J_Dub

January 17th, 2018 at 3:05 PM ^

I prefer to name things after dead people as a policy.  Can't get in trouble that way.  Happy to make Beilein Head Coach Emeritus for the rest of his life after he retires though, it would be a nice tribute and well-deserved.  Looking forward to having him around as head coach for many more years.

stephenrjking

January 17th, 2018 at 2:34 PM ^

Premature. Hasn't won a national title, isn't done with his career yet. Let's let the dust settle a bit. Red Berenson just got the rink at Yost named after him this year, and he resurrected the program, won two national titles, set an all-time tournament appearance streak, made a boatload of Frozen Fours, and preceded all of this by being a great player for Michigan before he ever coached. 

 

Alton

January 17th, 2018 at 2:48 PM ^

The only venue that needs a new name is Alumni Field, which should be Hutchins Field as soon as Carol Hutchins announces her retirement. 

For the most part, Michigan doesn't name things after coaches unless they are truly exceptional--best in the nation level exceptional.  Red Berenson, Cliff Keen, Ray Fisher--they were the best in the nation at what they did. and had a lasting impact on the sport at Michigan and nationally as well.  Other venues (Yost, Crisler, Canham) were named after ADs.  The only outlier is Ocker Field.

Alton

January 17th, 2018 at 4:34 PM ^

Ah, good point, but like Red Berenson he was both (a) a Michigan athlete who was arguably the best in the nation by the time he was a senior, and (b) a Michigan coach who won a national championship.

Plus, it was never really meant to be a sports venue until they created the lacrosse team.  It was just a practice facility.

rob f

January 17th, 2018 at 5:24 PM ^

for Brandon. The plant removes contaminants from raw sewage and the end product is better than what flows in.

Instead, name the raw sewage pipelines after DB. Those pipelines are full of shit and other foul matter---just like Dave.

Shakespeare

January 17th, 2018 at 2:39 PM ^

John Beilein has done enough for the University and program at this point in his career to warrant this. If you're going to say he doesn't deserve it because he never won a national championship there are two words I'll say to refute that claim: Bo Schembechler. 

I personally think an honor like this would be all the more meaningful to Coach Beilein while he's still on the sideline. It shows that you can acknowledge greatness while it's happening, without the benefit of hindsight.

WorldwideTJRob

January 17th, 2018 at 3:40 PM ^

No shade to Bo, but let’s be honest....he really only had to defeat one team most years to win a B1G title. Beilein has the challenge of being an extremely ethical coach in a very dirty sport. With a lot more competition in the conference(Izzo’s Spartans, Ryan’s Badgers, Matta’s Buckeyes, Painter’s Boilermakers...etc.)

ColeIsCorky

January 17th, 2018 at 2:42 PM ^

Knowing Beilein, there's no way he would allow that to happen before he retires. Might even threaten retirement. He's too classy of a guy. This of course is just my opinion.

Yostal

January 17th, 2018 at 3:39 PM ^

I tried to convince Dave Brandon of this (Yost statue at Michigan Stadium) when I met him for a brief two-minute chat when the Towsley opened.  It did not go well.  So, you know, par for the course.

Also worth noting, DB did say that getting the Regents to approve the Bo statue was like pulling teeth because they don't like to do statues of people on campus in general.

Alton

January 17th, 2018 at 4:30 PM ^

That is worth noting about the statue.  Personally, I think it is entirely inappropriate:  how many statues of people are there on the University campus?  I know they recently put a statue of Gerald Ford up in the school of public policy, and that's pretty reasonable.  Should the only other statue on campus be of a guy who coached football? 

And even if the answer to that question is "yes," then why that particular football coach?  Admittedly he was a very good coach--not the best coach the University has ever had, but still very good.  But again:  why, of all people that have ever been associated with the University, that one person?

It is interesting how much Mr. Brandon had invested in Bo and Bo-related projects.  It's almost as though Brandon wanted to convince us that proximity to Bo lent authority to people and ideas.

 

Bando Calrissian

January 17th, 2018 at 10:02 PM ^

Ding ding ding. DB's entire thing was "I played for Bo." Never mind that he played, what, 2 plays in 4 years. That his teammates didn't like him. That no one remembered him as being anything more than a malcontent. Seemed like everything he ever did was to prove to Bo he wasn't a loser, and to do enough to make everyone forget the rest of the story.