I 100% regret bitching about Coach Carr

[packersfantheo]

I was one of those fans that wanted Lloyd's head. I was born in 1990, so by the time I was into football, Michigan was pretty consistently dominant, especially over MSU. Towards the end of Coach Carr's tenure, I wanted him gone. I was tired of vanilla play-calling and tired of losing two or three games every year. He was half-assing recruiting, and he could never beat ohio*.

The appy st game was the last straw. There was absolutely no excuse for the team not being ready to play, which was often the case early in the season. My mom and I sat in silence for the entire hour car ride home after that game. To say I was disgusted is an understatement. That team was too talented to a D-1AA school.

I was also a RichRod supporter. I thought he would get the guys in shape before the season started, not half way through it. I thought he would dominate in recruiting. And I thought he would make Michigan's offense unstoppable.

Boy was I wrong.

I officially apologize to Coach Carr for wanting him fired. I'm an idiot, and in the past few years I've realized the error in my ways. I also apologize for thinking RichRod would be good for Michigan. But some good did come from this 4-year slump. I feel like I am overall a much better sports fan, and enjoy sports more because of it. I take no victories for granted anymore, which is why it will be that much sweeter when Michigan is back to winning Big Ten tittles and National Championships.

I feel better now.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

I wanted Carr to retire, I didn't want him fired. But I also wanted him gone and knew it was basically his call when he was going to leave - not ours. I didn't originally like the RR thing but I warmed up to it obviously. I don't know if I regret wanting Carr gone - what I regret is that we didn't have an AD capable of finding a Carr successor yet we all knew 2007 was probably going to be Lloyd's last year. Martin had well over a year to line someone up and we came out with RR. That's where the mistake was made. We've gone over this a million times before. Say we get Hoke in 2008. We probably maintain Mallet (despite him wavering) and we probably land Mark Ingram. Imagine where we'd be today with that. I guarantee 2008 wouldn't have been a 3-9 year. I do think it taught and is teaching our fanbase a pretty important lesson.

 

[Michchamp]

You should send this to Lloyd Carr c/o the Michigan athletic department.

He would probably just shake his head after reading the first line, ball up your letter and toss it in the trash. Then he would go back to looking at his Big Ten championship trophies, College Football Hall of Fame plaque, National Championship trophy, multiple coach of the Year awards...

 

[Guest]

So now Bill Martin cost Michigan getting Mark Ingram..?!


Props to you Theo; sounds like one of the board's younger members is also one of the most mature.

 

[wolverine304]

This guy is my twin. Born the same year, both fans of green bay and michigan.


I never wanted carr gone. Just better play calling. Why couldn't he call plays like he did vs florida in the bowl game. I also thought rich rod could score all over the slow big ten. Didn't think he would be so stupid/stubborn about everything.

 

[Michchamp]

So now Bill Martin cost Michigan getting Mark Ingram..?!


Props to you Theo; sounds like one of the board's younger members is also one of the most mature.

he's smart too. He's at an Ivy League school (it's cornell... but still)

 

[packersfantheo]

So now Bill Martin cost Michigan getting Mark Ingram..?!


Props to you Theo; sounds like one of the board's younger members is also one of the most mature.

Ha! Thanks, but I wouldn't go that far. I'm definitely pretty immature still - I've got a long way to go in the grand scheme of things.

 

[Michchamp]

Carr didn't call plays, his OC did.

 

[packersfantheo]

So now Bill Martin cost Michigan getting Mark Ingram..?!


Props to you Theo; sounds like one of the board's younger members is also one of the most mature.

he's smart too. He's at an Ivy League school (it's cornell... but still)

Whoa whoa whoa. Don't hate. It might be harder to get into somewhere like Harvard, but it's a lot harder to stay IN Cornell. I know first hand.

 

[packersfantheo]

Carr didn't call plays, his OC did.

That's like saying RichRod didn't run his defense. GRob did. While the statement is true, a head coach is responsible for play calling.

 

[Guest]

Carr didn't call plays, his OC did.

In the context of the one CapOne Bowl where we lit up Florida, that was an entirely different offense that incorporated the Colts 'spread' and gave Hart a few different looks from RB.

And when Manningham caught that pass with :01 left vs Penn State, Carr said he had no idea what play had been called. Agree about the ultimate responsibility but Carr (and Hoke) seem comfortable with coaching the offense from a strategic stand point, but not play by play.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

So now Bill Martin cost Michigan getting Mark Ingram..?!


Props to you Theo; sounds like one of the board's younger members is also one of the most mature.

In a round about way - yes. Ingram was a Michigan lean under Carr.

 

[Guest]

That's one big fucking roundabout!!

 

[Michchamp]

he's smart too. He's at an Ivy League school (it's cornell... but still)

Whoa whoa whoa. Don't hate. It might be harder to get into somewhere like Harvard, but it's a lot harder to stay IN Cornell. I know first hand.

haha, I know. Harvard, despite its reputation, has produced some pretty awful people over the years...

 

[Michchamp]

Carr didn't call plays, his OC did.

That's like saying RichRod didn't run his defense. GRob did. While the statement is true, a head coach is responsible for play calling.

no, it's not the same thing at all. I think by this point it's pretty clear we ran a 3-3-5 because RichRod told them to. Carr was very hands-off, as a HC should be, although at times, maybe too much so. Allegedly, the cause of the App.St. & Oregon debacles early in the season were due to him staying more remote in hopes that either DeBord or English would distinguish themselves as his successor.

RichRod, in contrast, seemed to be the WORST of both worlds when it came to managing his team, undermining the defense by insisting they run the 3-3-5, but then hiring and retaining incompetent or inexperienced assistants (Gibson, Hopson, Brathwaite), and staying remote from them.

 

[MAIZEandBLUE09]

That's one big fucking roundabout!!

I don't think so. If a Carr successor had been chosen who wasn't a spread option coach it's likely Ingram would have committed to Michigan. Obviously there's no way to know this at the time how good Ingram was going to be but saying that Martin hired the wrong guy who made recruits go elsewhere is not a big roundabout.

And sure it's not a 100% thing that Ingram would have come to Michigan. But going from Michigan lean to eliminating us because of a coaching hire is a pretty big leap.

 

[Guest]

You ever read Oedipus?

 

[biggunsbob]

Martin was a idiot... I blame everything on him... Carr seemed aloof his last few years.. I guess he was delegating but there is no reason to not be prepared early in the seasons and that happened time and time again under Carr.. I bought into RR and tried to hang on all the way to the Mississippi State game.. But after that game I knew it was time for him to go.. RR refused to even look at his defense and failed big time.. He was a fool when it came to Michigan traditions but I looked the other way for 3 years... That makes me dumb... Martin had so many opportunities to get a good coach in at Michigan and he was a bumbling stooge... Or at least be ready for Carr's departure. But the funny thing is if Carr wins that 2006 games at 0$U my guess is everything would have been different.....

 

[Guest]

Bill Martin is a commercial real estate developer by trade and socially awkward. His legacy will be the suites, the renovations at Crisler and the new Athletic Facilities for soccer, volleyball/wrestling, etc

Dave Brandon, on the other hand, is a business man who played football for Bo Schembechler. Both would qualify as candidates for the AD position, but I expect a far different feel under Brandon.

 

[packersfantheo]

That's like saying RichRod didn't run his defense. GRob did. While the statement is true, a head coach is responsible for play calling.

no, it's not the same thing at all. I think by this point it's pretty clear we ran a 3-3-5 because RichRod told them to. Carr was very hands-off, as a HC should be, although at times, maybe too much so. Allegedly, the cause of the App.St. & Oregon debacles early in the season were due to him staying more remote in hopes that either DeBord or English would distinguish themselves as his successor.

RichRod, in contrast, seemed to be the WORST of both worlds when it came to managing his team, undermining the defense by insisting they run the 3-3-5, but then hiring and retaining incompetent or inexperienced assistants (Gibson, Hopson, Brathwaite), and staying remote from them.

Ok you're right, that was a bad example. But either way, Carr was responsible for the team never being ready for the start of the season, and he was ultimately responsible for the play calling becoming predictable enough that each of the 110,000 fans in the big house knew what was coming every play.