Rich Rodriguez (official thread of last laughs)

[BB73]

Tony Gerdeman with a tongue-in-cheek defense of RichRod and TSUN.

Ozone

Michigan Monday (An Apologist's Essay)
By Tony Gerdeman

Remember that scene from The Simpsons where the citizens of Springfield had gathered to discuss the evils of the local burlesque house? In it various townsfolk are shown on film coming out of the burlesque house and each time somebody is shown, their closest loved one gasps in shock.

Remember when Barney Gumble (the town drunk) is shown coming out of the burlesque house, Mo the bartender is the one that is obligated to speak up?

Well, that's kind of how I feel right now regarding the recent allegations of impropriety at the University of Michigan. Somebody has to stick up for Michigan, and since nobody else here is going to do it, I'm as good a choice as anybody.

If you're not familiar with the story, the Detroit Free Press is saying that Rich Rodriguez has been forcing his players to put in way more than the 20 hours per week of football time that the NCAA allows. There are even past and present players who are corroborating this story.

But just because players are saying the story is 100% true and accurate, why should we believe them? What have they done to earn our trust?

Players lie all the time because they have nothing to lose. But the coaches, with everything to lose, are much more likely to tell the truth because they have so much more at stake.

But I don't want to get into a "he said, they said" argument regarding Rich Rodriguez and his players, because we all know that Michigan does things the right way. "The Michigan Way", as they call it. Heck, if Michigan is guilty of anything, I would say they're guilty of simply caring too much.

Can you fault your mother for not letting you move out and live on your own until you were 37? Of course not! Just like you can't fault caring coaches who won't let their players leave until they have received at least twelve hours of care every Sunday!

Cont'd ...

 

[Dryden]

This whole thing stinks like a witch hunt. Like a disaster wrapped in a debacle crammed inside a fiasco.

Can I somehow rep Tony Gerdeman?

 

[BB73]

Can I somehow rep Tony Gerdeman?

Sure. Just rep the post that linked the article. I'll pass it on.

 

[Poe McKnoe]

This just keeps getting better and better!

Now, he is being sued as part of a group that has apparently defaulted on $3+M dollar deal.

Is UM going to pay this tab, also? Is Bill Martin on his boat, yet?
University of Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez sued for defaulting on real-estate deal - AnnArbor.com

Oh, and yes, still an ass. (Sorry, NF)

He should probably just donate his money to the library. That normally works out better.

 

[jenkinswoody]

While we are waiting on Saturday to come- Let's play a game......


ABC has scheduled a new After School Special: "The Rich Rodriguez Story- (you finish the title)"


Either way, talk about something that would scare you straight.

 

[ant80]

Do you guys remember the papers that RR's staff scrambled to shred at the last minute before running to scUM? What were they? Workout routines...?

 

[jlb1705]

certainly logical. however, if you fire dickrod who do you name as the head coach? i can't imagine any self respecting coach abandoning their team the first week of a new season. so i have to think anyone you would want wouldn't be available and anyone available wouldn't be qualified/desireable.

Maybe Bobby Petrino is getting restless again. Bring Big Tex back with you too!

 

[martinss01]

It seems to me that what is important is that players leaving are remaining in contact with players who stayed. If players confirmed the abuse of rules, they were either ignorant or they are starting to turn on their coach. I read discontent between the lines, but maybe I am wrong.

very likely some are turning on the staff. but the two incoming freshman who corroborated the story likely are not examples. they seemed to genuinely not know the rules. which is likely as serious a crime as the amount of time they were putting in.

This story is a big deal only if the season does not meet the expectations for dramatic improvement over last year. A loss to Mickey Mouse U, a blowout loss against Notre Dame--lack of success will bring this story and player resentment back with a vengeance.

from a team cohesiveness standpoint, i agree. however, winning isn't going to make the ncaa go away. it likely won't make the transfers shut up either.

what we saw from dickrod at the podium trying desperately to get a tear to drop likely as instructed by his lawyer was a man who has been backed into a corner. as gator has very wisely pointed out this is something he could very easily loose his job over. no buyout clause, no paying out a remainder of the contract. just a pink slip and a have a nice life. lets not forget this guy owes more than a million dollars to wvu... walking out on his alma matter just before a bcs bowl, running an elite program into the ground that just 2 years earlier narrowly missed a nc birth, then loosing his job because of an ncaa violation..? not sure how many schools would touch him at this point. while im sure there would be a few, i suspect there wouldn't be many that pay well enough to settle a 1.5 mill debt in short order.

 

[billmac91]

Originally Posted by Darryl Stonum myspace
I don't know the names of the guys who went to the press with these allegations. We did have some practices during the season last year that were from 10 am to 10 pm with breaks in between but I didn't think they were that bad. I know of some who complained but its all speculation as to who went to the papers. I just know I'll be doing my part to keep us focused on Sept. 5th and take care of what we need to do.

Even when they try and defend DRod and the program, they still blow it.....DRod can't even let his supporters speak because they inadvertantly spill the beans...

 

[PlanetFrnd]

Even when they try and defend DRod and the program, they still blow it.....DRod can't even let his supporters speak because they inadvertantly spill the beans...

This is what happens when recruiting standards are dropped from meatchicken men (who were traditionally somewhere between *ssh**s and p*****s) and what dickrod was used to recruiting at WVU.

 

[Folanator]

 

[ant80]

Llllllloyd FCS Carr on RR. I found the reference in this thread on umgoblue forums. Notice the scUMmers not hesitating one bit to throw their former NC winning coach under the bus for that...

 

[Folanator]

If I hadn't bad luck I'd have no luck at all....

 

[holybuckeye33]

From ants link in #4467:

MWolverine - In the 2006 OSU game, we gave up too many rushing yards, but it wasn't like we couldn't stop the run that year. Going into that game, we were giving up something like 43 rush yards/game which was the lowest in NCAA history. Hardly fat, lazy, slow. In that game, OSU let their grass grow out longer because they knew we were a faster team.

Bucki78 - LMAO! Dude - do you just make sh-- up? In 2006 OSU couldn't get their grass to grow at all. The Buckeyes had to re-sod their playing surface twice that season including 2 weeks before the Michigan game. I am not an agrostologist but I am pretty sure that November is not peak grass growing season in Central Ohio. OSU was lucky that most of the field was green on November 18, 2006.

Michigan's defensive team picture from the 2006 Ohio State game:

[insert picture of Davidson's picture of Pittman's run, which I can't get to show up]

WOW, now that was some long grass!

 

[ant80]

Another thread, this one stating that WVU reviewed RR's records and found no problems.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - West Virginia university's compliance office began reviewing its own records immediately after a weekend Detroit Free Press story alleged that former Mountaineers football Coach Rich Rodriguez broke NCAA rules at Michigan.

Rodriguez and his University of Michigan staff are accused by players and parents of ignoring guidelines governing offseason workouts, in-season practices, and summer scrimmages.

And my response to that thread in quotes below.

Sure the compliance office monitored activities. But would they be monitoring "voluntary" student activities outside of regular times? This is too early in the process to be giving a clean chit to everybody. All they did was look at records. What about player interviews? This report is not thorough. They're just trying to cover their own a$. And what about the workout routines that RR said he shredded before he left WV?

The most egregious error in Rosenburg's article, IMO, is why he didn't contact WVU players who played under RR and ask them about workout schedules and such? Unless he did, and they wouldn't cooperate because they were still doing that. Then why didn't he mention that WV players didn't answer questions in his article? Shoddy work all round.