NoSUVforMe

Thu, Dec 23, 2010 : 8:56 p.m.

I wonder if Ohio State's fans and AD will be crying for Tressel's head. I mean, can't he manage educating his so-called athletes? Why did he recruit them in the first place? It really brings into question why he should have been hired in the first place. Oh, I forgot that he has winning teams year after year. Maybe after Ohio State fires Tressel and Michigan fires RR, Brandon - the pizza man - will hire Tressel. Will the pizza man's fans be happy then?

3 And Out

Tue, Dec 21, 2010 : 8:51 p.m.

Interesting thread here and commentaries.... has anyone mentioned that Richard A. Rodriguez has been sued in 2 separate multi million dollar lawsuits for loans that he personally signed for...and then the creditors were stiffed? How is that a good example to his players??? Just more grease for the griddle. The King Narcissist / Sociopath has a dark past....but he does not need to be our future any longer.

NoSUVforMe

Tue, Dec 21, 2010 : 5:52 p.m.

Mr. Murrow, The qualifications of the person who is potentially firing RR is relevant to this thread. So is the general condition of the sports program and the double-standard that you think is fair. D21, From your response, I'm just glad I don't know you. If you are making an argument that RR is unqualified for ethical reasons, then you are obviously the wrong one to be doing it.

NoSUVforMe

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:37 p.m.

Mr. Murrow, Why don't we look into why we hired someone who made his living selling cardboard pizzas while running Dominoes into the ground? Failure in everything and still he was hired.

D21

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:25 p.m.

Fellas, just listen to the Ghost as he is telling nothing but the cold and unvarnished TRUTH!

D21

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:09 p.m.

NoSUVforMe, You are totally in the wrong! I, for one, do not want RR here no matter how many crystal trophies UM wins under him. Sincerely, MoreSUVs4me

D21

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:06 p.m.

Hail to the Enzyte Man (Andy Jacobs) for his concise analysis of RR.

NoSUVforMe

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 8:45 p.m.

Mr. Murrow, No, I didn't see any obvious lies. I see disagreements. You picked the West Virginia as the version of the truth. I do not. Why can't you admit that you never wanted RR? You have always been one of the haters. He never got a chance from you and your kind.

NoSUVforMe

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 6:06 p.m.

Edward R Murrow, So, RR lied. You know this with certainty. You obviously were there for conversations between RR and the president of the UofWV and the athletic director. When people say things with such certainty as you have it usually means your mind was made up, and making up facts aren't far behind.

Joseph

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 12:48 p.m.

Ed, I do understand how these contracts work...in fact re-read my post I mention the buyout clause in my first-sentence. As far as the rest of the history it's a moot point as no one (especially a player) will remember this detail. I suggested in my previous post there are other leadership flaws that are more pronounced with RRod then the manner in which he left WVA.

azwolverine

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 11:38 a.m.

Rob, I look forward to that article, too...simply because I want Harbaugh to be hired. Btw, at least Harbaugh would be leaving Stanford to come TO his alma mater, rather than leaving his alma mater to come to Michigan. "Breaking" contracts is actually written into them (buyouts), but I will admit, that RR leaving WVU for another school has left me questioning his loyalties from the beginning. I don't know the man personally, and I may be wrong on this, but my perception is that if he isn't even loyal to HIS school (and home state), how can he possibly be loyal to Michigan?

Bill Richardson

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 11:25 a.m.

I don't agree. The University wanted to get past the issue. Rodriguez, I believe, wanted to go to court. Rodriguez is a good coach, a good person, and doesn't need this kind of biased reporting by those who just look at W's. If he was winning more none of this stuff would be going on. His players love him and his recruits want to play for him. If he leaves so do many of the existing players and most of the recruits. It will just be three more years of transition and pain. The right thing for Michigan athletics to do is to honor his contract.

Rob Pollard

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 10:30 a.m.

"Here is a man who broke a contract", oh my! Well, we can't have that from the world of big-time college coaching! I look forward to Mr. Hunt's article if/when we hire Harbaugh (currently under contract until 2014).

Joseph

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 10:09 a.m.

The contract issue is an old issue. Everyone knows that buy out clauses exist in these contracts for this very reason so I don't agree with the article's premise. However, there are other real leadership questions that are pertinent: 1. Failure to take ownership of his entire job: last I checked the head coaching job included defense and special teams. 2. Taking ownership for short-comings. RR has continually shun responsibility and has instead blamed former coaches, freshman players even the fans. 3. A complete lack of inspiration and focus leading up to the OSU game. Regardless of the questions asked at his pre-game press conferences, RR could have and should have steered the focus on the legacy and the tradition of the greatest rivalry in college football. The closest we heard was some soft-reference to the seniors needing a win. Compare that to Tressel's stories of what the rivalry means to home. No wonder UM could barely crack the goal line. 4. Putting others before yourself. RRod derailed what should have been the finale of the football banquet by praising his top players, the team's effort, and the future. Instead, as usual, it became a soap opera all about himself. This man is no leader. And besides the contract-issue (which many coaches have done) RRod's failings are deep-rooted in his character. He tries to overcome with 'aw-shucks, I am just a good 'ole boy' charisma. Agree or disagree with my examples, the bottom-line is as a parent of a high school star football talent, there are far more coaches that I would entrust with the mentoring and leadership of my son than RRod. Buh-bye RRod.

Spencer

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 10:07 a.m.

What is the point of this article? This is very irresponsible piece. Just another case of someone trying to get noticed by bashing a head coach. Here is an article you should write "Thomas K. Hunt has failed to write good articles for his readers". Now that's a piece worth reading.

Brad

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:21 a.m.

Yesterday morning there were *two* opinion pieces regarding the coach, and then a few hours later had apparently disappeared - *poof*. Did someone get a call on the bat-phone regarding "piling on" or something? Hmmm...

Killroy

Mon, Dec 20, 2010 : 9:07 a.m.

Rich Rodriguez has failed on many levels, but most importantly, he has let the University of Michigan down as well as the good citizens of Ann Arbor.

NoSUVforMe

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 11:20 p.m.

Edward R Murrow's Ghost, OK, basketball isn't as important as football so hypocrasy (sp?) isn't important to "leaders and best" except when it isn't football. RR lied? So, why wasn't he fired when he lied? And if he wasn't, why weren't the ones responsible for not firing him, fired? Are you suggesting that the three seasons of poor performance isn't the real reason? Really! And all the juniors and seniors that haven't been developed, like walk-ons like Jordan Kovacs? My my. Facts are so troubling. The real facts are that the U of M basketball program has been a disaster. I still support Beilein because he is doing the right things - developing young athletes that are a positive reflection of the university. Who recruited Boubacar Cissoko? Shock, not RR. Yes, the Michigan basketball team won one game in the 4 years of Beilein. Hurrah! Yes, no one cares about basketball except those that do. Silly basketball fans. Abolish the program because Edward R Murrow says it isn't important. What is your point?

MGoMaize

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 9:49 p.m.

Wow, there is so much fail here that it's making my head spin.

NoSUVforMe

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 8:37 p.m.

This is typical of Michigan fans. If Michigan was playing in the Rose Bowl, none of this would be an issue. Fact is, any coach with RR's record is going to be under fire. If leaving West Virginia is so unfair, why is it more fair to fire him before the contract expires? I continue to ask, where were the seniors on RR's team that are traditionally the leaders and best? One injured and one injured during the season. Not much. This is not RR's fault. What's wrong with being in a New Year's Day bowl with one of the most exciting offenses in country? One poster mentioned Beilein. How many times has Beilein delivered a team to the NCAA tournament since he arrived. One. How many games have they played. One. Give me a break.

81wolverine

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 2:27 p.m.

Most of the people making judgements about Coach Rodriguez's character (such as Mr. Hunt) have ZERO personal knowledge of the man, and probably between 5 and 10% of the information required to make such a determination. Aside from that, the example used of Rodriguez's "breach of contract" with West Virginia totally ignore the University of Michigan's complicity in the entire transaction. I think it's fair to say Michigan knew the contract existed and offered him the job assuming he had to "breach" the contract to accept the job at Michigan. This may be news to some people, but this type of "breach" happens all the time in college sports when one coach leaves a school to coach another. And as for the buyout, again, the University of Michigan AGREED to pay the money to Rodriguez. Is that a deficiency in character that Rodriguez asked to be compensated for this amount as part of his negotiations? Most of us who are negotiating to take a new job are going to ask for things. It is NOT wrong. We may not get it, but there's nothing wrong with asking. Finally, the NCAA investigation implicated the University of Michigan pretty seriously - not just Rodriguez. To me, it was an administrative screw up that would have been easy to miss. The University of Michigan hired a guy who had lots of experience in NCAA rules administration (on the staff of the athletic department - I can't remember his name) and whose entire job was to make sure these types of rules were followed exactly. Why did he screw up? I think Rodriguez had some blame, but much of it falls on the U-M athletic administration. And I'm also guessing these rules were not followed precisely before RR came here either. Bottom line: criticizing Rodriguez is fine. But PLEASE be professional and fair, and stick to his on-the-field results. And leave David Brandon to assess things you and I know almost nothing about - his character and off-the-field performance.

Sparky79

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 1:42 p.m.

I suppose John Beilein is a man who sets a horrible example, too, since he broke his contract with West Virginia with five years remaining. Okay, maybe he's only half as horrible since he paid off his buyout himself, but still... If you have to dig so deep now as to say RichRod is bad because he broke his WVU contract, seriously, you got way too much free time. After all, there's nothing that says he COULDN'T leave. That's why there was a buyout clause! On the flip side, are universities bad for firing coaches who still have time left on their contract? IMO, you can't have it both ways. Coaches are bad for leaving before their contract is up, but universities are good for firing coaches before their contract is up? Regardless of RichRod's record, the university made the contract with him, so shouldn't they have to honor it? In college football, as you've seen over the past few weeks, after the regular season is over, it's coach poaching time. Coaches are fired, resign, whatever, and other head coaches, assistant coaches, offensive/defensive coordinators start finding new jobs, whether their team is going to a bowl game or not. That's the nature of the beast.

Soothslayer

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 11:42 a.m.

Big red trouble flags from before the beginning that UM athletics so wisely decided to bail RR out of. Boosters and other supporters please take note how they choose to allocate your hard earned funds. From wikipedia: "The announcement of his departure came just four months after Rodriguez last renegotiated his contract with West Virginia, and was made despite his stated long-term commitment to the Mountaineers. The contract included a $4 million buyout if he left WVU within one year of the August 2007 signing date. It has since been speculated that Rodriguez's departure was triggered by conflicts with the new president of WVU, Michael Garrison. Some insight into the discontent between Rodriguez and WVU is evidenced in a compendium of emails that were released to the Associated Press on January 23, 2008.[18] An Associated Press story indicated that Rodriguez's agent Mike Brown was threatening to take his client elsewhere early in the 2007 season. On December 27, 2007, West Virginia University filed a motion for declaratory judgment in Monongalia County Circuit Court, asking the court to find that Rodriguez's contract with the University was valid, that WVU had not breached that contract, and that Rodriguez had breached it. Subsequently, on January 18, 2008, WVU added a count of breach of contract after Rodriguez allegedly failed to pay the first installment of the $4 million liquidated damages clause (often referred to as a "buyout clause" by the media) when due. On July 9, 2008 Rodriguez and WVU agreed to settle the lawsuit. The terms of the settlement stated that the University of Michigan would pay $2.5 million of the settlement. Rodriguez is required to pay WVU the remaining $1.5 million in three installments of $500,000 each, spread over three years starting in January, 2010"

Soothslayer

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 11:31 a.m.

You think? Feel free to add your own and rate them in order of most embarrasing and detrimental to the UM athletic program: 1) NCAA heat & investigation 2) outright misdirection, non-cooperation & lying about NCAA acusations 3) "wanna be a Michigan man" crying episode that even Josh Groban himself was embarrased for and teased RR about 4) 3 years of "the program is coming around" for UM football Enough. Please dispense of RR already. He must have breached the agreement in many ways so no additional hush money or pay offs either.

mrd

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 9:40 a.m.

Interesting...how could both of these posts be correct (minus the rancor)? Well, coaches do break contracts very often, but in very dissimilar ways. Coaches don't usually leave a current team holding the bag before the biggest game of their careers, and before they finish what they started (a season). Those that do should definitely have to explain what lesson they are trying to teach. Rich Rod's performance at the banquet (and on the sidelines this year) definitely present him as a "results-oriented" coach as opposed to "process" and "system" oriented. His philosophy would seem to be "what are you doing for me?" "Those who stay probably have no better place to go" would seem to be the lesson he is teaching. That's not acceptable at our beloved University.

Terrin

Sun, Dec 19, 2010 : 9:35 a.m.

I agree RR set a poor example for his players and go, but not for the reasons you state. A contract of this sort has a clause that covers if one wants out early. RR knew about this clause a head of times, as did the University of Michigan. So, University of Michigan was fully aware it would have to buy off RR's contract if it wanted him. The character part comes into play, however, when RR left Virginia. The school alleged he destroyed documents concerning current players at Virginia that belonged to the University. He then was sued for a somewhat shady sounding Real Estate deal that went sour. Then one of his new assistant coaches was caught cussing at fans without rebut from RR. Then of course came the NCAA violations, which probably never would have come about if his coaching style didn't piss off many of the players enough for them to spill the beans. Then of course we could talk about his lack of being a well rounded football coach, but your conversation was merely about character.