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September 05, 2008 - Image 12

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Publication:
The Michigan Daily, 2008-09-05

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Friday, September 5, 2008 - Kickoff -11B

2B - Kickoff - Friday, September 5, 2008

KICKOmFF 200R

2008 Michigan Schedule
Utah, L 23-25: Michigan was expected to have growing pains. And after a failed comeback
attempt, the Wolverines were on the wrong end of an opening game for the second year in a row.
Miami (Ohio): At least this game isn't against Oregon. Michigan should be able to win against
the average Mid-American Conference team or the Wolverines might really be in trouble.
at Notre Dame: Notre Dame was atrocious last year, but a bye week for the Fighting Irish last
weekend means they can't go into the Michigan game 0-2 this time. They'll still probably be bad.
Wisconsin: Michigan opens its conference season against a team who was predicted to finish
second in the Big Ten - and which uses the traditional offense that Michigan left behind this year.
Illinois: After facing Juice Williams and company the week after squaring off against the
Badgers, the Wolverines will know if they're really cut out for Big Ten contention this year.
Toledo: Enter token cupcake game here. That's what Michigan thought last year in its.
October game against Eastern Michigan, anyway, before the Eagles kept it close.
at Penn State: Penn State is returning to its spread offense, and it hopes it will be better than
ever. "Spread HD," as the Nittany Lions call it, should test Michigan's experienced defense.
" Michigan State: We've heard it every year - Michigan State will be good this year, seriously.
But with superstar Spartan running back Javon Ringer, it could actually happen.

The Big House really isn't that big - at least, compared to the 10/4
Maracana in Brazil. Read one sportswriter's perspective on the
stadium that used to hold 200,000.
How will Michigan stack up against other Big Ten teams this
year? Read our conference preview to find out.

He came from West Virginia. You've heard about his spread
offense. So what else is there to know about new Michigan
coach Rich Rodriguez? Plenty.

223 North Main Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan
665-5340
3k A ~

11/1
at Purdue: Senior quarterback
Curtis Painter may give
Michigan's secondary trouble,
but that's about all the
Wolverines need to worry about.
11/8
at Minnesota: Watch out -
Minnesota's victory last week
means it's already matched
its win total from last year.
11/15
Northwestern: It's always good
to have a game against a doormat
before facing Ohio State, right?
As long as Michigan doesn't
underestimate the Wildcats,
it should be an easy game.
11/22
at Ohio State: Michigan has
lost four straight against
the Buckeyes, and they're
favored to reach another title
game. This could be ugly.

RODRIGUEZ
From Page 9B
Roads."
Rodriguez forced his players
to continue the West Virginia
tradition of singingthe song after
wins, even when many of them
didn't seem too enthused about
the old country song.
But one look aE the chorus
makes Rodriguez's connection to
the song clear.
. "Country roads, take me home/
To the place I belong/ West
Virginia, mountain momma/
Take me home, country roads."
After spending four years
coaching outside of his home
state, the state where he played
college football, the state where
he met his wife, Rita, Rodriguez
returned in 2001 as the head
coach of the Mountaineers,
The whole state was excited.
At his introductory press
conference, Rodriguez joked it
was the first press conference he
ever saw people tailgating for.
But by 2006, Rodriguez's
warm feelings toward his alma
mater begun to deteriorate. He
was offered, but turned down the
Alabama job.
Rodriguez's stay in
Morgantown was largely
because Mountaineer boosters
facilitated discussion between
Rodriguez and the West Virginia
administration.
Rodriguez's strained
relationship with the
administration culminated with a
meetingat West Virginia president
Mike Garrison's house last Dec.
16.
Ken Kendrick, a West
Virginia booster and managing
general partner of the Arizona
Diamondbacks, talked on the
phone with Rodriguez as he
drove up to Garrison's house.
Rodriguez sounded hopeful, and
he had reason to.
Rutledge was driving.
Rodriguez to Garrison's house at
the request of someone on West
Virginia's side,
He said Rodriguez had been
told all of his requests for the
Mountaineer football program
would be met.
But that wasn't the case.
"It was no to everything ... I
wanted to know the answer to
- at least a maybe," Rodriguez
testified in his deposition for the
lawsuit West Virginia filed. "I
didn't even get a maybe. I got a.
no."
After leaving Garrison's house,
Rodriguez called Kendrick.
"This is basically what he said,"
Kendrick said. " 'Ken, I have
three bosses. I have an athletic

director who I cannot trust.I
have a president of the university
who I do not trust: And Ihave the
governor of the state who I also
do not trust.'"
Kendrick tried to persuade
Rodriguez to give Garrison
another chance because the
president was new and maybe
couldn't act immediately because
of that.
"He said, 'I just don't trust
these guys," Kendrick said. "'I've
got to be here every day, and you
don't. And I don't want to work
for people I can't trust, and as a
result, I'm going to leave.' "
The next day, Rodriguez
accepted Michigan's offer.
MICHIGAN MAN
Rodriguez met Schembechler
once briefly at the annual College
Football Hall of Fame banquet
but heard Schembechler had
mentioned him to people in Ann
Arbor.
"For a guy that I didn't even
know or didn't know me, I
thought that was probably one
of the greatest compliments I've
ever gotten in my profession,"
Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez has spent some time
since taking the Michigan job
to learn about the Wolverines'
history.
Stories from the 1969 team,
Schembechler's first, have
been particularly interesting to
Rodriguez - how unsure they
were, but how they rallied to beat
Ohio State and win the Big Ten.
Does he see some of that same
doubt in this year's team?
"A little bit," Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez invited some
players from 1969 to talk to his
current team.
He has taken over plenty of
teams that had a lot of rebuilding
to do his first season, and he
knew the words of those players
would be invaluable.
Arleen and Rita were talking
recently about how Rodriguez
has never taken a job that didn't
require substantial rebuilding.
Why couldn't he take over at
a place that was already rolling,
like Bill Stewart just did at West
Virginia?
Ritaaskedwhentherewouldbe
a time when that would happen.
"I said, 'Well, the time will
be when he doesn't have to
leave Michigan because there's
nowhere to go," Arleen said.
This story has been truncated
to fit in the print edition. For the
full version, please visit http://
www.michigandaily.com.

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