What I'm Thankful for as a Michigan Fan

By Jacob Lipnik on December 2, 2014

It’s been a long autumn for fans of the Michigan Wolverines, filled with everything from players being kicked off the team for domestic violence, to rallies held on the University’s Diag to protest then Athletic Director Dave Brandon and to call for his firing, to an absolutely abysmal football season—one that includes a loss to all three of the Wolverines’ major rivals and a record one win shy of a bowl berth.

But the leaves are starting to fall, and so is the snow; with Thanksgiving officially past, Winter is Coming, and this long, abysmal autumn is finally in the rearview mirror. That in itself is something for Michigan fans to be thankful for. And that’s not all. As I continue to revel in the holiday spirit, I’d like to list a few more things that the maize and blue faithful should be thankful for this Thanksgiving season.

Dave Brandon is officially gone, and he’s taking a gloomy era of Michigan football with him. There is still much uncertainty around the program—including who the new Athletic Director will be (although reports say interim AD Jim Hackett will be around for a while)—but you have to think that anyone will be better than Brandon was for the University. First year University president Mark Schlissel is a smart man, and I fully expect him to hire an athletic director that will keep the department in a good place and the fans happy.

Michigan fans everywhere are thankful to see Brady Hoke waving good bye.
(via flickr.com)

Brady Hoke is almost certainly going to be following in Brandon’s footsteps some time in the next month. The fourth year coach started his career at Michigan red hot, finishing his first season 11-2 and winning the Sugar Bowl, but since then things have gone downhill every season, culminating with this season’s 5-7, bowl ineligible mark. Hoke seems like an upstanding guy, but he simply isn’t the right man to lead Michigan’s football program. While there are no guarantees of who will be replacing Hoke, the list of potential candidates yields numerous names that should help the program regain its footing in the Big Ten. Jim Harbaugh is at the top of that list for most people; if Michigan can secure him as its next coach, fans will have even more to be thankful for.

Almost everybody will be returning from this year’s football team. Although this season has been a failure by any measure conceivable, that fact alone is a very bright silver lining. Devin Gardner is the lone offensive starter—or backup—who will be departing, assuming nobody transfers or declares for the NFL draft (the only candidate for the draft, WR Devin Funchess, seems likely to stay for his senior year). Either junior Shane Morris or redshirt freshman Wilton Speight will take over as the starting QB, and it’s hard to imagine either not being as good or better than Gardner has been this season. Add that to what will be a fairly veteran offensive line and experienced skill position players and the offensive should be considerably improved next season.  The defense, too, will have very little attrition; Jake Ryan, Frank Clark (who was dismissed from the team for domestic violence charges), Brennan Beyer, and Raymon Taylor are the only starters departing from a very solid defensive unit. With plenty of talent just waiting for a shot at the starting lineup, the defense shouldn’t drop off much—if at all—in 2015. The Wolverines will be a more experienced team next year, and with a new head coach leading them, they will surely be better.

Michigan fans are definitely thankful for All-American hopeful Caris LeVert
(via flickr.com)

It’s finally basketball season, meaning a time for Wolverines fans to root for a team that is actually exciting and, frankly, good. The Michigan basketball team is young, but they’ve got tons of talent; and if anyone knows how to work with inexperienced, talented teams and turn them into contenders, it’s head coach John Beilein. Michigan has already been impressive early in the season, with a solid win over Oregon and a hard fought, last second loss to a top 15 team in Villanova. Freshman Kameron Chatman and Ricky Doyle have both shown flashes of greatness early in the season, and those flashes should only become more sustained as the season goes on. Pair that with sophomores Derrick Walton, Jr. and Zak Irvin, both of whom appear to have made similar freshman-to-sophomore leaps to household names like Trey Burke and Nik Stauskas, as well as pre-season All-American Caris LeVert, and you have a pretty formidable team. This young squad has already looked good in November; come March, there’s no telling how good, and fun to watch, they’ll be.

There you have it: four great reasons for Michigan fans to get over the gloom of this miserable autumn and be thankful for what lies ahead this winter and beyond. And if that’s not enough to be thankful for, don’t forget that Michigan is still the number one public university in the country.

At least we’re number one in something, right?

 

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