No bad blood between Desmond Howard and his dreadlocked doppelganger, Denard Robinson
A couple of weeks ago, comments former Michigan football star Desmond Howard made about current Wolverines quarterback Denard Robinson raised some eyebrows.
On Sunday night, Howard tweeted proof that there's no bad blood between them.
Howard, who was in southeastern Michigan this weekend for a Gridiron Greats of Michigan event in Novi, sent a number of pictures out on his Twitter feed.
The last was this photo of Howard and his dreadlocked doppelganger with the following description: "Last pic of the weekend. Some of you thought you could come btwn me & Shoelace. Wolverines for life! Run tell that."
So, we're telling it.
(Note: Howard has another photo with Robinson taken in January -- with their signature broad smiles -- and refers to him as "Twin.")
The controversy started when Howard used Robinson in a counter-example to his former college coach Bo Schembechler's philosophy that no player is bigger than the team.
His quote, as reported in the St. Petersburg Times:
"I'll give you a perfect example: Michigan fires coach Rich Rodriguez. All the noise in Ann Arbor is, 'Is Denard Robinson going to stay or leave?' I'm like, 'Hey, if the kid wants to go, don't let the door hit you on the way out.' You looked fantastic for five games against nobody. That's what you did. I'm not going to deny his talents, but you ain't won nothing in Ann Arbor, son! Not so much we need to worry about if you're going to be here next year or not."
After the speech hit the news cycle, Howard said via Twitter that his comments were about media and fan interest in Robinson's status and not about Robinson himself.
Howard declined to comment on the story. Percy Bates, Michigan’s faculty athletics representative, attended Howard's speech. He told AnnArbor.com that the quote wasn't as critical as it sounds when heard within the entire context of the speech about players and their sense of entitlement.
“When he mentioned Denard, I didn’t feel that he was speaking directly in reference to Denard even though he used his name,” said Bates, who was attending the Black Coaches and Administrators convention. “My impression was that he was trying to make a point, that he was hammering on pretty hard, that his relationship with Bo Schembechler said ‘Son, nobody is bigger than the program.’"
Comments
Old Salt
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 8:29 p.m.
I wonder how many know what the German word DOPPLEGANGER really means
ohhowihateohiostate
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 8:04 p.m.
stb - WCiMFH means Worst Coach in Michigan Football History
NotBob
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 2:12 p.m.
Sometimes you just gotta wonder if these bickering clowns really have a life!
Joe Kidd
Tue, Jun 21, 2011 : 8:26 p.m.
They don't.
stb
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 12:37 p.m.
What does "WCiMFH" mean??
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 1:51 p.m.
Worst Coach in Michigan Football History. WCiMFH And MCC = Man Crush Crowd, a club whose membership consists of those who cannot get over their love of the cheater who was the WCiMFH, and who therefore trash Lloyd Carr as the source of all of the football program's problems and who, in the case of dear Lorraine, simply make it up (as in Bo Schembechler, a year after he died, supporting the hiring of the soon-to-be WCiMFH). Good Night and Good Luck
truebluefan
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 4:14 a.m.
"The only people who thought there might be bad blood were the fetishists who wish the WCiMFH were still here." Huh? Sorry, but this comment makes absolutely zero sense.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 9:25 p.m.
Lorraine wrote: "you DO continue to mis-speak falsehoods. You DO twist other's comments." Let's go to the tape, shall we? On December 21, 2010, Lorraine wrote: "Or are the rumors true that Bo himself, and Don Nehlen both supported Rodriguez for the new HC job, when LC left?" At: <a href="http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/dave-brandon-michigan-football-team-must-return-to-business-as-usual/?plckFindCommentKey=CommentKey:962a0a68-205e-4eda-aabb-31376b1cf74">http://www.annarbor.com/sports/um-football/dave-brandon-michigan-football-team-must-return-to-business-as-usual/?plckFindCommentKey=CommentKey:962a0a68-205e-4eda-aabb-31376b1cf74</a> Bo died in November 2006. Coach Carr announced his retirement in December 2007. The only conclusion that can be drawn is that Lorraine thinks Bo communicated from beyond the grave. Or that She's makin' it up. And much like the ex-half-term governor of a national park, having been caught makin' it up, Lorraine keeps doubling down on that bet. Good Night and Good Luck
Lorain Steelmen
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 9:10 p.m.
Eddy the Ghost. I think you just proved my point. You DO have these fetishes, and you DO continue to mis-speak falsehoods. You DO twist other's comments, to fit some weird pre-conceived agenda of yours. You ARE wrong about MANY things To set the record straight, AGAIN...Lorain is NOT a person, it IS a city in NE Ohio. (Not too far from Berea (Tressel), or Elyria (Miles), or Fremont (Lytle/Woodson), or Sandusky (Rather), or Barberton (Bo). These towns all have a LOT in common. They ARE blue collar, football towns. Not that you could grasp ANY of that. Turns out, my first contact with Earl Bruce was at Lorain High, when the 'Steelmen' played the Sandusky 'Blue Streaks'. 'Earl' was their HC for a couple of years, before he headed over to Massilon. That pretty much rules out the little old lady crap you spew forth. Incidentally, as a 225 guard, I was not LHS's biggest lineman in those days. (He went about 270.) So you may be right about 'little'. But I DID love playing old fashioned, hardnosed football. Again, you would NOT comprehend that. Finally, I DID say that Bo supported RR while RR was at WV, based on news articles, written to give some background on RR. But you continue to DISTORT that, and the obvious timing of that. You twist it, to create a 'nonsensical strawman'. You falsely claim I said BO 'came back from the dead'. Oh really! Actually, I did NOT say that. What I DID say, was that BO followed RR's career, probably through mutual conversations with Don Nehlen. (BTW, I suspect Bo followed others as well.) What you obviously FAIL to grasp, is, that BO had many of the SAME traits, and 'bluecollar' background as RR. I can see that YOU don't like that, since YOU obviously DON'T have the same background I have. As bluecollar guy, I worked my way through UM, by working at US Steel, Lorain Works. Clearly you like to denigrate others, who have a different view than you do. You like to mock others. It's obvous you'll never be able to relate to BO!
heartbreakM
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 9:01 p.m.
Well, I don 't think I could be classified as a fan of the former coach, but I was uncomfortable with Desmond Howard's comments. I'm glad that there is no apparent bad blood between the two, and glad that it is behind. I do think this 'he said, she said' is sort of humorous, though :)
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 8:36 p.m.
Lorraine wrote: "I think Desmond accidentally mis-spoke, and now he must backpeddle a bit, and put a smiley face" So having resurrected Bo, Lorraine is reading Desmond's mind? Good Night and Good Luck.
Lorain Steelmen
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 8:19 p.m.
DonAZ. I think Desmond accidentally mis-spoke, and now he must backpeddle a bit, and put a smiley face, on his comments about DRob. I did believe he bought into the Bo philosophy of the team being more important than any one person. And I agree with Howard, there ARE far too many 'self absorbed' athletes these days. But DRob is as decent a kid as we've seen in a while. He's gifted, but more importantly he is a team guy. I think all of us get a little frustrated with the Terrill Pryors' of the world. But for every TP, thwere is a Tim Tebow, or a Denard Robinson. I suspect that behind the sceens Howard has reached out to DRob, and made peace in the family. No harm done, DRob will keep movin' ahead.
DonAZ
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 3:25 a.m.
LS, I disagree with assessment. But I do so in a spirit entirely aligned with the conversational guidelines of this forum.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 7:52 p.m.
Lorraine wrote: "When it comes to fetishes....I think the Ghost pretty well corners the market. And you're right , Ed needs to let it go" Yeah. This from the little lady who, as recently as this weekend, continues to insist that Bo rose from the dead to support the hiring of the soon-to-be WCiMFH. Good Night and Good Luck
truebluefan
Tue, Jun 7, 2011 : 4:09 a.m.
Eddie, Just let it go.
DonAZ
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 8:17 p.m.
Just because it's going to come up -- "Lorain Steelmen" has indicated before that "she" is in fact a "he" ... Lorain is a town; Steelmen being a reference to (I think) a high school team name.
DonAZ
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 6:55 p.m.
Good character -- Howard and Robinson -- creates good sense, and good sense prevails. No direct comment on the other discussion point raised. But tangential -- I have a strong sense Al Borges will show far more offensive creativity than some on this forum realize. I recently watched a YouTube video showing every snap of the spring game, and this crazy talk about a return to "three yards and a cloud of dust" is just that -- crazy talk.
Lorain Steelmen
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 6:52 p.m.
Tater....Thanks for your response. Brief...and right on point. When it comes to fetishes....I think the Ghost pretty well corners the market. And you're right , Ed needs to let it go!
tater
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 6:37 p.m.
Only a person with a severe anti-RR fetish would find a way to turn something as cool and positive as this a referendum on the merits of various football coaches. Let it go, Eddie...
D21
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 7:20 p.m.
Sorry (Charlie) Tater Tot, Eddie got it right this time.
Edward R Murrow's Ghost
Mon, Jun 6, 2011 : 5:56 p.m.
The only people who thought there might be bad blood were the fetishists who wish the WCiMFH were still here. The rest of us have no problem taking meaning from written and/or spoken English. Good Night and Good Luck