U of M thread (in the Lions Forum) :)

[chemiclord]

Yeah I agree. Kind of like dickrod having Threat looking like a fish out of water running his horrible offense the first year. That was a really bad start.

I thought the same thing about Denard chem. I thought he was already out the door ala Mallet

Well, for what it's worth, Gardner would be a bit of a better fallback option than Threet. If there is one thing Rodriguez did improve (the only thing?) it was the depth at the QB position.

[Malto Marko]

We'll see how he feels after trying to run whatever offense Hoke wants to employ, but its an encouraging first sign. I was expecting Robinson to keep his distance before (semi)quietly slipping away to another school.

If Hoke means what he says about running an offense that takes advantage of the talent he has rather than force a square peg into a round hole, I'll give him more credit than I originally figured. But that "play to the strength of the team" is a line I've heard before that inevitably meant nothing.

You mean Rich Rod proclaiming right after he was hired that he is a good coach and can utilize current talent and coach to their strengths while holding meetings and practices that preached my f'n way or the highway and alienating so many that lead to the largest exodus in school history?

[DanO]

Still not enamored with Hoke as coach. I just think he's going to be a little over average. Blahhhhhhh. Hope like hell I'm wrong.

GO LIONS "11" !

[nhwbrooklyn]

Hoke sounds a little like....

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_YK9wVK6IQ&feature=related"]YouTube - What to expect out of life...[/ame]

though I'm sure his recruiting technique is more refined by now.

[FVD]

As far as how he sounded in his press conference, The guys on the Dan Patrick show compared Hoke to Chris Farley's Matt Foley character.

.

Hoke sounds a little like....

YouTube - What to expect out of life...

though I'm sure his recruiting technique is more refined by now.

[nhwbrooklyn]

Any excuse to youtube chris farley I'm going to take.

[nhwbrooklyn]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NayAEKoLj2g"]YouTube - Hoke heads to Michigan[/ame]

[nhwbrooklyn]

Fun times.. after seeing Hoke you can tell he's a guy who's hard not to like.

And the hints of Farley is never a bad thing.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-C0T44XMKo&feature=related"]YouTube - Chris Farley - best on Conan 1994-1995[/ame]

[chemiclord]

You mean Rich Rod proclaiming right after he was hired that he is a good coach and can utilize current talent and coach to their strengths while holding meetings and practices that preached my f'n way or the highway and alienating so many that lead to the largest exodus in school history?

That is the most recent example I can think of, yes.

[LightninBoy]

YouTube - Hoke heads to Michigan

Ok - I'll back off my criticism of the hire and wait for results on the field. This guy obviously bleeds blue. I hope his passion translates into success on the field.

[nhwbrooklyn]

Look after just one youtube of seeing this guy talk I can already tell he has about 5 times the personality of Dantonio. I'm a little jealous in that regard.

Dantonio is a great hire, but man, he's in Carr territory as far as personality goes. That said, it seems to me MSU needs a no nonsense serious guy like that.. a good fit for where the program and culture is at, but it might just be that Hoke is what UofM needs.

[Cody_Russell]

Did Michigan hire a defensive coordinator yet?

[gjdodger]

No. Hoke is bringing his OC, Al Borges, from SDSU.

[gjdodger]

From sportsradiointerviews.com:

New Michigan Football Coach Brady Hoke Continues to Make Strong Early Impression with His Plans and Visions for the Future

January 14, 2011 – 10:15 am by Michael Bean
The University of Michigan feels they got the right guy when they announced on Tuesday that Brady Hoke would be the 19th head coach in the program’s rich 131 year history. Hoke, a former Michigan assistant during the 1997 championship season, had spent the last eight years building up two lesser programs – Ball State (’03-’08) and San Diego State (’09-’10). He’ll face a much tougher task resurrecting a Wolverines program that carries sky-high expectations into every year despite the reality that there’s some tough disadvantages the program faces in today’s college football landscape.
Hoke joined WDFN in Detroit to talk about how this new chapter in Michigan football is about the kids as opposed to him achieving his personal goal of being the coach in Ann Arbor, what he plans to do to change the culture of toughness, something that’s been missing in recent years, how he doesn’t think Denard Robinson will opt to leave the program, how he wants to make sure that everybody that is there wants to be a part of the Michigan program and tradition, and what the plan is to land better recruits in the future.
Whether he’s gotten accustomed to hearing his name as the new head coach at a storied program like Michigan:
“Well you know that’s not what this program is about. It’s about those kids that wear that winged helmet and this legacy and that tradition that goes with. So we’re just excited to be here, excited to hit the ground running, and obviously we’ve been pretty busy doing a lot of different things to help Michigan win.”
On what he plans to do to quickly change the culture of toughness at Michigan:
“Well it’s all going to start with what we do in the winter and our winter conditioning program and the competitions that we like to do, and just how you handle it. I think there’s a lot to do with just the mental things, having your shirt tucked in, the little things like taking care of the locker room, the little things that emphasize all the things that you need to do. It’s a mentality, and it’s a demeanor that we want to have as a football program.”
On what his first steps have been in terms with meeting with players:
“Well I’m trying to meet with the seniors first and foremost, because we’re going to coach for the seniors, and we’re going to play for the seniors. Those guys understand the struggles of being through spring football for four seasons, or fall camp for four falls, or understand the winter conditioning, and are guys that pay the price. At the same time, there’s a higher expectation for our seniors in this program in how they lead, how they influence, and how they play the game. With Denard we’ve had great conversations, he’s excited about Michigan and leading Michigan and being a big part of the program.”
Whether it might be best for all involved if Denard Robinson leaves if he’s convinced himself that he’s no longer a good fit:

“You never want a guy that doesn’t want to be in a program. I mean that’s obviously not what you want. But I don’t think that will be the case. I think we’ve had a tremendous two days together in our conversations, and he wants to earn a degree from the University of Michigan and be a part of this program and this tradition.”
On how he’s focused on talking about this specific team rather than the ‘family’ of Michigan football that’s largely based on the past:
“Well there’s no question. And the team is part of that family though. The team is what this is about. This is not about a coach, this is not about an individual, this isn’t about a scheme, this is about a football team and a band of brothers or whatever you want to call it, being together, being accountable to each other, working for each other, respecting each other and going out there and competing every day with one another.”
On what his plans are to get more talented recruits to Michigan:
“Well obviously we need to assure those guys who have committed and who love the University and have committed to the University of Michigan, staying with those guys arm in arm. The other thing is as we look at where we’re at, and where our depth is, and the different positional needs that we may have or feel we may have, making sure that we’re doing a great job of the evaluation of the character of the young men we want in this program, the evaluation of their understanding of getting a degree, and understanding of the passion it takes and the representation that it takes to be a Michigan football player.”

The link to the audio (I think) is: http://a1135.g.akamai.net/f/1135/182...erp_%26_Killer

[WingsFan]

Hoke is saying all the right things, he sounds like someone who knows the D he is moving Will Campbell back to defense. Looks like DR will be playing for him, everyone seems to like him around town too (unlike RR, LC has his back). This still will only tell in the Ws.

Michigan now has its own version of Dantonio. The former assistant who has come back to lead his program to glory - and has no plans to go anywhere once he does. The free pass is over for the Spartans. They’d better be prepared to fight for their state.