Michigan Wrestling: Pictures of The Bahna Wrestling Center

Posted at 12:00pm -- 4/7/2010









Photos by GBMW Staff

Go Blue -- Wear Maize!

Big Ten Championships: TV Programming

Posted at 10:00am -- 3/7/2010

Big Ten Championships
Men's Swimming and Diving
12:00pm EST. - 2:00pm EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

Big Ten Championships
Wrestling
2:00pm EST. - 5:00pm EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

This Week in Big Ten Basketball
8:30pm EST. - 9:00pm EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

Written by GBMW Staff

Go Blue -- Wear Maize!

Michigan Wrestling: Michigan at Northwestern

Posted at 12:00pm -- 2/21/2010

Michigan Wrestling

Michigan at Northwestern
7:00pm EST. - 9:00pm EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

Written by GBMW Staff

Go Blue -- Wear Maize!

GBMW: TV Programming for Today

Posted at 2:00pm -- 2/5/2010

Michigan Basketball
Inside Michigan Basketball
4:00pm EST. - 4:30pm EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

Michigan Wrestling (Taped)
Michigan at Ohio State
11:00pm EST. - 1:00am EST.
DirecTV Channel 610
BTN

Written by GBMW Staff

Go Blue -- Wear Maize!

Mailbag question: Any other receiver to move position?

Mailbag question: Any other receiver to move position?

I would like to start by saying this is the first thing I check every morning. It is fun but challenging to get exciting for Michigan football in the heart of ND land. Keep up the good work. I have two questions:

First a football question: There has been a lot of talk that one position where depth (number of bodies) may not be an issue is at the receiver spot. T. Jones appears to have made the transition from offense to defense fairly easily. Are there any other receivers that could/should make this move to improve defensive depth? It appears that recruiting WR’s is easier for Michigan than S/CB’s. Obviously with how Kelvin has performed, that is not a move you would want to make, but why didn’t Coach Rod push for that at the beginning of camp?

Second question is a general Michigan question: Which 2009-10 Michigan sports team will be considered the best of the year? Also which team will surprise the most people?

I guess my two questions grew into four.

Thanks for your research, opinions, answers, and hard work!

Darin
South Bend, IN

----------------------------------------

Thanks for the question and comments.

Michigan does have a good numbers situation at split end, but we think running back has the best depth of any position.

Michigan needs to have adequate numbers at split end because Michigan uses multiple wide receiver sets a large majority of the time.

So, moving another split end is not as easy as it might appear. If any further receivers were moved, Cam Gordon to safety would currently make the most sense, at least in our opinion. That is why every year it is important to recruit team needs as much as good players. There is a need to balance out every other class and compliment each class back to back.

As far as the other Michigan sports, wow, this might be a tougher question that demands more than just providing a shallow, surface-scratching type of answer. That is one of the neat things about following the University of Michigan. It is not just football and basketball that demonstrate excellence. Most Michigan teams are very successful.

The answer requires an analysis of the usual Michigan teams that have demonstrated consistent quality, such as Softball, Hockey, Volleyball, Women’s/Men’s Gymnastics, Men’s Swimming and Diving, Water Polo, and Wrestling.

Softball should be loaded again this year, losing only two players on the roster and returning starting pitchers Nikki Nemitz and Jordan Taylor. They should make another run for the Women’s College World Series under Coach Carol Hutchins. And maybe this year the ladies will repeat what they did in 2005.

The Women’s Gymnastics team missed the NCAA Championships for the first time in the last sixteen years. That snapped the nation's fourth-longest streak of consecutive NCAA Championship appearances. They should be very good again under Coach Beverly Plocki.

Coach Berenson's hockey program is usually at the top of the CCHA and making it to the Frozen Four is almost a mainstay for his program. This will likely be a tougher road this year, but the Wolverines have many young talented players.

We also predict the wrestling team under Coach Joe McFarland will surprise many people, despite losing Steve Luke.

The surprise team, in our opinion, might be the Field Hockey program, which has struggled the last couple of years. But under Marcia Pankratz the program once again will try to bring that magic back and make it into the NCAA championships.

Michigan has many great athletic programs and we apologize for not mentioning them all. This question reinforces the saying “It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine.”

Thanks for stopping by Go Blue Michigan Wolverine
If you have any questions please E-Mail

Written by CoachBt and ErocWolverine

Michigan Wrestling: New Facility Tour

Ben Apland, Mike K., Kellen Russell and project manager Scott Byers give us the tour of the best stand alone to be wrestling facility in the country.

Wrestling Videos on Flowrestling

Mailbag question: What is your take on adding another team to the Big Ten conference or should they?

Hello,

Have not seen your guys take on the JoePa and "needing to add another team to the Big Ten conference" and also what Delaney has said about it.

What is your take about adding another team? Do you favor it? Would it help the conference? Would we compete with the SEC now?

Also what are the bad things with adding another team if any?

Do you favor the 11 teams now and could they tweak it better? Add more weeks? Play more teams, etc.?

Interesting to hear your side of this argument that has been debated on the message boards for awhile now?

Greg

-----------------------------------

Thanks for the question.

Here is the biggest problem we see with adding a twelve team to the Big Ten conference.

If you divide conference into two divisions (such as a East / West) with Michigan State, Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan all in one division you have the biggest draws and toughest teams all beating the crap out of each other. Who are the other two teams that get placed with those four? How do you divide it fairly enough to where all the conference teams agree without feeling like they have been thrown into the tougher division?

Do you separate Ohio State and Michigan? What happens to "The Game"? If both sides agree they still want to play on the last weekend of the regular season, is it fair that they would possibly have a rematch in the conference championship game? Does it cheapen the rivalry if the regular season matchup loses its luster? There are a lot of questions, and right now nobody really knows the answers. One other thing to consider is if both Ohio State and Michigan are having good seasons -- would the loser in the conference championship game be out of the BCS? Factor into that scenario that a non-participant in the championship game could have just one loss, as with Texas and Oklahoma last year. Would the one-loss team jump over a two-loss loser of the Big Ten Championship game?

Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan are guaranteed to fill their stadiums and bring in big television ratings. This is important to the conference and to college football.

We do think that The Big Ten conference, with eleven teams, needs to come up with a way to stage a conference championship game in early December -- but there is the 12-team rule for conference championship games. One alternative is to somehow extend the season into the first week of December with bye weeks. The extra exposure is good for the conference (the Big Ten falls off the radar with its early conclusion to the schedule). The extra practices would be great for Big Ten teams as well, especailly if they are headed to bowl games. That would be a great first step to gaining on the other BCS conferences.

We think they could keep it the way it is (with 11 teams) and just play every team in the conference (Ten Big Ten games -- two non-conference games) to claim a true champion of the Big Ten conference. But money is involved, and most of the Big Ten conference teams do not like this idea because they believe they need to play easier teams to get to the magical six wins to be eligible for a bowl. Playing more games in conference would make that goal harder to achieve. Our take is that if you cannot get to .500 in conference play, you don't belong in a bowl anyway.

The logical choice, and one the Big Ten should wait for, is Notre Dame. They bring more than football to the table. They bring prestige, ratings, and a rabid national fan base. The addition of Notre Dame gives the Big Ten more national appeal beyond Michigan - Ohio State.

Since Notre Dame turned down the Big Ten before the only other teams in the area we would feel comfortable with would be Pitt, Cincinnati, and Missouri. The problems with teams such as Syracuse, Rutgers, and those type of teams people discuss are their locations. The Big Ten is a Midwest based conference and by adding another eastern team you would really stretch the boundaries of the conference.

This is more than just a football conference. Most of the conference travel is done by bus for most of the sports teams (Michigan who has twenty-five sports programs), so the desire to add a team must factor in the extra cost to each university for each sport and game.

Think of it this way: One weekend Iowa plays Ohio State in baseball, the next weekend Rutgers, the following weekend Penn State -- the travel cost, especially in these tough economic times, would really put a strain not only on the universities, but also the fan bases that would want to travel to these events. It is one thing for football and possibly basketball, but a completely different story for other sporting events.

Again we think Notre Dame is the best choice, but we're not sure they will ever want to be part of a conference in which they are not the "big fish." They would be on equal footing with Ohio State and Michigan. Do they want to admit they are on a level playing field as those teams and admit they are not elite anymore? Penn State used to be a "big fish" before they came into the Big Ten -- now they are one of the "other teams" in the Big Ten conference in most sports.

Thanks for stopping by http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/
If you have any questions please e-mail erocwolverine@gmail.com

Written by CoachBt and ErocWolverine

A few bright spots, but a tough day for Michigan Athletics on television

The basketball team played well in the first half against Oklahoma despite Manny and DeShawn getting into foul trouble, but in the second half, Oklahoma overpowered us, and you could say got a lot of calls.

I'm not going to comment much on the game because everybody was able to watch it for themselves. Michigan should be proud of everything they were able to accomplish this year, beating top teams like Duke and UCLA along with the wins they had in the Big Ten conference. This team is a year ahead of schedule. With most of the key positions returning, along with several key new guys coming in, this team should be able to make a run for the tournament again next year along with battling in the Big Ten conference.


Michigan softball got behind early on when Northwestern hit a grand slam home run and built up the lead, though Michigan fought back to tie the game 5-5. Northwestern rallied in the seventh inning to win the game 6-5. They play again tomorrow. The game is on the BTN at 2:00pm EDT.



Michigan wrestling finished 11th in the National Championship team competition this year, but they did have a bright spot in Steve Luke from Massillon, Ohio who captured the 174-pound national title.


Michigan ice hockey had a tough night losing to Notre Dame in the CCHA Championships at Joe Louis Arena. Michigan lead 2-0 early on, but ended up losing 5-2. Not a very good third period in which it looked like Notre Dame out-worked, out-hustled and out-played Michigan. Maybe this will be a wake-up call to the team and get them focused for the NCAA tournament. Sunday at 11:30am EDT. on ESPN2 is the NCAA tournament selection show.


Michigan women's gymnastics came away with their third Big Ten championship in a row with giving their highest point total of the year 197.075 to edge No. 16 Illinois with 196.750. On Monday, the team will learn where they are headed for in the NCAA regionals.

Thanks for stopping by http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/
If you have any questions please e-mail erocwolverine@gmail.com

Written by ErocWolverine

BTN: Big Ten Wrestling Championship Highlights

Big Ten Championships: Wrestling

Big Ten Championships

Wrestling

2:00pm EDT. - 5:00pm EDT.

DirecTV Channel 610

BTN

BTN: Michigan Wrestling Highlights -- Ohio State at Michigan

Michigan Wrestling: Ohio State at Michigan on TV Tonight

Michigan Wrestling

Ohio State at Michigan

10:30pm EST. - 12:30am EST.

DirecTV Channel 610

BTN

BTN: Michigan Wrestling Highlights -- Michigan at Michigan State

Michigan Wrestling: Michigan at Michigan State

Michigan Wrestling

Michigan at Michigan State

8:00pm EST. - 10:00pm EST.

DirecTV Channel 610

BTN

Mailbag Question: Basketball Question

Hello guys,

Not sure if you will answer any basketball questions, but just wondering what you think Bill Martin and the university is waiting on in regards to the hoops program in getting basketball renovations since it seems every other program including baseball / softball / wrestling /soccer teams have already gotten their renovations?

Do you also know what the attendance for Crisler Arena is now?

Thanks,

Tom

------------------------------------------------

Thanks for the question. Yes, we will answer basketball questions as long as we know, or can find out, the answers.

The attendance for Crisler Arena is 13,751.

Michigan was lax when it came to updating all their facilities. It hurt their recruiting efforts in most sports.

Many football recruits and camp visitors left Michigan shaking their heads when comparing Michigan facilities to others in the Big Ten (especially Ohio State) and around the country.

Michigan not cutting the number of non-revenue sports made it difficult to keep up with others who were not so burdened. Michigan being a "PC" stronghold also hurt in this endeavor.

Most major colleges realize who pays the bills and take care of the "cash cows" programs. Remember, Michigan leaves a lot of money on the table by not advertising in Michigan Stadium. Without super efforts by Coach Schembechler, many of facilities we have would be even more sub par.

Many facilities have not been updated in over twenty-plus years before Bill Martin took over as athletic director.

The baseball and softball complex was completed last season. The reason is that they received a large amount of money to get the program going. Mr. and Mrs. Wilpon (Mets owner) donated a large sum of money for this, something like four million dollars.

The wrestling program received many donations as well and that is why they decided to have their own practice facility (at the tennis center location) instead of waiting to be added to the basketball practice facility because they have gotten support and money raised for their program.

The soccer stadium and soccer practice facility was built because the new football practice facility needed a place and took over where the old soccer field was located. In regards to the football practice facility, it has been said it took ten years to generate the money to get the facility built.

Well, we have said back in June (http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/2008/06/michigan-tidbits-football-and-hoopheads.html) that things were looking good for a new basketball practice facility. We believe it was delayed a little bit because of donations falling through along with the downturn of the Michigan economy. In addition, the football luxury boxes have not been selling as hot as they were when it started. They have 54 suites sold now in which in the spring they 42 suites. Also they have nearly 2,000 club seats sold.

What will happen when Crisler is renovated? From what we have heard, they are looking to make it smaller (around 12,000) or so, but this might depend on what price tag they decide to go with in regards to the plan.

Of course, a lot of this depends on how much money they decide to put into Crisler Arena. From what we heard a long time ago (nothing recently) they are doing like they did with the football renovations and getting three plans with three different price tags (small 25 million, medium 50 million, and larger 75 million - not saying those are the amounts they will spend just giving you an idea of what it could be). Michigan stadium went with the medium renovations and I believe Crisler will probably do the same thing, so I predict around 50 million.

What will be included? Well, from different ideas I have heard, it depends upon which price tag they choose. Some of the ideas I've heard involve making the arena smaller so there's more of a demand for tickets for every game, especially when this team gets good. Have heard they would like to somehow add luxury boxes, but am not sure if this is included in all the plans or just the high-end plan.

The main things that will get done are better seats. Keep sprucing up the place like they have the last couple of years: re-doing the locker room, the S&C room, and hiring an NBA S&C coach, new hoops, new shot clocks, re-doing the floor, new scorer's table, new lights, new speakers, etc. Have heard they want to paint the ceiling white to brighten it even more, make the concourse bigger for fans to move around easier and have more points of sale stuff (food, merchandise, etc.) and re-doing and expanding the restrooms for both men and women.

The win against Duke was huge, not only for the basketball team, but for the program and the direction its heading. In addition, the Duke game brought a lot of interest which included a sell-out crowd, and right now, that might be more important than the actual win because it is showing that people are interested in basketball and want to see them do well. As they start winning, especially against good teams, the fans start to show up which might put the renovation plans into play.

Been told by several people that Martin is going to take plans to the regents, or at least float the idea of something being done for the practice facility, in January. I believe it takes the regents three to four meetings to pass it all, before any new ground will be broken.

There is discussion of making the Maize Rage area (bench seating) bigger: going around the tunnel area where the band is now located, but that still might depend on the students' support.

People have complained to us about the students having to walk so far and in the cold, etc. Well, against Duke, they had no problem walking so far in the coldest day of the year, with bad conditions. It comes down to if they want to do it or not. Of course, winning might make this a hot ticket again and students might just want to go there no matter whom Michigan plays.

Things are being done: it just might not seem fast enough for some people, but they are being done -- slowly. We are confident that the practice facility (20 – 25 million?)is on its way very soon -- VERY SOON -- and then after the Michigan Stadium renovation is done, look for Crisler Arena to get its facelift (50 million?).

Written by ErocWolverine and CoachBt

Michigan Wrestlers net 7th best recruiting class

from MGoBlue.com
http://www.mgoblue.com/wrestling/article.aspx?id=141478

U-M Incoming Class Nets No. 7 National Ranking

July 18, 2008

MANHEIM, Pa. -- For the second time in as many as years, the University of Michigan wrestling program has landed a top-10 recruiting class, earning the seventh spot among InterMat's NCAA Division I recruiting class rankings, the website announced Thursday (July 17). Head Coach Joe McFarland's six-man incoming class combined for nine state titles, three Senior High School Nationals All-America citations and six Fargo Nationals All-America honors over their high school careers. The Wolverines' previous recruiting class -- the 2007-08 freshman class -- also received a No. 7 ranking from InterMat.

Bolstering the top and bottom weights of the U-M lineup, McFarland rounded out his 2008-09 rookie class with the addition of Ben Apland (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South HS), Bret Marsh (Dexter, Mich./Dexter HS) and Zac Stevens (Monroe, Mich./Monroe HS).

Apland posted a perfect 44-0 senior season en route to the 215-pound title at the Illinois state tournament. Claiming a 118-10 career prep record, Apland was a two-time Illinois state placewinner, adding a fourth-place finish during his junior season. He is a two-time Fargo Nationals freestyle All-American and will be competing in the junior division at the 2008 event. Apland is a projected heavyweight for Michigan.

Brother of four-year U-M letterwinner Jeff Marsh (2005-08), Bret captured the Michigan state title at 112 pounds during his junior season and was a three-time state placewinner, claiming second place as a sophomore and fourth as a senior. Boasting a career record of 196-11, he was named the 2007 Ann Arbor News Wrestler of the Year and was a three-time South Eastern Conference, district and regional champion (2006, '07, '08). Marsh will likely wrestle at 125 pounds for Michigan.

A four-time Michigan state placewinner, Stevens wrapped up his high school career with the 125-pound state title, adding to previous second- (2007), third- (2006) and seventh-place (2005) showings. Stevens registered a 189-23 record over his four seasons and battled back from a second-round loss at the 2008 Senior High School Nationals to claim fourth place. He is projected to compete at 125 or 133 pound for U-M.

The trio joins Coby Boyd (West Liberty, Ohio/St. Paris Graham HS), Hunter Collins (Gilroy, Calif./Gilroy HS) and Mark Weber (Goodrich, Mich./Goodrich HS), all of whom signed National Letters of Intent during the early signing period in November.

Boyd, named the 2007 Greater Miami Valley Wrestler of the Year, captured the 145-pound title at the Ohio state championships as a junior and was a four-time placewinner, taking second place as a senior, third as a sophomore and sixth as a freshman. He boasted a 165-18 career record and established St. Paris Graham's career pin record with 118 during his four seasons. In freestyle competition, he captured the 2005 Cadet National title at 58 kg/127.75 pounds. Boyd is projected to compete at 149/157 pounds at Michigan.

Collins capped his high school career by capturing the 2008 California state 171-pound title, pinning his way through the bracket with six falls in just 14:03. He was a four-time California state placewinner, claiming third as a junior (2007), second as a sophomore (2006) and eighth as a freshman (2005). Boasting a 181-16 career prep record, Collins earned runner-up honors at the prestigious 2008 Senior High School Nationals, captured the 2007 NHSCA Junior National title at 171 pounds and twice won the Reno Tournament of Champions. He is a two-time national freestyle All-American, claiming fifth place in the junior division (2007) and second in the Cadet division (2006). Collins will likely wrestle at 184 or 197 pounds for the Wolverines.

Just a week after leading Goodrich High School to its first Michigan state championship, Weber became just the 13th four-time Michigan state champion when he captured the 135-pound crown at the 2008 individual state finals. A 2008 Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic selection, Weber completed his high school career with a 224-7 record and claimed second place at the Senior High School Nationals in March. In freestyle competition, he was a 130-pound finalist at the 2007 Junior National Championships and a 105-pound finalist at the 2005 Cadet National Championships. He also placed fourth in the 119-pound division at the 2006 FILA Cadet Nationals. Weber is projected to compete at 133 or 141 pounds at Michigan.

InterMat uses four categories to compile its recruiting classes rankings -- rankings score, impact score, percentage of the incoming class nationally ranked and percentage of wrestlers listed in the InterMat Top 200.

For the complete top-30 recruiting class ranking, please visit http://www.intermatwrestle.com/.

Mailbag Question: Regarding the Athletic Department and Donors

Hey Guys,

With all the talk about facilities and upgrades for the athletic department, I was wondering who the big donors that usually fund these projects are. Are they the same big donors that donate to the university itself?

Does it hurt the athletic department that they have to be self-funded where other college programs aren't this way? Does all the money they have raised over the last couple of years for the school major projects hurt the athletic department? Does the university not like their donors to donate to the athletic department?

What is the deal regarding hoops and why they cannot seem to get any of the donors to donate to their program, but sports like softball, baseball, wrestling, and other women's sports seem to be able to raise money to build new facilities?

I know a lot of question and understand if you guys can't answer them or don't feel like putting this information out there...Thanks...Randy.
-----------------------------------------------
Thanks for the question. There are a several questions in there.

1) Who are the big donors to the Athletic Department and are they the same as the big donors to the rest of the University?

This really varies because there are a couple of people who are among the largest donor to both the Athletic Department and the academic side of the University of -Michigan. These include Steve Ross, Bill Davidson, the Ford family, and Ira Harris (all well above $1million lifetime to the Athletic Department, and far above that to the rest of the University of Michigan).

Second, there are groups of people who focus their giving on the Athletic Department, but not so much elsewhere. These include Junge, Mortenson, and Don Shepherd.

Finally, there are bunches of people who give LOTS of money to the University of Michigan, but little or none to the Athletic Department. These include the Taubers, Erbs, Sam Zell, Al Taubman, etc.

The thing to remember is that this is not a contest. The University of Michigan has a very good development operation--at the Athletic Department and across campus. Joe Parker and his team in athletics work closely with the rest of the development people to figure out who the high potential givers are, and what they are mist interested in. Some like athletics and others could care less. Some love medicine, and other Native American studies. The University of Michigan figures that if you have money, they will offer you something to support, and then send in the right people to push your buttons. Therefore, the Athletic Department and the University complement each other. They really do not compete with each other.

2) Does making the Athletic Department be self-funding hurt the Athletic Department? It definitely makes life more difficult. When they wanted to build Breslin up at Michigan State, they just put a fee on all student bills. When Ohio State wanted new athletics facilities, the University borrowed and guaranteed the money to do it. Bill Martin has to figure out this stuff on his own. Therefore, it definitely makes life more challenging. However, it is also the right thing to do. There are many people at the University of Michigan who do not care about athletics, so why should the University tax them to make Bill Martin's life easier?

There is sometimes some tension between specific units when going after a donor (for example, several units on campus have asks big out of Bill Davidson and Steve Ross. All the units that get a "no" will be annoyed at whichever school gets a yes. Nevertheless, as described above, in general the development people coordinate closely and work toward the same end. It is only the Looney tunes (Duderstadt, Pollack, and women’s' study types) that really see this as a zero sum issue.

3) What is the problem with basketball? There have been two issues that interacted. First, the Ed Martin scandal really turned off many donors. Who wants to be associated with that cesspool? In addition, the University really let this fester so, instead of turning the page, the University essentially frozen for 3-4 years, with a steady drip of revelations.

Second, while Tommy Amaker was clean, he was also a huge introvert who did almost no outreach to donors. The other programs you mention (Baseball, Wrestling, Football, Softball, Gymnastics) all had coaches who did lots of outreach. They got to know the donors. They beat the bushes. They asked for donations. Tommy Amaker did almost none of this--and it showed in the anemic support for his program.

written by ErocWolverine

Thanks for stopping by http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/
If you have any questions please e-mail erocwolverine@gmail.com

Michigan Wrestling: Design approved for new facility

from MGoBlue
http://mgoblue.com/wrestling/article.aspx?id=140362

U-M Regents Approve Design for New Wrestling Facility

June 19, 2008

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The schematic design for a new wrestling facility was approved today (June 19) by the University of Michigan Board of Regents. The new building will be built adjacent to the Preston Robert Tisch Tennis and the Donald R. Shephard Women's Gymnastics facilities on South State Street.

The $5.5 million, 18,000-gross-square-foot building was designed by Jickling Powell Associates, Inc. of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

"We are very excited about this new facility. I think it is going to take our program to a new level," said Joe McFarland, head wrestling coach. "We really needed more space, and we needed all the elements in place that we felt would make us a national championship team. This is going to help us reach that level."

The new facility will include a two-story indoor practice area with three regulation wrestling mats. It also will feature athletic medicine areas, strength and conditioning space, a locker room and storage area.

The design reflects Michigan’s athletic tradition and will complement surrounding athletic facilities. The building materials will be a combination of brick and metal with the main entrance highlighted by a curved two-story wall of glass. On the south façade of the facility, a series of large windows will face a natural wooded wetland area. A standing seam metal roof will be highlighted by a ribbon window that wraps around the entire structure.

Construction is scheduled to be completed in Fall of 2009.

Michigan Tidbits: Bill Martin AD at Michigan

Bill Martin has gotten a lot of heat from football alumni and fans the past couple of years concerning the basketball practice facility along with not hiring Les Miles.

I did not understand the direction of the head football coaching job search was handled. Why do you put together a panel of people you trust and then not follow who they decided? That was my only complaint.

That being said nobody should be complaining about how Bill Martin took a crumbling and in debt athletic department over and is making it into a moneymaker and redoing the facilities the right way. Some will say that donors are not happy with Martin and the direction he is taking the Michigan program. From what I am told, most of them like Martin and love his coaches. The real naysayers are some of the football alumni. People like Dufek and other of Bo’s people. If you have not noticed those people have calmed down a bit, but I am sure they will return especially if Coach Rod gets off to a rocky start.

They do not like the fact that Martin was not a Michigan athlete (or even undergrad alum). They do not think he is deferential enough to them, and that he should have just handed Les Miles the job. Bo was a great coach and a great personality, but he was weak as an Athletic Director, which requires very different skills. These anti-Martin football alums are cranky old people who do not want anything to change, ever. They see any change, as an insult to Bo's legacy and all they can roll out is "you're not part of our club" (meaning Bo alum). Ninety-five percent of the big donors love Martin like Ross, Junge, and Davidson, Wilpon, Shepherd, and others really like the Martin. Anyone who understands the business of college athletics knows that Martin is a great Athletic Director and probably one of the top five in the country with what he has to deal with such as stingy alumni that have many opinions, but do not like to open up their wallets a lot compared to other colleges.

Just announced yesterday that a new wrestling facility is going to be introduces to the Regents for their approval. They went out and got support from donors and alumni to bring this into reality. They started so well that they decided instead of having to share a building that they would have their own building and not have to wait for funding from the basketball side. They were able to raise 5.5mil and wanted the plan was for 4 million dollar new wrestling project. So that means they can make it a little bigger if needed and also add the “extra” things along with having money for upkeep. It will be around the Tennis center.

Some people think that Bill Martin is holding the basketball program back, but that really is not true. If you want to blame people then you need to blame the people not buying tickets, giving money to the program, getting behind a coach. How Michigan works is they want money in place before they start to build any facilities and as we have seen with the football field house, baseball/softball complex, hockey, women’s gymnastics practice facility and now the wrestlers the athletic department wants money in the bank before building.

I have been told that the money from donors for the football renovations are coming in quite well that they can shift some of the money that was earmarked for the stadium renovations to the basketball practice facility since no big donor has stepped up yet to contribute to the practice arena. Martin is charging ahead full speed on the hoops practice facility. Donations for the stadium are coming in much stronger than anticipated in the project budget, which frees up money for other things. Martin will be funding the practice facility out of Athletic Department cash flow, which is possible because of the stadium.

They are finalizing the design (have not seen it). It should be going to the Regents sometime soon. They would likely break ground after football season, but do not necessarily have to wait that long to get started if the approvals are in place. Would not lose that much parking for the prep work, and they want all the digging done before the ground freezes if things go as planned. The latest would be spring. Things are good down there although a few people who would never admit it.

Whoever takes over for Bill Martin is going ot have an easy job just counting the money along with jsut having to renovate the buildings every so often. Martin has taken the crumbling facilites and turned them into great facilities and he is not done yet.

written by ErocWolverine

Thanks for stopping by http://gobluemichiganwolverine.blogspot.com/
If you have any questions please e-mail erocwolverine@gmail.com

Michigan Wrestling: Getting new practice facility

from Mlive
http://www.mlive.com/wolverines/other/index.ssf/2008/05/michigan_wrestling_coach_thril.html

Michigan wrestling coach thrilled with plans for new facility
by John Heuser The Ann Arbor News

Monday May 12, 2008, 3:24 PM

For more than 40 years, the University of Michigan wrestling team has trained in the bowels of Crisler Arena, in a cramped, windowless space that coach Joe McFarland calls the worst facility in the Big Ten.

Those days appear numbered.

Pending approval Thursday by the school's Board of Regents, plans for a new 18,000 square foot, $5.5 million facility will move forward, with completion scheduled for fall of 2009. The building will be located adjacent to the school's Tisch Tennis Building off South State Street.

"We are real excited about it," McFarland said. "It's been a lot of work, and I've had a lot of help, not only from the administrators, but from some of the alumni that have stepped up."

McFarland, a former Michigan wrestler who's been head coach for nine seasons, said he received his first commitment for a financial donation "probably in 2000 or 2001."

The coach said the program met its fundraising goal of $4 million for the project, which McFarland said will aid the Wolverines in their pursuit of a national title. Michigan has finished in the top 10 of the NCAA championship meet for the last eight years.

"It's going to help recruiting," he said. "It's going to have everything in it that we're gonna to need to help us go after a national championship."

Besides more than doubling the mat space, to 7,500 square feet, the building will feature a strength and conditioning center on the second floor, an athletes' lounge, a hall of fame area, sports medicine facilities, a film and video study area and more.

The location of the proposed facility represents a departure from initial discussions, when athletic department officials envisioned it as part of a new basketball practice building that could be located off Crisler Arena's east side. Michigan executive associate athletic director Mike Stevenson, who's involved in facilities issues, said there were two main reasons for the change.

"We concluded that if we could move it to a stand-alone facility, it would have a bigger 'Wow' factor for recruiting," Stevenson said. "Also there was a cost factor. It will cost less to build a free-standing facility than to tie it into Crisler Arena."

Added McFarland: "If everything goes well, we should only have one year left in Crisler. Not only will this be a state-of-the-art training facility, but it will help in recruiting. I look at this as being one of the best - if not the best - in the country."