Mary Sue Coleman: Rich Rodriguez hire was the wrong call
In retrospect, the answer is obvious.
Considering Rich Rodriguez lasted just three seasons as head coach of the Michigan football team, it's easy to say he was the wrong man to replace Lloyd Carr in December 2007.
Former Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez, left, and school president Mary Sue Coleman are shown during a November 2010 press conference regarding sanctions for the football program's violations of NCAA practice guidelines. On Friday, Coleman told members of the Flint Rotary Club that hiring Rodriguez was the wrong decision.
AnnArbor.com file photo
According to MLive.com, Coleman told members of the Rotary Club of Flint that hiring Rodriguez was the wrong call.
While answering a question from the crowd, Coleman indicated that she and then-athletic director Bill Martin were intrigued by Rodriguez's expertise in the spread offense at a time when Carr was criticized for a conservative style of play.
From the MLive.com story:
"He was a hot, young coach with a different approach," Coleman said of the decision to hire Rodriguez.Rodriguez's was fired last year after a three-year tenure that included NCAA violations, embarrassing losses and a 15-22 record.
Coleman said she is "very happy" Rodriguez has a new job as head coach at the University of Arizona and she wishes him luck.
She also said she is very pleased with new coach Brady Hoke and that he is a better fit for the school.
"(Hoke) has more of the kind of Midwestern ethos," Coleman said.
Comments
blueinwestpenn
Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:52 a.m.
Look. 90% of the hiring decision comes from the Athletic Director. I happen to know a little bit about the politics of a board of regents, an Athletic Director, Head Coaches, staff and administration. How do I know and how can you know? Read "Three and Out." I tortured myself and read "Three and Out" by John U Bacon in the early Fall 2011 just as Team 132 started playing games. I also read Bacon's Bo Schembechler book too, I liked his Three and Out so much. Bill Martin is more responsible than Mary Sue for RR's hiring, because it was his recommendation, and he somewhat ignored his "hiring council" in doing it. The board of regents and Mary Sue Coleman signed off on it... Bill Martin's legacy is one of excellent investments in facilities and expanding the sports program at Michigan. But, he missed out on people management and recruiting, bottom line, and that led to an ill advised hire.
Michigan Man
Mon, May 14, 2012 : 1:29 p.m.
Mary Sue Coleman hire was the wrong call!
Hailmary
Mon, May 14, 2012 : 12:06 a.m.
Mary Sue, Shhhhhh ! Let the man, RR be, if he want to jabber let him but how about we move on and show some class. Your supposed to be a leader.
Stephen Landes
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 11:49 p.m.
MSC should do everyone a favor and learn how to politely avoid such questions. Any continued reference to the "RR era" is not helpful to U of M, nor will it do Coach Rich Rod any favors. Just follow the advice of coaches when NOT speaking of players who have left the team.
Brian Bundesen
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 11:28 p.m.
Dear Lord. Isn't this horse dead yet?
Hailmary
Tue, May 15, 2012 : 12:30 a.m.
I agree Brian, this is old stale news. You look to be about my age and I'm betting you agree that life is to short to waste time on that episode of Mich. history.
Michael DeSimone
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 7:52 p.m.
Earth Shattering Statement. A better announcement would be that it was a mistake to hire Martin.
martini man
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 7:43 p.m.
The fact that the current coach has had a decent showing , makes it easier to say that Rich was not the "one "
martini man
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 7:41 p.m.
Like DUH ??
JimB
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 3:15 p.m.
.....That's why Martin took off once he realized his mistakes.
JRW
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 2:45 p.m.
Presidents do not hire coaches. ADs hire coaches. Coleman should have been apologizing for hiring Martin, the biggest loser ever in an AD position at UM, totally over his head and totally unqualified for the position. What a total botch job; it was Martin who created the RR problem with a panic hire of a con-artist coach. If there was an embarrassment to the UM as big as RR, it was Martin. --Jim
Jay Thomas
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 2:03 p.m.
An even worse decision she made was to bar UofM employees from lucrative outside work while continuing to do the same thing herself! (She pulls in several hundred thousand dollars a year that way.)
a2citizen
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 3:28 p.m.
Please elaborate about her outside income.
Diagenes
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 1:46 p.m.
When the regents found out about the WV buy out clause after the deal was done MSC should have been fired immediately. RR is a good coach. Not the right fit for U of M.
Kyle
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 1:34 p.m.
Again she makes a horrible decision. What is she thinking she should be yanked you never ever say somebody is a bad hire that is disrespectful to the coach. She also made the news saying we will never put the fab five banners up. Well if the fab five wasn't here you wouldn't be here, so do your job and shut your mouth
Ed daggett
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 1:10 p.m.
M allowed LC and others to undercut the former coach and kids in program. Never will I look at LC the same & don't think the current AD's finger prints were not involved as he had his eyes on Bill Martin's job. Leaders and best....I don't think so
Chad Williams
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:50 p.m.
Finally Mary Sue the biggest disappointment about the rr era besides the loses was she hired him and turn her back on him. Not once did she or Martin stand behind there decision and the blame is all on rr. Somehow fans forgot they offered him the money and job not the other way around. Everything rr did was their devils work. A player transfer meant that rr wasnt upholding values now a player transfers and no one bad mouths hoke. Now its he wasnt fitting hokes system but that was impossible to think then.
UlyssesWrong1
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 7:01 a.m.
Obviously it was the wrong call, so that begs the question: Why did she OK such a horrible decision? And why did we roll with alum Dave Brandon, who sounds like he's not exactly helping Michigan basketball and football compete for national titles with his practices? With these people calling the shots for awhile, I hope we're not in for more years of being 4th or 5th place nationally at best. But I guess that's good enough for some.
Hailmary
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 10:18 a.m.
Ulysses, give the guy a chance, he just got here.
Ron Granger
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 2:36 a.m.
RichRod was a flash in the pan. I think Coleman was attracted to him because she is cut from the same cloth; all appearance, no substance.
Terry Star21
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:54 a.m.
BREAKING NEWS.......Michigan football is in the best shape ever and it is definitely the best time to be a Wolverine Football Faithful.... MgoBlueForTiM.....'We're the Threat"...
aarox
Mon, May 14, 2012 : 10:28 a.m.
Hey GoBigBlue, I was responding to the statement from Terry that "Michigan football is in the best shape ever." I don't see being 14 point dogs to anybody matching up with that statement. That is all.
GoBigBlue
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 3:18 p.m.
Hoke*
GoBigBlue
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 3:17 p.m.
Hey Aarox, new flash, we are 14 point dogs in the opener. We are playing the defending national champion. If we make a game of this and are in it late than most would consider that a success. Hole is building this program back from the slums. They may be a year or 2 away from being able to beat a defending national champion. If they do however, "shock the world" then that would be fantastic!
aarox
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 3:28 a.m.
I hope you are right. We will find out on Sept 1 if we are for real or if we are a bunch of hot air. Hoping for the former.
Hailmary
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:45 a.m.
Well, here we go again. Did I miss something or is RR History as in gone. Geez, I'm tired of hearing about that guy. RR had his chance, it didn't pan out and he got his walking papers what more can really be said ? Some of you talk about RR like he was a terrorist. I put that episode to rest when Brady came on board specifically when Brady's first year was so successful. Lloyd was a good coach although I to was getting somewhat bored with his style especially after seeing some of the high flying offenses around the country. I liked Lloyd Carr still do but Brady is in the drivers seat now and he has my attention.
Winkiemoose
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:20 a.m.
Coleman was the wrong hire and so was Martin. Coleman is couldn't lead anyone out of a wet paper bag and Martin only sees $$. Brandon's better but he better get in front of the curve on the playoff system and stop bitching about the scrutiny he faced looking for a new football coach - here he is moaning that the UM job is still prestigious but can't understand why he was followed so closely through the process - DUH! The fact that they were following you Dave proved your point - embrace the attention, numbskull, it's free publicity and good for the program and the school.
Hailmary
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:46 a.m.
Brandon will do.
Scott Laux
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:37 a.m.
Brandon is an enigma. He does so many things right- his hires of Hoke and Mattison were brilliant. Then he'll really screw up on the smaller things.
Maisy66
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 11:41 p.m.
Classless, unsophistocated, & uncivil of President Coleman to make unnecessary public comments about a former employee of the university... We note Mr. Rodriguez has displayed the ethos to withhold comments about her......
MRunner73
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:28 p.m.
I agree with both comments. If RR had an 11 win season in his first year, then "Midwestern ethos" would never have been as issue. Heck, the guy could have had pointed ears like Mr Spock on Star Trek and would have been loved by all.
Scott Laux
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:34 a.m.
RR was and has been enormously civil and professional in his departure. Few people seem to notice that.
aarox
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 10:44 p.m.
It's done. Let's get over it. Every good program has down years. It's not the end of the world. "Returning to former glory" is a tougher sell. Now that I've been transplanted to the south, I can tell you that we aren't even on the radar of the power teams down here. Nor is MSU or Wisky. OSU is but not by much. B1G is a joke to a lot of folks outside our little fiefdoms in the midwest. Lets win some real bowl games. W. Va. is widely considered to be a non-event down here (actually it's the poster child for what's wrong with the BCS but that is another battle for another day). The UGA loss got some attention). Win nationally and then we talk. Let's start with the Alabama opener. That is all.
MRunner73
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 11:07 p.m.
I like the out of town perspective but this is Ann Arbor.com and this was, is and will be a significant episode in Michigan Athletics on the same par with the Fab Five era which also garnishes a lot of emotion and response. Yes, Michigan will have it's big moment when they play Alabama on Sep 1st in Dallas. If the improbable happens: Michigan wins the game, then the SEC will take notice. Until then, the MSC comments will get some local radio sports talk show attention for a few days next week.
Steve McQueen
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 10:18 p.m.
MSC said something that needed to be said publicly. I suspect that she was influenced by reading over and over and over, RRs comments about how he basically got screwed at Michigan and how now someone else (Hoke) is winning with his guys...blah blah blah. So to basically put a cap on it, MSC said what she said and admitted that it was wrong to hire RR in the first place. Hopefully this will put a nice bow on the RR Error, which almost tore Michigan football down...
AceDeuce
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 8:52 p.m.
I absolutely loved Carr, and thought he was a great coach for U of M, especially with his history of the program, but even I went those last couple years screaming at the TV when Carr chose to punt on every 4th and 1 in as game that was tied at 3-3. I wanted a coach that was willing to be risky, and make play calls most coaches wouldn't even consider. But in the end, like most people, I was totally wrong about that idea. Obviously with an experienced team RR can be a great coach in a non-power conference, but he just wasn't cut out for the Big Ten. I don't know what lies ahead in Hoke's future, but I know he'll always make decisions bleeding maize and blue. After all, "this is Michigan for God's sake."
northside
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:20 p.m.
Ace you've admitted something very few Michigan fans do: being very unhappy with Carr during his final years. While the RichRod hire is criticized in retrospect, at the time most fans praised it. Carr's teams were thought to have chronically underperformed and most fans wanted an innovative, running-QB style offense.
D21
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 10:46 p.m.
Doesn't matter cuz of who he is, period.
BornInA2
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 8:17 p.m.
Duh.
MRunner73
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 8 p.m.
Admitting one has done wrong or made a wrong decision may be honorable but this ludicrous. We need to go back to Dec 2007 when all of this went down. Long story short: The Les Miles deal was botched, the next choice (Shiano) passed up an opportunity to step in then it was the third choice, Rich Rod. President Coleman was a giddy as 99% of us fans when the Rich Rod hiring announcement went down. There WAS lots of hope and optimism the a new spreaad attack offense would be the shot in arm the Wolverine football needed and had finally kept up with times. The Buckeyes had beaten Michigan in late 2006 with their spread attack, Texas with Vince Yong throttled the Maize and Blue as well with theor apread attack. I am unimpressed President Coleman makes public statements crying over spilt milk. Us fan can criticize the Rich Rod era from Day one to the bitter end all we want. This University President was an intergal part in the hiring process and was pretty darned proud of what a great catch they made in snagging Rich Rod so to read about these rear view mirro comments are a joke. Forget about Midwestern ethos, more garbage comments. That did not matter in Dec 2007. It was about the great hope that Rich Rod would bring a new and exciting brand of football to Michigan. For those who also forgot; read John Bacon's book. President Coleman cannot have it both ways. For me: I supported Rich Rod until the Gator Bowl and then I knew that a fourth year would be more of same, kind of like the 7 year tenure of former IL coach Ron Zook. I am a firm and ardent supporter of Brady Hoke. I am for the Michigan football program wich means the entire coaching staff and players. Criticsm can be made when appropriate, now and in the future. Go Blue!!
Chase Ingersoll
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 6:20 p.m.
"(Hoke) has more of the kind of Midwestern ethos," Coleman said. ??? "Ethos" means character, the kind that Coleman failed to step up and show when RR was being publicly pummeled by the Freep.com for violations that went back to people involved with Carr. It's especially insulting the way Coleman asked RR to keep his mouth shut about the decision to indemnify RR against WVU contract litigation, that had not been properly taken to the U of M Board.....and RR did her that favor. The mistake to hire RR began with a whole series of mistakes by Carr, Coleman and Martin in setting up the selection process. Maybe the "mistake" was the mistake RR made to presume that U of M had its act together when it made him the offer, and to presume that he was not walking into a no win situation where he was going to be the scape goat, albeit well paid scapegoat. Chase Ingersoll
truebluefan
Tue, May 15, 2012 : 12:11 p.m.
A spot on post. Thank you Chase! The RR era exposed a ton of blemishes, not only on RR, but also on the University of Michigan and its following. Signed, Lifelong Michigan Fan
Scott Laux
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:29 a.m.
The freep attacks were deplorable. Martin not letting him hire the DC he wanted was stupid. The AD telling him he could recruit Dorsey and then having Dorsey rejected after committing was incompetence. The mocking of RR over his culture and speech because he was from WV were bigoted. RR deserved to be fired but he held up under relentless personal attacks. I'll always admire him for that.
MRunner73
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 8:01 p.m.
Good points made and I agree.
Steve
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 5 p.m.
"In retrospect, the answer is obvious....." Uh...yeah. Brilliant retrospective deduction. Must be the reason she has risen so far in her profession.
Joe Kidd
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:57 p.m.
The last person I want to hear from in regard to hiring mistakes is Mary Sue Coleman. Many people I know who spent careers at Michigan feel the same about her. And I disagree somewhat with her. No doubt RR tenure was poor, but it was the defense that was horrible while the offense was one of the most exciting Michigan has ever had and set records. And he did it with first and second year players. That said I agree we are far better off now.
observer
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:51 p.m.
To be honest, I don't blame her as much as I would Bill Martin. The whole hire was botched from the beginning.......not to mention the wrong offense and defense schemes for the Big Ten.......Thank god for Brady Hoke....
PersonX
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:19 p.m.
Now if only she knew as much about her faculty members ....
Scott Laux
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:24 a.m.
Oh man-you wouldn't want to open that can of worms. At Michigan two things are sacred- Doctors and tenured professors. Go Blue!
Bogie
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:41 p.m.
Rich Rod never loss to a D2 (even though, he did lose to Toledo). Those were some great years! LOL
azwolverine
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 7:50 p.m.
Perfect summation...from an OSU fan.
observer
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:53 p.m.
Bogie, remember the receiver Moore from Toledo....he caught TWENTY balls that day.....unbelievable.......but true.....
braggslaw
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:13 p.m.
duh!
A2lover
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:05 p.m.
Oh, and Coleman admitted her incompetence in Flint, not Ann Arbor, another insult to the hard working, dedicated U of M faculty and students, and the residents of Ann Arbor, who pay enormous amounts of money to go to the football games.
treetowncartel
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 2:39 p.m.
Really? U of M has a campus in Flint, and Genesee County has a large number of U of M fans who follow the team and go to football games.
A2lover
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:02 p.m.
Pity Coleman didn't admit it at the time. The horses have bolted Ms. Coleman! More to the point, the underhanded way Rich Rod was hired, at a diner in Ohio, points to the incompetence and naivete of both Coleman and Martin. University Presidents should stay out of the hiring of any athletic coach, and Martin was a complete amateur and charlatan when it came to being an Athletic Director. No wonder Rich Rod, a deceiver himself, was able to con both of them into giving him the job.
azwolverine
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 7:48 p.m.
Scott...RR could talk and speak different all he wanted to if he had come in and done a good job. Most people are not upset about the way he talked, but about the fact that he turned Michigan into a non-competitive B10 laughingstock. Then, for him to offhandedly blame others (saying Michigan suffered in recruiting under Carr, constantly say he didn't have the needed talent) didn't sit well with many fans, myself included. His manner of talk didn't mean diddly-squat to most of us (certainly not me)...the things he actually said and did are what mattered...and got him fired.
Scott Laux
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:45 p.m.
That must be why Alabama offered him the job and turned it down. He conned them and then un-conned them. Get over your hatred of RR because he was different and spoke different.
Blu n Tpa
Sat, May 12, 2012 : noon
Amazing! It took 2 responses, just over two hours for someone to advance the "Lloyd Carr defense" for the WCiMFH's reason for failure. That is almost as sad as the football played during the 3 year debacle from 2008-10. Almost. To fail is bad. To blame others for your failure is a lack of character. TiM Go Blue
azwolverine
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 7:39 p.m.
And then to take credit for someone else's success shows a further lack of character.
Macabre Sunset
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 5:27 a.m.
In other news, grass is green and the Pope is still Catholic. I would hope, to a sentient fan, the fact that Michigan was known as Quarterback U for its proclivity in producing pro-ready quarterbacks would dispel the silly notion that Lloyd Carr was out of touch with the modern game of football. Or maybe the fact that he won an amazing number of games might convince others. The critics just repeat the "Appalachian State" mantra like they're handing out flowers at Metro Airport. But they're wrong. It was a panic hire and it cost Michigan dearly.
Joe Kidd
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 5:08 p.m.
I don't get the "panic hire" thing. INHO we had Les Miles locked up until Kirk Herbstreit (OSU '92) opened his pie hole on the day LSU was playing for the national title, forcing LSU to demand Miles make a decision right before the game. Then it seemed as though no one was interested in the job. RR had a winning record and was considered a good coach with the spread offense which was bedeviling Michigan (Appalachian State, Oregon). So at the time it may have looked like the thing to do. I think it was solely a lousy defense that doomed RR. His responsibility, he should have dumped his defensive coach, Gregg Robinson much earlier. Defense wins ball games, but that offense was fun to watch.
observer
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:57 p.m.
College players all believe they can play at the next level.....Carr knew this and fashioned his offensive and defensive schemes to the pro game, which is why the program sent so many players to the NFL during his tenure......
RWBill
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:48 a.m.
Read Three and Out if you want to gain an appreciation for the circumstances at the time of the hire. They were quickly running out of options and Bill Martin was over his head. The fingerprints of Paranoid Lloyd are all over much of the turmoil and backstabbing Rich and crew suffered in his first year.
Steve McQueen
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 10:20 p.m.
RR was horrible at Michigan. He was given the most successful program ever, coming off 33 straight bowl wins and a win over the defending NC Florida...and he tore it down. I swear I wonder what football some of you people were watching in the RR Error. I saw a completely overmatched coach on the field, who could not develop talent in practice and was in way over his head at a larger program than he ever could imagine.
azwolverine
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 7:35 p.m.
None of the supposed "backstabbing" played a role in on-field performance. Stop with the excuses. Rich didn't get the job done in A2 because he hired a lousy staff and he coached a loose ship that constantly turned the ball over, couldn't gain tough yards, and fell apart when times got tough. Mike Martin said just a week ago that Bruce Tall, his D-line coach wasn't qualified to coach D-line and that he learned more last year than in three years with the previous lousy staff. Lloyd had NOTHING to do with that and RR had EVERYTHING to do with that. Kevin Koger said he learned more about UM football in 3 weeks than he did in 3 years under RR. Lloyd's fault? Whatever. RR did a lousy job for 3 years and he got fired for it. Good luck to him in AZ, but UM's program is better for him being gone.
Scott Laux
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:42 p.m.
Often times the guys who seem the most dignified are the most harmful. My least favorite vice is 'backstabbing'. It's also referred to as slander and "bearing false witness". It was once so reviled that it made the list of top ten things not to do. Peace love and honor. Go Blue.
craigjjs
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:39 p.m.
A point of view that was closer to the action, more complete and more rational than anyone else has offered.
Veracity
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 5:24 a.m.
One point of view only ... and not unbiased.
Veracity
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:36 a.m.
Scott Laux is unjustified in criticizing Lloyd Carr. In Coach Carr's thirteen seasons as head coach of Michigan he won the National Championship during an undefeated season in 1997. Except for 2005 when Michigan's record was 7-5, Carr's teams never lost more than 4 games in any season and was nationally ranked for 12 of his thirteen years of coaching. His teams won the Big Ten championship five times and was second during four other years. His final won-loss record was 122-40 and his Big Ten record was 81-23. You will find few other coaches with such an enviable record in a power conference. And Lloyd Carr's teams never embarrassed the University either on or off the field.
unclefred
Tue, May 15, 2012 : 3:14 p.m.
Northside: At best you can say that the fan base was split over the hire when it was made, not that it was what the base wanted.
northside
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 12:18 p.m.
Veracity & Brimble: I agree with everything you wrote about Coach Carr but let's be honest. Very few Michigan fans were emphasizing those things during his final years. Most fans wanted him out, feeling the team chronically underperformed, and pushed for an innovative, running-QB type of offense. UM's fan base tries to put all the blame for the Rich Rod debacle on Coleman and Martin, but at the time the hire was widely praised and exactly what the fan base wanted.
brimble
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 11:38 a.m.
...Coach Carr was a gentleman and demanded that his players were the same. No shortcuts, scandals, dumb statements, or negativity. You can make the argument that he didn't put a flashy scheme on the field, but that is rather the point. He just got the job done -- the whole job -- with dignity.
Scott Laux
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 4:14 a.m.
Could be worse. Could have have had Lloyd Carr stay for 3 more years and lose to every team with speed.
mun
Sun, May 13, 2012 : 2:14 a.m.
Under Rich Rod, U-M was losing to the "slow power football" teams like OSU, MSU, Wisconsin, Iowa. Heck, they were losing to Purdue and Northwestern and struggled to beat Indiana.
azwolverine
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 7:24 p.m.
Seriously Scott? You've got to be joking. How about all of the LOSING teams we lost to in RR's three years: Purdue (twice), Illinois (twice), and...TOLEDO!!! They were a 3-9 MAC team! Not to mention the absolute pounding we took at the hands of such speed burning teams as Penn St and Wisconsin, or the 24 total points rang up against OSU over 3 seasons. No Scott...it couldn't have possibly been worse.
psaume23
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 3:12 p.m.
Lloyd is a class act who had a rough start to his last season and a losing streak to the arch-enemy. But it would have been far better to have had Lloyd stick around and turn it over to another Michigan Man than to go through what we did for those three years.
brimble
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 11:39 a.m.
Except that Michigan beat Florida twice in bowl games - in Florida - and against high-power offenses and 'hot' quarterbacks both times....
GoBigBlue
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 5:04 a.m.
No, I don't think many M fans would think that it could've been worse.
Cheyne Herro
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:49 a.m.
Everyone knows how bad it was but without it we wouldn't be siting with the staff we have now
heartbreakM
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:01 a.m.
Stating the obvious, President Coleman. I am frankly shocked that she admitted it. Most Presidents don't ever admit they are wrong. But good for her in her answer and her language (especially not expressing bitterness to former coach). She lets all of us do that!