ORLANDO - With just a few days left as Michigan's head coach, Lloyd Carr is trying to keep the spotlight on anyone but himself.
Since resigning on Nov. 19, Carr has deflected most questions about his future or his emotions, labeling them as unnecessary distractions for his team as it prepares to face No. 9 UF in the Capital One Bowl.
He wants this week to be the normal routine of practices followed by just another game, but as the clock runs out on his 13-year tenure, Carr knows it won't be.
BIt is a little different,C Carr said. 'I always ask our team after a game, `Did we win, did I contribute and who's next.' I won't have to ask that third question.C
Against the Gators, Carr will seek out win No. 122 as the Wolverines' coach. He trails only Bo Schembechler (194) and Fielding Yost (165) in that category at the nation's winningest program, but a win against UF would carry a greater meaning for Carr, as it would be the first bowl victory for a senior class that has a 0-3 record in postseason play.
BYou start thinking about, well, it's not over yet,C he said. "There's another game, and another opportunity. For a lot of these guys, it's their last go-round at Michigan, so you'd like to see them be successful.C
While Carr wants to keep his finale as coach in the background of the talk leading up to the game, his players have had the opposite reaction.
BWe're going to want to win for him,C said senior defensive back Morgan Trent. "He's been a great coach. He's been a great mentor. We want to send him out the right way.C
The Carr era officially ends on Jan. 2, when former West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez takes over. The program will get a complete makeover upon Rodriguez's arrival. He fired all but one of the current assistant coaches, and his spread offense will signal a break from tradition in Ann Arbor.
BOur players have had the opportunity to talk to Coach Rodriguez about where they fit as far as their particular situation, so there have been some issues that we particularly have to deal with,C Carr said.
One of the players who might not fit into Rodriguez's plan is freshman quarterback Ryan Mallett. Mallett threw for 892 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions this season, but his drop-back style doesn't seem to mesh with a spread offense.
Thus, Michigan's quarterback of the future might be history.
BSometimes a guy gets caught in a coaching change that really changes things significantly,C Carr said. "What I advised Ryan to do when Coach Rodriguez was named was to sit down and talk with him, don't read all that is out there. You have a conversation with him and then you'll know exactly what your feelings are.C
Mallett hasn't made up his mind yet, but if he leaves it will be the first major fallout from Carr's departure.
With the program headed in a new direction, Carr has a chance to leave the Maize and Blue on a positive note. Many fans called for his firing after UM opened the season with back-to-back losses to Football Championship Subdivision school Appalachian State and Oregon, and his resignation followed a fourth consecutive loss to rival Ohio State.
His unranked Wolverines are 10 1/2-point underdogs against UF, and Carr has a final chance to win over the Michigan faithful if he can pull off an upset in UF territory.
Regardless of the result Tuesday, Carr says he won't coach again.
After experiencing the highs (an AP national title in 1997) and the lows (the loss to Appalachian State this season) of a coaching career, the 62-year-old seems ready to put away his clipboard for good.
BI'm an old man, for God's sake,C he said.
Still, Carr doesn't have the relaxed feeling that most experience before entering retirement, and one can't help but wonder if the coach described by nearly everyone as a BMichigan ManC can completely detach himself from the program.
BI'm a lucky guy as far as I've been somewhere I've loved to be,C he said. BIn the end, it's all about relationships. Really, when you look back, that's what makes any profession. The people you meet, the people you work with. I had a great time and a lot of fun.
BI'll miss the relationships. I'll miss the competition. I'll miss the game. The game is a great teacher. It's ever-changing. There's something about that.C
The game will change again as Carr leaves it, but as with any person whose life has been consumed by the weekly grind of college football, the game will never leave him. He'll be reminded every Saturday in the fall.
BThat'll be hard,C he said. BThat'll be the hardest day.C
