Harbaugh Pressures Pipkins to Retire

Submitted by 814 East U on

Should be interesting going forward. It is one side of the story, but we have seen these instances (OSU had a similar situation a few months ago I believe). 

http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/13154115/ondre-pipkins-s…

"I don't want to sign the form. I wanted to play for my seniors and for the team. Coach Harbaugh said, 'I recommend you take the medical.'"
"College football is a business. New coaches have to win games. They want to go with guys they think can win. If I'm a victim of making room, so be it. But if there is no concrete reason to disqualify a player. He should have the right to keep playing."
"I feel bad I wasn't able to complete this journey with my classmates," Pipkins told ESPN. "I feel I am healthy and without pain. I believe Michigan wanted to free up the scholarship. I felt I was practicing well and could compete at a high level at the nose tackle and tackle positions."
"All I want to do is play football," Pipkins said. "I tried to finish my career at Michigan but I wasn't given the chance."
"Schmidt told me, 'Call it quits. Hang it up.' He said, 'You've had a good run'," Pipkins said of the Wolverines' head athletic trainer.
"I need you to sign this," Pipkins said Harbaugh told him of the medical form. "It's not fair to your teammates. Let's get it done."
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Lanknows

June 26th, 2015 at 1:39 PM ^

Not the same thing.  You can argue Bo was motivating kids to be better football players.  Here, Pipkins was asked to sign something that would end his career. That is not becoming a better football player that is becoming NOT a football player. He was not given the option of returning to Michigan football (at least according to the article) - so the motivational tactic is not not a viable scenario here.

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klctlc

June 26th, 2015 at 1:45 PM ^

Remember Pipkins had a MAJOR injury to his knee.  It is quite possible that is why he has never lived up to his 5 star billing, it has not healed properly.  That being said, this is suspicioius, but we don't know the other side.  

Pipkins is not the player he appeared to be in HS and his knee is probably a big factor.

 

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Lanknows

June 26th, 2015 at 1:58 PM ^

The whole point of this conversation is the ethics of (essentially) cutting somebody for not being as good as you hoped after they've been in the program for 3 years.  Maybe that's not how Harbaugh sees it, maybe it is, but how good he is relative to expectations is sort of beside the point.

He played last year and made the effort to come all the way back from the injury his sophomore year.

The degree to which the injury is the problem is questionable.  Pipkins, from the outset, didn't look to be as good as his rankings would have you believe.  Some guys are just busts.  We'll never know about Ondre, but it appeared he was more of a backup/rotation guy his freshman and soph year than a future starter.  He could legitimately be 100% back from injury and still not be even a 3rd stringer on this current team.  Which it's why it looks so suspicious that this conversation happened.  If we were talking about Harbaugh telling  a first string all-conference guy that he should take a medical (against his wishes) it'd be very different.

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klctlc

June 26th, 2015 at 2:05 PM ^

I am just saying there is a mitigating factor here.  But you are right prior to the injury he was not playing at 5 star. My gut says this is roster management, but there is a teeny bit of grey here. Plus, I know Harbaugh is going to push the envelope. 

Short of lying to kids (tough to prove) and clearly SEC levl oversigning, I am OK with this approach.

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MGJS SuperKick Party

June 26th, 2015 at 1:30 PM ^

Well guys. Here comes the line. One side is being a program which is extremely loyal to its players and is okay with being mediocre, the other side of that line is doing things that are "questionable" but winning.... Which side are people going to take? Neither one is wrong, but you can't be both.

I loved Pipkins, I think he would be a great player, but atleast were not cutting him yet. And Harbaugh is encouraging finishing their degree...

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MGJS SuperKick Party

June 26th, 2015 at 1:50 PM ^

Well - I'm not on the coaching staff, so I don't know everything. I think he would have a good year if he transferred somewhere, but thought is a better term.

Depending on the whole story, I would consider the coaching staff with NFL head coaching experience if he would play at the next level... Especially after missing almost 2 years

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alum96

June 26th, 2015 at 4:05 PM ^

If your only definition of success is top 5 program than it is difficult to find.   Because most of those are OSU or SEC teams.  Of which every UM fan finds dirty.

If your definition is top 15 - I'd ask what does Stanford do that is so awful?  Georgia?  Oklahoma?  Those are quality programs who have coaches who dont seem to be outwardly pushing envelopes.  I know Texas is down but do they have a history of pushing the envelope? 

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Blazefire

June 26th, 2015 at 1:31 PM ^

"You should medical because you're not going to play", isn't the same as, "you're being placed on medical." Pipkins didn't like the advice, fine. He was not forced.



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treyanastasio

June 26th, 2015 at 1:32 PM ^

I had high hopes for him.

 

Im glad the program finally has a staff that is willing to do what it takes to win. Michigan fans are just going to have to live with it. Try not to be hypocrites about it. 

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