Michigan adds former 49er Al Netter as GA
Coach Harbaugh just keeps loading up quality staff. Al Netter played for the 49ers last season. He's a Northwestern Grad who started 52 straight games at left tackle.
February 10th, 2015 at 11:34 AM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 8:18 AM ^
I never realized that our staff was so small compared to those who were obviously so much more successfull. How has this never been a topic of discussion or questioning to our previous staff/coaches? I already expected the recruiting to be better this year, but I didn't realize how many more heads we'd have working on it. I think from A to Z, we will see improvement in every area on this team. This year is so excititng, and I'm pumped to go see the spring game in two months!
February 10th, 2015 at 8:59 AM ^
This may seem obvious, but doesn't a graduate assistant have to meet entrance requirements to be a graduate student at the institution they take the position with? I'm pretty sure this is correct, but not positive.
Q1: With that in mind, how do we find out what graduate program the GAs are a part of?
Q2: Also, can a school lower its entrance requirements to let someone in as a GA that would not otherwise qualify academically?
Q3: Are GAs required to carry a certain courseload, and is their tenure time-limited (i.e., must graduate within X years for an Y year graduate degree, where X>Y)?
(I recognize that much/all of this may not apply to Al Netter, who is an NU graduate and may well have qualified for admission w/o the GA assistant role. It's more of a general question to the board.)
February 10th, 2015 at 9:39 AM ^
Uh, yep. He has a degree from Northwestern. I tend to think he's probably OK.
And to sort of address your other questions, I had a grader at Michigan who was a former hockey player who came back to get his degree and was a GA with the hockey team, too. I think he was in the School of Education. A lot of these guys are getting an MA of some sort (MSW, MBA, teaching certification programs, etc.), which are a bit of a different course load and have slightly different admissions (read: bigger cohorts, etc.) than, say, a PhD program. It's a lot more open ended, which gives you a bit more flexibility.
February 10th, 2015 at 9:57 AM ^
I'll note, however, that a degree from NU is not equal to automatic admission at a UofM graduate program. Not by a longshot. (Not disparaging Netter here at all - I know nothing of his academic background.) So I gently differ with your "uh, yep" approach here.
All an undergraduate degree from NU means is that a person got in as a high school student, and met the minimum requirements for graduation. Of course, as you imply, some graduate programs at UofM are easier to get into than others. But having an undergraduate degree from a prestigious school does not make admission to a UofM graduate program a fait accompli.
(And it's not that I'd object to a shift in admission standards for a GA, within reason. Students' backgrounds matter a lot, and GPA / GRE / etc. do not tell a student's whole story. If [ex-guest professor] Yo-Yo Ma didn't have great undergraduate grades, I think he's still probably qualified to attend a graduate program at the Music School. I'm just curious what standards apply at Michigan.)
February 10th, 2015 at 10:01 AM ^
So, whatever.
February 10th, 2015 at 11:00 AM ^
I'm with you in general. Netter likely didn't choose NU because he "didn't want to play school". (Bonus double-negative score!) There are other schools to accommodate that attitude.
/Looks 190 miles South and a smidge East/
February 10th, 2015 at 2:10 PM ^
Q1 answer: search the UM directory for the person's name. If they are a graduate student at UM, their school or college affiliation as a student is listed.
Q2 answer: a school or college can, but I don't know of that ever happening. keep in mind, each school and college on campus (18 not including Rackham) reviews and makes decisions on their grad applicants. This decision is solely with the faculty.
Q3 answer: Yes, though not sure what the current NCAA standards are. It used to be that you had to maintain enough hours over the academic year that you were a full time student. GAs generally used to get two years as graduate assistants. Not sure of current requirements.
One option that you didn't ask about but probably is of interest to you given your questions: enroll as a graduate student at Eastern Michigan Univ. In the past, many of the football GAs were actually enrolled as graduate students at EMU and the athletic department paid their tuition for them there. It is easier to get into EMU then Michigan.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:27 PM ^
In bowl subdivision football, a graduate assistant coach is any coach who has received a baccalaureate degree or has exhausted athletics eligibility (whichever occurs later) within the previous seven (7) years and qualifies for appointment as a graduate assistant under the policies of the institution. The following provisions shall apply:
(a) The individual shall be enrolled in at least 50 percent of an institution's minimum regular graduate program of studies, except that during his or her final semester of the degree program, he or she may be enrolled in less than 50 percent of the institution's minimum regular program, provided he or she is carrying (for credit) the courses necessary to complete the degree requirements;
(b) The individual may not receive compensation or remuneration in excess of the value of a full grant-in-aid for a full-time student, based on the resident status of that individual, and the receipt of four complimentary tickets to the institution's intercollegiate football and basketball games;
(c) Graduate and postgraduate financial assistance administered outside the institution shall be excluded from the individual's limit on remuneration, provided such assistance is awarded through an established and continuing program to aid graduate students and the donor of the assistance does not restrict the recipient's choice of institutions;
(d) The individual may not serve as a graduate assistant coach for a period of more than two years except that if the individual successfully completes 24-semester hours during the initial two-year period, the individual may serve as a graduate assistant coach for a third year;
(e) Compensation for employment from a source outside the institution during the academic year shall be excluded from the institution's limit on remuneration, provided the institution does not arrange such employment and the compensation is for work actually performed.
(f) A graduate student coach may accept employment benefits available to all institutional employees (e.g., life insurance, health insurance, disability insurance), as well as expenses to attend the convention of the national coaches association in the coach's sport, without the value of those benefits being included;
(g) The individual may receive cash to cover unitemized incidental expenses during travel and practice for NCAA championship events or postseason bowl contests in accordance with institutional policy;
(h) The institution may provide actual and necessary expenses for the individual's spouse and children to attend a postseason football bowl game;
(i) The individual may not evaluate or contact prospects off-campus, regardless of whether compensation is received for such activities. The individual shall not perform recruiting coordination functions, however it is permissible for a graduate assistant coach to make telephone calls to prospects, provided the coach has successfully completed the coaches' certification examination.
February 10th, 2015 at 5:19 PM ^
Double plus 1s to you! I wonder if Michigan has done the EMU approach in the past, but it's an interesting option no matter what.
February 10th, 2015 at 9:24 AM ^
wish Brady had all these guys. i hope they will all fit in the meeting room. at least the housing market will improve. do anything to make us good. i hear ALA has a bunch of coaches also.
February 10th, 2015 at 9:27 AM ^
Jeebus Harbaugh is not even trying to hide it. Al Netter has a 3 year old boy. This hire was made for no reason than to secure the boy's services in the class of 2029. It's just ridiculous and I wish the NCAA cared about these flagrant violations!!!
#RCMBd
February 10th, 2015 at 9:54 AM ^
Nooobody !
February 10th, 2015 at 1:22 PM ^
Maybe he is another diamond in the rough. Afterall he went to the same HS as Defensive POY Scooby Wright.