Did RichRod Deserve a 4th Season? DocSat Says "No"

Submitted by MGoShoe on

In his latest missive, Matt Hinton (Dr Saturday) tackles RichRod's recent assertions that he was, oh so close to a breakthrough and if only he had been retained... Well you know the rest.  Hinton's not buying it, not in the least.

Presumably, Rodriguez thinks Brady Hoke only has to crawl through the last few remaining yards of crap before he breaks into the clear, thanks to the previous administration's legwork. That makes some sense: Going forward, the Wolverines figure to be one of the most veteran teams in the country this fall, with nine offense starters returning around Robinson – including four-fifths of the offensive line – and a defense that should at least have a clue for a change, if not a sudden influx of talent. Hoke is obviously exaggerating for effect when he says anything short of a Big Ten championship is a "failure," but it's not an exaggeration to expect the 2011 edition to look closer to the Michigan that you (and Hoke) grew up with than any of the depressing teams that took the field under his predecessor.

And really, that would probably be the case if Rodriguez had been miraculously granted a fourth year. But some discernible return to form was the mandate for 2009, too, and again last year. Despite their fast starts, those teams ultimately delivered nothing of the sort. The 2011 team, the first legitimately veteran lineup at Michigan since Lloyd Carr's last go-round in 2007, may be the one to fulfill that promise, regardless of who's at the top; a lot of people who aren't dumb will probably spend the next six months predicting exactly that. But the natural optimism that comes with an experienced team is an inevitable matter of time, not of steady, coordinated progress. If a more seasoned outfit does manage a breakthrough this fall – minor or otherwise – does Rodriguez really think he's earned the right to lead it?

 

profitgoblue

February 10th, 2011 at 10:21 AM ^

Beating a dead horse is beating a dead horse, regardless of how it is presented or by whom.  Just as was the case with all the "coaching change" discussion, no good can come from continued Rodriguez post mortem.  There's no need to continue to raise the topic in new threads simply to post an opinion, most of which are entirely worthless (regardless of the speaker).

Section 1

February 10th, 2011 at 11:48 AM ^

I'd have to be the Vice-President.  Because I'm a decidedly minor figure, in comparison with this Blog's host and proprietor.  And rest assured, I am not trying to suck up to Brian.  My only point is that if I am some sort of weird outlier, what is the Owner of MGoBlog?

Of course, I might just be a good VP candidate.  You know  what the two major parties want from the Vice Presidential candidate; a snarling, hard-edged attack-substitute for the President.  So that the President can remain above the fray and be, well, Presidential.

But of course even that doesn't fit me all that well, because while Brian Cook predicted a "zero point zero chance that Brady Hoke will be the next head football coach," I've never offered a single negative word about Coach Hoke. 

I did start a thread, positing the notion that Brady Hoke had not actually successfully "recruited" a single Michigan kid in his belated portion of the 2011 recruiting class.  It was, I had hoped, a nuanced discussion, in which I explicitly stated that I was not criticizing Hoke, but only pointing out what a newspaper-driven myth it was that Hoke had somehow singlehandedly turned around U-M's in-state recruiting presence.  (We observed that Raymon Taylor and Thomas Rawls were commitments rightly credited to Hoke, but that they weren't really "recruits."  They were two kids just waiting and hoping all along for Michigan offers.)

So it is all a bit of asymmetrical warfare.  People -- in the newspapers, on blogs, on the broadcast media -- have been more or less going out of their way, on a regular basis, to attack Coach Rodriguez.  And I have been more than happy to defend him.  And I shall be happy to continue to defend Coach Rodriguez.  At the same time, I have not responded with any attacks on Coach Hoke.  And I can think of very few who have attacked Coach Hoke.

Big Boutros

February 10th, 2011 at 11:20 AM ^

http://mgoblog.com/content/moon-disaster

At the end of that post this is what I said:

We are all Don Canham now...like Canham, I just hope it works.

I don't think it has. A game somewhere around expectations would not have moved the needle enough for slight support for Rich Rodriguez to morph into a call for firing, but I turned the game off before the third quarter was over and when I felt remorse and turned it back on a few minutes later Mississippi State had put up another touchdown. It was not around expectations, except in the ways that it was by not being around expectations in a depressing direction. Before the season I thought 7-5 would do it but now at 7-6 with every loss a blowout and three of the wins last-drive nailbiters, Michigan's progress seems minimal at best. But for the opening week, this is the worst seven-win season imaginable.

If I'm slotting Rich Rodriguez into the picture above he's on the right, and it's time to look for the guy on the left again.

yup

Section 1

February 10th, 2011 at 1:11 PM ^

On Brady Hoke. "Not an option."

I recall that bit of sad-puppy venting by Brian Cook. It lasted about a day. And if you were really being fair about the context, you'd have noted, as I did, that while Brian was saying stuff like "it's time," he was as much speaking about the general pressure to do something and the invetibility of the conventional wisdom, as he was talking about the precise merits of keeping Rodriguez or making a change.

Big Boutros

February 10th, 2011 at 3:57 PM ^

What the fuck does an anonymous third party quote about Brady Hoke's candidacy have to do with "it's time to fire Rich Rodriguez?"

Brian was not speaking about "the general pressure to do something and the inevitability of the conventional wisdom," despite your best efforts to warp the post into something that suits your grand vision for a post-apocalyptic Michigan blogosphere. The post was not some all and powerful Oz mournful observation that Rich Rodriguez was going to be fired despite the OBVIOUS and UNDENIABLE merit of giving him a fourth year. Brian turned the game off in the third quarter. He released the bees that Rich Rod had "lost" some players and their parents. He was done.

Your position is clear. You are dissatisfied with the reception of Rich Rodriguez's tenure at Michigan. OK. Established. I propose you start your own blog.

It is an honest suggestion. It is not hurr durr GTFO u suck. You obviously have strong feelings that you want to share and you have every right to share them in such a vast medium as the internet. But you have to remember that this is a community. It is not your fiefdom. In this community, you have become persona non grata. Most members openly mock you. You have something to say, perhaps, but you've run out of ways to say it, with civility, with nuance, with novelty.

If you are the faithful lieutenant to Brian Cook that you claim to be, you will stop polluting his board with nonsensical butthurt ramblings and personal attacks.

His Dudeness

February 10th, 2011 at 8:28 AM ^

Hey thanks man. This board has really taken a turn for the MLive in the last few months. I don't know if Brian has been advertising in the local BW3 or what, but it has been on a steady spiral toward rivals main board. The best time to be on this board is actally in the middle of summer when only the true fans stay to play. Hopefully most of these morons will still lurk, but not post as often.

saveferris

February 10th, 2011 at 9:50 AM ^

What the hell else is there to talk about in February?

M Hoops, M Hockey, 2012 early recruiting? OK, cyber-stalking HS football players before they've even finished their junior years is a little creepy, but Hoops! Hockey!

GunnersApe

February 10th, 2011 at 8:24 AM ^

Wow a Michigan Blog talking about Michigan Football between signing day and spring ball, go figure. Thanks for the methadone to help me get through to spring ball Shoe.

 

Yes this is an attack for the people crying about this post.

Erik_in_Dayton

February 9th, 2011 at 9:48 PM ^

"Presumably, Rodriguez thinks Brady Hoke only has to crawl through the last few remaining yards of crap before he breaks into the clear, thanks to the previous administration's legwork."

To me, this implies that Rodriguez has said something or done something since he left Michigan that merits objection.  His only crime seems to be that he is and was optimistic about Michigan in 2011.  I don't see how anyone can be upset about that. 

PurpleStuff

February 9th, 2011 at 9:50 PM ^

I don't really see the point in posting this sort of thing after everyone goes on and on about the need to stop looking backward.

Still, Hinton's definition of progress amounts to "Was the team as good as prior Michigan teams?" rather than "Was the team better than they were the year before or the year before that?"  When you get blown out by Notre Dame, beating them two years in a row is progress (especially when they end up having a better record).  When you get blown out by Illinois two years in a row, beating them in any number of overtimes (again, especially considering their improved record) is progress.  When you win 3 games in a season, winning 7 two years later is progress.  Progress is a comparative measure, not an independent value judgment.   

Like many people, he for some reason chooses to diminish just how bad this team was in 2008.  When you have to build a team back up essentially from scratch, fielding an experienced team requires years of recruiting and developing players.  Having an experienced team may be just a matter of time.  Having an experienced team with guys like Robinson, Roundtree, Lewan, etc. on it requires a guy doing the kind of coaching job that many think earned him the right to see his players reach their junior year.

 

Lutha

February 9th, 2011 at 10:26 PM ^

My point wasn't the quality of the post, as PS is usually one of the most thoughtful posters on the board.  And though I don't agree with some of his underlying assumptions--please let's not hash this out here--he has every right to his opinion.  It's just that everyone's had a chance to make their point on the RR issue and for the most part, we all know where each of us individually stands on this.  When do we stop this cyclical debate and move forward?

PurpleStuff

February 9th, 2011 at 10:30 PM ^

Hence my initial comments.  Just tough for me to refrain when another post seems to pile on the guy.

As for moving forward, I'd be happy to turn this thread into a "PurpleStuff is gay for Al Borges" discussion if people can stop taking pot-shots at our recently terminated head coach.

michgoblue

February 9th, 2011 at 11:02 PM ^

Purple, I feel your pain -- while I think that we are almost always on opposite sides of this issue, I too cannot refrain from responding to what I percieve to be invalid points on this topic.

At least you always provide rational reasoning.