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Message: [QUOTE="SU2NASA, post: 1281813, member: 800"] Greg Mattison is an incredibly seasoned recruiter (and one of the most respected in the business, so much so that he is the only coach that was asked to stay on after Hoke was fired) and this is the first issue like this that I've ever heard about him. What are the odds that Daishon Neal's dad may have taken something that Mattison has probably said a thousand times, to the effect of (from what I've heard) "this scholarship offers your son the chance to get an elite education at the University of Michigan," and completely took it the wrong way? MGoBlog put it best: [I]There are a few issues at work here. First of all, Michigan can't comment on an unsigned recruit without breaking NCAA rules, so there's no way for Mattison to tell his side of the story; in all likelihood, this won't ever be addressed specifically. Second, what Mattison reportedly said, in so many words, is often true—one of Michigan's most reliable recruiting pitches is that being a football player allows prospects the opportunity at a first-rate education that wouldn't necessarily be available otherwise. This isn't meant as an insult; plenty of smart people with strong academic resumes don't get into Michigan. I think it's great that Michigan presents this opportunity to those who may not have a 3.8 and a 30 on their ACT; football players have a huge impact on campus life and come away with well-earned degrees. Finally, Mattison is a seasoned recruiter. I have a difficult time believing he presented this information in any way close to calling Neal "stupid." That's not a particularly effective way to convince a student-athlete to come to your school. A football scholarship pretty much guarantees admittance as long as the recipient clears NCAA academic requirements, which are far less stringent than Michigan's usual admission standards—coaches almost always check with admissions before offering a scholarship.* Even if Neal has an excellent academic record, that doesn't offer the same guarantee he'd get in. Perhaps Mattison didn't put this in terms Neal and his family appreciated, but it seems far more likely this was an unfortunate miscommunication than a deliberate slight by Mattison. So it goes.[/I] [/QUOTE]

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