WHO'S NEXT? With Rodriguez gone, who is the best fit, who should Michigan want and who's the most likely replacement? n SEE PAGE 9A THE DAILY'S BEST OF 2010 Kanye and Buzz lead our list of top picks for movies, music and TV. >INSIDE P iC i an a46Fl l Ann Arbor, Michigan Thursday, January 6, 2011 michigandaily.com RICH ROD) OUT Rodriguez officially fired as head coach A.D. David Brandon: 'Michigan fans expect more than this' By TIM ROHAN Daily Sports Editor The Michigan coach who led the Wol- verines to their worst three-year span in Michigan football history was fired yes- terday afternoon. Rich Rodriguez's 15-22 record and plenty of off-the-field drama resulted in a tumultuous tenure that will not be forgotten anytime soon. "Michigan is not used to this," said Uni- versity Athletic Director David Brandon in a press conference yesterday afternoon. "Michigan fans expect more than this - so do Michigan athletic directors. And so we need to put ourselves in a position where we get ourselves competitive again" No coach has recorded a worse record in Michigan's 131-year football history and no other Michigan football team has per- formed worse in a bowl game - leaving the 52-14 Gator Bowl loss as Rodriguez's lasting impression in his lone bowl appear- ance. His offense, led by sophomore quar- terback Denard Robinson, re-wrote the record books this season. But the Wolver- ine defense was as bad as the offense was good. Brandon said he concluded his evalu- ation of now-former coach Rodriguez on Tuesday night after meeting with Rodri- guez for three-and-a-half hours to discuss the future of Michigan's football program. In an e-mail statement to The Michi- gan Daily yesterday afternoon, Univer- sity spokesman Rick Fitzgerald wrote that See RODRIGUEZ, Page 5A Rich Rodriguez on the sidelines during a game against Ohio State in the second half at Michigan Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009. Robinson s former coaches speak out High school coaches weigh in on how firing affects QB By RYAN KARTJE Daily Sports Editor With Rich Rodriguez no longer Michi- gan's football coach, a great deal of the attention in the coming days will center around players possibly leaving the pro- gram, considering how many Wolverines left when Rodriguez was hired in 2008. But of any player on the roster, sopho- more quarterback Denard Robinson could be Michigan's mostvaluable pieceto retain during the upcoming coaching transition. Following the Wolverines 52-14 blow- out loss in the Gator Bowl, Robinson was asked about the prospect of leaving Michi- gan if his coach was no longer here. "No response," he replied. He added: "That's my coach. That's who recruited me, so that's it." See ROBINSON, Page 5A BRANDON'S CRITERIA What the A.D. is loking for in Rodriguez's replacement. * See Sports, Page 9A MARISSA M, Rich Rodriguez talks with sophomore quarterback Denard Robinson (16) during at the in Jacksonville, Fla. on Saturday, Jan. 1. In Rodriguez's last game, Michigan lost 52-14. University Athletic Director David Brandon discusses his decision to fire Rich Rodriguez at a press conference at the Junge Family Champions Center yesterday. Brandon's comments shed light on divided Michigan D avid Brandon is facing the big- move - hiring Rich gest challenge of his young Rodriguez's replace- career as the University's Ath- ment - will be a criti- letic Director. cal decision that will He has to hire the best coach in the impact the storied world - someone who will instantly fix Michigan football pro- the Wolverines' struggling defense with gram for years, maybe the wave of a magic wand, bring in a field decades, to come. And, NICOLE goal kicker who can accurately make of course, that choice AUERBACH 60-yard field goals and turn Michigan will tell us a lot about into a national championship contender Brandon himself. by September. Brandon was cool, calm and convinc- Or ... something like that. ing yesterday afternoon as he announced In all seriousness, Brandon's next See AUERBACH, Page SA PLAYERS REACT TO DECISION The team remains united despite uncertain future. See Sports, Page 9A TIMELINE OF RICH RODRIGUEZ'S CAREER A look at his three seasons as Michigan's head coach. See Sports, Page 8A 'U' alum Yousef Rabhi sworn in as commissioner in Washtenaw County 22-year-old Rabhi elected chair of Board of Commissioner meetings By DYLAN CINTI Daily News Editor A nameplate reading "Yousef Rabhi" sat alongside 10 others in the boardroom of the Washtenaw County Administration Building. Behind the plate sat its name- sake, a 22-year-old who graduated from the University last month. Last night, the Program in the Environ- ment alumRabhi assumed a very different role - commissioner on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners. Rabhi won November's general elec- tion with 74 percent of the vote after defeating his primary opponent by a mere two-vote margin. During the months leading up to the August 2010 Democratic primary, Rabhi went door-to-door can- vassing through neighborhoods in the student-heavy 11th district. Rabhi's hard work finally paid off yes- terday, when he sat down for his first meeting with the Board of Commission- ers. During the first part of yesterday's meeting, Rabhi said he felt both nervous and out of his element. "My heart is racing," Rabhi told the assembled crowd of roughly 60 attendees after he was sworn in. As the board launched into a lengthy discussion of the meeting rules for the coming year, Rabhi said after the meeting that he still felt a little out of place at that point. "It was kind of intimidating," Rabhi said, "at least for the beginning." Midway through the meeting, however, Rabhi said he began to feel comfortable participating, and the moment he started partaking in the discussion, he realized the board was where he belonged. "When I started talking I started feel- ing like, 'Hey ... my feedback is valuable,"' Rabhi said. In a group of commissioners between See RABHI, Page 5A TODD NEEDLE/Daily Yousef Rabhi is sworn in as commissioner on the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners. WEATHER HI: 23 GOT A NEWS TIP? NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM INDEX Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail Merrill honored as Team USA takes home bronze Vol CXXI, No. 67 TOMORROW 17 news@michigandaily.com and let us know. 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