... just briefly, but it's something to think about. Has anyone's passion for college football been dampened at all by the revolving-door rosters?
•••
Doug Skene isn’t anywhere near Clint Eastwood’s age. But he could still intimidate, even without a rifle.
The former Wolverine also isn’t old enough to fit into most people’s definition of “Get off my lawn” status. But he’s got five Big Ten championship rings, a deep love for Michigan, and maybe just a hint of “Get off my Field Turf” in him.
He’s excited to see Michigan take the field again. He embraces witnessing a new offensive line, and has no problem with redshirt sophomore Joe Milton and redshirt freshman Cade McNamara battling it out at quarterback.
There’s a part of him, though, that wishes Dylan McCaffrey remained in the mix.
McCaffrey, by all appearances, loomed as the heir apparent behind center for the Wolverines. He’d done nothing but raise expectations — at least from the outside — from the time he showed up in Ann Arbor three years ago.
The bloodlines were certainly there. McCaffrey’s dad, Ed, won a trio of Super Bowls with Denver and San Francisco. Dylan’s brother, Christian, starred at running back for Stanford. Dylan himself came in rated by a couple of services as the sixth-best QB prospect in the nation.
He had all the numbers, throwing for 2,796 yards and 31 touchdowns as a prep senior. When he actually got on the field for Michigan, he looked like he belonged.
Now he’s just another what-if memory, a Jason Kapsner redux. The Big Ten’s vacillation on playing a season opened the door for players to leave without penalty. Milton’s leap forward presumably bumped McCaffrey out of this one.
“In some ways, it’s disappointing,” Skene mused. “Here’s another highly recruited young man who showed some real flashes of encouragement in the time he played. He was a gutsy player. We saw that, with the way he ran with the football, he led with his shoulders and upper body, when he was trying to get some extra yardage.
“Those tiny little things that coaches may not like with their quarterback, because it leaves them open to injuries … as a fan, as a former player, as a lineman, I love those things. You need a quarterback who is gutsy.
“Again, just like all the other guys who have come and gone from Michigan in the last few years, that we have these high expectations for, yet they never see the field. The combination of reasons that led up to them leaving — whatever it is — is disappointing.”
Now, understand something. Skene’s taking no shot at McCaffrey. He wished him well, like everyone who watches and enjoys college football should.
In this instance, the former U-M quarterback is just the introduction to making a larger point. Skene doesn’t like the revolving door in college football — at all.
It’s not unlike baseball old timers bemoaning Curt Flood and the ushering in of free agency to baseball. That led to pitchers turning down $145-million offers and bolting to greener pastures (thanks, Max Scherzer).
It IS a little different in college football, though. You know, push through adversity. Those who stay will be champions. It’s in Skene’s blood, and it’s nowhere to be seen across the college landscape.
It’s absolutely not all on the players. Many programs make room for the next wave on rosters like old-school recess kickball captains telling the fat kids to go stand by the fence and await injuries. We’ll call you if we need you.
So it’s little wonder that when players get to use the transfer portal, and take advantage of increasingly lax movement rules, they do.
Skene’s just not crazy about it.
“The era that I enjoyed with my teammates [1988-92] just feels like it’s so prehistoric and long ago,” he said. “We never would have dreamed of leaving. I understand — it’s different now.
“It just feels like college football — not just Michigan, but college football — has become more of an NFL developmental league than ever before. With the lack of loyalty to the programs, and the lack of program loyalty to the players — these guys are like interchangeable parts.
“Come and go, whatever. You come, you try, you don’t like it. You don’t like the way the roster shakes out, or we don’t like you, we’ll find a way to mutually transfer each other. I’m talking from the program to the player and the player to the program.
“That part, it just feels like it’s gone forever, and that’s one of the parts that was so great. That I personally benefited from, and my teammates benefited from in our experience. Guys just come and go.”
He’s seen it happen in Ann Arbor the past few years more than ever before. Other long-time observers might point out that plenty left when Bo Schembechler first came to town, leading to the “those who stay” challenge.
But this has a different feel. It’s not a one-time, change of regime exodus. It’s all the time, to the point that getting excited about a redshirt freshman who demonstrates some promise might just be a waste of time.
Something has been lost, Skene worried. Something significant.
He noted: “They say, ‘I’m a Michigan Man forever, and they leave town without a Michigan degree, without that senior M ring, and old, crusty guys like me say, ‘Yeah, I’m not so sure about that. You didn’t have the same experience we did, so I don’t think you understand what that means when you say these things out loud, or on your social media platform.’
“It doesn’t mean I don’t wish them the best. Of course I wish these guys the best. They’re chasing their own dreams. I get that part. But they fell short of what they came to Michigan for in the first place. And that part’s disappointing.”
•••
Doug Skene isn’t anywhere near Clint Eastwood’s age. But he could still intimidate, even without a rifle.
The former Wolverine also isn’t old enough to fit into most people’s definition of “Get off my lawn” status. But he’s got five Big Ten championship rings, a deep love for Michigan, and maybe just a hint of “Get off my Field Turf” in him.
He’s excited to see Michigan take the field again. He embraces witnessing a new offensive line, and has no problem with redshirt sophomore Joe Milton and redshirt freshman Cade McNamara battling it out at quarterback.
There’s a part of him, though, that wishes Dylan McCaffrey remained in the mix.
McCaffrey, by all appearances, loomed as the heir apparent behind center for the Wolverines. He’d done nothing but raise expectations — at least from the outside — from the time he showed up in Ann Arbor three years ago.
The bloodlines were certainly there. McCaffrey’s dad, Ed, won a trio of Super Bowls with Denver and San Francisco. Dylan’s brother, Christian, starred at running back for Stanford. Dylan himself came in rated by a couple of services as the sixth-best QB prospect in the nation.
He had all the numbers, throwing for 2,796 yards and 31 touchdowns as a prep senior. When he actually got on the field for Michigan, he looked like he belonged.
Now he’s just another what-if memory, a Jason Kapsner redux. The Big Ten’s vacillation on playing a season opened the door for players to leave without penalty. Milton’s leap forward presumably bumped McCaffrey out of this one.
“In some ways, it’s disappointing,” Skene mused. “Here’s another highly recruited young man who showed some real flashes of encouragement in the time he played. He was a gutsy player. We saw that, with the way he ran with the football, he led with his shoulders and upper body, when he was trying to get some extra yardage.
“Those tiny little things that coaches may not like with their quarterback, because it leaves them open to injuries … as a fan, as a former player, as a lineman, I love those things. You need a quarterback who is gutsy.
“Again, just like all the other guys who have come and gone from Michigan in the last few years, that we have these high expectations for, yet they never see the field. The combination of reasons that led up to them leaving — whatever it is — is disappointing.”
Now, understand something. Skene’s taking no shot at McCaffrey. He wished him well, like everyone who watches and enjoys college football should.
In this instance, the former U-M quarterback is just the introduction to making a larger point. Skene doesn’t like the revolving door in college football — at all.
It’s not unlike baseball old timers bemoaning Curt Flood and the ushering in of free agency to baseball. That led to pitchers turning down $145-million offers and bolting to greener pastures (thanks, Max Scherzer).
It IS a little different in college football, though. You know, push through adversity. Those who stay will be champions. It’s in Skene’s blood, and it’s nowhere to be seen across the college landscape.
It’s absolutely not all on the players. Many programs make room for the next wave on rosters like old-school recess kickball captains telling the fat kids to go stand by the fence and await injuries. We’ll call you if we need you.
So it’s little wonder that when players get to use the transfer portal, and take advantage of increasingly lax movement rules, they do.
Skene’s just not crazy about it.
“The era that I enjoyed with my teammates [1988-92] just feels like it’s so prehistoric and long ago,” he said. “We never would have dreamed of leaving. I understand — it’s different now.
“It just feels like college football — not just Michigan, but college football — has become more of an NFL developmental league than ever before. With the lack of loyalty to the programs, and the lack of program loyalty to the players — these guys are like interchangeable parts.
“Come and go, whatever. You come, you try, you don’t like it. You don’t like the way the roster shakes out, or we don’t like you, we’ll find a way to mutually transfer each other. I’m talking from the program to the player and the player to the program.
“That part, it just feels like it’s gone forever, and that’s one of the parts that was so great. That I personally benefited from, and my teammates benefited from in our experience. Guys just come and go.”
He’s seen it happen in Ann Arbor the past few years more than ever before. Other long-time observers might point out that plenty left when Bo Schembechler first came to town, leading to the “those who stay” challenge.
But this has a different feel. It’s not a one-time, change of regime exodus. It’s all the time, to the point that getting excited about a redshirt freshman who demonstrates some promise might just be a waste of time.
Something has been lost, Skene worried. Something significant.
He noted: “They say, ‘I’m a Michigan Man forever, and they leave town without a Michigan degree, without that senior M ring, and old, crusty guys like me say, ‘Yeah, I’m not so sure about that. You didn’t have the same experience we did, so I don’t think you understand what that means when you say these things out loud, or on your social media platform.’
“It doesn’t mean I don’t wish them the best. Of course I wish these guys the best. They’re chasing their own dreams. I get that part. But they fell short of what they came to Michigan for in the first place. And that part’s disappointing.”
