RichRod and the UM Problem: Plus Michigan Politics and Movie Recommendations...

The holidays are not a friend to bloggers.  There’s too many distractions (albeit good ones) and consequently my pledge of making two blog entries per month fell short in December.   Nonetheless, I am back in 2011 with a renewed effort to document my thoughts in the AfterWords blog.

RICHROD AND THE UM PROBLEM

Let’s start with the dominant news story here in Michigan this past week.  Even if you’re not a sports fan, you had to work hard not to follow the end of the Rich Rodriguez Experiment at the University of Michigan.  Mercifully, RichRod, as he came to be known, was cut loose by UM earlier this week in what can only be described as death by bleeding.

These events are not necessarily unusual – football coaches are fired in December and January with the same frequency as deer being killed by drivers on the highway.  But when it happens close to home, and especially at UM, I think some observations are merited.

One thing I’ve taken away from the RichRod debacle is this:  UM fans are in denial.  Watching the UM faithful in the Big House the past three years has been similar to watching a 36 month funeral.  The simultaneous looks of contempt, grief, anger, shock and embarrassment has been measurable.   I have many, many friends who are among this group, and when I hear them talk of what used to be, and what can be again, I believe a reality check is in order.

UM’s last three seasons under Lloyd Carr totaled a 27-11 record (Note:  MSU’s last three season record:  26-11).  That’s roughly a 9-4 average.  Hardly anything to be ashamed of, but also not on par with Florida, Alabama and Ohio State.  Those same three seasons also did not include a single Big Ten title.  In fact, in Carr’s last seven seasons, he won just two Big Ten titles and went 2-5 in bowl games.  Nestled among Carr’s regular season losses was the infamous 2007 loss to Division I-AA Appalachian State. 

I mention the UM reality check because the fans I listen to speak as if UM was perennially winning league and national titles before RichRod.  In fact, UM has had a long, slow descent from the halcyon days of the 70s and 80s, when it regularly experienced undefeated or one-loss seasons.  The entire landscape of college football has changed since then. 

Michigan is a microcosm for the problems that ail the Big Ten Conference.  The Big Ten is stubborn, mired in tradition, and thinks far too highly of itself relative to its actual results in athletics.  It has been dragged, kicking and screaming, to such novel concepts as post-season basketball tournaments and league expansion.    I mean, this is a conference that holds itself in such high regard it refuses to acknowledge its name is two digits off from reality.

So, the Michigan faithful may need to adjust their expectations.  There’s no doubt Rodriguez deserved to be fired.  Many Wolverine fans felt that Jim Harbaugh was a panacea for all that ailed the Maize and Blue nation.  But Harbaugh left Stanford yesterday for the NFL, and he won’t be coming to Ann Arbor anytime soon.  UM needs to shed this “Michigan Man” nonsense, hire a man with head coaching experience, and marinate in the reality that it may take five years to rebuild the brand. 

It’s tough medicine for UM to swallow, but taking a page from Ohio State might be wise.  Jim Tressel was a Baldwin-Wallace graduate (yes, Baldwin-Wallace) and coached at Youngstown State for FIFTEEEN years before ascending to Columbus.  His football pedigree BEFORE coming to Columbus has made Ohio State the envy of the Big Ten.  Michigan can return to its former glory, but only if it acquires the humility to look itself in the mirror and realize that the past is not the key to its future.

AM I A SPARTAN OR A WOLVERINE FAN?

Full disclosure on my allegiances:  I was born into a home led by an MSU grad.  My Dad bleeds Green.  Not Green and White, just Green.  Dad is a graduate of MSU’s famed Agricultural College.  He can passionately describe the nitrogen value of a legume, but he wouldn’t know the spread offense from peanut spread.  So, I grew up both a UM and an MSU fan, and there never seemed to be any particular problem with rooting for both teams.

Second, my career path took me 20 years ago to Michigan State University.  I spent ten good years working at MSU, the Pioneer Land Grant Institution.  My first three years were spent working in the Athletic Department.  Thirdly, I earned a Masters Degree from MSU.  Consequently, I tend to favor the Spartans. 

However, I cannot pass the litmus test for being either a True Spartan or a True Wolverine.  Simply put, I am unable to generate great hate for one school.  In fact, I like both places.  This makes me a loathsome creature to both sides, a sort of lukewarm , independent observer.   So, when I write of Rich Rodriguez, please note I am not writing with any great vitriol against either East Lansing or Ann Arbor.

WELCOME GOVERNOR RICK SNYDER

This past week Michigan welcomed a new Governor – a Republcian – to office.  It has been eight years of decline during the Jennifer Granholm administration, but to be fair, the national economy and the auto industry did not do her any favors.

Snyder is a millionaire who made his fortunes in the computer business.  He ran under the moniker of being “One Tough Nerd.”  I am slightly optimistic that he can avoid being sucked into the vortex of bureaucracy that is State Government.  But better men have failed. 

Michigan’s problems can be encapsulated in a conversation I had this week with a right-leaning State employee.  When I asked my friend if he was excited to have a new boss, his response epitomizes the problem.  “Yeah, I just hope he doesn’t cut my pay.”   Translation:  “I’m all for cuts as long as they don’t affect me.”

State employees have been largely spared the deep cuts we in the private sector have endured.  Personally speaking, I and many others have accepted furlough days, across-the-board salary reductions, increases in co-pays for health care, removal of matching 401(k) benefits, and deep cuts in fringe benefits like auto and gas allowances. 

However, stubborn unions appear to have learned nothing from watching the UAW ruin the Big Three.  As long as state employees are allowed to collectively bargain for unrealistic wages and benefits, Michigan will continue to lag behind the nation and may very well follow states like California into receivership. 

There’s a groundswell of backlash building against the powerful unions who organize state and federal employees.  If Snyder is to get his arms around Michigan’s problems, his first priority should be to negotiate union contracts down, and then move towards dismantling them altogether.

This is a task for one tough nerd….

MOVIES

The Holidays allowed me to get back into the theater and feast on the typical year-end menu of Oscar hopefuls.  In the past two weeks I’ve seen True Grit, The Fighter and The King’s Speech.  Below are my quick comments and ratings.

TRUE GRIT – Jeff Bridges is no John Wayne, but he does an admirable Rooster Cogburn.  The Coen Brothers are fairly faithful to the original movie, and the scenery and cinematography are pleasing to the eye.  Matt Damon in a supporting cast continues to stretch as an actor and take on secondary roles that build his credibility (Ben Affleck, please take note).  Rating:  3 out of 5 stars.

THE FIGHTER— Begins as just another boxing movie, and one that starts out dark and unnerving.  Mark Wahlberg is likeable and sympathetic in the role as real-life boxer Micky Ward, who boxes in the shadow of his drug-addicted brother, Dickey Ecklund.  What makes this movie so great is the performance by Christian Bale as Ecklund, the realistic fighting scenes, and the surprisingly inspirational and upbeat ending.  As boxing movies go, this one keeps it real since it is based on actual events.  Be prepared for the Amy Adams you never knew, in a trailer-trash-girlfriend supporting role.  Rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars.

THE KING’S SPEECH:  I’m a sucker for period pieces, and love British actors.  Hence, no surprise that The King’s Speech had me at h-h-h-hello.   This amazing movie chronicles the real-life struggles of King George VI, who led England during World War II.  The King inherits the throne from his philandering brother, Edward, who abdicates the throne when he marries a twice-divorced American.  The new King has a terrible speech impediment, and is horrified to give the radio speeches required to galvanize the United Kingdom during the war effort.  Colin Firth plays the King and is a shoo-in for a Best Actor nomination in a restrained and disciplined effort.  But Geoffrey Rush is the perfect complement to the stammering king as his infectious speech therapist.  Additional support comes from the incomparable Helena Bonham-Carter as the King’s wife.  The movie includes relevant character appearances from such notables as Winston Churchill and the current Queen Elizabeth.  In short, I loved this movie.  Rating 4 out of 5 stars.

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Thanks for reading.  As always, comments are appreciated.

Talk to you AfterWords…