View from the Sidelines: On Jim Harbaugh's futile effort to praise Rutgers
I’m writing this — a football column on Michigan’s 42-7 win over Rutgers, in Piscataway — from the Crisler Center press box. And, well, the basketball game was more competitive. If you didn’t think it would be, you probably either overestimated the basketball team, or underestimated how terribly bad the Scarlet Knights are at playing football.
Jim Harbaugh tried his best to praise Rutgers after the game. He really, truly, tried his hardest. After being asked a question about the large contingent of Michigan fans that showed up in New Jersey, he turned it around to praise Scarlet Knights’ fans, and by proxy, the Scarlet Knights.
“Rutgers has a — that was a good — I thought their home fan base was really good,” Harbaugh said. “The team was really improved and competitive. That’s a competitive football team. They did as good a job of anybody at containing our running game and also really impressed with their young backs. And they run hard, those guys. Quarterback looked good, too. He made some real plays. That was a competitive game. Knew it would be, going in. We saw the way they played Northwestern. Saw the way they played Indiana. That’s a team that’s very close to breaking through and winning multiple games, consecutive games. Rob does a really good job with the team. Thought they had a really good plan offensively and defensively.”
Let’s parse this.
[After THE JUMP: Some parsing]
First, Rutgers’ home fan base is not good. Sorry. It’s just not. I’m from New York. I’ve had zero casual conversations about Rutgers in my life that didn’t center on how pathetic the Scarlet Knights are — and most of those have been with Michigan media or fans.
We’ll let, “their team is really improved and competitive,” slide on two grounds. The first is, it’s a low bar. The second is that last time Michigan was in Piscataway, it won 78-0. Technically, there’s some fact here. Same for the bit about the Scarlet Knights’ running backs — Isaih Pacheco broke an 80-yard run for Rutgers’ only real bright spot all game.
Then there’s this: “Quarterback (Artur Sitkowski) looked good, too. He made some real plays. That was a competitive game.”
That's generous, at best. Harbaugh, of course, can’t say the truth without causing controversy. Artur Sitkowski is having a terrible season, and played terribly in this game, going 8-of-19 for 40 yards with an interception. The game was over by halftime — and for Rutgers, that’s an accomplishment. This school should be shot from the Big Ten out of a cannon.
Harbaugh did, accidentally, let slip a little honesty within that long, winding quote. “That’s a team that’s very close to breaking through and winning multiple games, consecutive games,” he said.
Multiple games — that may be a glass ceiling the Scarlet Knights can shatter. In fact, they’ve already done it this season, beating Texas State and Morgan State. The next barrier will be losing to Kansas by less than 40. Then, and only then, maybe we’ll start thinking about the remote possibility of winning a Big Ten game.
Of course, the last part of that quote can’t go unmentioned. The allusion to Rob. Who is Rob? It seems that Rob is Rutgers coach Chris Ash, whose name Harbaugh simply got wrong.
Regardless of what Harbaugh says — of what anyone says — that shows just how much thought was put into this game by the Wolverines.
The scoreline? That shows how much thought they needed to put into it.
November 11th, 2018 at 6:05 PM ^
Rob Ash also is a former president of the American Football Coaches Association. He now works as Director of Coaching Development at Championship Analytics, a company that provides analytics to college football coaches to help with pre-game planning and in-game strategies.
November 12th, 2018 at 10:05 AM ^
Brings to mind a story about Barry Switzer. In 1980, North Carolina had a pretty good team - they were 7-0 and had risen to No. 6 in the polls. They featured LT on defense and "Famous" Amos Lawrence at running back. They were coached by Dick Crum. OU was only 5-2 and was ranked No. 16, but would go on to win the Big 8. They played a late-season nonconference game in Norman. Before the game while the coaches were chatting, Barry repeatedly referred to Dick as Denny, who was the basketball coach at Louisville who had just won the NC earlier that year.
After the game, which OU won in a surprising romp, 41-7, Switzer again called Crum "Denny." Crum finally corrected him: "Coach, my name is Dick! Denny is a basketball coach in Kentucky!"
Turned out to be the only game UNC lost that year.
November 11th, 2018 at 4:32 PM ^
rutger should be shot out of a cannon from the Big 10...and into the sun.
November 11th, 2018 at 5:01 PM ^
That was indeed a much improved Rutger team compared to 2016, but I still love the tone of utter dismissal projected from the blog.
November 11th, 2018 at 5:30 PM ^
Rob's got em on the right path, they will be a team soon.
November 11th, 2018 at 5:57 PM ^
I mean, I know that Syracuse isn't in that NYC market, but I would be willing to bet that there are a lot more Syracuse fans in the NYC market than Rutgers
November 11th, 2018 at 6:18 PM ^
Chris Ash Lways looks like hes about to cry. Maybe Harbaugh nicknamed him "sob" and we heard him wrong
November 11th, 2018 at 8:45 PM ^
Dissected with elegance and profundity.
November 12th, 2018 at 12:43 AM ^
Should have added Syracuse instead of Rutgers. Get's some attention from the NY base and can actually have a decent team from time to time. The other logical choices (no it doesn't expand the footprint) are ND (we all know the arguments) and Pitt. So, ditch the Rut, add Cuse, Pitt, ND.
November 12th, 2018 at 8:09 AM ^
Need to put Rutgers in the Benjy catapult.
November 12th, 2018 at 11:41 AM ^
just kills me that don brown can't get that shutout this year - he keeps getting close to it.
November 12th, 2018 at 12:16 PM ^
I believe adding Rutgers is the worst power 5 conference school expansion that has happened in the last 50 years.
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