OT: Malik McDowell waived by the Seahawks
Take your pick: Would Michigan have molded him into a better young man with a brighter future had he signed with us, or did we dodge a bullet by missing on him?
After that arrest video, this isn't surprising.
I wasn't even aware of it, but I just watched it. Wow. I hope to hell he was drunk out of his mind.
You mean a normal person doesn't believe earning a certain level of money entitles you to call someone a bitch? Shows what an MSU education will do for you. You can call someone a bitch when you are unemployed.
Really bizarre how this young mans life unfolded.
Your kidding right? He had train wreck written all over him. Doesn’t like discipline, authority, feels appointed, he’s a baby, talks smack, rules don’t apply to him,
come on dude, this was just a matter of time before this happened and everyone here knows it.
Listen to your mother.
And in light of all that's come out about Mork's program being filled with a bunch of dirtballs basically running wild, is it any wonder why a guy like McDowell with obvious maturity issues chose MSU over Michigan?
Mother knows best.
This is tragic, honestly. If you step away from the rivalry-partisan bickering, the fact is that a talented young man with some baggage had an opportunity to convert his physical talent into an education and/or a lucrative career, and all of that has been flushed away.
I hope he's able to change his direction, finish school, and build a good life.
In his arrest video he was bragging about having paid a million dollars in taxes, so I'm guessing he'll have to piss away all his money before this happens.
Article is a bit dated now, but I don't imagine much as changed since 2015.
"Sports Illustrated recently estimated that 80% of retired NFL players go broke in their first three years out of the League."
https://www.forbes.com/sites/leighsteinberg/2015/02/09/5-reasons-why-80-of-retired-nfl-players-go-broke/#1684892b78cc
Dude is going to end up cruising for chicks in East Lansing, and getting rejected, while hanging out the passenger side of his best friend' Oldsmobile 88 that he bought from Jerry's auto-world. Career ended. Enter Lansing hood life.
....dont want no scrubs...
Nice reset.
I didn't agree with your Sam Webb comments, but this is spot on.
I don't know his family dynamics but he seems like the rebellious type. His mama walked out of the press conference when he committed to MSU, IIRC. And it had nothing to do with the rivalry. It was because she didn't approve of certain influential peers in East Lansing, and she felt that he would be around better people overall in Ann Arbor.
She wasn't wrong.
I subscribe to the "he would have been a better person in Ann Arbor" theory. I don't know if he would have done the same stupid things, but I know that everyone around him WOULDN'T be doing the shit that goes on in EL. Environment makes a difference
I think he would have been just kicked off the team at some point.
I wonder if that will be investigated. Along with everything else in East Lansing.
Burn that program to the ground
Hopefully he acted responsibly with all the money he has already received. I wonder what the chances are that he did?
According to overthecap.com his contract was worth $4.9 million in guaranteed money, including a signing bonus of over $3 million. Pretty safe to assume he hasn't made anything that isn't guaranteed.
I could certainly use that kind of cash, as could most people here. But a guy who is taking risky ATV rides (I assume, I know of no publicly available info on the crash at all) might also be doing some other things that aren't entirely wise, and his money might not last very long.
Yeah I’m sure all that’s going to happen.
Very true. But honestly, how many times have we seen this occur to talented athletes over the years? Success in anything always takes more than just talent, and a lot of young men/women just don't fully understand it yet. Hopefully he will eventually. But, hard work, dedication, and persistence go a lot further in the long run.
If voting wasn't still impossible for me you would be getting an upvote.
hope he gets his shit together. hate for any young person to fall apart like he apparently has.
The atv accident was really unfortunate. regardless what anyone here thinks of him, it's sad to see someone's football career over before it even started due to a non football injury. The article mentions there's still no sign that he was any closer to being medically cleared.
I don't disagree it is unfortunate, but if your whole career capability is predicated on what your body is able to do, wouldn't you limit activities which could harm your body until your playing days are over? It's unfortunate, but there was still a choice made.
Oh for sure. Unfortunate, and also a stupid decision.
The late-Hoke era wouldn't have done wonders for him as a person. If Brown/Harbaugh had a crack at him, maybe.
His last year was 2016 when Michigan had great depth on the DL and MSU had none. They had to put up with his crap, it's doubtful that Michigan would have. Who knows if that would have had an impact on him or if he would have just quit. Not even sure if he would have made it through 2015, even though Michigan really needed him. I just don't see Harbaugh putting 1 player above the team.
I have to somewhat disagree with your statement that indicates Hoke couldn't have been a positive influence in McDowell's life. For all the on-field regression our football program had during the Hoke era, I've never had the impression that Hoke (and his staff) failed the players as leaders and molders of men. Keep in mind that in particular, Coach Mattison also would have been directly involved with McDowell growth both on and off the field.
Maybe they couldn't have "worked wonders" for him (a person isnt going to become a better person without themselves putting in the time and work), but McDowell still would have had at least a somewhat better chance to succeed, not only just because of Coach Hoke and staff, but also as the result of being surrounded by higher calibur young men as teammates rather than those who proved to be enablers and worse for him at State.
Bottom line: Malik should have listened to his mom.
Another great Dantonio product.
And yet he still continues with his vapid pious aphorisms. I hope Michigan trundles Molest U's ass by four touchdowns and Harbaugh gives Mork one of those "Fuck You Jim Schwartz" handshakes when its over.
I concur
Getting Schwartz'ed!!! Nice ring to it.
Bullet dodged.
I doubt that he would have lasted 4 years at Michigan
I don't subscribe to either option. He was dominant at MSU but incredibly immature, like many 18-25 year olds are.
If by “dominant at MSU” you meant he took plays off, was super lazy, didn’t live up to his potential, and didn’t really do much of note other than get drafted, then I agree
Speaking of dodging bullets, Izzo took a lot this year.
I still would've been happy to have him. He was immature to be certain (as are many kids his age), and he did take plays off, but when he was on, man he was on. I would've been willing to see what Brown and Harbaugh could do with him.
Shame his career has gone the way it has. Really ended before it even started. Best of luck to him in whatever he does next.
Probably more the latter. He seems like the type would have found his way off the Michigan team, bounced around to smaller schools for a couple of years and ultimately not gotten drafted as a result. At least the route he went allowed him to show his raw talent and get drafted if nothing else.
Hopefully he can get his stuff together while he still has some NFL money and turn that into something that can be relied on long term.
Let's say he did go to Michigan. He probably would have washed out due to being a recalcitrant
Well if he went to Michigan it couldn’t have turned out any worse for him at this point. Sad story for a talented kid.
Boy oh boy did I get chewed out by lot of Seahawk's fans when I said that pick was stupid. (based on my opinion that he doesnt care that much about football and is lazy)
And now Leveon about to drop an E.P. when he should be at camp....Bahahaha
Dantonio is doing a bang up job of setting good examples and creating quality men in the world
When it comes to Bell, can you blame him? The man has no mandate to go to camp because of his franchise tag, and is willing to wait it out and not risk injury in order to hopefully prolong his very short career. Personally, I don't see the similarities between the two situations at all.
Missing the point. Malik didn’t make smart decisions, Bell decides to tweet that his EP is dropping on first day of camp? (i get it he has earned the money)
But my point is that Dantonio is a shit leader and sets zero good examples ... And on top of him letting a known racist back on the team Joke show
I don't think Leveon Bell and McDowell are in the same position at all. You might question whether Bell should be a 'better teammate' by showing up to camp, etc, but there's no question he has out-performed his contract. If Bell doesn't sign a long-term deal, the Steelers fully plan to Demarco Murray his ass.
I think you missed my point. Mork is a shit leader, and that is how these guys are related.
I agree Bell is a beast and should get whatever money. But don’t be a clown about it. He basically just turned the whole Steeler fan base into bell haters.
Again Mork can’t teach anything to anyone.
I'll concur with Crisp and Milk, Bell is not at all the same situation. RBs, in particular, have a hard time making money, and he's not stupid to try to get more. I may not be a huge fan of it, but I am a huge fan of Barry Sanders, perhaps the humblest and least assuming NFL player of all time, and even HE held out with some regularity.
Pay for the RB position is broken, IMO. The best value for RBs on the field is in the first couple of years they spend in the league, when they are pretty much assured not to make great money relative to other players who contribute at similar levels. As the hits and the injuries build up, they lose value much quicker than other players.
An objective Michigan fan can acknowledge that Bell has been a top back in the NFL. This is nothing like McDowell.
I just assume the worst for both since they both, obviously, have poor character since they chose to play at msu
Wow. I’m not talking about skill level at all with these two. When did that come through in my post?