Don Brown needs some new guys. Probably.[Patrick Barron]

Al Washington Leaves For Ohio State Comment Count

Brian January 8th, 2019 at 11:18 AM

A second Michigan position coach has left for OSU:

Al Washington, who served as Michigan's linebackers coach in 2018, is joining Ryan Day's staff as the Buckeyes' linebackers coach/recruiting coordinator.

This one makes more sense than Day hiring a 70-year-old Greg Mattison to be a defensive coordinator. Washington recruited well during his single year in Ann Arbor.

Michigan now has two open spots for defensive position coaches. Jim McElwain already left to be CMU's head coach and was replaced by Ben McDaniels. Temple's head job is open again after Manny Diaz left for Miami just days after taking it, and Don Brown is the last guy standing amongst the three candidates previously mentioned. It does seem like Temple's moving on from Brown, with "in person interviews" with new candidates scheduled this week and NIU head coach Rod Carey emerging as a new name

Comments

JPC

January 8th, 2019 at 11:23 AM ^

Washington was Brown's guy. This reflects very badly on Brown, assuming it's not a sign that he's off to Temple. 

dragonchild

January 8th, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^

Because the same OSU that torched the D for 60+ points hired him?

Whether your concern is strategy or loyalty, whatever they saw, apparently they don't think it was on the guys they hired.

I ain't saying that's what I think, but Day apparently disagrees with your take.

Double-D

January 8th, 2019 at 11:49 AM ^

This one makes more sense to me.

I still don’t believe a guy should ever walk out the door directly to your rival.  So much effort and trust goes into building a team. Washington had OSU bloodlines and gets a rare (maybe only) opportunity to get there.  

Regardless.  Screw him. 

truferblue22

January 8th, 2019 at 2:34 PM ^

???

 

College football is nothing but loyalty to the almighty dollar. 

That's it. Like someone else said, $400k extra A YEAR is A LOT of money. Also, he grew up an osu fan....

Bo coached at osu and (albiet not directly) ended up at Michigan with a promotion and a pay raise. Sure I'll forever hate Al Washington now -- but college football has proven again and again and again that making money wins out over loyalty, morality, enjoyability of the game, etc. etc.

dragonchild

January 8th, 2019 at 11:53 AM ^

In a vacuum sure, but Brown given OSU more problems than most DCs they've faced over the last three years.  He wasn't why we lost in '16 or '17.

Now, it may be that they figured him out (oh, hey, all we need is an NFL QB), but the weird thing is how Brown broke his own tendency, and the reams of scouting on Haskins -- get that guy's back on the grass, which is something Brown loves to do.  So I dunno, man.  Everything about that game was bizarre except the revelation that Poor Damn Brandon Watson can't cover a 5-star receiver.

crom80

January 8th, 2019 at 1:11 PM ^

this is what's happening.

mattison coming to the end of his coaching carrier wanted to do one last sacrifice for UM and is sent in as a spy to screw day.

washington, having been promised brown's position after this coming season will work with mattison to screw with not only OSU's defense but their ohio recruiting.

end of next season mattison will retire back in AA with family. brown will leave for a HC position and washington will return to UM as DC.

 

as yoder would say, credit me if this all happens. if it doesn't, blame harbaugh.

RockinLoud

January 8th, 2019 at 11:24 AM ^

Disappointing, but totally understand the guy wanting to go back home at a program of OSU's caliber to work for Day, who he of course previously worked with at BC.

Don

January 8th, 2019 at 1:16 PM ^

"Bo Schembechler, Gary Moeller, and hundreds of UM players in the 70's and 80's and 90's."

You're missing a critical point. Schembechler didn't move directly from OSU's staff to Michigan—he first went to his own alma mater Miami of Ohio for six years, and Moeller was on his Miami staff and then came with Bo to A2.

I can't think of a single assistant of Bo's who moved directly from Michigan to OSU—such a thing would have been basically unthinkable at that time. 

Times have changed, apparently.

blueday

January 8th, 2019 at 2:28 PM ^

Agree. Comes across poorly. Additionally, the outside world sees this as 2 coaches leaving Michigan for its biggest rival. Not good for brand image. 

Still waiting for a JH move to fix the product next year with D coaches leaving and the need to upgrade the offense.  Can't wait.  Guess this is why he makes the Big bucks along with being paid to deliver championships.

matty blue

January 8th, 2019 at 12:26 PM ^

again, again:  if you start with the assumption that the program is in bad shape, and harbaugh is the cause of it, then literally every negative thing that happens is further proof of that fact, and every positive thing happens despite harbaugh, rather than because of him.