Michigan Coaching Speculation

[Wingate1217]

What a classy move!! You give your resignation letter to a grad ass't to give to the AD? I would think (since you are dealing with your Alma Mater) you would at least give it to someone of prominence yourself...

West Virginia Headline News and Talk Radio

Rich Rodriguez, who returned to his alma mater and home state to lead WVU to national prominence, told his team Sunday afternoon he?s resigning to become the new head coach at the University of Michigan.
The announcement stunned the players who said as recently as Saturday that they didn?t know anything about their coach?s interest in the Michigan job.

Top WVU officials were forced to try to react to media reports before they received any official word from Rodriguez. Athletic Director Ed Pastilong finally got the word when he went to the Puskar Center to speak with the coaches and staff.

A source says a graduate assistant in the football program handed Pastilong Rodriguez's brief letter of resignation. The letter said the coach planned to resign Jan. 3rd, the day after the Fiesta Bowl. Still, Pastilong in a prepared statement was complimentary.

 

[NFBuck]

Top WVU officials were forced to try to react to media reports before they received any official word from Rodriguez. Athletic Director Ed Pastilong finally got the word when he went to the Puskar Center to speak with the coaches and staff.

A source says a graduate assistant in the football program handed Pastilong Rodriguez's brief letter of resignation. The letter said the coach planned to resign Jan. 3rd, the day after the Fiesta Bowl. Still, Pastilong in a prepared statement was complimentary.

Well, he's certainly gonna be easy to dislike.

 

[SNIPER26]

Are they going to deal with losing 2-3 games every year?

We're already doing that

 

[NFBuck]

We're already doing that

 

[HailToMichigan]

What a classy move!! You give your resignation letter to a grad ass't to give to the AD? I would think (since you are dealing with your Alma Mater) you would at least give it to someone of prominence yourself...

West Virginia Headline News and Talk Radio

Rich Rodriguez, who returned to his alma mater and home state to lead WVU to national prominence, told his team Sunday afternoon he?s resigning to become the new head coach at the University of Michigan.
The announcement stunned the players who said as recently as Saturday that they didn?t know anything about their coach?s interest in the Michigan job.

Top WVU officials were forced to try to react to media reports before they received any official word from Rodriguez. Athletic Director Ed Pastilong finally got the word when he went to the Puskar Center to speak with the coaches and staff.

A source says a graduate assistant in the football program handed Pastilong Rodriguez's brief letter of resignation. The letter said the coach planned to resign Jan. 3rd, the day after the Fiesta Bowl. Still, Pastilong in a prepared statement was complimentary.

"It's a rough day," West Virginia cornerback Vaughn Rivers said after practice Sunday. "Now we just have to pull together as a team and get ready for a bowl game.
"Coach Rod was a man about it."

Would it probably have been best for RichRod to speak to the AD personally? Sure. But we don't have his day planner, so it's probably kind of presumptuous of us to judge solely on that. And I doubt very much that he hadn't already had a talk with the AD beforehand about the situation. And he did talk to the team himself, which it seems surprisingly few coaches do these days, and is a lot harder besides.

 

[sandgk]

Would it probably have been best for RichRod to speak to the AD personally? Sure. But we don't have his day planner, so it's probably kind of presumptuous of us to judge solely on that.

HTM - there is no way Rodriguez can duck behind a Franklin Day Planner as a shield for his lack of common civility to those in authority above him at WVU in conducting any part of this entire drama.

And I doubt very much that he hadn't already had a talk with the AD beforehand about the situation.

We do know by Pastilong's own words that his overtures to TSUN were a complete and utter surprise. Sure he later spoke to the AD about that, after first denying that any meeting with TSUN's AD ever took place. His track record in this hasn't been anything except below board.

And he did talk to the team himself, which it seems surprisingly few coaches do these days, and is a lot harder besides.

If that was possible, why was it harder for him to go face-to-face with the AD or other authority figure at WVU to hand in the resignation letter?

(And please not the Franklin Day Planner again - that simply doesn't wash).

 

[OCBucksFan]

We're already doing that

True, but your doing that with a coach who won you a national championship.

 

[shetuck]

... We do know by Pastilong's own words that his overtures to TSUN were a complete and utter surprise. Sure he later spoke to the AD about that, after first denying that any meeting with TSUN's AD ever took place. His track record in this hasn't been anything except below board.

it's clear that the die has been cast and we now need only wait for him to announce his move to the NFL (after JT whips him a few times, first, of course). tsun is just a stepping stone for RR. if he's mostly after money and has any kind of success at scUM, he won't be there more than a few years. i don't think he's the right guy at tsun if AD Martin and Coleman are taking anything of a long-term view for the program.

 

[sparcboxbuck]

Day Planner and stuff I've got to do today.

Would it probably have been best for RichRod to speak to the AD personally? Sure. But we don't have his day planner, so it's probably kind of presumptuous of us to judge solely on that.

Seemed to have time to pick up the phone and call a recruit before telling his boss... and alma mater...



:osu:

 

[SNIPER26]

True, but your doing that with a coach who won you a national championship.

Charles Woodson's been coaching this team?

 

[Wingate1217]

Would it probably have been best for RichRod to speak to the AD personally? Sure. But we don't have his day planner, so it's probably kind of presumptuous of us to judge solely on that. And I doubt very much that he hadn't already had a talk with the AD beforehand about the situation. And he did talk to the team himself, which it seems surprisingly few coaches do these days, and is a lot harder besides.

It is one thing to tell my boss I am thinking about leaving it is another to actually tell him/her that you are leaving. I have left several jobs for greener pastures and I have always discussed the reasons why I was leaving, where I was going and the amount of time I would still be there (at my current position). I also discussed with the folks that reported to me and let them know of my decision and answered any appropriate questions. It is the appropriate thing to do and RR (according to the report did not do it).

From the report:

Top WVU officials were forced to try to react to media reports before they received any official word from Rodriguez. Athletic Director Ed Pastilong finally got the word when he went to the Puskar Center to speak with the coaches and staff.

Assuming you have a good relationship with your employer ( I assume RR did) it is the classy thing to do. Even if you had a bad relationship it is the honorable thing to do. I'm too busy doesn't cut it with me......

 

[HailToMichigan]

HTM - there is no way Rodriguez can duck behind a Franklin Day Planner as a shield for his lack of common civility to those in authority above him at WVU in conducting any part of this entire drama.

We do know by Pastilong's own words that his overtures to TSUN were a complete and utter surprise. Sure he later spoke to the AD about that, after first denying that any meeting with TSUN's AD ever took place. His track record in this hasn't been anything except below board.
If that was possible, why was it harder for him to go face-to-face with the AD or other authority figure at WVU to hand in the resignation letter?

(And please not the Franklin Day Planner again - that simply doesn't wash).

OK, you're reading too much into the day planner thing, that was a throwaway comment. Point being that none of us know what either Pastilong or Rodriguez were up to all day. Pastilong was surprised on Friday, yes. Saturday, they met. Twice. And I doubt the conversations were limited to the weather and the crops.

My guess - and it's only a guess - is that Rodriguez told him he would have a decision shortly (since that's what Pastilong himself indicated to the papers - "we'll know something very fast" is what Pastilong said.) Furthermore I would bet that Rodriguez told the AD that at the very least he was leaning toward taking the job, since otherwise Pastilong would likely have had more Skip Bertman to his tone ("this is a great job, we're keeping him, etc. etc.") Plus, Pastilong is no dummy - surely, he'd have been curious about the terms of the deal and what it might take to keep Rodriguez in Morgantown, so I'd bet they discussed that too. All pretty standard stuff. And all in all, what it tells me is that Pastilong had a pretty good inkling that Rodriguez might not be a Mountaineer very long.

And anything could have happened. Maybe Pastilong told Rodriguez he didn't want to see his yellow, treasonous face in his office ever again. Maybe he told Rodriguez he wishes him the best, I can see why you'd want to leave, please just leave me a quick letter, I'll take care of things around here. Maybe Pastilong was in the can when Rodriguez stopped by just before hopping a plane to Ann Arbor - he's got a presser to be at, after all.

That Rodriguez took the time to speak to his players tells me more than the letter to the AD.

 

[NFBuck]

it's clear that the die has been cast and we now need only wait for him to announce his move to the NFL (after JT whips him a few times, first, of course). tsun is just a stepping stone for RR. if he's mostly after money and has any kind of success at scUM, he won't be there more than a few years. i don't think he's the right guy at tsun if AD Martin and Coleman are taking anything of a long-term view for the program.

I'm not so sure about this. West Virginia North, while not necessarily the program many of their fans think they are, is not a "stepping stone". That's still one of the elite football coaching jobs out there. Also, I don't see DickRod as an NFL coaching prospect. I don't see his brand of football translating well to the NFL.

 

[Sportsbuck28]

That Rodriguez took the time to speak to his players tells me more than the letter to the AD.

The fact that he told Pryor before his own players tells me more than anything.

 

[HailToMichigan]

From the report:

Top WVU officials were forced to try to react to media reports before they received any official word from Rodriguez. Athletic Director Ed Pastilong finally got the word when he went to the Puskar Center to speak with the coaches and staff.

That tells me two things. One, that the media has nothing better to do than try and scoop each other. Which we all know anyways. And two, that somebody spread the word among coaches and staff, and they must have had a better source than Betty in accounting.