Michigan's New XC Coach

I wonder if any of the younger gys will transfer? New Zealanders, B April, and Forys are all young. I'd like to see Forys go someplace and really commit to the steeplechase and staying healthy.

Forys to Arizona State to train with Alcorn under Quintana. Great move.

Forys has one year left and is on Track to graduate with a UM degree.

There would be no reason to transfer just to run somewhere else.

Diemer has been there forever and I don't think is interetsed in the "pressure" of D1 and recruiting needed (even at a place like Michigan that recruits itself). Ron has a great stable of runners (always has), but development has stalled with many and those who show glimmers don't do it at the important time of year (see team XC and Lex Williams senior year as perfect illustration). Mortimer seems obvious, but didn't do much of anything at kentucky with the men's side of things and has been canned twice. Doubt Sully would bite with wife doing so well at FSU. Bring back an old-timer? Really de-emphasize the distance and focus on sprints like some other schools have done a good job doing?

Will be decided soon or I can definitely see some transfer situations!

McGuire, Diemer and Mortimer seem to be the best choices for the job. The job may not interest the first two guys but Mortimer would be a great choice. I think he would work his tail off as this would have to be his dream job. He's done well with less than ideal situations elsewhere. It would be interesting to see how well he'd do in a relatively ideal situation in Ann Arbor

Somebody doing some real recruiting of the mid-talent guys (like your 4:15 miler) would really help the XC team with its depth. There has always been studs at UM but a lot of the tier 2 guys from the state of MI go elsewhere. They really need somebody to actively seek those guys out and to convince them that UM is the best place to be. That's not a really tough sell but they need somebody to actively be doing it.

Another very untraditional option would be to hire Karen Harvey (Sully's wife). She has the resume but I don't see it happening. I must admit that it's a little sad that I have no problem seeing a guy coach a women's team but not v.v.

GREG MEYER. that's all I have to say

Greg Meyer is a U of M icon and everybody loves the guy but is he even interested in coaching? Has he coached beyond the HS level? There's a difference between being a stud and being a good coach/recruiter. I'm not saying Greg wouldn't be a great coach... he's just very unproven as a coach/recruiter. It sort pains me to picture Greg having to go some snotty HS kid's house and kiss his butt to convince him to come to UM but the new coach needs to be doing that.

It's all just speculation anyway until we know the guy is interested in coaching.

One of the people above hit on the biggest problem with Michigan under Warhurst in recent years. Too many high school superstars, not enough depth. The people that make any distance program successful are the less heralded, walk-on/minimal scholarship types. A team with 5-6 high school all-americans with nothing behind them just isn't able to survive the normal vagaries of a 3 season sport. Michigan is a relatively fertile state for distance running, and Michigan just doesn't seem to attract many of the top in-state guys (though they have at least one of the top handful of guys coming this year). Whether that is by choice or simply being out-recruited, there's no doubt Michigan has to slowly build up its depth.

It's been interesting to contrast how Michigan has went about building it's distance stable with how Drenth at MSU has done it. While Michgian has went after high school A-listers, Drenth has built a pretty decent group with guys that wouldn't even get a second look from UofM. What they lack in power up front, they make up for with numbers. By making the 4:20/9:20 sleeper the building block of the team, they've developed something of a blue-collar attitude that I don't perceive Michigan as having. Hopefully the next coach will be able to bring that back.

Greg Meyer may be the greatest guy in history, but you cannot stick someone in this job who is not a very agressive recruiter, done it before, knows compliance up and down, plus can coach a bit.

On some other posts, just to set the record straight as it has been posted twice and is irresponsible.

John Mortimer was not "canned" from two place, he was not let go at BC, he TOOK the UK job.

Fact, All the good guys left UK when Mort did, ought to tell you something and he did do good things with talent he had at both places

Read: Pat Mellea at BC, MacGregor on very limited training at UK, Henken UK 4:20's HS kid to 4:07 and top 8 at Regions XC.

Zagroski qualified for Regions twice under Mort

What HS "A" Listers had Ron gotten in last 4 years?

Name those? For those who trumpet the Dallas Bowden story , you don;t have it as right as you quote it, he was a 3:46.x 17 year old, not 16, and had not done a thing in two years, Ron, if anything got him back on track, 1:49 and 4:04.

Forys, yes

Lex was a 4:09 and sub 9 guy, so yes 5 years ago.O'Lionard has run no better at FSU than he did under Ron.

In any event, Ron was a class act , genuine,a no bull shit guy and a loyal friend to those that had the privalage.

I would hope most of these threads would focus on that.

The two Kiwis, Forys, Lex, O'Lionard, and Macnamara are were all top recruits in their class.

Regardless, I don't want to give the impression that I'm not a huge Warhurst fan. I was just speculating on some of the areas that Michigan is going to need to improve to return to its past glory. He's one of the last of a dying breed and one of the last few giants of the sport . Between Ronnie and Harry Groves leaving in the last few years, the Big Ten is a hell of a lot less colorful than it used to be. Hopefully he continues coaching his post-collegiates and finds other ways to remain involved in the sport.

Mitten State wrote:

Between Ronnie and Harry Groves leaving in the last few years, the Big Ten is a hell of a lot less colorful than it used to be. Hopefully he continues coaching his post-collegiates and finds other ways to remain involved in the sport.

Don't forget Weineke. Those are 3 big time coaches from the Big 10 all retiring in the past few years.

"Previous to that Greg was employed from approximately 2000 through March 2007 by the University of Michigan as director of Major Gifts for the Greater Michigan Region [4] where he helped raised over $125 million for the University"

I think he could convince more than a few parents to fork over the $ for their son to gain a Michigan education while running for storied xc/track program. If there is anyone that can "sell" Michigan, it's Meyer.

To say Michigan hasn't been filled with talented distance runners every year is absurd (point in fact is arguing whether a recruit ran 3:46 as a 16 or 17 year old!), but to say they should attempt to be more like Drenth is flat stupid. The track programS at MSU have improved only marginally and have never been great. Walt is a great distance coach; terrible Director.

What post-collegiates are people referring to?

Willis is gone 90% of the time and Brannen is in Tallaahasse 100% of the time. Rob Myers career is over. Whom am I missing in this stroied group? Certainly coaching these guys didn't make it so he could focus on UM kids.

I'd love to see Brian Diemer take the job. He kind of coaches on the side at Calvin and runs, I believe, a landscaping/snow removal kind of business as his primary income.

If you really hate recruiting, maybe you don't go after the job, but I'd think taking the reigns of U of M beats building pretty yards for people in Grand Rapids. All the more so when you have the kind of running background Diemer does.

For a part-time gig, he's done incredibly well at Calvin. Obviously knows something about getting kids to perform. If he's had any interest in the last 25 years, his opportunity just arrived.

There's a third man in the GR area that'd do a very nice job coaching in AA but, like BDiemer & GMeyer, will likely take a pass on the job.

That is the dumbest thing I have heard of.... really Alcorn has not done anything under Quintana, as has any of the athletes he has coached... they all seem to get it after awhile and leave (Hastings, Galiviz, Victoria, hum....) NOT too much success there that is for sure, look... no points at NCAA's by the distance kids at ASU! OUCH