The Detroit Lions are playing the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, and former Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long was one of the Dolphins players to speak to Detroit media on a conference call Wednesday.
↵Long got some questions about his injured shoulder and the Dolphins' disappointing season (7-7, third place in the AFC East), but the Detroit media wanted to know what he thought of Rich Rodriguez and the unsettled Michigan coaching situation.
↵↵↵↵"I’m not talking about that," said Long, who did not play for Rodriguez. "I support whoever’s in there, so if he’s still the Michigan coach, I’m supporting him."
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Fair enough. As Dave Birkett pointed out in his article, Long didn't play for Rodriguez. His graduation was part of the mass exodus of talent that left the program when Lloyd Carr retired and Rodriguez took over.
↵Regardless, Long made it clear that he's a Michigan man and let his Maize and Blue colors show.
↵↵↵"I am a Michigan guy, through and through," Long said. "They’ve had a couple down years, but I think they’ve showed some good things. It was good to see them make a bowl game this year and, hopefully, they do well in that. And they just got to keep improving and keep getting better. I think they got better this year from last year, and they just got to keep moving on and keep improving."
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With that, Long echoed the thoughts of many Michigan football fans. Yes, the team showed improvement this season, especially after a substantial two-year dip. And more improvement should be expected if Rodriguez sticks around (hopefully with a new defensive coordinator in place).
↵That's obviously the best that can be hoped for if Dave Brandon decides not to make any significant changes.