Yes, Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh can be odd and frustrating. But college football needs him.

LOS ANGELES — When it was time for Jim Harbaugh to get onto his podium at the Rose Bowl’s media day, there was an immediate problem. The black leather chair that had been placed on the stage for him was too low. He wanted to be higher.

As Michigan staffers scrambled to find something they could use to prop up the chair, Harbaugh stood off to the side, chatting with a reporter about the chickens he keeps in his yard − a topic he’s always happy to discuss.

Was he just trying to run out the clock on Michigan’s hour in front of the media, delaying the uncomfortable questions about sign-stealing, the dual suspensions that forced him to miss six games this season and his potential interest in the NFL? Or was he really just uncomfortable sitting in a normal-sized chair?

With Harbaugh, you truly never know.

There’s only one coach in college football who could manage to produce such mundane, oddball moments 48 hours before the biggest game of his Michigan career.

There’s only one coach who could take a question from a religious publication at media day and produce a sound bite like “Jesus would have been a five-star player, no doubt about it.”

There’s only one coach who can brush away controversy so easily with just a few words − “one-track mind” − that he kept saying over and over Saturday to the point of frustration for those of us trying to extract something meaningful about what this chaotic season has truly been like. 

And let’s hope after Monday’s Rose Bowl that this sport doesn’t lose him forever.

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh spoke to media members on Saturday as his team prepares for Monday’s Rose Bowl.

Because as bizarre and opaque and calculating as Harbaugh may seem, his nine years at Michigan haven’t just been good for the Wolverines. They’ve been good for college football.

A sport in desperate…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/yes-michigans-jim-harbaugh-odd-121659641.html

Author : USA TODAY Sports

Publish date : 2023-12-31 12:16:59

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