Alabama: The U of M Template

The greatest cure to any problem in sports is winning.  Off the field issues seemingly disappear and team chemistry is at an all time high when a team consistently wins.  After all, what is there to worry about?  There are plenty of examples of this in sports, many of which are very recent. 

Last year, Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall threw a tantrum all throughout training camp because he was unhappy with not only his contract, but also the way he felt the staff treated an injury of his.  He asked to be traded twice before the season, but after a quick 6-0 start, he was right back on the bandwagon and was not a character issue any longer.  It was not until Denver ended the season by going 2-8 that Marshall once again spoke of it being his last season as a Bronco, and in turn, he was traded to Miami. 

Similarly, Urban Meyer’s Florida Gators have taken college football by storm over the past few seasons.  Meyer has won two of the last four National Championships and sent many players to the NFL in the process.  Throughout his tenure in Gainesville though, Meyer has seen 30 arrests involving his players.  That’s quite a large number.  I couldn’t imagine the kind of backlash Rich Rodriguez would receive if even a quarter of Florida’s detainee’s were wearing Maize and Blue. 

It is understandable though.  For such a prestigious program to have the seasons we’ve had these past two years, we should expect a larger amount of scrutiny than most.  Some of it has been warranted, but all things considered, the outpouring of media-led accusations have come largely at the hands of our football team’s failure. 

Michigan has been tossed around like a rag doll in the wake of an NCAA investigation into the overtraining of our players.  The issue is currently on the backburner, but a surefire way to get rid of it altogether is to win on the field.  One model to look at is the reigning national championship team, the Alabama Crimson Tide.

The year is 2005 and the Alabama Crimson Tide had finished with a 10-15 record over the previous two seasons.  Head coach Mike Shula was entering his 3^rd season as the Head Coach and he was to be caught in the middle of one of the larger scandals of our time.  He was about to win ten games. Ten games that would eventually be vacated because his players would illegally obtain textbooks at the school.  The following year he would also be forced to vacate the mediocre six victories his team would win that season.

After the season, he would be fired for his involvement and a new coach would lead the Crimson Tide, Nick Saban.  Saban’s first season was marred by the scandal and the team was forced to vacate five of their seven wins.  This is where it gets interesting.  Despite the previous few seasons, Saban would manage to recruit himself the #3 class in the country.  Although they would lose both the SEC Conference Championship game and their Bowl Game in his second season, they would end their regular season undefeated. 

With the book scandal in the rearview mirror and a winning coach in the driver’s seat, Alabama would go on to become the instant hot bed for recruiting.  They would not only sign four five star recruits to their squad, they would steal Trent Richardson late in the recruiting process from SEC rival LSU.  The next season they would raise the National Championship title and their starting running back, Mark Ingram, would himself hoist the Heisman Trophy. 

The average fan probably doesn’t remember the pit that Alabama Football was in just a few seasons ago, but all that matters now is the fact that they stand atop the College Football scene. 

The University of Michigan has always been synonymous with excellence on the football field.  Many records under their belt, they have the most wins all time and the highest winning percentage.  Although they have always had to fight the warmer climate schools for recruits, they manage to pull in talent because of the history, academics and pro success of many of their players. 

Heading into the end of Lloyd Carr’s career as the head coach, a big question loomed.  Do we go with ex-player and assistant coach to Bo Schembechler Les Miles?  Or, do we head in the direction of a younger, riskier choice in Rich Rodriguez, whose offense could tear apart traditional Big Ten power football as we know it?  Although rumors swirled that Miles had accepted the position (which he vehemently denied), Rich Rodriguez was selected to run the ship in Ann Arbor. 

Carr seemed to have taken much of the talent with him, as many of the prospects from the 2007 class left for the NFL, leaving Rodriguez with quite a bare cupboard to start his U of M career with.  Moving from a pro-style offense to a spread takes time, and Rodriguez suffered nine losses in his first year at Michigan.  This would be the most losses a Wolverine team would endure in its 129-year history. 

The second season under Rodriguez started with a bang.  His team would open the year 4-0, a record that was due largely to a recruiting class that was tailor made for the spread offense.  Although they would only win one more game, improvement was shown and another Rodriguez type class would be the end result. 

Heading into this season, a young Michigan football team would be vastly improved.   They would not only have a more developed sense of the system, they would have put on size more suitable for a Big Ten schedule.  There were not many analysts that had us starting off 2-0 considering we played two up and coming programs. Rich Rodriguez and his system had other ideas and his personal extension of it, Denard Robinson, would set a record in just his first career start. 

Robinson is the exact guy Rodriguez has coveted to run this spread offense.  Not only has he done it to perfection, he’s attracted what is becoming a new thing in Ann Arbor, Florida recruits.  Lloyd Carr was always able to recruit on a national stage because Michigan has always been prevalent around the country, but the spread offense has opened up opportunities for athletes from the Sunshine State. 

Just as Alabama did, Michigan will recruit around the country better than ever before with the success this season will bring.  I mentioned in an earlier article that players like Seantrel Henderson, Marcus Lattimore and Jeff Luc were outspoken about their interest in Michigan until the losses started coming last season.  In the same way, Karlos Williams, Ray Drew and DeAnthony Thomas could jump onto the radar if we continue to flourish on the national stage. 

Along with the success and recruiting, the transferred players and NCAA investigation will fall behind unnoticed.  Winning isn’t everything in college football, but it sure can disperse bad news faster than anything else.  If Rich Rodriguez and his spread offense continue to dominate this season, rest assured Alabama will be fighting Michigan for recruits in the near future.