Fire Warde Manuel

Submitted by ThadMattasagoblin on February 6th, 2024 at 6:31 PM

Warde is basically just a nicer Dave Brandon at this point. I get that he isn't going to keep every good coach at Michigan but at some point you have to ask yourself why he can't keep John Beilein, Erik Bakich, Jim Harbaugh, Adam Steinberg (M Tennis), Jesse Minter, Ben Herbert, Mike Elston etc. That's a lot. You have his administrative issues like Zavier Simpson, Shemy, NIL, Mel Pearson, not backing Jim Harbaugh with the TRO/NCAA stuff. He doesn't want to fire Juwan when the men's basketball team is perhaps the worst non mid-major team in the country. Michigan's nonrevenue sports are tracking downward besides wrestling. Everything he does takes forever and sometimes doesn't get done like Harbaugh's contract, investigating if OSU hired the PI firm, or making a decision on Mel Pearson. If Michigan doesn't fire him now, it will get worse. They will lose players to other schools with better NIL deals, they will lose more coaches, they will lose money from donors etc.

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Frank Chuck

February 6th, 2024 at 6:42 PM ^

Hilariously, ThadMattasagoblin is the same user who started the Fire Harbaugh thread on November 28th, 2020.

https://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/fire-harbaugh-10

The internet is forever. (It's funny to see some of the board regulars argued for firing Harbaugh.) 

"It ain't getting any better next year." - ThadMattasagoblin

It did in fact get better - MUCH BETTER - the following year.

/I don't like Warde Manuel but some of my reasons are different than the reasons of reactionary Michigan fans looking to scapegoat someone whenever something negative happens. I had a role in pitching a NIL collective to Warde which he turned down. It was funny to see him come around less than 12 months later...

//Michigan needs an aggressive, visionary Athletic Director. Unfortunately, Warde Manuel thus far has not shown anything to indicate he fits that description.

Joined: 05/01/2015

MGoPoints: 15858

Frank Chuck

February 6th, 2024 at 6:53 PM ^

I won't go into all of them but 3 bigs ones were the following:

1.  "Transformational, not transactional" 
2. Uncertain ROI
3. Questions surrounding lack of guidelines or guardrails

Btw, Warde Manuel isn't totally in control. Some of it is also lack of clear leadership from the regents. At times, Manuel is a mouthpiece and not a leader with total agency. (And I find that very annoying. We need an adaptive pro-NIL AD who will advocate relentlessly for *his* (or her) vision of Michigan Athletics and implement it with a clear, actionable plan.)

Joined: 05/01/2015

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Frank Chuck

February 6th, 2024 at 7:02 PM ^

I graduated from Michigan in the 2000s. I used to be on 247Sports as Frank Chuck (not Chuck Frank). But I stopped posting when the board was closed. The Michigan board was one of the last open boards on the 247Sports network. That changed permanently after the merger with Scout.com. (I don't know if I can even log into that account any more.)

I did take courses at U of M Ross and Law School for the combined MBA & JD dual degree program. But I took an extended hiatus to pursue an opportunity...

Joined: 05/01/2015

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Frank Chuck

February 6th, 2024 at 9:27 PM ^

Yes!

We anticipated what the objections would be and came up with solutions.

He still wasn't convinced at the time. 

But at least he came around. It's still not clear to me what led to his change of heart but better late than never. That said, it sure would've been nice to work with a proactive AD who can see around the corner, ya know?

Joined: 05/01/2015

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ThisGuyFawkes

February 6th, 2024 at 6:58 PM ^

Johnny on the spot -- thank you! Not surprising that there seems to be significant overlap in those calling for Harbaugh's head with those calling for Warde's. Well guys, if we listened to you last time, we probably aren't coming off of back-to-back-to-back B1G championships, wins over OSU and playoff berths + a national championship.

So maybe, everybody should calm down and take a breath....

Joined: 09/16/2019

MGoPoints: 6487

Frank Chuck

February 6th, 2024 at 7:16 PM ^

Yeah, isn't it hilarious that some Michigan fans hated Warde for not firing Jim Harbaugh after the irregular COVID 2020 season?

Now they want him fired for not finding a way to retain Jim Harbaugh at Michigan.

/Like I said above, I don't like Warde Manuel but I have principled reasons. 

Joined: 05/01/2015

MGoPoints: 15858

jmblue

February 6th, 2024 at 7:15 PM ^

Well, you can search my post history but you won't find a post by me calling for Harbaugh to be fired, while I'm convinced that Manuel is a problem.  Under his watch we've been hemorrhaging our most successful coaches.  People whose opinions I trust have said that both Beilein and Harbaugh couldn't stand him.  

I'm almost as big a basketball fan as football, and now that program - a national power under Beilein - is a smoking crater.  How big of a breath do you want me to take? 

Joined: 11/07/2008

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ThisGuyFawkes

February 6th, 2024 at 7:31 PM ^

Hemmorhaging our most successful coaches is doing quite a bit in that statement.

Beilein went to the NBA - which didn't work out BTW. I would be much more convinced that he was "salvageable" or even that Warde was the problem if he went on to take another job, particularly another college job. Maybe the dude was just at the end of his rope, or maybe he wanted to chase a dream, or maybe Warde was such an asshole that he drove him out -- I don't know and you don't know

Harbaugh -- again the same people that watned him fired 4 years ago are now all up in arms because he left. The main person responsible for Harbaugh leaving is Jim Harbaugh... He did the same thing for 3 years before he finally left and as to why he left - you can use the same questions as above for Beilein. People ignore the fact that Harbaugh had all the power, if he came out and said I really want to be here, but I need an administration that supports me do you really think he couldn't have gotten Warde fired and damn-near handpicked his replacement?

Joined: 09/16/2019

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Gooseggs

February 6th, 2024 at 7:36 PM ^

There differences in the calls to fire beilein or harbaugh and those calling to fire warde, even if some of the same people are making those.

harbaugh and jb had a lot of success before coming to umich and also had success at umich prior to their challenging years. Sure it wasn’t all rosy but there was a track record to look at.

wardes track record either at UConn or at umich is very different. 

Joined: 07/16/2016

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JacquesStrappe

February 6th, 2024 at 8:10 PM ^

Look, I don’t think Warde has done a terribly great job in the optics or communication departments but to say that he was unsuccessful at UConn is just not true. During his three year tenure UConn won 6 national championships, which I believe makes him one of the most successful of UConn’s ADs. Of course you can argue that Warde didn’t have to do much since  most of those were basketball titles, but they cleaned up under his watch and if he is gonna take blame when things don’t work out he also gets to take credit when they do. Fact is, I know nothing about how he runs the AD and neither does anyone else here.  The worst that I can say is that he does not inspire confidence in me and seems to play everything too close to the vest.  But that could be because he it ia out of his control and he is on a very short leash. He may be merely following the directives of the administration or the regents and would like to appear more engaged but cannot for fear of ruffling feathers. Or he really could be oblivious to how his leadership is publicly perceived. We just don’t know. But apparently someone must have confidence in him because he is still here…at least for now.

Joined: 04/19/2019

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DHughes5218

February 6th, 2024 at 9:58 PM ^

I’m not a regular poster and I disappear during my busy season at work, but I’m a regular lurker. I think I was a Harbaugh defender, but I believe I may have even caved and suggested that maybe we should consider other coaches. Anyway, I don’t think the situation with Warde is the same thing as Harbaugh. Jim had a lot of bad breaks that would’ve changed the opinion of him before 2021. Warde however hasn’t done anything that I can think of to suggest that he’s the right man for the job. 
I could be forgetting or missing something, but I have nothing in the pro column for Warde and a number of items in the cons. I think it’s time to move on and find someone who is a little more aggressive, that our coaches will respect, and someone they know will fight for their success.

Joined: 10/04/2014

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Blau

February 6th, 2024 at 7:38 PM ^

As someone who falls squarely into the "Walmart Wolverine" realm by the populous definition, I hereby denounce Warde from our sect and must assert that he is truly a Michigan alum if only by both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees he has attained in addition to his playing career. Hell, I've been told by posters on this board within the past season that I can't truly know what the UM/MSU or UM/OSU rivalries mean all because I attended a different academic institution. Fair enough but I guess I can't root for the Detroit Lions as I've never lived in the City of Detroit or appreciate an Eminem rap lyric or song because I've never lived in a trailer park off of 8 Mile. Funny how the shade of green on my hard-earned dollars to purchase season tickets is the same as the alumni though... Hypocrisy is a bitch, I guess. 

Back to Warde - By all accounts, if he had been the AD during Lloyd Carr's or Bo Schembechler's era, he would be lauded for his old school thinking and lack of interference or decision-making. That said, a small part of me understands his unwillingness to accept the eventual fate of college athletics. For example, there was was post on the board earlier today titled "Anyone else planning on riding off into the sunset after this season" where the gist of the OP was essentially that with all the new changes to the CFB landscape (mostly due to NIL), the desire to remain a "diehard" fan will greatly diminish going forward. This is the same sentiment shared by Warde and while it will most certainly be his undoing, it's hard for me to call to call the kettle black as it's one I share as well.

Warde's inability to relate to current student-athlete's needs and motivations is astounding given the writing on the wall has been there so long it's starting to fade. His unwillingness to embrace the changes Harbaugh fought so hard for, and his penchant to defer judgement on issues until they have reached his superior's approval is enough to know a change of scenery is needed. But if you are the old man yelling at the clouds regarding all of the changes to CFB, remember you are essentially expressing the same ideals as Warde Manuel. 

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TheCube

February 6th, 2024 at 6:33 PM ^

Personally think Dave Brandon would thrive in the NIL era. He’s a douchebag, but he’d know how to market and navigate this NIL bs better than Warde. 

Joined: 12/19/2018

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Michfan777

February 6th, 2024 at 6:36 PM ^

Both are awful but I think Brandon would be better suited as well. Though poor Moore would have to deal with him in film review 🤮

Warde seems like a cheap ideologue who is either unwilling or unable to adapt to where the college sports are heading - either of which is reason for immediate termination.

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Midukman

February 6th, 2024 at 6:39 PM ^

No doubt. And wouldn’t have bent over for the big and the ncaa like Warde did. I have nothing personal against Warde, but it seems like there’s a black cloud over the program that needs lifted. Whether it’s Wardes fault or not, we need a fresh start. Hire the lady from Pitt. 

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