So what’s the limit of Rich Rod’s “free pass”? From the text’s and notes I got on vacation it’s clear that for many of you there’s a line and the Toledo loss may have crossed it. I still haven’t watched the game but looked over the press, the stats, etc., and really there’s no excuse for that.
In his road show to meet alums around the country, Rodriguez urged fans to ‘fly in formation’, that is, like a flock of geese supporting each each other as they moved ahead. If someone strays from the pack, Rodriguez said we’ll try to save them but at some point you’ve got to rejoin the main group and leave the stray to perish. I can’t blame a lot of folks from peeling off after Saturday.
To me, beyond players behaving really poorly on and off the field (they’re not) and perhaps the team being disorganized and sloppy in games (they’re not), he gets a free pass from me. Said another way, I’m not drawing any conclusions about Rodriguez or his future in Ann Arbor on this season. Even if they drop the rest of the games this season.
But even the most laid back ‘let-Rich-Rod-get-his-players’ drum beaters must have not seen it going like this. From the conditioning, to coaching, to allowing time for players to learn what to do, most certainly expected a gradual progression throughout the season. Rocky? Sure, but not dropping a game like that to a team like that midway through the season. So while I’m still on board I understand the anxiety out there.
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