Michigan Football: Brady Hoke's Wise Words Should Help Every Coach in America

Brady Hoke has made quite the splash in Ann Arbor; he won double-digit games in his first season at the helm for the Wolverines and got Michigan back to a BCS bowl game. The man is tearing it up on the recruiting trail, and everyone with the Maize and Blue is looking forward to the 2012 campaign with their Heisman hopeful, Denard Robinson.

Hoke's also talked about playing scrimmages against opponents in the spring, something we've been more than thrilled to hear coaches supporting.

It turns out the Wolverines' head coach is not done showing off just how well he "gets it" where college football is concerned. In fact, Hoke goes so far as to say something that even Ohio State fans cannot scoff at. From Hoke's speech at the Kettering, Ohio Agonis Club awards banquet, Doug Harris of the Dayton Daily News brings us this winner:

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“No. 1, we have an actual signing day for a reason. That is, they can change their minds until they sign. This is competitive. This isn’t ... I’d like to say golf — don’t take offense. I’ve never heard of agreements or not agreements. Look, they’re 18 to 23 years old. They got a lot going on, more so now than when I was 18 to 23.”

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Yes, folks. Unlike Bret Bielema and Mark Dantonio, Hoke is absolutely ready to fight the good fight when it comes to recruits, all the way down to the wire if that's what it takes. He understands that there is fierce competition for these young men's services, and with everything coming at them, they reserve the right to change their mind, even at the last minute.

Hoke is not pulling a Les Miles and saying if a kid doesn't go to Michigan, then he doesn't have "the chest" to wear the Blue. No, Hoke is saying recruit them until they sign and let the chips fall where they may.

This is something that the bulk of the coaches in the SEC understand. This is something that Urban Meyer understands. This is something that Hoke clearly understands. This is something that every coach in America should understand.

"Should" is the operative word here; because even though it should be understood, guys like Dantonio and Bielema still do not get it. Recruiting is not some wonderland where everyone plays nice and the only "toys" they need are the ones that they already have. Recruiting is a big sandbox, and if you can get a better shovel or bucket to help build your sandcastle, then you take it. 

Let's face it. Coaches are hired to get fired. Their jobs are on the line. Getting talent is a big part of keeping that job, and if you have to drive 100 miles per hour to do that, then you pick up the pace and get after it. If you pass someone in the process, that's on them for failing to keep up, not on you. As Hoke says, "this is competitive," and if you don't want to run the race at full speed, don't expect folks to stop for you.

Hopefully, coaches are on board with this because those who are not are doing their programs a disservice. Recruit kids hard; let them make the decision with their pens and fax machines in February. As a coach, that's really all you can, and should, be doing.