2007 Is the End for Lloyd Carr
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Coming into this season, there were a ton of rumors saying that Lloyd Carr was going to retire after 2007. Depending on the outcome of a few select games, this probably was going to be the final year Carr coached. After what happened against Appalachian State, though, this will be Lloyd Carr’s final season.
Carr isn’t going to be fired tomorrow and he isn’t going to be fired after this season. Bill Martin simply will not be able to do that, and really I don’t think he will have to. After the 2007 season comes to an end, I imagine Carr will step down from the head coaching position for a number of reasons. Not only will he be pressured to do so by fans, alumni, and the media, but if this were any other school in this situation, he might have been gone after 2005.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Lloyd Carr. He is the definition of a class act and nice guy and does so many great things off the field that he makes this hard for me to say. Unfortunately, it has to be said. This modernized game of college football has passed Carr by and it is bringing down the Michigan program because of it. His stubbornness to make changes has put Michigan years behind other programs and it showed on Saturday. No longer can the style of play from 1997 win you a national championship. See, back then there wasn’t an offense like the spread there is today. That offense absolutely kills Michigan’s defense and no matter how many times it happens, adjustments never seem to be made for future games.
I thank Lloyd Carr for all that he has done in the past, including that great national championship, but he is no longer getting the job done. Some would say he hasn’t been getting the job done for years now, and you know what, that is hard to disagree with.
What I would like to see is Michigan finish out the year strong with wins in the Ohio State game and the bowl game, and then Carr could go out in a dignified way. Even before this weekend Carr probably was strongly considering retiring, but after all the criticism he will face this season, the best thing he can do for this football program is to step down.
The worst thing that could happen is for the team to end up with a few or more losses and Carr making a decision to stick around another year or so. Bill Martin will not fire him, but the disputes in the media and behind the scenes will just turn his legacy ugly. It is obvious he is no longer fit to be the head coach at Michigan simply because he doesn’t get the best out of his players. With so much talent that this team has now and will have in the future, there is no excuse for losing to Appalachian State, and that blame goes squarely to the head coach.
All I want is for Carr to be able to go out on top and in a dignified way after this season. Bill Martin then can open things up and find a new head coach that will get Michigan back to being a team like 1997 every year. Don’t even bother asking who I think should replace Carr because honestly I don’t know at this point. That kind of post will be saved for when it is actually relevant, and right now, it isn’t.
In the end, I say thank you to Lloyd Carr for all of the great things that you have done for Michigan over the years, but it is time for a mutual breakup. The best and right thing for you to do after this season is to step down, and although it will be hard to imagine, the program needs change.
This is NOT just another loss. Lloyd Carr and Michigan became the FIRST ranked team to lose to a 1-AA team. That is significant and one that will NEVER be lived down. It was all over the media and rest assured it is a story that will be told over and over again. This is the stuff that movies are made of, a “Win one for the Gipper” story.
The problem that this loss makes is: 1) Recruitment for top players will now be more difficult, 2)Michigan’s legitimacy as a true power will always be in question. It could place a ceiling on how high the polls rank Michigan. Either consciously or subconsciously it will be a question for some time. 3) Attracting a high profile coaching replacement from a 1-A level just became a little more difficult, not impossible but difficult. Without a doubt, loosing this type of game hurt in ways that I haven’t even mentioned. As a Michigan alumni I would like to see Michigan bounce back strongly, however I see it as being very difficult this year with our current staff. I do appreciate what coach Carr has done for this program. He has brought in some outstanding recruits and he has always been a class act. However, it would be the epitome of class if Coach Lloyd Carr would announce that he would be retiring at the end of this year, and give Bill Martin a running start on finding his replacement, which would help with future recruiting. Best of Luck!
Hal
First, the game is done with. A historic upset was had by ASU. Time to move on.
Second, wasn’t recruiting top players already a difficult chore to begin with? Yes, we get good talent and all the top players ritually list us as a team they have in their TOP 5 but that’s just because UM is a defacto top 5 team to have. Many aren’t really considering UM. So, I don’t think this severly hampers recruiting. If anything, it helps by letting recruits know their talent IS REALLY NEEDED.
Third,
If this meltdown carries over into next week and further into the season, Carr has to go. If Carr carries forward and goes 13-0 from here on out, App St game was just a nasty stain that will be forgiven.
One thing I do now know, I do not back Ron English to be the next head coach. Prior to Saturday, I was his biggest fan. Now I believe UM needs to go outside of the program for the next head coach.
You are absolutely correct, the game has passed Carr over. It is time for a cleaning of the big house. My eyes have been opened and I see our program for what it is – mediocre. That is unacceptable. It is going to be a very long season. I do not think UM will even make a bowl game and that will certainly cost Carr his job. If Carr won’t step down he will have to be fired. If Martin won’t do it – he will go too.
I have the top 5 replacements.
1) Jon Gruden
2) Greg Schiano
3) Les Miles
4) Steve Kragthorpe
5) Bob Stoops
Should have tossed Lloyd Carr out in 05. Bill Martin should be fired also.
Also, I am now worried about the Eastern Michigan game.
I could coach a team and beat Lloyd Carr. All you need to do is have a mobile quarter back, and a gameplan!!! HERE THAT LLOYD…. GAMEPLAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve been tracking high school recruits for some time, and the best recruits want to go to the top school. Yes, UM has been listed by many of them but you will notice that they try to flock to the National Champions or probable next champions. Many will not come to UM because they want to help Michigan out because their talent is REALLY NEEDED. They don’t care about that. I wish it were true. The only reason why most of these kids come to Michigan now is because they believe that they will have a chance to play as a freshman. For the most part, overall, the National Championship caliber schools don’t usually rely on freshmen when they are making a run at the National title. Freshmen at the top schools usually understand that they have to wait their turn.
USC, Florida, and Texas has so many NATIONAL four and five star players that will never see the playing field. Make no mistake, these high school kids are highly influenced by the reputations of the top schools, and how they are viewed in the media. It’s bad enough that Michigan has been losing important games over recent years, and loosing to “The Little Sisters of the Poor” doesn’t help recruiting any.
Yes, the season is not over and they have a shot at turning things around but it will be difficut. They can expect EVERY team to exploit their weaknesses. I do agree that the coaching staff has to go.
Hal
Nice post very well said.
I’m hoping that call will announcing that he is retiring at the end of the season, and he will make that announcement soon that way the coaching search will have a full season plus an offseason to find a worthy successor.
This loss is the lowest point in the proud history of Michigan football, I think Carr knows it is time to step down.
We need a coach who will bring a modern approach to Ann Arbor, for both offense and defense.
It will never be lived down…or will it? It’s an embarrassment, no doubt, and there is no excuse for losing. NONE. I am not defending this.
ASU is a good team that should be in D I-A. I-AA is misleading. They are better than a lot of teams in I-A. But we are better. Plus, if this is to be an NC year (no longer, of course), then we can beat any team.
Remember, the 2003 Bucks almost lost to Bowling Green and SD State. And Oklahoma lost to TCU in 2005. Unfortunately, the team that defeated us is from I-AA and did it in our house.
People, please list suggestions for new coaches. I really want to see them. I say we should hire ASU’s coach at the end of the season. That would be awesome, although a little embarrassing. But look at what Tressel has done for OSU.
I’ve also heard Michael Haywood, OC for 2005 Longhorns and currently OC for Notre Dame. And then there is Paul Johnson at Navy, but his triple option attack might not be suitable for Michigan.
And no Les Miles!!! He sucks.
True…however, ASU is a 1-AA school because it plays the majority of their games against OTHER 1-AA schools, and I am sure there are other requirements that disqualify them from being a 1-A school. We know that when second division schools play 1-A schools, they plan extra and get up for them, but there is NO excuse good enough for this type of loss for a ranked team. NONE!!!
I’ve been on the fire Lloyd Carr bandwagon for years, probably since that embarrassing bowl loss to Tennessee a few years back…the guy hasn’t been at the vanguard of college football forever.
Funny thing, the spread offense has been tormenting Michigan for years and years. Anyone remember Northwestern putting up 50+ on the Wolverines? When was that, 1999? Carr, all his defensive coordinators, they’ve never figured it out…and despite the presence of some fantastic offensive talent, it’s been 6 or 7 years, since Tom Brady and Anthony Thomas and and David Terrell roamed the streets of Ann Arbor that Michigan’s offense has been state of the art.
I thank Lloyd Carr for the NC in 1997, but man, I wish he’d retired in 2003.
And speaking of 1997, last year’s team was in a similar mould, defense leading the way. Until they got exposed by Ohio State modified spread.
And even with all that, I still think this team is capable of a ten win season. It will be forever tainted, and the Big Ten will take a massive hit because of this loss, but Michigan, if they can bounce back against Oregon, can still do good things this year.
And this is wishful thinking for sure, but I wish Lloyd would unleash the hounds whenever possible, and let the kids run up the score on some of the teams they’ll face the rest of the way. It’s not the Michigan way, but…
Oh yeah, while I’m ranting, BLEEP BLEEP going for the BLEEPING two point conversion at the end of the third quarter. WHO THE BLEEP DOES THAT IN THAT SITUATION? IT’S THE THIRD BLEEPING QUARTER! LET YOUR PLAYERS PLAY! It’s Appalachian state, trust you players to come back and score again. One extra point there, another after Hart’s big run, you’re up three, maybe ASU ties it with a miracle drive, maybe not, maybe we’re talking close call for the ages instead of legendarily embarrassing upset. I blame Lloyd Carr for that 2 pt attempt, it’s not the time or the place to try that, and it showed a lack of confidence, and then it backfired, to boot.
The only potential silver lining, I might be able to get into the Wisconsin – Michigan game out here in Madison for less than the $200 bucks a ticket that’s up on Craig’s list right now….
My top 5 to replace Carr :
1) Bill Cowher
2) Jon Gruden
3) Norm Chow
4) Mike Bellotti
5) Jimbo Fisher
Those are some great suggestions. If we could get Bill Cowher, then wow, but probably not gonna happen. We’re not offering Nick Saban figures.
Jon Gruden sounds good, I don’t like the idea of Bellotti that much. He’s ok.
What about Bill McCartney? From Detroit and the House of Bo. Errr…he’s too controversial. I really like Paul Johnson but I don’t know if his coaching style is right for Michigan. Does anyone here think that he would be able to coach good smash-mouth football here?
I got it!! What about Chris Peterson from Boise St.? The only thing is that he just signed a five-year contract extension in February. Maybe we can get him the way we got John Beilein.
We should have gone after Tom O’Brien at the end of the 2007 year. Too bad he went to NC State.
It would be nice to have Terry Moore. I like those suggestions. There are a lot of good OC’s out there that we could get.
we should have let him go after the when we lost to nebraska in their bowl game. they won’t fire him because
A]the national championship of 97
B]he’s the last staff member from BO.
but if they lose another game to OSU, any other rival, or oregon, you’ll see the someone have getting the timberland. sorry mich. i let you down as a fan too.
maybe we should hire the coach from App st. i hear they have a winning history.
I’m glad to see that we Nittany Lions are not the only fans to abandon a winning coach after a shaky start. We were after Paterno’s ass in 2000 because after delivering 37 years of winning teams, he tripped up and had a 5/6 year then a 4/7 one. Obviously, I want Penn State to win in three weeks but Michigan is a class act, and I wish Lloyd Carr success in the future. You guys are not on the Titanic with Lloyd…you’ve just hit a wave and gotten your feet wet. They’ll dry out. “Hail to the Victors” (when you’re not meeting the Nittany Lions!!!) We love your alumni in Happy Valley….some of the best.
my top 5 replacements:
1.greg shiano
2.les miles
3.bob stoots
4.romeo crennel (will be fired from cleveland)
5. A coach who runs the spread offense so we know how to stop it!!!