Dropping a recruit may be a net positive for them

I am not going to argue that point. I believe, and if I didn't, I meant to add a desire that going forward things of this nature would not happen again. I don't like the look either and I have always felt we were above the SEC and Urb in that respect. I don' want that to change.

Inasmuch as Swenson was a Hoke recruit, I did not feel that Drevno and Jim asking him to attend a camp at MI so they could be certain they were getting the level of player his ranking indicated was out of line. His refusal to do so and actually refusal to take OVs anywhere, including UM raised a red flag for me. It was as if he was unsure of his ability and if true, I don't think it out of line for the coaches to research and find out why he was satisfied with that offer but reluctant to perform for those he would be playing for. Also, given his ranking, if he was not hiding anything from J.H. and Drevno, he should have sensed an uncertainity on their part and if not willing to assuage their concerns, the prudent thing for him to do would have been to look elsewhere, again based on his overall ranking and realizing the staff had reservations as to his abilities.

I, as a coach, certainly would not want to accept a commitment from a young man who, by his lack of action, was essentially saying. "I am fine with having no more than a guaranteed education from Michigan." This is not what Harbaugh is about and he certainly is aware of that. His claims of trying to reach Harbaugh ring false to me when he understood completely he would be fully availabe to him when he arrived at the camp they told him to attend. No, I am not upset with the actions of the coaching staff in regard to Swenson. If there was another reason, such as a medical concern or any reason that would have justified his refusal to attend camp, I certainly would have listened. My take  from that, based purely on my understanding - I have no insider info - was that based on his reluctance, Jim was justified in not honoring that offer.

Now as to Weaver, I feel this is all on Harbaugh. He is the one that made the offer and in my opinion if Harbaugh was not confident with his offer, he should have owned it, or at minimum, contacted the young man immediately when he made the decision his inclusion in this class was not a priority. I don't want to see this going forward because being a non-alum, the major reason I became a fan of M was, as Bo said, and I believed the same thing he did, it offers the best combination of athletics and academics. With Stanford's rise, that is now debateable, but over the long haul, that statement rings true to me. Furthermore, this is a relatively large class and I believe, based on his stated desire to become a wolverine, he would have displayed an attitude and work ethic that woud not have been at odds with what Jim is trying to instill.  Like you, I felt his offer should have been honored.

I look at the SEC and see it for what it is, that being basically a league equivalent to a Triple A fam team in baseball. I realize they bend and do not break the rules, but I don't want to give them ammunition to make a claim they are able to back up with proof that we operate in the same manner. I have a great deal of faith in Jim but he, more than most of us, is aware of the values that were in place when he played and were followed after he left. I don't believe this will be standard operating procedure going forward and I have no doubt he is aware of what the fan base expects of him. I think he is among the best teachers and motivators in the game today and he offers enough as a coach, coupled with the prestige of a Michigan degree that he can be largely successful as to recruiting without jeopardizing the image of the school.

So I do not believe we differ much at all in the direction I wish the program to follow going forward. It proved successful for decades and because I am a former h.s. coach as well, and even with the rules supposedly the same, I was fully aware of a few coaches who were not above moving kids into their district, if it was on paper only. I was as competitive as anyone, but if I would have engaged in similar activities, there would have been no reason for me to continue in that role. My job, when hired was clear. I was hired to coach and - basically of my own accord - to instill values in these youung men that would serve them throughout their life. But my allegiance, by virtue of accepting the terms of that contract, was to the young men of my school district. Moving a player in would have required that one of the young men that had attended that school since elementary would have been cheated out of playing time, and that alone was enough to prevent me from doing such. But even stronger was the realization to do that would have simply been wrong. That was enough to stop me. And I'll add that whenever I run into a former player the genuine warmth we enjoy by these chance encounters is one of the greatest feelings I experience. Simply by looking into their faces, I am overcome with memories that extend over a 25 year period. Those hugs are genuine, Sir, and continued pay for a job I would have done for free.