Two Hearted Ale

December 17th, 2014 at 10:20 AM ^

Link to article

 

"The athletes are there for four years," Lochmann said, according to SBJ. "At Michigan, it's the Block M that has the infinity and power, not Denard Robinson. Those are fleeting, four-year relationships, but it's the block M that's been there for over 150 years."

The comment drew fierce response from Michigan fans on social media last Friday. Even former Michigan All-American offensive lineman Steve Hutchinson chimed in on Twitter in response to a link to Lochmann's comments.

"That article pretty much sums up their attitude toward alumni relations at UM," Hutchinson wrote.

Blue Durham

December 17th, 2014 at 10:53 AM ^

This weird attitude by Brandon and above, by Lochmann, towards the block M and considering it "the brand."

The block M is not the brand, it is a logo, a symbol of the entire University of Michigan. Is the blue dominoes on Dominoes Pizza "the brand?" No, it is the logo of the company, the crappy pizza they sell is their brand.

The University of Michigan is the brand. It has many representatives, has numerous symbols associated with it from the emblem on their letterhead, iconic building like Angel Hall, yes, the block M and the winged helmet. But all of these are used as identifying symbols of the actual brand, which is the university as a whole. Not the sports teams, the university.

This weird attitude regarding the block M is, well, just weird.

James Burrill Angell

December 17th, 2014 at 9:20 AM ^

A classmate of mine who works in the AD confirmed the same thing. He was the kingpin of the Brandon outsiders and the impetus behind a lot of what we grumble about on the blog. Good to see him gone and hopefully things will get better.

MGoBrewMom

December 17th, 2014 at 10:58 AM ^

and it seems when they bring in those asshats, that really don't "get" the culture and identity  that they are marketing, *this* happens.  In this instance that article and the one in MLive, point out all the f-ups (imo) that were done in the name of "branding."  The legend patches, the sky writing, the pricing, all the stupid shit that was done over the past couple years seems to be tied to this particular jack-ass. 

So, thankfully he made those comments, and we can be done with him.  He needs to go back to the NBA where his true talents in side-shows can be appreciated.

I also keep remembering Dave Brandon on that special that was talking about branding in athletics.  While I get what all that extra revenue does for the athletics program, it compromised exactly what the "Block M" stands for.  Tradition is not a bad thing, and a lot of people associated with the school embrace the tradition.  Our athletes are part of it--and thankfully, Mr. Lochmann is not part of that.

Good Ridance.

SysMark

December 17th, 2014 at 9:33 AM ^

Agree the timing sucks, though it could have also happened months ago which would have likely been worse.

I know nothing of the personal circumstances but I can say from experience that sometimes a situation can be so negative and stressful that getting out of it can actually make for an unexpectedly upbeat period, so hopefully there's a bright side.  He could actually go home tonight smiling in the face of adversity, a little calmer and better for it.

 

GoBlue

December 17th, 2014 at 9:48 AM ^

The timing sucks, but follows shortly after his recent comments.  Much better to act promptly to those than to let it ligner.  Still as rough time of the year, however... I suspect he may have had an idea it was coming, however, after the firestorm he created.

fat_wilhelm

December 17th, 2014 at 9:37 AM ^

Nice to see someone with compassion, Dudeness. Agree or disagree with how he handled his duties, this is still a person with a family, including young kids, who just lost his job right before the holidays. Some of the comments in the other threads about Hunter made me ashamed of certain members of our fan base. I don't care how poorly you think someone performed, typing something like, "he should rape himself with a steak knife" is classless.