AD Josh Whitman open letter on the Big Ten regular season title
- Status
JFGsCoffeeMug
BU:1 Trash cans:0
- Chicago
Well done, Josh. Clear, measured, and eloquent. And, most importantly, sincere.
This isn't just about 2.4% or -0.5 games back. In the crucible of athletic competition, we teach our student athletes that performing well in crunch time matters. We teach them the importance of rising to the challenge. We talk about character being revealed in these critical moments.
When the time came for Kevin Warren and the B1G to practice what they preach and lead the way, they wilted. And the consequences of their collective failure will continue to reverberate long into the future. You failed to hold Michigan accountable throughout the season. You failed to correct an obvious inequity at the end. You refused to extend a meaningful grace that would have costed you nothing.
Top to bottom, the B1G is full of institutions, coaching staffs, support staffs, and student-athletes that are championship-caliber, exuding excellence, toughness, tenacity, and tremendous heart.
Kevin Warren possesses none of those traits. He is not fit to lead a conference he has nothing in common with.
This isn't just about 2.4% or -0.5 games back. In the crucible of athletic competition, we teach our student athletes that performing well in crunch time matters. We teach them the importance of rising to the challenge. We talk about character being revealed in these critical moments.
When the time came for Kevin Warren and the B1G to practice what they preach and lead the way, they wilted. And the consequences of their collective failure will continue to reverberate long into the future. You failed to hold Michigan accountable throughout the season. You failed to correct an obvious inequity at the end. You refused to extend a meaningful grace that would have costed you nothing.
Top to bottom, the B1G is full of institutions, coaching staffs, support staffs, and student-athletes that are championship-caliber, exuding excellence, toughness, tenacity, and tremendous heart.
Kevin Warren possesses none of those traits. He is not fit to lead a conference he has nothing in common with.
sbillini
- st petersburg, fl
This is the key question, imo. someone needs to ask Kevin Warren this very directly. "Why was the previous agreement of winning %age being the decider still considered valid when a team (doesn't matter which one) intentionally chose not to play when they could have, thereby making it difficult (impossible) to play all their games?"
Joel Goodson
- respect my decision™
Big props to Whitman. That letter is a tour de force.
Of course there were other options. Many people believe that our record, half a game ahead of Michigan, makes us deserving of the championship. That's an option now and it was an option at the beginning of the season. I can understand that no one contemplated this, although it's fairly obvious that this might have happened.
The part that they probably never contemplated was that a team with a lead in the standings would opt out of playing games, knowing they would not be penalized for that.
Correct. They didn’t isolate due to positive tests. It was their own Athletic Department that shutdown for 2 weeks as precaution. They could’ve chosen to return to practice sooner. Their shutdown was not mandated by any authority higher than their athletic department even though it was appreciated by the MI health department.
So by their own AD rules they returned to practice on the 7th and cancelled the Illinois game on the 11th and played WI on the 14th.
Edit: All of that, plus refusing to make up the NW, IND, and PSU games was all unilateral.
As opposed to a tour de farce from Big 10.
In spite of what some on here think!! Or other sites for that matter. Josh Whitman for ALL BIG Athletic Director!!!!
I don’t care that UM decided to shut it down. That’s fine. But shutting it down made the season less objective. And out record being what it was, and us destroying them in our matchup, means the fair, equitable thing to declare co-champs.
Calillini
Now appearing in Tampa
Thanks, I then stand by my opinion that BIG should have stepped in at that point and told scUM that the BIG sets the schedule, not the school. scUM played the system to their unfair advantage.
I still can’t believe how the B1G feels they need to say no to co-champs.
It is literally mind boggling.
You lose NOTHING from making a decision that benefits both schools. You gain TONS of goodwill and avoid constant criticism.
I hope more comes of this. Even if it is just to make Warren feel the heat.
I also hope that if we win the BTT, and Warren is there to give a congratulatory presentation, BU flips him the bird and we peace out.
It is literally mind boggling.
You lose NOTHING from making a decision that benefits both schools. You gain TONS of goodwill and avoid constant criticism.
I hope more comes of this. Even if it is just to make Warren feel the heat.
I also hope that if we win the BTT, and Warren is there to give a congratulatory presentation, BU flips him the bird and we peace out.
Warren should resign in disgrace and Josh for commissioner.
However what was agreed upon was changed for Ohio State in football.great letter, and i agree with virtually everything he says. But, i hate to say it, there is one glaring issue (quote below). I didn't know this was agreed to beforehand. Not sure why you would agree that winning %age is the metric upfront. I think there was a reasonable enough chance that not all teams would play the same # of games that the scenario we're in right now was possible. Seems short-sighted to not object earlier.
To be clear, just because they were short-sighted then doesn't justify being short-sighted now. Given the world we've been in for the past year, i think it's entirely fair to be flexible and be willing to adjust to circumstances. But the quote below makes that argument more difficult to make.
Nonetheless, I agree with the sentiment, esp towards the end. just go out and prove them wrong on the court.
"In November, the conference agreed that winning percentage would be used to determine the regular-season champion in basketball. At the time, we stared into an uncertain future, not knowing how many games teams would be able to play."
Calillini
Now appearing in Tampa
And another thing.... they get rewarded for not having the discipline to isolate properly and we and the other teams who did isolate get punished. This is getting wrong on so many levels.
They revised and pivoted in football when it favored the BIG and money maker Ohio State. These are strange times, and adapting is the new norm.great letter, and i agree with virtually everything he says. But, i hate to say it, there is one glaring issue (quote below). I didn't know this was agreed to beforehand. Not sure why you would agree that winning %age is the metric upfront. I think there was a reasonable enough chance that not all teams would play the same # of games that the scenario we're in right now was possible. Seems short-sighted to not object earlier.
To be clear, just because they were short-sighted then doesn't justify being short-sighted now. Given the world we've been in for the past year, i think it's entirely fair to be flexible and be willing to adjust to circumstances. But the quote below makes that argument more difficult to make.
Nonetheless, I agree with the sentiment, esp towards the end. just go out and prove them wrong on the court.
"In November, the conference agreed that winning percentage would be used to determine the regular-season champion in basketball. At the time, we stared into an uncertain future, not knowing how many games teams would be able to play."
Michigan didn’t have an actual positive within the program. Their shutdown was state mandated due to the UK variant on campus.
Calillini
Now appearing in Tampa
Thank you for the clarification, I feel a little better, but only a little. They still were allowed to set their own schedule.
Deleted member 186590
D
Guest
Yes, the Kowtowing of the the Big Ten to Michigan is nauseating
1) Howard actively campaigned not to have to play their make-up games, said "we're not Nebraska nor Maryland"
--> The Big Ten comes out and says they will "prioritize" playing the make up games for teams that have not played this year
--> Meanwhile Nebraska has to give up a home game and play Maryland back to back nights at their place to get their games in - why?
2) Since the quarantine was lifted for Michigan on Feb 7th until the end of the season on March 7th, Michigan played 8 games
--> Nebraska played 13 games in that stretch (why the difference big ten?)
--> MSU played 10 games
--> As Whitman said we were forced to play 3 straight road games in the same week against top 25 teams to make up the Michigan game they didn't want to play when scheduled
--> There were several dates Michigan could have played like Feb 23 - Michigan had a game on the 21st and 25th, so did Northwestern, they could have played their makeup game on the 23rd
--> The big ten forced every team to make up their games except Michigan (Nebraska, which as mentioned above, simply ran out of dates, but got 19 in!)
That is the gripe - Michigan didn't want to play the brutal schedule the other teams had to in order to get their games in, but they want to take home the trophy for being champions. This is what BU was referring to when he said, this is a character moment for the athletes, you are part of the big ten and we have to do our part to play our games, no matter how brutal the schedule.
Illinois played their games --> Michigan didn't want to
No! I understand , though, But we got to keep Josh at Illinois!
Is this true? There were no positive tests. I believe they shutdown as a precautionary step due to conditions in the state and likely on campus. I might be wrong in that though.
Calillini
Now appearing in Tampa
You are right, but they still uniquely had the option of deciding NOT to play makeup games. No other team was given that option.
How many times is Illinois going to get screwed over by the Big Ten and the NCAA?
* The regional final against Kentucky being played on Kentucky's home court, which led to a rule change
* The excessively harsh penalties for minor recruiting infractions because of the Deon Thomas investigation
* The Michigan fumble game in football that led to the use of instant replay in Big Ten games
* The blown out-of-bounds ball against Miami in the NCAA tournament that led to a rule change
And now getting jobbed out of a conference championship in basketball after they had changed the rule for tOSU in football at the end of the season, but wouldn't do likewise for Illinois. It's absolutely maddening
* The regional final against Kentucky being played on Kentucky's home court, which led to a rule change
* The excessively harsh penalties for minor recruiting infractions because of the Deon Thomas investigation
* The Michigan fumble game in football that led to the use of instant replay in Big Ten games
* The blown out-of-bounds ball against Miami in the NCAA tournament that led to a rule change
And now getting jobbed out of a conference championship in basketball after they had changed the rule for tOSU in football at the end of the season, but wouldn't do likewise for Illinois. It's absolutely maddening
Last edited:
- Status