Not seeking to place fault or blame but our SID is retiring in about 90 days, so attention to detail regarding public statements may not be what they should . However, Kent Haslem has had a professional relationship with Ellis' father dating back to the early 90's when both were minor league front office executives.
I was standing close to both Kent and Ronnie at the post season award banquet two years ago. I heard Kent say, "I am so glad your son is here...he's in the right place...you have my contact info...rest assured that if for any reason you need to talk I am available to your and your son just give me a call!"
Ronnie has a direct line to Kent, so I am going to defend his administration for just a moment. Plus, Ronnie works at the university level himself. There are processes that take place many of us do not know nor understand. In fact they change so frequent that administrators have a hard time keeping up and they have to be very careful these days given all the NCAA turmoil.
I will say, that I too would have hoped that Jean would have stopped and given her comment more thought before responding to a member of the local media. They ALL are overworked because honestly we are understaffed at UM athletics. She didn't have clue ONE that there was an error in the game reports and because of that she shouldn't be publicly attacked for it either.
Hell, the same could be said for every program in the nation unless you are a traditional Big 5 powerhouse program!
I am of the opinion that circumstances dictate behavior. Given that this kid has done nothing but given every ounce he has to this program and community in my opinion merits a higher level communication and I support the mindset that the department should exhaust all avenues to help any athlete who has been through what I imagine Ellis and his family has.
At the end of the day, everyone is one the same page now and a good portion of that is due to the passion of Griz Nation for its football program and the players that bust their asses to entertain us on Saturdays each fall!
I am equally excited about the future of Griz Football. I am anxious as hell to see the impact on signing day and how the team progresses this spring. Something special has begun in Missoula and Kent Haslam is a big part of the reason for it.
NPB