http://mus.edu/board/meetings/2012/Mar2012cc/BOR3-1-2,2012MinutesFINAL.pdf
If you read the minutes of the last Board of Regents meeting (above), the writing was on the wall. There was no sympathy for the situation the athletic department found itself in. I believe that the Board of Regents (who hire and fire President Engstrom) were fed up with this nonsense.
Then you add to the plot the recent Board of Regents appointment of former Congressman Pat Williams, who has been quite outspoken about the campus sexual assault issues -
“I think that the women both on and off campus have noticed that one word doesn’t seem to be used by anyone in authority, and that is the word ‘women.’ We heard about ‘students.’ This is about women being abused and we might understand it better if we used the word ‘women’ or ‘woman,’ ” Williams said. “This is a problem of us guys.”
Isn't it rather obvious that the Board of Regents had given President Engstrom the word that this situation either changes or he loses his job?
Jim O'Day has been saying for months that if things didn't improve, he would be gone.
The Jordan Johnson issue was the last straw - and then only suspending him from practice briefly was fuel for the fire.
This is a chicken and egg issue: Did the coaches encourage this type of behavior by dealing with the players too leniently in situation after situation? Or did the players realize that there were no severe consequences of their behavior and as a result they cost their Coach and AD their jobs?
Either way, I assume that job #1 is now to hire an AD. There will be plenty of candidates who will apply knowing that they have strict orders to take no prisoners next time an athlete screws up. I also assume that Jean Gee (who at least has the appearance of being part of the problem) will be a candidate but not a serious candidate.
UM should be able to get an AD hired in the next 3 months or so. Then we can begin the orderly process of having a new coach in place when the season ends.
In the meantime, any athlete who screws up will most certainly be down the road - which is where Jordan Johnson should head if there is any truth to the allegations. If the allegations are totally false, he should do the right thing and stay.
And, for those of us who want to really know what happened or we will stop contributing our bucks to the GSA - we have had our little temper tantrum time. Of course, the legal beagles at the Board of Regents have instructed Engstrom to never comment on the reasons for the "nonrenewal of contracts." Only an idiot would want UM to go down that road.
So, we reap what we sow and we move forwards. All things considered, this is a "teachable moment" and we will all learn from this. We can only hope that two nice guys are able to move on with their careers. If the football players haven't learned, they will provide the new AD with excellent examples for those who are left on the team.
If you read the minutes of the last Board of Regents meeting (above), the writing was on the wall. There was no sympathy for the situation the athletic department found itself in. I believe that the Board of Regents (who hire and fire President Engstrom) were fed up with this nonsense.
Then you add to the plot the recent Board of Regents appointment of former Congressman Pat Williams, who has been quite outspoken about the campus sexual assault issues -
“I think that the women both on and off campus have noticed that one word doesn’t seem to be used by anyone in authority, and that is the word ‘women.’ We heard about ‘students.’ This is about women being abused and we might understand it better if we used the word ‘women’ or ‘woman,’ ” Williams said. “This is a problem of us guys.”
Isn't it rather obvious that the Board of Regents had given President Engstrom the word that this situation either changes or he loses his job?
Jim O'Day has been saying for months that if things didn't improve, he would be gone.
The Jordan Johnson issue was the last straw - and then only suspending him from practice briefly was fuel for the fire.
This is a chicken and egg issue: Did the coaches encourage this type of behavior by dealing with the players too leniently in situation after situation? Or did the players realize that there were no severe consequences of their behavior and as a result they cost their Coach and AD their jobs?
Either way, I assume that job #1 is now to hire an AD. There will be plenty of candidates who will apply knowing that they have strict orders to take no prisoners next time an athlete screws up. I also assume that Jean Gee (who at least has the appearance of being part of the problem) will be a candidate but not a serious candidate.
UM should be able to get an AD hired in the next 3 months or so. Then we can begin the orderly process of having a new coach in place when the season ends.
In the meantime, any athlete who screws up will most certainly be down the road - which is where Jordan Johnson should head if there is any truth to the allegations. If the allegations are totally false, he should do the right thing and stay.
And, for those of us who want to really know what happened or we will stop contributing our bucks to the GSA - we have had our little temper tantrum time. Of course, the legal beagles at the Board of Regents have instructed Engstrom to never comment on the reasons for the "nonrenewal of contracts." Only an idiot would want UM to go down that road.
So, we reap what we sow and we move forwards. All things considered, this is a "teachable moment" and we will all learn from this. We can only hope that two nice guys are able to move on with their careers. If the football players haven't learned, they will provide the new AD with excellent examples for those who are left on the team.