7 hours. That’s how long it’s been since the news of John Beilein leaving the University of Michigan basketball program rocked the basketball world. And when I say basketball world I obviously just mean my world. Text messages left and right (okay you caught me, 2 people texted me) asking if I saw the news, and what it meant for the Michigan basketball program. Truth be told I was shocked. John Beilein was my guy. The perfect college coach to lead a clean program while the rest of college basketball was finding slick new ways to pay high school players and their uncle’s neighbor’s 3rd cousin to get them to go to school A over school B. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think Beilein would retire a Michigan Wolverine, ideally after finally raising that elusive NCAA championship banner. Now that dream is dead. And we, as a collective community have to find a way to pick ourselves up by our Jordan branded bootstraps and move on.

Before we move on, let’s take a quick trip down Michigan basketball memory lane. This is important for some of you Youngblood’s out here thinking the Beilein years are how it’s always been. Over the last 12 years, John Beilein took a program from death’s door and delivered it to the gates of the promised land. 278 wins, 2 Big Ten regular season titles to go along with 2 Big Ten tournament titles, 9 trips to the big dance culminating in 2 NCAA title game appearances. That’s all well and good, but I think we can admit we’ve been spoiled. Before Beilein, Michigan basketball was in shambles. Anyone remember the Tommy Amaker era? 5 of his 6 years were spent on probation as part of the fallout from the Ed Martin scandal (i.e. that joke about paying players from last paragraph), highlighted by the NIT championship in 2004 (who could ever forget that “championship”). Do I even need to go into the Brian Ellerbe years? Or did we all agree to bury that deep and neverrrrrr bring it up again.

Glad we’re in agreement. I wont mention Brian Ellerbe’s 4 years as Michigan’s head coach if you won’t.

The point of all this is that John Beilein WAS Michigan basketball. He was more than the greatest coach in Michigan history, he was unequivocally the basketball program’s savior. Whoever gets hired to replace him will have big shoes to fill, there’s no doubt about that, but they’re also inheriting the program he built. Michigan is now a name brand in the basketball world. So let’s all take a minute to appreciate what the great John Beilein did for Michigan, pour ourselves another stiff drink, and trust that AD Warde Manuel can find a worthwhile replacement.

So my advice to all my fellow Michigan fans out there struggling to know which way is up right now is simple, let’s trust that the athletic department won’t rush into a dumb hire, and believe in the program Johnny boy built. We had a good run, but it can’t just be over. Right?

-Danny Phantom