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FROM THE DAILY:YES ON 1AND 2
The editorial board endorses proposals to legalize medical marijuana and
loosen stem cell laws, and weighs in on state House candidates.
See Opinion, Page 4A
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Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, October 27,2008
michigandaily.com
WINTER COMMENCEMENT
Auto mogul
Penske to
speak at Dec.
graduation
ZACHARY MEISNER/Daily
Michigan State players hoist the Paul Bunyan Trophy after their 35-21 victory over Michigan. The win marked the Spartans' first win in Ann Arbor since 1990.
rivalry at a crossroads
Bloomfield Hills
resident owns top
Formula One team
By ELAINE LAFAY
Daily StaffReporter
The University of Michigan's
Board of Regents announced last
week that former racecar driver
and auto industry mogul Roger
Penske will receive an honorary
law degree as this year's Winter
Commencemenc speaker.
Penske, a Bloomfield Hills resi-
denc and the world's 382nd rich-
est person according to Forbes
magazine, owns companies which
race, sell, lease and repair cars and
trucks. Between 1976 and 2006,
Penske Racing, Inc. has won the
Indianapolis 500 a record 14 times.
Penske is also a corporate direc-
tor of General Electric and was
chairman of the 2006 Super Bowl
in Detroit.
He began his career as ateenager
in Cleveland by buying run-down
cars, repairing them and selling
them for a profit. After graduating
from Lehigh University, he became
a racecar driver, earning the New
HONORARY DEGREES
RogerPenske: Receivinga Doctorof
Laws degree. A former racecar driver who
isnowan auto industrymogul. He's alsoa
corporate director of General Electric and
was chairman of the 2006 Super Bowl in
Detroit.
Anne Stevenson: Receiving aDoctor
of Humane Letters degree. A poet who
attended the University as an under-
graduate and graduate student, where she
wrote thetfirst critical study of famed poet
Elizabeth Bishop
* FaithfRinggold: Receivinga Doctor
ot finedArts degree. An artist and writer
best known for her "painted story quilts,"
which combine painting andtfahric to tell
stories, Her worksare in prominent muse-
ums across the country.
souRcE: UNIVERSTY Of MICHIGAN
York Times' title of Driver of the
Year in 1962. Three years later, at
28, Penske retired from racing and
pursued his love of cars in the busi-
ness world.
Ross School of Business senior
Ari Siegel, who will graduate this
winter, said while he hadn't heard
of Penske, his expectations are
lower for the winter ceremony's
speaker than the spring's.
"I'm not bothered by it. It
See COMMENCEMENT, Page 7A
MORE ON THE GAME
* Flurry of bigthird-down con-
versions helps MSU earo first win
over'M' since 2001. PAGE 9B
" Running back Brandon Minor's
controversial touchdown catch
disputed after game. PAGE 4B
i 'U' Police cite more than 100
run-ins at the game, the most
since the 1997 game against Ohio
State game. PAGE 3A,
Michigan State quarterback
Brian Hoyer walked into the
postgame press conference on
Saturday, shortly after the Spar-
tans beat the Michigan football
team, 35-21.
A banner displaying block-
'M's and Big Ten Network logos
hung behind his seat, and Hoyer,
who had just helped the Spar-
tans secure their first win over
the Wolverines in seven years,
asked if he should take it down.
Someone said yes, and the fifth-
year senior turned around, but he
decided against i
else told him
not to do it.
It was good
advice. Even
after Satur-
day's game,
Michigan
State hasn't
quite brought
Michigan
down yet.
You can't
lose six
straight to your a
t when someone on your seventh try and declare
vindication.
But the Spartans are definitely
on the right track.
When the Wolverines had
a 21-14 lead and the ball in the
third quarter, junior defensive
end Brandon Graham's procla-
mation - "I don't think we are
DAN going to ever lose to State" -
almost looked like it could come
FELDMAN true.
With their best team in at least
nine years facing Michigan's
rchrival, win See FELDMAN, Page 3A
RACE FOR THE BOARD OF REGENTS
LAST IN A FOUR-PART SERIES
GOP's LaFond aims to curb spending
Former Ford engineer
says he would build
more business ties if
elected regent
By JULIE ROWE
Daily StaffReporter
In his bid for a seat on the University of
Michigan Board of Regents, John LaFond
has invested $27,500 of his own money to
get his message to Michigan voters.
LaFond, who has attended regents'
meetings for the past18 months, has criss-
crossed the state discussing his goals for
the University. Chief among them: keep-
ing tuition costs down.
"It's one of the best universities in the
country, and I want to keep it there," he
said. "But it's becoming unaffordable for
families throughout
the state."
The Republican
hopeful said he would
draw on his business
background to help
tackle the problem.
"The University
seems to be suffering LAFOND
right now from a lack
of bold and decisive
leadership," he said. "It seems to be mired
in a 'same-old process way' that basically
continues to increase tuition. Spending
seems to be out of control and something
needs to be done."
LaFond, who earned a bachelor's
degree in Aerospace Engineering and
a Masters in Business Administra-
tion from the University, is a retired
executive at Ford Motor Company.
He served as the chief engineer on an
alternative fuel project with the goal
of using natural gas to power trucks
and vans.
While at Ford, LaFond served as direc-
tor of a joint program between the com-
pany and the University, with the goal of
improving technology transfer between
Ford engineers and University research-
ers and students.
After his retirement from Ford,
LaFond continued to serve as chairman
See CANDIDATE, Page 7A
ANGELA CESERE/Daily
College Democrats chair Nathaniel Eli Coats Styer and State Sen, Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) prepare to
opem the new Barack Obama campaign office at the corner of Maynard and William Streets yesterday.
OBAMA MOUNTS
FINAL CAMPUS PUSH
UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Rodriguez, 'U' ink $15-mil., 6-year contract
Football coach had been
working under letter of
intent for months
By KYLE SWANSON
Daily StaffReporter
Eight games into the season and more
than 10 months after he agreed to coach
the team, Michigan football coach Rich
Rodriguez and the University of Michi-
gan finalized a contract on Friday. Before
signing the agreement, Rodriguez had
been working under a letter of intent.
The six-year contract otlines Rodri-
guez's responsibilities, compensation
package and buyout terms.
University spokeswoman Kelly Cun-
ningham called the length of contract
negotiation and the document's terms
"standard."-
"It takes a while to
go through contract
negotiations for any
coach," she said.
Accordingtothecon- "
tract, Rodriguez will
earn $300,000 in base
salary this year along RODRIGUEZ
with $1.65 million in additional compensa-
tion from media appearances and apparel
endorsements. That amount is lower than
the $2.2 million in additional compensa-
tionagreedto inRodriguez'sletter ofintent
with the University last December.
Rodriguez is eligible for additional
compensation of up to $300,000 based on
the team's bowl game performance.
At about $2 million, Rodriguez's com-
pensation package trumps that of his pre-
decessor, Lloyd Carr's. Carr's 2007 contract
had a base salary of $650,000 and more
than $800,000 in additional compensation.
According to USA Today, the average
earnings for Big 10 coaches in 2007 were
$1,504,181. Although Rodriguez's pay is
competitive among conference coaches, it
is considerably less than Iowa's Kirk Fer-
entz, who earned more than $2.8 million
in non-performance based compensation
in 2007. Rodriguez's pay is significant-
See RODRIGUEZ, Page 3A
New near-campus office
to serve as base for
Get Out the Vote efforts
By JULIE ROWE
DailyStaffReporter
With eight days remaining until Elec-
tion Day, Democratic presidential candi-
date Barack Obama's campaign has opened
another Ann Arbor field office only a few
blocks from the Diag. The office was offi-
cially opened with a ribbon-cutting cer-
emony at noon yesterday.
The building, at 340 Maynard St. next
to Caf6 Ambrosia and the Student Bike
Shop, will serve as the campus campaign
boiler room - a central staging location for
the Obama campaign's Get Out the Vote
efforts.
Campaign signs for Obama and other
Democratic campaigns line the windows. A
muralwith asilhouette ofObama-painted
by LSA junior Lindsay Miars - and a car-
toon call-out saying, "Come on in!" greet
passersby walking down Maynard Street.
"I didn't want it to seem too profession-
al," Miars said. "More welcoming, some-
thing to get people to walk in."
LSA junior Dana Cronyn, a member of
the College Democrats executive board,
said the new office's location makes it easi-
er for students to work for the campaign in
between classes.
While the Ann Arbor campaign office
was always open to students, Cronyn said
its location - west of Main Street on Lib-
erty Street - often made it difficult for stu-
dents to drop by.
See OFFICE, Page 3A
WEATHER HI: 40
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