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Yes, Brady Hoke sent a mass text message saying goodbye to
his guys at San Diego State. Yes, Ryan Lindley can throw the ball
a mile. And yes, Al Borges may wish Ronnie Hillman was still
his lead back. And guess what? Michigan's ranked again after
beating up on a weak non-conference schedule and pulling a
miracle against Notre Dame. Do they deserve it? Maybe not. But
as Brady Hoke repeats over and over, "This is Michigan." And
Michigan means being consistently overrated before anything
happens in conference play.
Michael Florek, Stephen J. Nesbitt, Kevin Raftery, Tim Rohan
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ADVANCE: Ronnie Hillman and Ryan
Lindley will be a handful for a rocky
Greg Mattison defense.
4 WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN TO
YOU?: The question that made Brady
Hoke the coach he is today.
Cover illustration by Marissa McClain
2011 Schedule
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Western Michigan (Sept. 3): Good thing the
rain came. And the blitzes, too. Looked like Greg
Robinson was coaching until the second quarter.
Notre Dame (Sept. 10): Nothing to see here.
Michigan rallied with a 28-point fourth quarter
to stun the Fighting Irish and get the victory.
Eastern Michigan (Sept. 17): After struggling
early, Michigan relied on the legs of Denard
Robinson and Vincent Smith for the 31-3 win.
San Diego State (Sept. 24): Hoke said it was
hard leaving his players behind at San Diego
State. They were mad he didn't say goodbye.
Minnesota (Oct.1): MarQueis Gray played wide
receiver last year - now he's the quarterback
and the only thing exciting about the Gophers.
Northwestern (Oct. 8): Dan Persa - that's
about it.
S Michigan State (Oct. 15): Edwin Baker and
Le'Veon Bell ran over and through Michigan last
year, and Kirk Cousins ain't too shabby either.
Little Brother's growing up.
Purdue (Oct. 29): Guard your ACLs! The knee
injury has plagued Purdue the past two seasons.
Quarterback Rob Henry was the latest victim.
Iowa (Nov. 5): The faces change, but it always
seems like Kirk Ferentz finds the same types of
players. This is just another solid Iowa team.
Illinois (Nov. 12): Nathan Scheelhaase-to-A.J.
Jenkins and Jason Ford is the whole offense.
Consider Scheelhaase a poor man's Denard.
Nebraska (Nov. 19): The legendary blackshirts
make their debut at the Big House. By the time
Jared Crick and Co. leave, it may get ugly for 'M.'
Ohio State (Nov. 26): No Tressell? No Pryor?
Ohio State's still deeper than Michigan, but a lot
could change by Thanksgiving.
STAFF PICKS
The Daily football writers pick
against the spread to predict Michael
scores in the 2011 football season. Florek Stephen J.
Nesbitt
No. 22 Michigan(9-5 vs. San Diego5tate
No.1Oklahoma 09.5)vs Missouri
No.2 LSU(-6)at No.1West Virginia
No. 3 Alabama 02.5) vs No. 14 Arkansas
No. 4 Boise Statet-27) vs Tulsa
No.6 Wisconsin (NS)vs South Dakota
No 7 Okla. St. at No. 8 TeasA&M t-)
No.9 Nebraska (-29.5) at Wyoming
No.1 Oregon (-16) at Arizona
No.11 Florida State (-3) at No. 21 Clemson
No.12So. Carolina (-14) vsVanderbilt
No.13 Virginia Tch (-20) atMarshal
No.t15Florida-1)latKe stuckv
No.17Baylor(-19.5)vs.Rice
No.18 South Florida (-26) vs. UTEP
N.20 TCU (NS) vs. Portand State
No.23US at Ariz na State(.S)
No.24llinois (-15.5) vs Western Michigan
No. 25 Georgia Tech (-4.5) vs. N. carolina
Michigan State (-23) vs. central Michigan
Penn State(-30) vs. EasternMichigan
I sa-21.5)v. La.-Monroe
Ohio Sta t 6.5)ovs.Colorado
Minesota(NS)vs.NorthDakotaState
Indiana (-6.5) at North Texas
Last Week
Overall
Michigan
Missouri
Lusiana State
Alabama
Boise State
Wisconsin
Oklahoma State
Nebraska
Oregon
Florida State
South Carolina
VirgnaTech
Florida
Baylor
South Florida
TCU
Ilinois
North Carlina
Michiga State
Penn State
Colorado
Mnesota
Indiana
15-13-2
49-34-2
Sa Diego State
Missouri
Louisiana State
Alabarna
Boise State
Wisconsin
Teas A&M
Nebraska
Oregon
Florida State
Sooth Carolina
Virginia Tech
Florida
Baylor
UTEP
TU
TS
Western Michigan
Geogia Tech
Michigan State
Eastern Mic igan
OhiState
Minnesota
ndiana
15-13-2
50-33-2
Kevin
Raftery
Michigan
Oklahoma
WestVirginia
Arkansas
Boise State
Wisconsin
Texans A&M
Wyoming
Aizona
Florida State
Vanderbilt
Virgina Tech
Florida
Baylor
UTEP
Ariaona State
Illinois
Georgia Tech
Central Michigan
Penn State
OhioS te
Minnesota
Indiana
18-10-2
54-29-2
Tim
Rohan
Michigan
Oklahoma
Louisiana State
Alabama
Boise State
Wisconsin
Texas A&M
Nebraska
Oregon
Florida State
South carolina
Virginia Tech
Florida
Baylor
South Florida
TCU
Western Michigan
Georgia Tech
Michigan State
Eastern Michigan
Ohio State
Minnesota
Indiana
17-11-2
54-29-2
Sam Sedlecky,
Maize Rage
President
Michigan
Oklahoma
Louisiana State
Alabama
Boise State
Wisconsin
Oklahoma St.
Wyoming
Arizona
Florida State
Sooth carolina
Virginia Tech
Florida
Baylor
South Florida
TCU
uc
Western Michigan
Georgia Tech
Michigan State
Eastern Michigan
Ohio Sate
Minnesota
indiana
N/A
N/A
"When you're a player, it's kind of like when you're ason
and you look up to your dad, you want people to like you,"
Marcus says. "You see someone get respect: you hear people
talking about Bo Schembechler, Lloyd Carr - class act. We
all want that too.
"How do I get the mud off my name? That's what I want-
ed Brady to do. And you see, that's what he was good at."
Brady was always honest, just like it was around the din-
ner table growing up. If Brady's dad had a problem with
someone, it would be discussed. "No one held back,"he says.
"If youtruly do care aboutpeople you have to communicate,
the good and the bad."
Brady pulled Marcus close.
Whatdoesyour name mean to you?
Brady said this all the time to his players, and after Mar-
cus's credit card incident and his teammate issues, he need-
ed to hear it again.
That's all you have - your reputation and your name. How
doyou want to be remembered? What doyou wantyour legacy
to be?
In some other words, Marcus heard the same message
echoing off the walls of Schembechler Hall.
"That's a straight Michigan slogan, man," Marcus says.
"(Gary) Moeller asked me the same question. Coach Schem-
becher asked me the same question. Lloyd and Brady asked
me the same question. Because they're all from the same
cloth, the same tree. That's how Michigan coaches were
goingto speak to their players."
Flash-forward to 1998, Marcus is sitting in Brady's office
again.
He listened the first time, cleaned up his name, and Mich-
igan won a National Championship in 1997. Marcus made
sure his bad name didn't spoil a memory he'd hold tight for
the rest of his life. That was his new legacy: National Cham-
pion.
Until trouble found him again that summer - Lloyd sus-
pended him the first six games of his fifth year for contact-
ing an agent and getting free concert tickets from a bank.
Lloyd stripped Marcus of his captaincy.
So there sat Marcus Ray, or at least a shell of the usually
proud Marcus Ray. This was the severely depressed, woe-is-
me Marcus Ray.
Brady bottom-lined it for Marcus. This would be how he
got his name back:
No.1 - Stay out ofthe media.
No.2 - Talk to Lloyd, and make sure he knowsyou're work-
ing out.
No. - Stay in school, get good grades, graduate on time.
No. 4 - "Whenyou come back topractice, whileyou're sus-
pended, play on the scout team. That's Michigan."
"And I'm going to ask you the same question I asked you
three years ago: What do you wantxyour legacy to be?
"How do you want to be remembered at Michigan?"
Marcus's legacy, his name, would stay intact if he listened
to Brady.
"It makes you look at yourself in the mirror and say,
'What does my name mean now? And what do I want it to
say when I'm done,"' Marcus says.
By the time he graduated, he liked what he saw in the
Flash-forward to February 2011, you'll see 34-year old
Marcus Ray, sitting across from Brady Hoke again, unsure
if his name is dirty or clean. They're at a coach's conference
in Columbus.
"I don't think you were as focused as you needed to be at
Central Michigan," Brady says to Marcus. "I don't think you
took advantage of that opportunity. I think you were screw-
ing around a little bit. But it happens. I love you and I want
you to work for me."
After his stint in the NFL, Marcus became a coach
because he wasn't sure what he wanted to do. He jumped
around from high schools to colleges, but didn't go back to
Michigan until 2007, as a weight room coach, because he
thought his name was still muddied, even after he did every-
thing Brady instructed.
In his eighth year of coaching he had his shot as an assis-
tant coach at Central Michigan in 2008, but he was distract-
ed.
His wife and three kids were still living at home in
Columbus and his marriage was shaky. He wanted the best
of both worlds - to pursue his dream of coaching and be the
family man.
"I wasn'talwaysthe besthusband or fatherthat I could've
been, because I forgot what my name meant to me," Marcus
says now. "That'sthe power ofbeingaround peoplewhotalk
that language: They keep you in that mind state."
Two years later, he was coaching high schools again.
Three years later, his divorce was finalized.
Marcus needed Brady Hoke now more than ever. Mar-
cus was doing public speaking tours, but would drop it all
to work with Brady Hoke. He nearly screwed up everything
at Central Michigan, trying to jump onto Brady's rising star
at Ball State.
Now he wanted to know if Brady thought people saw the
changed 34-year old Marcus or the 21-year old Marcus.
"You were the only one who believed in me years ago and
I need you to be that guy again at 34 years old." Marcus told
him.
"I will," Brady said. "Stay in touch."
And then Brady was gone, leaving Marcus alone again
with the mirror.
If Brady Hoke had a son, he'd be something like Glen
Steele.
From afar, Glen looks like just a country boy from Ligoni-
er, Indiana, who needed football to let out his aggression.
The son of a factory worker once tackled his friend through
a wooden fence. He asked himself the same question before
every high school game he played: Somebody's going to get
knocked out this game, who's itgoingto be?
Big and bruising at 260 pounds in high school. They
called him the "big bully." Teams would send three guys to
block him, four to tackle him.
When he got to Michigan, the kid from the small town
had too much freedom. He had a little
too much fun. He needed to do some
growing up off the field.
Get closer.
You'll see Glen's father taught him
to respect his elders and that quarter-
backs have Dad to thank for always
teaching him: "If you're going to do
it, you're going to finish it," including
sacking the quarterback.
You'll see how then-head coach
Gary Moeller told Glen, who was
recruited as a tight end, to jump in at
defensive end one day. He loved it.
A kid that aggressive was bound to
play defense eventually.
Get even closer. That's where Brady
Hoke is.
Glen's actually a gentle giant, with-
out an ego to speak of. Laura Hoke
would later say Glen has a "big heart,"
just like Brady. Lloyd Carr would later
say Glen's greatest asset was that he
was a great listener. Glen knew he needed coaching, mold-
ing.
Brady pulled Glen close, taught him how to play with
technique, burning it into his muscle memory with repeti-
tion after repetition.
Hands are high and inside. Use your hips. Feet shoulder
width apart. Don't stand up too high. Taking that six-inch
power step.
In the film room, Brady made Glen watch how former
Michigan legends played the right way, with the effort run-
ning to the ball, the attitude and technique Brady wanted.
This is the way Michigan players play, he said.
Tradition was one of Brady's biggest teaching tools. He'd
take a guy aside and tell him, "You have the ability to do
what this guy did." And he was talking about All-Ameri-
cans, All-Big Ten guys.
"You don't change tradition," Glen says. "You come
through, you learn a tradition. You respect a tradition. You
understand tradition. You pass it along to the next group of
guys. What you leave is your legacy. What kind of player was
this guy? What kind of person was this guy? What kind of
character did he have?"
What does your name mean to you?
Brady knows that Glen's athleticism and madman atti-
tude is a start, but with knowledge and solid technique, Glen
could be a fundamentally-sound madman off the edge.
Brady could be hard on Glen, especially about his back
injury that lingered all three years Brady coached him.
"Oh, back hurts? Not going to practice today?" Brady
would tease.
"That's him being him," Glen says. "And that's him still
lighting that fire under my ass."
Years later, Glen's back would require three surgeries.
Brady knew Glen would tough it out for a few days, lead-
ing by example. By the 1997 season, when Glen was a fifth-
year senior, he was the only veteran left on the line. That
didn't mean Brady didn't chew Glen out.
"There was no bullshit, he'd call you out on it," Glen says.
"If you were late or missing class, you would take your licks,
that'd be running extra after practice, running the stadium
at six in the morning."
"You have horseshit hands," Brady told Glen one day.
"Your hands were not very good today. Is your wrist banged
up? Are your hands banged up?"
"Nah, it was just not a good day for me," Glen said.
"Well that can't happen in a game."
"I understand and it won't."
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