Blog Focus: Is Time Running Out For Rich Rodriguez at University of Michigan?
When Rich Rodriguez was hired to rebuild the football program at the University of Michigan, it was assumed he'd have a minimum of three years to recruit his players, install his system and return the team to respectability.
After a 3-9 first season, followed by a second season that saw the team start 4-0 and then lose six of the next seven games to fall to last place in the Big Ten, patience might be wearing thin. The blogosphere has already begun speculating:
The Big Lead: "Michigan is rebuilding. Talent and depth issues are not Rodriguez’ fault. He deserves at least another year to show progress. However, with every game, press conference and news release the justification shifts. The argument for keeping Rodriguez was the forthcoming greatness. Now, it’s because the expected utility of keeping him seems greater than that of blowing up the program for a second time."
MGoBlog: "At this point we're forced to confront the fact that Rich Rodriguez going bust after four—or even three—years is a real possibility, so the actions of one Jim Harbaugh at Stanford are of considerable interest."
LeBron's Town: "I think it’s safe to say a victory against OSU would save Rodriguez’s job. So it looks like on Saturday OSU can win the Big Ten outright, beat Michigan for the sixth straight year, and end the Rich Rod era at Michigan."
Maize N Brew: "here was nothing new to write, no new thought to contribute, no outcome worth dissecting. I was done with the football season and ready to let it fade into Bolivian. And then you opened your mouths. Trying to create something out of nothing. Calling our coach a bitch. Insulting the fanbase. Opining on the inner workings of our athletic department without a clue about what you were talking about. Acting like a malcontent child who got his way for the first time in his life and doesn't know what to do with himself."
With Leather: "Rodriguez has only been in Ann Arbor for two years and still has four years left on the deal he signed in early 2008. Weis is in a similar situation with the 10-year extension he signed in 2005. Each coach has a buyout clause in his respective deal worth enough to revitalize an African country of his choosing: $4 million for RichRod, and Weis is owed a whopping $18 million."
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