The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2024 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 41 the South Side. When guys charge you, it's time to defend yourself." Howard's postgame encounter in the handshake line following a Feb. 22, 2022, regular-season loss to Wisconsin drew much more attention, and a harsher pen- alty. Upset over a timeout called down the stretch by Badgers coach Greg Gard, Howard shook hands with him afterward but appeared upset when Gard stopped him and wanted to say something to him. Tempers flared, and Howard eventually reached over and made open-hand con- tact with the face of Wisconsin assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft. "It led to a brief scuffle between players and staff on both sides. The Big Ten fined Howard $40,000 and suspended him for five games, covering the balance of the regular season. Howard issued an apology for his part in the flareup in Madison. "After taking time to reflect on all that happened, I realize how unacceptable both my actions and words were, and how they affected so many. I am truly sorry," he said. "I am offering my sincerest apology to my players and their families, my staff, my family and the Michigan fans around the world. I would like to personally apol- ogize to Wisconsin's assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft and his family, too. "Lastly, I speak a lot about being a Michigan man and representing the Uni- versity of Michigan with class and pride, I did not do that, nor did I set the right example in the right way for my student- athletes. I will learn from my mistake, and this mistake will never happen again. No excuses!" Earlier this season, Howard once again had to be restrained. Only this time, he'd headed for a member of his own staff. Michigan strength and conditioning coach Jon Sanderson trained U-M ath- letes for years, drawing rave reviews from players and coaches, including former basketball coach John Beilein. But an incident reportedly involving Howard's son — senior guard Jace Howard — trig- gered a confrontation that eventually led to Sanderson leaving Michigan. According to a report in The Athletic, the younger Howard was complaining to a trainer about not getting cleared to play after a stress fracture in his knee and tibia kept him out in the early part of the season. Sanderson overheard the in- creasingly intense complaints, the report noted, and eventually told Jace Howard he shouldn't be talking that way to a staff member. "Sanderson became involved in that dispute, and he and Juwan Howard ex- changed words," The Athletic noted. "Ac- cording to a combination of witnesses and individuals briefed on the matter, no punches were thrown, but things became heated to the point where the two were separated." No punishment arose from the inci- dent, with Sanderson eventually fil- ing a Human Resources complaint and reaching a nondisclosure agreement with Michigan to leave his post. Not long after, Sanderson signed on to bolster Illinois basketball in a consult- ing capacity. That proved a sobering slap in the face for a Michigan program that already went 0-8 against the Illini under Howard in a series filled with animosity on both sides. Those incidents, combined with the sharp decline in results on the court, led to the end of Howard's tenure at Michigan. The man who noted the Wolverines would "shock the world" with their NCAA Tournament exploits in the early 1990s won't enjoy another Maize and Blue mo- ment in The Big Dance, after U-M pulled the plug. ❏ What They're Saying About Juwan Howard's Ouster Rapheal Davis, Big Ten Network: "I feel for Coach Howard. He's been the Big Ten Coach of the Year, he's got a No. 1 seed, Elite Eight, went to the Sweet 16. I don't think that players understand that sometimes your actions — on the floor, off the floor — affect not just you but your coach. I think their locker room has been a mess the last couple of years. One or two bad seeds in the locker room can ruin your program for a couple of seasons." Stewart Mandel, The Athletic: "Three years ago, Juwan Howard was the toast of Michigan coming off an Elite Eight run and Jim Harbaugh was on such thin ice he'd taken a 50 percent pay cut. Sure enough, one wildly succeeded and one got fired." Brendan Quinn, The Athletic: "The program's present issues seem to run deeper than its play on the court. "That's why a makeshift meeting room was assembled inside Michigan Stadium last week. There, of- ficials from Rankin Climate, an external firm specializing in organizational 'climate assessments,' convened to conduct a probe into the culture of the men's basketball program. Rankin officials asked some athletic department employees about their experiences in the program, Howard's leadership and support offered by the athletic department. "Those interviewed were told that participation was voluntary, according to multiple university employees granted anonymity because they are not permitted to speak about the investigation. "The review, following claims made by former Michigan strength and conditioning coach Jon Sanderson, marked a new flashpoint for a program looking to find a floor in such a precarious fall. It also complicated the task facing [U-M AD Warde] Manuel, who must weigh what was versus what is, and how much trust and faith are owed to one of Michigan's own." Jeff Borzello, ESPN: "The downturn started in 2022, with a Sweet 16 run papering over some of the cracks that had begun to show, following the Big Ten regular-season title and NCAA tournament 1-seed in 2021. The Wolverines fell off dramatically on the defensive end of the floor from 2021 and 2022, finishing 11th in league play in defensive efficiency and losing 14 games entering the 2022 NCAA tournament. "While the personnel losses … impacted this season, one must keep in mind that Howard had those two first-round NBA draft picks [Jett Howard and Kobe Bufkin] and a college All-American [Hunter Dickinson] — and still missed the NCAA Tournament." — John Borton After a hero's return to Michigan in 2019 and a promising first couple seasons on the bench, Howard saw his program go into decline during the next two seasons before ultimately crash- ing in 2023-24 with an 8-24 record, the most losses in school history.