Why Rod's No Fraud: History of Rich Rodriguez and Why He Must Stay! (Part II)

Here it is at long last, Part 2 to the two-part series fighting to defend the name of Rich Rodriguez.

With the 2008 season officially coming to a close after a 42-7 beatdown from OSU in the Shoe, the Wolverines stand with a school-record nine losses on the season in opposition to only three wins. This was the worst season UM has endured since 1963; the heat is only going to increase.

Rich has led this team to hell as many would say:

Led the team to worst loss to OSU since 1968 and third worst loss to OSU in school history...Check!

Most losses in school history...Check!

Lost to Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State in same year for just second time in school history...Check!

Led team to it's first bowl-less season in 34 years....Check!

Well, it doesn't look too great, but guess what? It is still just the first year.

No matter how bad or how unbearable the season may have been, the Michigan fan base cannot judge him just yet. A season like this next year than there would be nothing wrong with calling for his head.

Just not this year...

Rich Rodriguez felt heat long before arriving in Ann Arbor. Why? Well the contract situation, of course. Is this deserved? To some degree, yes; however, he gets more heat than he deserves.

When Rich left that forced WVU to file a "breach of contract" against the former coach.They filed this after he failed to pay the first installment of his buyout clause.

Rich did breach the clause in his contract; therefore, it went to court, but, it was allegedly the heads at UM (AD Bill Martin and school President Mary Sue Coleman) that encouraged Rich to go through with the lawsuit.

Why? Well in the buyout of former WVU basketball coach John Beilein, Michigan managed to convince WVU to lower its price. So they tried to do it again, only WVU didn't budge this time.

The lawsuit dragged on not because of Rich, but because UM wanted to get the offer they desired. It didn't happen and the settlement came to a close.

Rich got a lot of heat and blame for this, even though a lot of it also should have fallen on Michigan.

People complain this cost Michigan. No it didn't. this lawsuit settlement wasn't even a scratch on the Michigan bank account. UM's endowment ranks amongst the highest of all universities across the nation. So no harm there.

Rich is still paying his part, so no worries.

Also, reports indicate that Rich's agent, Mike Brown, had threatened to take his client elsewhere early in the 2007 football season, according to a story by the AP.

It was no secret that Rich didn't get along with new WVU President Mike Garrison. It as been speculated that this is why Rich left WVU.

But it wasn't just Rich who left for this reason, but Beilein as well according to some reports. It is also rumored that current WVU basketball coach Bob Huggins wouldn't come because of conflicts with Garrison as well.

Rich's issues with Garrison stemmed from when Garrison wouldn't spend the money to increase seating in the stadium and improve facilities. Instead, Garrison is said to have improved the box seating for friends and other high ranked officials.

Rich didn't take that too well.

No mistake about it, though; Rich did breach his contract agreement; however, he is not fully at fault for this. WVU and Michigan should take a share of the blame as well.

Could the situation have been avoided? Yes.

Could the situation have been handled better? Yes.

Should Rich have taken as much heat as he did for it? No.

Enough about the lawsuit situation though; on to more important things.

Recruiting! This has been an issue on everyone’s mind. Everyone seems to worry that Rich can't recruit at Michigan or that going 3-9 is going to hurt Michigan recruiting.

Worry not everyone, Rich is doing great on the recruiting front, and our record hasn't hurt. If anything, it has helped.

Here is a piece of an interview with highly sought-after DE recruit and Michigan prospect Sam Montgomery regarding how the state of Michigan football has affected (or not affected) his thoughts on the University:

"I just want to get there and see the school, see the people, see what kind of facilities they have and the academic program they are going to have set up."

"It really doesn't matter to me what kind of season they have," he said. "The thing that matters to me is what guys are coming in and what guys are there because I believe with my leadership qualities and my work ethic, if I get around guys that believe they can win and want to win, regardless of what the record is this year, we can have a chance to play for a championship."

"It really doesn't mean much who is coming in at my position and the competition, it just matters who the coaches are and the players that are already there," Montgomery said. "Wherever I am going to go, I am going to work hard, I'm going to learn about the ins and outs of the game and work my way to the starting position."

This kid's attitude also goes to show the types of kids Rich wants to get. As you can tell from Montgomery the fact that UM is 3-9 has no impact on his decision as to if he wants to attend Michigan or not.

Here is another excerpt from an interview with '09 Michigan commit Michael Schofield in his feelings toward UM and the coaches:

"I just felt comfortable with Michigan," said Schofield, who played wide receiver and linebacker with the Orland Park Pioneers youth program. "I liked the coaches and everything about it."

Any regrets with the mighty Wolverines struggling this season?

"Not at all," said Schofield, who wears size 16 shoes. "I know we're going to be good real soon."

This kid shares a similar attitude to that of Montgomery above. Hard working and no-nonsense.

Kids still want to be at UM, but there have been four decommits from the '09 class thus far (DT Will Campbell, K Anthony Fera, WR Bryce McNeal, QB Kevin Newsome).

This has worried many,for a lot of people think this was a part of our record or because of the coaches.

LB commit Jordan Barnes doesn't feel this way in his interview regarding him and his commitment status changing from a solid verbal to a soft verbal:

"I'm still committed to Michigan, but I just want to make sure I am making the right decision," he said. "There's no concerns at all; Michigan has done everything. It's not so much that I'm not comfortable with Michigan, I just want to make sure I am making the right decision before Signing Day. At this point I am still expecting to sign with Michigan."

Most these decommits were caused by the fact that the kids committed too early, not because of coaches or records. Besides, decommits happen everywhere across the nation.

Even with the decommits, Rich has done more than enough to fill the voids.

Michigan lost DT William Campbell (who is expected to rejoin the Wolverines again after the U.S. Army All American game), but gained commits from four-star DT/DE DeQuinta Jones and four-star DT/DE Pearlie Graves.

Michigan lost QB Kevin Newsome but gained commits from two four-star QBs. Shavodrick Beaver out of Texas and highly sought after Tate Forcier out of California: One step back and two steps forward. Both are set to enroll into Michigan in January as well.

Michigan lost WR Bryce McNeal but have two freshmen (Stonum and Odums), one sophomore (Hemmingway), and one junior (Matthews) who will all see time over McNeal, most likely regardless of his commitment.

He would have been a big pick up but not a need for us. Besides, Rich has two 2010 commits at WR. Both are basically sealed deals that have strong ties to U of M. Florida WR commit Ricardo Miller is projected to be the top prospect in the state of Florida next year.

Michigan lost highly rated kicker Anthony Fera. Kicker is one of UM's top needs this year and losing Fera seemed like a huge loss. At the time he decommited he seemed like the only option, however, as of two weeks ago UM received a recruiting tape.

That tape belong to kicker Brandon Gibbons which Michigan originally had little interest in. But once seeing that tape, Michigan and Rich Rodriguez would not deny this kid a chance. After witnessing the kid nail field goals of 65, 61, and 60, Rich immediately offered the kid and our kicker needs were once again filled.

As mentioned before, Rich has 2010 commits. Both are highly rated at their respected positions (both WRs). Carr did not have this kind of success in future classes. That goes to show Rich's attitude toward recruiting. He hits hard and he hits not just the now,but the future.

The current 2009 class is expected to finish in the top 10 and may very well end up in top 5. Five-star DT William Campbell is reportedly still leaning toward Michigan, and four- star S Vlad Emilien is announcing his commitment to either Wisconsin or Michigan, or word has it anyway.

The announcement is set for Nov. 23, the day following the OSU game. Reports have Vlad leaning towards towards Michigan.

A commit from Vlad would give UM three commits in under a week, two of which being four stars.

Taylor Lewan is the one expected to commit next. He is a high school teammate of current UM commit Craig Roh and is making his first visit Dec. 6, in which Roh is expected to tag along.

Lewan is a 4 star OT that has seen numerous offers come his way in the last few weeks. He is an Under Armor All American and is very high on the Wolverines right now,that in large part to his good friend Roh that is always in his ear about Michigan.

We are still getting even more interest from high rated kids than we were at the beginning of the year,that is thanks to Michigan's record. Who would think the school's biggest curse may end up a blessing.

Kids like four- star LB Tana Patrick had this to say about UM (one of only two non-SEC schools in the bidding for his services):

"Michigan is playing a lot of young guys this year and I think I could play early there," he said. "I know they haven't done well, but I think that coach Rich Rodriguez will get things going once he's gets some more guys in...It would definitely be great playing for a program with such great tradition."

Well what do you know...being 3-9 has its positives, doesn't it?

There are no issues with recruiting despite peoples fears, thinking he can't get the right guys. The man is good. He has improved connections in Florida and is bringing in plenty of speed.

Jordan Barnes, the UM LB commit mentioned above,runs a 4.4 40 and is getting near the 4.3 range. How many LB's around the nation have that speed? Answer, not many if any at all.

Something that has been seen more than anything is people questioning why he is installing his system this year and not slowly implementing it over the next year or two.

For those that think he should have slowly implemented it, think about this. Why, with a team of mainly freshman and sophomores, would he input his offense next year for the sake of maybe getting 1-3 more wins when he can get them into the system now and get them the experience?

Yes, it will cost Michigan this season, but it will help Michigan in the long run.

Think about it. The young guys get the year under their belt and when these QB's come in next year, while they will be inexperienced, the team around them will be experienced. That is opposed to having the new QB playing inexperienced along with his teammates being inexperienced as well.

Basically, a losing season was imminent.

In time, this decision will pay off. It will give Michigan a better chance next year as well. With the freshmen getting four years under their belt, by their senior year they should be very good. If Rich waited, not only would he have still wasted this year, but next year as well.

That would only delay the transition.

Do not question Rich for pounding the square peg through the round hole.He has been through this before. He is a college coach for a reason, just like you are a fan for a reason. He knows the sport inside and out while you, the fan (despite what you may think), does not.

So if Rich thinks jamming the square peg in the round hole will work, then dang it, let him do it.Give him time to prove himself. You all don't expect immediate results, do you?

Traditions...this is were a lot of people have had issues with Rich. Well first off the man is an outsider who isn't expected to know all UM's great traditions.

Rich claimed he had read Bo's book "Tradition."

But he still made a critical mistake in his first few months at Michigan. He gave the legendary No. 1 jersey to a freshman, and not just a freshman but a defensive back to boot.

But wait if you have read the book by Bo, it does not mention the value of the No. 1 jersey. So with that said, can he truly be faulted for this?

Rest assured, Braylon Edwards let him know what he had done and Rich cleaned up his mistake.

Rich took away season captains. Oh well, pre-game captains aren't always the guys your players look to anyway. They are just guys. Anyone can step up to the role of captain, regardless if they are labeled as captain. That is on the players to step up, not Rich.

The bowl streak was snapped. Oh well. Yeah, that is right; oh well! It is a number that no one outside UM cares about. It is only a number to take pride in and nothing more.

Let's look at the good Rich has done regarding tradition. How about the scarlet and gray dummies he has used in practices...all year.

Or how bout Rich bringing back the Victors Walk, a tradition that Bo stopped.

How about Rich's open-door policy to all current and former players.

Rich can't be too bad, can he? Desmond Howard has given his full support to Rich ,and Rich Leach loves the man.

Howard was supportive in his interview, go here to listen:
http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/football/index.ssf/2008/11/howard_on_wtka.html

Former great Rich Leach was outraged by fans' impatience in his interview with WTKA. He is in full support of UM's new head coach. Leach is more than certain that Rodriguez is the man for the job if given the time. Leach appreciates the respect for the past players that Rodriguez had.

Leach had this to say about the head coach: "Every year at either the MSU game or OSU game, a bunch of former players get together for a chili and cornbread dinner,this year it is the MSU game.

"To our surprise, about an hour before kickoff Rich Rodriguez came into our area and talked to us. I couldn't believe it.This man took the time to come see us former players an hour before kickoff. He came in and talked to us and thanked us for our support.To me that shows a lot about Rich, and I love him for it."

He continued, "We(the former players in attendance) were allowed to stand along the banner before the players came out.....I was standing about 10 yards from where Rich and his captains were standing at the tunnel and I could see a fire in his eyes. This man has a lot of passion...."

There you have it .If former players are throwing their support behind Rich and are saying he will be great, and seeing they know Michigan football (and football period at that) better than you the fan, shouldn't you maybe give him a little more support too?

Rich has been scrutinized and questioned in regards to his disciplining of players.

Well, that shouldn't be questioned.

Rich was tested early this year after RB Kevin Grady was arrested for a DUI.Rich quickly suspended him one game. People thought that wasn't enough time but if you think about it that was enough time to set Grady back.

He missed out on practice and failed to get time in the offense. Also, consider the amount of carries Grady has this year. Still think he hasn't gotten punished?

Then there was Mike Milano, who attacked a UM defenseman for the hockey team.After being receiving numerous charges including attempting severe bodily harm and assault. Well, Milano is no longer a member of the Michigan team.

Now to Zion Babb. It was originally thought that Babb left the team under his own reasons. However, recent reports have indicated that Babb was kicked off the team for a violation of team rules.

Rich still sound like he doesn't discipline?

Family values has also been questioned thanks to Justin Boren,that is all that will be said about that kid.

Boren claimed Rich had tarnished the family atmosphere and that is what caused him to transfer.

It is no secret that Rodriguez and staff cuss but that does not diminish family values. Didn't Bo cuss? Why yes, he did.

If a kid can't handle words than there is no reason for him to be on a football team.There is no reason for them to even call themselves men.

So a coach cusses you out,so what? It is a good thing for coaches to have this aggressive mentality.It provides a killer attitude and the players can feed off of it.

The whole "Oh, it's okay, you will get them next time" attitude doesn't cut it. You have to want to kill if you want to win today. It is a dog eat dog sport and there is no room for softness.

But back to the values.

Leach's interview regarding Rich visiting the former players before a game shows he has family values.

Rich having an open-door policy shows a sign of family values.

Within his first couple months at UM, Rich held a women's football clinic in which he appeared to enjoy. Proceeds went to support breast cancer research.

Rich had a fund-raiser thrown for Brock Mealer,brother of UM freshman OT Elliot Mealer. Brock was paralyzed in a car accident that killed their dad and Elliot's girlfriend,while Elliot suffered a shoulder injury that sidelined him all year.

The fundraiser was thrown to raise money to help pay for Brock's rehab.

Who was one of the minds behind this? Rich Rodriguez, that is who.That shows family values. Oh,Rich is so heartless and cares for no one, doesn't he? Not quite.

Every summer, Rich has all the position coaches cook dinners for the players they coach. This is an annual event in which the coaches take the time to make dinners for these kids.

Not only do they make dinner, but they also take the time to talk with the players and get to know them. That is family values.

Basically, Boren is a lying fool that just couldn't handle the new intense workout regimen.

As it stands, Rich is a Michigan man. He has done nothing truly wrong to tarnish the name for which he represents: MICHIGAN!

Even if you are a fan who wants him gone, get over it. Rich has already signed a big contract extension with the Wolverines.

It is a six-year deal worth about $2.5 million annually. In it are added incentives, including bonuses for beating OSU, making bowl games, and winning the national championship amongst other things.

So if you think Rich cares only about money and not winning, well, guess he is going to want to win now, huh?

Get used to seeing his face, haters, because he is here for a while. Stop the crying and move on.

Michigan took there bumps this year,but for just one second take a step back and take a good look at the big picture. It is ok to do that it will not hurt you.

There is nothing wrong with optimism. There is nothing wrong with being realistic either. However, there is an issue with being realistic when it goes from realism to criticism.

All that needs to be said is that the sun will shine again, Michigan fans. Don't concern yourselves with just what is happening now. Like I mentioned before, take a look at the big picture for once.

Maybe find that hope you are searching for....Go Blue! until the bitter end.