SI

Hands-on assistants a key to success for John Beilein, Michigan

In the meantime, nobody is too worried about the next step, because they are enjoying this one too much. Beilein is 61 and Meyer is 59, but they seem younger.

Michael Rosenberg

Hands-on assistants a key to success for John Beilein, Michigan
Hands-on assistants a key to success for John Beilein, Michigan /
One reason why Michigan coach John Beilein (left) has been so successful is his ability to defer to assistants like Bacari Alexander (right).
One reason why Michigan coach John Beilein (left) has been so successful is his ability to defer to assistants like Bacari Alexander (right) / AP

In the meantime, nobody is too worried about the next step, because they are enjoying this one too much. Beilein is 61 and Meyer is 59, but they seem younger. Jordan and Alexander are in their 30s but seem older. Like this year's Michigan team, everybody on the staff just fits together. The best assistant coaches don't star in commercials. But they do cut down nets.

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Michael Rosenberg
MICHAEL ROSENBERG

Michael Rosenberg is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, covering any and all sports. He writes columns, profiles and investigative stories and has covered almost every major sporting event. He joined SI in 2012 after working at the Detroit Free Press for 13 years, eight of them as a columnist. Rosenberg is the author of "War As They Knew It: Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler and America in a Time of Unrest." Several of his stories also have been published in collections of the year's best sportswriting. He is married with three children.

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