Uh oh

I, as an ardent Michigan fan, am rather unsettled by Justin Boren's departure.  And, no, this is not because of offensive schemes or weight training or any other similar bunk.  I am alarmed at the fact that Justin Boren, a Michigan legacy whose Dad lettered under Coach Schembechler, has realized that Michigan is no longer Michigan.  I'm sure that this kid isn't leaving his father's alma mater, his dream school, becuase he feels that they don't maximize his skill set or because he has to train his body to get up to the line of scrimmage quicker.  No, Boren said as much when he alluded to an 'erosion' of the values of the program.  Also, don't respond with hackneyed platitudes like "He couldn't cut it here anyway" or "If he doesn't want to be here, the heck with him" - Boren was a high 4 star recruit who was also the first true freshman OL to letter/play at UMich since the mid-1980s (John Elliott), exactly the sort of football player that good programs need. 

I know that some Michigan fans/alums are extremely defensive and take up for Coach Rodriguez despite the fact that, and I have always maintained this (from the middle of December 2007 on), he is a horrible fit for this university and has already been nothing short of a national eyesore for a prestigious athletic department.  I would love for Michigan to ascend even higher in terms of athletics but not at the expense of the positivity and organizational culture fostered by the Lloyd Carr regime and many of the coaches before him.  (an aside - This virtual horror show serves me right for I was never a huge backer of the supposed Les Miles decision and, one Dave Wannstedt upset later, look at the program now.  GO ahead and defend it, those who care only about wins and beating Ohio State; Michigan just might be forever changed and not for the better because of this potentially regrettable coaching appointment). 

I'm a diehard Michigan fan also.  I found it very unnerving to see that a guy like Boren was leaving the team.  It has to be something deeper than any of us can even imagine for the guy to leave the program.  It could be something as simple as he feels the player-coach respect that he was accustomed to at UM has changed.  I don't think R-Squared has had that much effect on the program during a few meetings and a few practices to have damaged it that severely, yet it does raise an eyebrow that one of the expected leaders of the team has left.  I think the reason so many people are hard on the kid Boren is because he kind of wavered on leaving as soon as R-Squared arrived on campus.  When you kind of ride the fence and not commit to the program's change, then later quit after making the comments about the difficulty he was having with the new system, it provides critics of his decision to question his character and statements. 

This is all unnerving and I definitely don't want to see the program change for the worse in the form of character, loyalty and honor to the program from the players.  I guess time will tell.  You'd never hear a guy step up and say anything about Coach Carr and that says a lot.