest to that.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:53 PM ^
Buckeye fans are never going to live that one down.
February 10th, 2014 at 7:22 PM ^
MSU fans are never going to live down McDowell's mother's "Don't come here to play school" claims either.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:15 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 4:40 PM ^
To be clear, I'm not suggesting that people who choose any particular field of study are inferior. But the reality is that if you are a high-profile athlete in a major sport, your undergraduate experience probably isn't going to be significantly different regardless of which Big Ten school you choose. If anyone has any evidence to the contrary other than U.S. News rankings, I'd love to see it.
February 10th, 2014 at 5:03 PM ^
But the reality is that if you are a "normal" student, your undergraduate experience probably isn't going to be significantly different regardless of which Big Ten school you choose.
FIFY
February 10th, 2014 at 5:54 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^
I agree with you except for the part where you know, he publicly committed to State on TV
February 10th, 2014 at 12:31 PM ^
Almost every quote in that story was about him visiting FSU or OSU wheras there was a snippet about UM. Cmon lets give it a rest; he knows everything there is to know about UM - has been on academic tours "9 or 10 times" as he said, etc. If he wanted to come to UM he'd be coming to UM. The whole "we want him to get out of the state" was very obviously a comment in reference to him wanting to go to MSU and his parent to UM...and once he was adament on MSU they preferred he at least go out of state. UM looks like #4 in this pecking order or #3 at best.
He can get on the MSU team by August via other means after he turns 18 with or without mom.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:40 PM ^
This isn't happening. My guess at this point: 55% MSU, 44% OSU, 0.9% FSU, 0.1% M.
February 10th, 2014 at 4:20 PM ^
Think of the chess match here..... visit fsu and osu... too far... settles on the wolverines.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:49 PM ^
Exactly. It's MSU or OSU at this point. FSU is too far, according to his dad.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:55 PM ^
Maybe our mistake was taking him on academic tours. (joking tone)
February 10th, 2014 at 12:33 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 12:33 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
February 10th, 2014 at 12:34 PM ^
First day of classes, I imagine.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:41 PM ^
Sam Webb talked about McDowell yet again on today's recruiting roundup. He talked to the family over the weekend, and while he didn't mention the possible visits, he did say a few other things that aren't in the piece linked in the OP. Most importantly, he said that McDowell and his mother have reconciled, so whatever rift had opened up between them has been settled.
Sam also conveyed a couple other things from the family. Reports claiming that at an in-house visit Dantonio and McDowell's mom got into a verbal altercation are false. Also false are the rumors that McDowell's mom had thrown him out of the house.
February 10th, 2014 at 1:22 PM ^
"Reports claiming that at an in-house visit Dantonio and McDowell's mom got into a verbal altercation are false. Also false are the rumors that McDowell's mom had thrown him out of the house."
Well dang, his mom tossing Dantonio out of the house was the only pleasing thing I read from this whole crazy story. It was all the mom had going for her in my opinion, and even that is lost now.
Hopefully they indeed work this whole thing out together, and Malik ends up happy with his end decision.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:41 PM ^
..because regardless, I can't seem him at UM.
February 10th, 2014 at 12:42 PM ^
They seem to be handling this correctly.
Did you really just type that?