Time to Reboot Michigan Football

It seems clear to all that the Michigan football program will be under new management next year. The vultures circling around head coach Brady Hoke are growing more brazen. They smell blood and will not give up until Hoke is gone. It also seems clear that AD Dave Brandon will be thrown to the curb with him. Whether or not QB Shane Morris--and the school is finally admitting that he had suffered a "mild concussion"--should have returned to the game the other day is now becoming the driving force to folks hoping for change. That does the topic of brain injuries in football a disservice as we are cherry picking here. If Hoke was popular we would not be making as big a deal over this situation. But since he is not the story has grown bigger than if, say Nick Saban, had done the same. Now, of course, we can say that Saban would not have done this but let's make one thing clear. A lot of concussed football players are returned to games. Many successful coaches have made this same mistake. My point is that the importance of following protocol in this situation is the same for all coaches. Let's not make it too big a story in Ann Arbor because everyone already wanted the football program changed and then not make it a story somewhere else. The irony here is that Hoke was a goner because of the scoreboard. The team has fallen apart in this his fourth year and keeping Morris out of the game would not have saved his job. I am surprised that he has not been fired yet but perhaps the powers that be want to determine the fate of everyone responsible for this mess before acting here. Something does have to happen soon because the new coach will have to retain the excellent recruits Michigan has reeled in for next year. The wealth of talent on this team and the financial resources available still make this job attractive. But there is a big difficulty facing whomever does take the Michigan job. The Wolverines are surrounded by enemies in Michigan State, Notre Dame (now off the schedule but still a rival for local power) and Ohio State who are all in excellent health. There is only so much talent and press to go around. Michigan must hire someone up for the challenge of competing with these heavy hitters in the race for Midwestern supremacy. The job is not for the weak of heart.