The Story of Ralph - a mini Harbaugh Tale...
Mlive has some tidbits on Harbaugh's speech to the coaches today...
Most of Harbaugh's roughly 30-minute speech centered around the life lessons football has taught him, and how much each coach can deliver those same lessons to their respective players. In terms of his current job is concerned, Michigan's new coach says he's spent the past three weeks in a "three-point stance," waiting for the recruiting dead period to end.
Looks like "Ralph" really shaped Harbaugh's life :) the story goes much farther into what happened next...
A nine-year-old playing tackle football for the first time, Harbaugh stood at No. 7 in the tackling line, and immediately looked at the group of runners across from him to see who his No. 7 counterpart was.
He counted back, and saw the player he'd be forced to tackle.
"Ralph," Harbaugh recalled Friday afternoon during his speech to the Michigan High School Football Coaches Convention in Lansing. "So I said a prayer. I said 'dear lord, I know I'm only nine-years-old and I haven't asked you for a lot up until now. But please, dear lord, when I'm done with this, please do not let Ralph be No. 7.'
"Ralph was still there."
According to Harbaugh's memory, "Ralph" sported a 5 o'clock shadow and a unibrow as a nine-year-old. He was the biggest kid on the team and outweighed Harbaugh by more than 50 pounds.
and how in 2007 USC was a team of Ralph's....
"My first year coaching at Stanford University, we were scheduled to play the USC Trojans who were ranked No. 1 in the country," Harbaugh recalled. "We were a 41-point underdog. We watched them all week on film, and I remember telling my staff 'these guys are going to have 40 to 50 guys play in the NFL ... we haven't had a guy drafted here in three years.' The previous year's team beat Stanford 50-0. ... I got out there on the sideline, I saw them light that torch and there was a horse running around on the field, he stuck a sword into the ground.
"And I looked over there and saw 105 Ralphs standing on that sideline. ... And we beat them that day, 24-23, I think it was the biggest point spread (upset ever)."
January 16th, 2015 at 4:37 PM ^
I thought there would be something about Mini-Harbaughs which would have been awesome.
January 16th, 2015 at 7:06 PM ^
I think this is the best part of the story...honestly reminded me of Hoke (in a good way):
On Friday, he recalled a meeting he had earlier in the day with Michigan walk-on linebacker Nick Volk, and used it as an example for how excited he is to coach this current group. "He's a linebacker, wants to play fullback, he walked on at Michigan -- the only place he applied to," Harbaugh said. "I asked him how his experience has been, he says it's been A++ -- phenomenal. I asked how the walk-ons are treated here 'oh, great coach, it's great. I've had conversations with every guy on this team, and they treat us all the same.' Any regrets coming here? 'Not really, coach.' "It was so positive and so good. And to be back in this kind of atmosphere ... Pro guys are great to be around. But they've already got their friends and they've already got their favorite coaches and teachers. To be back in this kind of atmosphere, around a guy like Nick Volk ... I take that very seriously and I really look forward to being a coach and a teacher (at Michigan)."
Maybe we can have everything we want in a coach.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:38 PM ^
Horses riding around with torches and swords is a lot cooler than rawk music and t-shirt cannons.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:49 PM ^
I want Mini Harbaugh riding around on a wolverine.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:54 PM ^
I just want actual wolverines brought back in the actual Yost-era, probably rusted lock cages right at the center of the visitor sidelines.
Have some assistant wheel them on over and say,"Now Mark/Urban, the cage might seem shaky, but the key is to not make any sudden movements" and then run away as soon as the cage rattles a bit. If nothing else, we'll actually know how well those guys concentrate under pressure.
January 17th, 2015 at 9:09 AM ^
January 16th, 2015 at 5:00 PM ^
I would have thought 5 mini Harbaugh's which combine into one all powerful VoltronBaugh would have been more up your alley....
January 16th, 2015 at 5:10 PM ^
Baughltron!
January 16th, 2015 at 9:16 PM ^
January 16th, 2015 at 5:32 PM ^
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January 16th, 2015 at 9:18 PM ^
January 16th, 2015 at 4:54 PM ^
We did have horses, swords*, and torches during the protests over Dave Brandon. We also included pitchforks to boot.
How quickly they forget....
*Not Sam Sword
January 16th, 2015 at 4:56 PM ^
I thought most of the protests over what David Brandon did to the University and the football program were quite tasteful, classy and subdued. Even the demonstration was peaceful. Imagine what would have happened in EL if students were demonstrating about how much they objected to their athletic director ruining their athletic department.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:39 PM ^
is a lot like how I envision the majority of the osu players and fanbase. Even if it isn't true, I tend not to mess up a perfectly good theory because of any potential truths.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:47 PM ^
January 16th, 2015 at 4:49 PM ^
"Hey, Ralph...move your shit."
January 16th, 2015 at 5:39 PM ^
January 16th, 2015 at 4:56 PM ^
What 'cha got in the lunchbox Louie?
January 16th, 2015 at 5:25 PM ^
you stand up, let out and ear-piercing war cry along with your best hulk hogan pose-down, and ask the dude, 'whatcha gonna do when the maize and blue pythons run wild over you, brother!?'
January 16th, 2015 at 4:53 PM ^
...sometimes you need to look past the facts.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:41 PM ^
The 5 O'clock shadow and unibrow is hilarious. Still though, can we get some video of the whole thing? Surely someone on this board was there and videotaped it, given that it was Harbaugh.
January 16th, 2015 at 4:54 PM ^
is there a video of the speach anywhere?
January 16th, 2015 at 5:17 PM ^
I bet Ralph ended up like Morelli.
January 16th, 2015 at 7:44 PM ^
My favorite in-game still ever. Thanks.
January 16th, 2015 at 5:28 PM ^
"And I don't know what happened. I don't know if he got tired. Stepped in a hole. Whatever. But he went to the ground. And then, I said 'you just made your first tackle.' ... Then I started checking body parts to make sure nothing was broken. ... 'You tackled Ralph.' "
In a sense, this rather describes Stanford's play under Harbaugh in games that they were not expected to win, including the one described in th story. Not giving up, holding on, trying what you can until it happens. I will enjoy watching a team with this man's tenacity behind it.
January 16th, 2015 at 5:50 PM ^
When I read the headline I thought Harbaugh somehow had something to do with this Ralph(ie)
January 16th, 2015 at 6:24 PM ^
I can't create a post but thought some might be interested in this article about Adidas and their plans to expand their US footprint. A bidding war for UM's contract would be nice given all of the shiny new (expensive) coaches, but I for one would advocate either Nike or UnderArmour making a stand for the winningest program in college football. Either way, notice that the article doesn't talk at all about product quality as a possibly culprit in the current failings of Adidas - just marketing.
www.businessweek.com/articles/2015-01-16/adidas-goes-shopping-for-500-f…
January 16th, 2015 at 6:55 PM ^
STOP IT!
January 16th, 2015 at 6:43 PM ^
January 17th, 2015 at 8:15 AM ^
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January 16th, 2015 at 7:10 PM ^
I remember in 3rd grade basketball, we played some weird school that did grades oddly and at least one guy on their team had a beard and most of them drove themselves to the game....or at least so things appeared to my 8 year old eyes. We got crushed.
January 16th, 2015 at 7:21 PM ^
Anyone have video to the whole speech?