Brady Hoke Hired By Michigan: Why He'll Be Just As Bad As Rich Rodriguez
The University of Michigan has named Brady Hoke as it's new head football coach.
Michigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon made the announcement official on Tuesday after Jim Harbaugh made the decision to go to the NFL, and Les Miles decided to stay with his current position at LSU.
Hoke will replace Rich Rodriguez, who was pushed out of Michigan after the worst three-year span in school history.
But while Michigan did make the decision to go with Hoke, it is no secret that Hoke was not the school's first choice. He will likely have a ways to go before he can even think about getting the Wolverines back to where they once were. But, what's to say that Hoke won't be run right out of Ann Arbor, just like Rodriguez was?
Here are 10 reasons why Brady Hoke will be just as bad as Rich Rodriguez was at Michigan.
10. Not a Big Name
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Rich Rodriguez was not a "Michigan man," but he was a "big-name" coach, so that installed whatever initial confidence the university had in him.
But with Brady Hoke, he is a Michigan man...sort of. Hooke did not play football at Michigan, but he did serve as Michigan's defensive line coach from 1995-2002. But Hoke is not a big name by any means.
Had it not been for this hire, it wasn't likely that Hoke was going to get any head coaching looks from any other big name schools. So essentially, Michigan flipped on its requirements and sacrificed being a big name coach for the fact that he is a Michigan man. We'll see how that works out for them.
9. Where Do You Look For Coordinators?
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It is a valid question to ask with the hiring of Hoke.
Greg Robinson was nothing short of horrible as Michigan's defensive coordinator and needs to be replaced once Hoke comes in. Rich Rodriguez was an offensive minded coach, and with Hoke being a defensive minded coach, he will need to bring in new staff on the offensive side as well. But the question is, who wants to take these jobs?
If Michigan struggled this much to get their third option for the head coaching position, what kind of effort is it going to take to get some top-notch coordinators? The chances just aren't in their favor.
8. Back to Pro Style Offense
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Just when Michigan's offense began to show some positive signs this season, gone is Rich Rodriguez and the spread offense that he spent all three years trying to teach his team.
In comes Brady Hoke, whose team ran a pro style offense at San Diego State. Now, this isn't to say that Hoke can't hire on an offensive staff that knows how to run a spread.
But, to break it down: Michigan ran the pro style under Lloyd Carr and had much success with it. Then came Rich Rod, who installed the spread style and recruited all the necessary athletes whose games fit the spread. Now, Rich Rod is gone, the pro style offense comes back, but the players there are all familiar with the spread.
It looks as messy as it sounds.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7. Hasn't Coached Anywhere Even Close To This
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Ball State and San Diego State are good schools and generally play good football in their respected divisions.
But coaching at the University of Michigan doesn't even come close to compare to coaching at those two schools. Michigan is the winningest program in college football history. Fans, alumni, and everyone involved with the program expect success, and nothing less.
Hoke does not have the level of experience needed to succeed in this job. Maybe in time, but not right away.
6. He Won't Beat Ohio State Anytime Soon
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Rich Rodriguez had a below .500 record at Michigan. He got accused of violating major NCAA rules. He got booed out of town.
But most importantly, while at Michigan, Rodriguez had an 0-3 record against Big Ten rival Ohio State. It wasn't like he lost in some close games. The Wolverines got crushed in all three meetings between the two teams.
With the current lack of talent and the lack of highly-touted recruits coming in, it doesn't look like Hoke will be beating the Buckeyes anytime soon. The beat downs will continue, and fans will continue to get discouraged.
5. He Hasn't Won Anything
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The University of Michigan got turned down by Jim Harbaugh, got turned down by Les Miles, and settled for a coach who has a career 47-50 record as a head coach. And it's not like he had that record while coaching at an SEC school. He had that record coaching at a MAC school and a Mountain West school.
Like previously mentioned, winning is expected at Michigan. They have the most wins in college football. Now, what makes one believe that a coach who has a career losing record can turn Michigan around and make fans forget about the past three years?
4. Lack of Fan Support
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Michigan fans want to win, and they want to win now.
The past three years have been near-tramautizing for Wolverine fans and something that they want to put in the past and forget about as soon as possible. Michigan fans have very high expectations for their football team, perhaps expecations that they need to re-evaulate at this time.
Michigan fans were not sold on Rich Rodriguez from the second he arrived in Ann Arbor, and it was that very lack of support that helped drive Rich Rod out of town after just three years with the program.
If Hoke does not win in three years, he will likley be gone as well.
3. What Does He Have To Offer?
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Where Michigan was four years ago to where they are now is night-and-day.
They are not landing those top caliber athletes they used to. They don't rule the Big Ten like they once did. They don't even rule their own state anymore like they once did.
Michigan State has gotten the best of the Wolverines three straight years now and has been getting better in state recruits than the Wolverines through this rough time. That will continue to be the case unless Hoke can bring a winning tradition back to Ann Arbor.
Right now, the question is simple. What does Michigan have that other schools don't? A big stadium that seats a lot of people?
2. Recruiting
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Recruiting plays such a huge role in being successful in today's college football world.
But with the hire of Brady Hoke, the Wolverines do not have a hot recruiting name as a head coach, something that Rich Rodriguez was, despite his lack of success at Michigan.
In order to get back to the winning tradition, Michigan is going to have to be able to bring in talent through recruiting. Big-time high school players are not familiar with Brady Hoke and what he is about. They know what Michigan stands for, but not much about their new head coach.
Hoke is going to have to build a name for himself and show that he can have success in recruiting if he is going to be a long-term answer in Ann Arbor.
1. So Far Behind
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In reality, Michigan football just isn't what it used to be. That's not saying it can't potensitlity get back to greatness one day. But right now, where it stands, fans need to realize that the standards need to be lowered right now in Ann Arbor.
Rich Rodriguez set the Wolverines back a ways during his three years there, and now Brady Hoke is handed the challenge of fixing that mess that Rodriguez started. But realisticly, they still have a while to go before then can expect any drastic changes.
The talent just isn't there right now. The majority of the players on this team are only familiar with losing. They don't know what it's like to be successful in college football, and unless Hoke can bring that winning tradition back to Ann Arbor, his name could very well be on the hot seat in no time.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
