CC:Comments from an Assistant AD that probably don't mean anything...but...
I'm a current student at U of M who's taking CLCIV 371. Basically a class about the history of sport primarily focused around the Greeks but making connections with modern athletics and the structures surrounding them. We've had a variety of assistant ADs and UM coaches come in as guest speakers (Brandon and Beilein were both scheduled to speak but were canceled due to firing and a meeting resulting from the firing. Ironically, Brandon's lecture was supposed to be on integrity in sports). Today was David Ablauf, associate AD of communications (basically the PR guy). During the course of the lecture he started talking about Harbaugh's comments about the General studies degree (on his own, no question was asked about it. He had to go out of his way) and then took a shot at Harbaugh saying that 40% of the players on his Stanford teams took the equivalent degree (supposedly) and he seemed overall kind of petty and mad about it.
So, just thought I'd share. I was slightly worried that might mean people are pissed at Jim in the department. But obviously it could be nothing.
Mod edit: I'm publishing MichAero's comment as an addendum to the OP. If ReegsShannon wants to make an additional comment that's fine too but I don't want another perspective to get buried after a hundred plus comments. JGB.
I am also in CLCIV 371 and you are leaving a large part of the context out.
I could be wrong, but I believe he was responding to a question about how much credibility should be given to reports that come out of social media, or some related question. Regardless, I'm almost positive this was during the Q&A session after his main lecture.
He began by bringing up the Harbaugh comments, but then went into how Pat Forde wrote an article about what Harbaugh had said. Forde wrote the entire article and then called Ablauf for comments, but Ablauf wasn't available at the time so it went to voicemail. Ablauf then called Forde back and began asking him about what he wanted to write about while at the same time researching what Forde was telling him. While on the phone, Ablauf found the article that Forde had written already published, even though Forde was telling Ablauf that he wasn't sure when his deadline was, etc. Basically, according to Ablauf, Forde wanted to be able to say he reached out to UM for comment before he published the story. Then he told us about how if Forde, or these other journalists, would have looked into the situation further, they would discover that this isn't anything new or something that nearly every school is doing, including Stanford (at 40% of their players).
This was part of a larger point he was making during his lecture about how media has changed. There is much less "work" done by the reporters today due to the culture that is the 24/7 newscycle. The goal is to be the first with a story, or write something that will generate clicks, regardless of how trivial a story might be.
In my opinion, he was more upset with Forde and the new form of media here than he was upset with Harbaugh.
November 10th, 2014 at 6:50 PM ^
I don't know Dave Ablauf all that well, so take this as just an opinion, but when I volunteered for the athletic department when I was a student (2001), I worked with all the SIDs, including Dave, who was great from the little contact I had with him (football SID is obviously much busier than most of the other SIDs). So he's been there for a very long time and was Bruce Madej's right hand man (I assume he has taken Bruce's place with Bruce retiring). I doubt Dave is just a "Brandon guy" and is instead bringing up Harbaugh comments that were pretty disrespectful. I remember being on this blog when they were said and everyone ready to go to their local Ann Arbor torch & pitchfork store to skewer Harbaugh for life. I seem to remember a Mike Hart comment being "well, he just blew any chance he had of ever being Michigan coach"....time heals all wounds (and then some) I suppose.
November 11th, 2014 at 12:13 AM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 11:37 PM ^
This is the quietest AD search ever! I have a funny feeling the announcement coming is that Hackett is going to be the permanent AD. Have the power to hire and fire at the end of the season says long term to me. Seems like a logical choice and he has a good reputation.
November 10th, 2014 at 4:52 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:17 PM ^
I think the point is that such a comment may reflect on whether Harbaugh ever gets the chance to come to A2.
Of course if Harbaugh were actually here, such a comment by an Assistant AD would mean little . . . .
November 10th, 2014 at 5:35 PM ^
I meant that I doubt that comments made some four years ago when Rich Rod was our last coach are going to seriously affect whether or not the current or future AD makes a move to get him, no matter what the possibly-soon-to-be-former assistant AD thought of the situation.
November 10th, 2014 at 8:23 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 4:52 PM ^
Et tu, Ablauf?
(ok that's Roman not Greek but hey its history)
November 10th, 2014 at 5:01 PM ^
Both ancient historians that record Caesar's last words (Dio, Suetonius) have him speak Greek: καὶ σὺ, τέκνον; ("You too, my child?"). Other historians say that Caesar died without saying anything. The phrase et tu, Brute? was made famous by Shakespeare but apparently was already a well-known phrase in Shakespearian England.
November 10th, 2014 at 8:52 PM ^
This is why it is great to be around UM people even if virtually. Someone always knows something about everything :) Learned a new thing today.
November 10th, 2014 at 11:31 PM ^
Was around a MSU fan today who was very complimentary about this site. Acknowledged that UM fans have a lot of integrity and thought the site content was really impressive.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:23 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 4:53 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 4:56 PM ^
Morris was pretty critical of Harbaugh after Harbaugh made his comments about the academics at Michigan.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:06 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:26 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 8:38 PM ^
He just looked sternly across the table and said "May I trouble you for the salt?"
November 10th, 2014 at 9:29 PM ^
Lord Nelson.
November 10th, 2014 at 4:58 PM ^
My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw Harbaugh at the Ann Arbor 31 Flavors last night. I guess it's pretty serious.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:41 PM ^
Hire Harbaugh
November 10th, 2014 at 5:04 PM ^
Which brings up a really important question - why didn't you go to Jersey Mike's instead?
November 10th, 2014 at 6:00 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 7:40 PM ^
What's he say?
Well, you know, he don't say nothing,
He just gives me that look,
You know, he's got that look,
Yeah, he don't say nothing, He just gives him that look
November 10th, 2014 at 6:43 PM ^
Please.
November 10th, 2014 at 4:55 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:05 PM ^
Yep that's him! You can tell he's pretty excited about the material when he lectures.
November 10th, 2014 at 11:22 PM ^
...by the size of the Roman dildoes he lectures about.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:05 PM ^
I was even more impressed when I saw him on the History Channel doing work.
November 10th, 2014 at 4:57 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:11 PM ^
Its refreshing that D-I coaches actually talk about prioritizing academics, esp at institutions like UM. You wouldn't criticize Boise St. or Mississippi State for pushing football players thru... and we are all shocked, shocked to find UNC was doing it.
To me, if/when he comes here, we can measure him by his words at the time. He's set a standard for UM, and he'll need to live by it.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:16 PM ^
couldn't you say the same about Ablauf's comment? Does he really need to be airing his grievances against Harbaugh in front of a bunch of random students?
November 10th, 2014 at 5:42 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 11:28 PM ^
Just a really strange example to give considering the current climate. Why rehash the Harbaugh comments when everyone is clammoring for him. Makes you question if there was an agenda there.
I do find myself questioning the Athletic Department quite a bit post DB.
When you start hearing people close to the Program floating the idea that Hoke could survive and then Ablauf uses the Harbaugh example during a presentation as a subtle reminder of his previous comments also feels like too much of a coincidence.
At this point anything seems possible, including nothing to it!
November 11th, 2014 at 8:11 AM ^
Well - except for one MINOR difference:
Harbaugh at time of comments - Employed by Stanford, rejected by U of M.
Ablauf at time of comments - Employed by U of M as PR guy.
Harbaugh didn't talk out of school - depending on how you want to look at it, he was either thrown out of school or on summer vacation.
November 11th, 2014 at 8:55 AM ^
November 11th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
I am employed by Michigan, but I also love the school enough that you will hear me air my grievances... because that is the only way to fix what is broken about what we love.
It reminds me of "Love it or Leave It"... but I'd rather folks fix what they love than abandon it.
November 10th, 2014 at 6:30 PM ^
One was said on the record to members of the media, the other was said to a class of Michigan students. I really don't see how they're that similar at all considering that.
November 10th, 2014 at 6:50 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 7:25 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:16 PM ^
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
November 10th, 2014 at 5:02 PM ^
November 10th, 2014 at 5:00 PM ^
Well he's right. I would love to have Harbaugh here but he was a dick for saying it and that hasn't changed.
I also think it's completely ridiculous that you all are taking this so seriously. It was an associate AD talking to a CLCIV class.... And honestly, it could have been a perfectly good example to bring up depending on the subject of his talk. I doubt Ablouf is crusading through the AD against hiring Harbaugh because of this comment.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:12 PM ^
Pray tell how this is different from Michigan fans LOL'ing when some recuit says yhey are all about academics and then picks Alabama over Vandy, Michigan, Northwestern and Stanford.
November 10th, 2014 at 7:50 PM ^
You don't see a difference between an official university representative making inflammatory comments and a random fan doing the same?
(Having said that, it's also silly to keep holding a grudge over it seven years later.)
November 10th, 2014 at 5:09 PM ^
at UNC.
Also, notice how Ablauf did not say that General Studies degrees are actually valuable (and that Atheletes are not pushed towards it) but rather that Stanford had equivalent degrees. That is worst argument ever against the criticism.
November 10th, 2014 at 5:16 PM ^
Suspicously like the classes at UNC? The UNC fake classes were small classes that met once or zero times a semester and only required turning in one paper that were given an arbitrary grade....
This class meets four times a week (lectures + discussions), has a large enrollment, has 80-140 pages of reading a week, two papers and two exams. Not the hardest material, but suspiciously like the UNC classes? Seriously?