Five Stars: Reflecting on the resignation of Shemy Schembechler…
Five thoughts on Michigan recruiting…
1. Schembechler resigns
Shemy Schembechler lasted all of three days in his role as Michigan Assistant Director of Recruiting before resigning on Saturday evening. This situation should have never happened. Yes, Shemy is the son of the legendary Bo Schembechler and a close friend of head coach Jim Harbaugh, but his background should have been vetted. In the age of social media, checking candidates’ tweets, likes, posts etc. is a must. A quick peak into Schembechler’s likes showed alarming and disturbing activity. At least that’s what I wrote yesterday in my news story about the situation. I hate covering issues like there. I’m here to talk about high school football, Michigan recruiting, and some other random topics this amazing community comes up with on a daily basis. But the fact of the matter is Schembechler’s likes weren’t just alarming or disturbing. They were downright racist. Point blank. That’s something that needed to be said.
2. Schembechler resigns Pt. 2
Yesterday’s comments evolved into a right wing vs. left wing debate. This isn’t a political issue. This is a racist issue. Look, I don’t know Schembechler personally. I’ve never met the guy and don’t know what he stands for. And I’m certainly not the right person to cast additional stones in his direction. I’ve never voted in my 31 years of existence nor do I intend to. I see positives and negatives in both major parties and find it difficult to wholeheartedly agree with one. What exactly my views are shouldn’t be shared on this forum or on my professional social media account. Schembechler certainly shared his views and then some — for multiple years. But it’s not the political tweets that I’m condemning. It’s the flat out racist ones. Liking tweets that support Jim Crow and other racist ideologies has no place in this world, especially in a position that deals with African-American youth on pretty much a daily basis.
3. Schembechler resigns Pt. 3
I’ve seen a few posters bring up Michigan running back Donovan Edwards in a couple of threads. Look, this is not nearly the same situation. What Edwards did on his social media was wrong as well. But he’s a young adult that made a mistake by sharing some wild thoughts from — whether you like him or not — one of the most influential musical artists of our generation. My wife is Jewish. I get it. But again, it was a young, dumb mistake. I know Edwards personally and believe there is not a single ounce of malice in his heart. This is not what this is. Schembechler is a full grown man. He should have known better than to like those tweets — for multiple years!!! — on his own personal account. His forced resignation was more than deserving. On the flip side of the coin, those in charge of the vetting process at Michigan should be held accountable — no I don’t want Harbaugh fired — in some form or fashion. This hire should have never happened and is embarrassing for all. Whether you’re a left winger or a right winger, I sure hope that’s something we can all agree on.
4. What’s next at the position?
Alright, back to recruiting. The resignation of Schembechler leaves an opening for an Assistant Director of Recruiting. Schembechler’s background is in scouting, and I fully expected him to work closely with Tom Gamble. You don’t hear much about Gamble during the recruiting process because he spends most of his time behind the scenes breaking down film. Schembechler, because of his last name, I’m sure, would have been more involved on visits, but was likely going to have a similar role. This wasn’t going to be an Albert Karschnia-like role. We’ll get to that in a bit. Look, I’m just not too familiar with the scouting side of things in the recruiting industry. But it appears Michigan is willing to get Gamble some help, and Harbaugh has endless connections to make the right hire this offseason. I expect a quality addition before the end of summer.
5. Rest of the department
When I first arrived on this beat, I called for the expansion of the recruiting department. And Harbaugh has shown a willingness to do that. He created the position of On-Campus Director of Recruiting and hired Christina DeRuyter, who has been a home run. DeRuyter now has a small army working for her. Other support staff like Denard Robinson and Connor Stalions aren’t in recruiting roles per se, but their impacts have been felt the last couple of cycles. Then you have Albert Karschnia, a grunt worker that does well in his current position. But the fact remains that Karschnia still needs help. That portion of the recruiting department, which is arguably the most relationship-based and overall most important, needs at least three other people. This is not an anti-Karschnia post. This is a get the man some help post. Last year’s hiring of Jonathan Herd-Bond, who has since departed, was a dud. Michigan needs some quality staffers working alongside Karschnia. It’s really the only thing Michigan is missing on the recruiting front.
The post Five Stars: Reflecting on the resignation of Shemy Schembechler… appeared first on On3.
