This is a lesson for Athletic directors (Speaking to Manuel)....

[Reality Man]

I knew in my gut this was going to be an issue down the line. I swear I did. It's hard to hire a coach from a completely different region of the U.S. and keep them happy in a totally different culture. I am talking about our former mens tennis coach.

I used to live 40 minutes or so from Pepperdine. California is very different than the Midwest (DUH). Unless you are throwing lots and lots of money at someone...it's hard to deal with the different culture.

Weather, etc. I could not move because me and MY wife have tennis so ingrained in our life. So the point of the post is for Manuel to understand the limitations of hiring people let's say from Tx to come to MI.

Harbaugh...from the Midwest. Wife has to be happy or their will be problems. Coming from WVU to MI isn't that big of a culture shock. The womens tennis program has a lady from FL but I heard the money is really nice they threw at her and she has delivered. I know she loves raising her family in Ann Arbor. I think you can go from East to Midwest but anything outside of that is going to have challenges. I heard that one of the reasons Johnny Orr left UM is because people at UM didn't really like his hick schtick.

Let's be honest...Frieder really left UM because of the presence of Bo.

"It was clear after visiting Tempe that the innovation and forward thinking at Arizona State presented an opportunity I could not pass up and I can’t wait to get started," said Steinberg. “I want to thank President Crow, Ray Anderson, Don Bocchi, Gabe Cagwin, Scottie Graham, Rocky Harris and Steve Webb for sharing the vision to make Tempe the southwest hub for tennis in the United States while pursuing collegiate championships. Through the alliance with the ITA, I not only get to coach, mentor, and develop our student-athletes, but we have a chance to impact the sport of tennis as a whole by providing access and resources to expand and promote the game. I really enjoyed my time at Michigan and appreciate the opportunity they gave me."

 

[ArrowheadBlue]

And how did that work out for Frieder? Isn't he selling shoes now? Using your analogy, Pete Carroll wouldn't have worked out at USC. Isn't Dumtonio from S. Carolina area? What about Chip Kelly at Oregon? How come PSU and Nebraska are so dominate in women's volleyball. Is there sand in either location?

Izzo and Dantonio seem to be working together rather well in Moo-U town. I guess I don't understand your point of view.

 

[Reality Man]

Should I take back what I said since Steinberg is NOW back at UM?


Back to my point. Izzo/Dantonio are Midwest guys. Steinberg was a west coast guy. Who knows why he came back? Tempe too hot? I like Tempe although that game against KSU wasn't pleasant.

My point is it's hard to keep people from Florida or CA happy in Michigan. Want some additional proof? Take a gander over at the MSU womens tennis coach who resigned (after doing relatively well at MSU) to go back to Florida.

I prefer to hire good coaches and have them finish out their career at UM rather than hire/resign/hire over the course of 5-10 years. This isn't about being 'successful' but understanding the keeping someone with roots in an entirely different part of the country is just a bigger challenge.



RM

 

[anon_sg4bgyiuileo1]

So, the only way anyone will ever be happy is if they stay right where they are. Maybe we should go after only mid west kids as well.

Got it.

 

[Reality Man]

Did I say that? Hmmm.


I thought I was talking about coaches and my point still stands. I think AD's need to hire coaches who have some understanding of the Midwest or come from a similar environment.

How about another recent example. MSU hired the former womens tennis coach at Northern Arizona University. Now this is more northern Arizona but the coach I guess has roots in Chicago. Tough to get people from CA or Florida to raise a family and live in a completely different environment....not like 4 years as a student athlete.

Point still stands.



RM