Michigan Coaching Speculation

[sandgk]

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

Somehow, I thought you'd cling to that life raft - for the rest of Rodriguez' actions speak louder volumes about his character.

UM must be so happy now, but just wait.

 

[Buckeyeskickbuttocks]

I think RR is a good hire for Mich. I'm not sure he'll have the immediate impact that Mich fans will want next year, but the guy can coach. If they're patient and give RR some time to get his system in place, well... they'll be fine. On the other hand, to the extent that the O is a gimmick, Mich fans would be best served to worry. Gimmicks don't last.

But, in any case, RR will bring Michigan's offense in to the current decade. I'm not sure they can have much confidence in a solid defense from here on out, though.

 

[HailToMichigan]

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

Means nothing. He called an impromptu Sunday meeting - I doubt the players were all hanging around the facilities. Tracking 70-80 players down and giving them ample time to show up to the meeting takes a couple hours.

 

[Buckeyeskickbuttocks]

I don't know why anyone cares how RR handles or has handled his departure. We'll have plenty of reason to hate the guy as the coach of our Rival. I could give a shit how he leaves WVU and who he talks to and when.

 

[sandgk]

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.

Setting aside the litany of lies, (it was a financial meeting in Toledo, it was a recruiting visit in Toledo) evasions (ask any more questions and this Press Conference is over) and subterfuge RR perpetrated these last few days.

That still doesn't answer one basic point - why would Rich Rodriguez not man up and tell his employers face-to-face that he was in fact resigning?

That alone is classless.

I believe you guys now have an ego-driven, greedy and selfish man as your head coach. You have as your new head coach a man with a very spotty, near sleazy recruiting record at the BCS level. You have a man who actually couldn't be man enough to tell his employer face-to-face that he was resigning, and instead sent a page.

Yet UM is happy - and I have to ask, besides the short term frisson of the search now being over - why?

 

[sandgk]

Means nothing. He called an impromptu Sunday meeting - I doubt the players were all hanging around the facilities. Tracking 70-80 players down and giving them ample time to show up to the meeting takes a couple hours.

No it didn't, they were there for practices already. No gathering was needed.

 

[mendensa]

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.

And this is the kinda crap I'm talking about. Who would want to go play for a chump like that? Does character not come into play at some point? You leave your University hangin', your players hangin', so everyone else looks stupid but you. And then you turn around and call the best recruit in the country and tell him "come play for me and we'll build something great at scUM" right after he probably just told his own players "lets go show the country how good of a team we are when we beat OU" right after their practice. What a joke.

 

[CausticMick]

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

Great post- I was thinking the same thing. I already despise this guy for not showing foremost and utmost respect to his soldiers.

Means nothing. He called an impromptu Sunday meeting - I doubt the players were all hanging around the facilities. Tracking 70-80 players down and giving them ample time to show up to the meeting takes a couple hours.

You've got to be fucking kidding.

 

[akronbuck]

he couldn't beat Pitt. I love him as a SCUMMER

 

[Wingate1217]

he couldn't beat Pitt. I love him as a SCUMMER

To be fair, he was 4-3 against Pitt while at WVU....

 

[CausticMick]

To be fair, he was 4-3 against Pitt while at WVU....

To be fair, Pitt sells season tickets for $11.

 

[OCBucksFan]

I can't believe so many people are giving RR so much crap about this... it's not like it's ever rainbows and unicorns when a good coach leaves a program, feelings are hurt and people are pissed off. Maybe he stays at tsun, maybe he goes onto something else in a few years, however, the reality is Michigan is a better job than West Virginia. Face it, the pressure was starting to get applied, people were expecting him to win a National Title, and that wasn't going to happen. They don't get the recruits needed for that and the competition level in the Big East is a joke. The only thing I see here is people looking at last year and that resentment coming into play.

Here's what I see, he found a job where they paid him out of his contract, and he's gone to a program where the expectations are "beat tOSU" not win a national championship, so he thinks he's coming out ahead in this deal.

 

[Wingate1217]

To be fair, Pitt sells season tickets for $11.

LOL

 

[akronbuck]

To be fair, he was 4-3 against Pitt while at WVU....

Well, I hope SCUMS a 28 point favorite against OSU every year

 

[HailToMichigan]

Setting aside the litany of lies, (it was a financial meeting in Toledo, it was a recruiting visit in Toledo) evasions (ask any more questions and this Press Conference is over) and subterfuge RR perpetrated these last few days.

That still doesn't answer one basic point - why would Rich Rodriguez not man up and tell his employers face-to-face that he was in fact resigning?

That alone is classless.

I believe you guys now have an ego-driven, greedy and selfish man as your head coach. You have as your new head coach a man with a very spotty, near sleazy recruiting record at the BCS level. You have a man who actually couldn't be man enough to tell his employer face-to-face that he was resigning, and instead sent a page.

Yet UM is happy - and I have to ask, besides the short term frisson of the search now being over - why?

As far as the press conference goes, I absolutely beg to differ. "No questions about Michigan" is the only way to handle it when your mind isn't made up. It would be nice if a coach would be allowed to say "I'm thinking about going to Michigan but I haven't made up my mind," but we all know the media treats that like a big honking glowing neon sign that says I'M GONE!!!!! and then you have no end of distractions. So you can either tell them not to ask, which minimizes the damage, or you can straight-up lie, which never blows up in your face ever.

Now, as for the why, as in why are we happy?

- Rich Rodriguez is not Kirk Ferentz, Mike Debord, or Brady Hoke.
- Hiring Rodriguez shows that Michigan is willing to stop inbreeding coaches, think outside the box, and shake things up. Gamble, in other words. We didn't think they ever would, and we had good reason to. We're no longer throwing rock all the damn time. And theoretically, the defense should have fewer problems against the spread because they'll see it in practice every day.
- We don't think the guy is anywhere near as big a sleaze as you think he is. Sleazy is Dennis Franchione.
- We don't think he'll be bolting for greener pastures. He's got to know his system is not an NFL system, no worries there. And certain programs, Michigan being one of them, are as green as the pastures get. When you're Michigan (or OSU, or Texas, or USC, name it) coaches don't leave because they're looking to upgrade their status. They've already made it.
- He's been damn successful at a place that it's not easy to be successful at.
- It's damn funny poaching two WVU coaches in one year.

Clearly, on the character thing, we're seeing things through maize-colored glasses, and you guys have the scarlet goggles on and see quite the opposite. And we can go back and forth on that. But I think the benefit of the doubt is called for here.