Jim Harbaugh Appreciation Thread
Jim Harbaugh understands rivalries and is the definition of a Michigan Man
Last night's loss, as fresh on our minds as it is, was not and should not be the reason for us as fans to suddenly want Jim Harbaugh gone and back in the NFL. He has a vision for this team and I know that it will get here sooner rather than later. The weaknesses of this team will be strength under Harbaugh and we are seeing this team transform. Prior to his arrival, we were horrible on Defense, Special Teams, and Offense: Two of those Three weaknesses are fixed and the Offense will take a huge positive soon.
Jim's record to date as our head coach is 24-7. In most of the losses, including last night's game, we were competitive and had a chance to win. Last season we didn't lose a game by more than 5 points. Yeah, losing to a rival sucks ass because we have been dominant against OSU/MSU for over a decade now but the sky ain't falling. A loss like last night's game builds steel in your spine.
I attribute all the anger and frustration to a few things: 1. A sense of despair and loss not seen since these two took the field:
Nick Sheridan and Steven Threet
2. Urban Meyer / Mark Dantonio dominance in the B10 and against Michigan.
Everything is coming to a boil and I feel that the anger won't subside until we beat OSU, which may or may not happen this year.
The Michigan Death Star will not be built in a day, but it WILL be built by Jim Harbaugh. I'm appreciative of that and know that it will happen sooner than later. The last thing we need is a complete regime change which will probably see the likes of our top 10 defensive coaches leaving our program and years of further rebuilding. I DO NOT WANT A NEW REGIME CHANGE.
Thanks Jim Harbaugh for all the hardwork you are doing with the program. This is football and losses will happen, but the team is on the right path. Onward and forward!
October 8th, 2017 at 9:38 PM ^
The youth excuse does not fly when MSU is just as young and just came into the Big House playing winning football.
Why is this youth excuse always brought up about Michigan? Look at the other programs around the nation that play with youth INCLUDING our RIVALS!!!
(OSU won a national title with youth)
October 8th, 2017 at 9:46 PM ^
MSU has the same record as us (4-1). Three weeks ago they committed a ton of turnovers and got destroyed at home.
Last night they were +5 in turnovers. Sh*t happens sometimes.
October 9th, 2017 at 1:46 AM ^
Excuses.
October 9th, 2017 at 1:36 PM ^
"Sir, this is a Taco Bell... we don't serve Big Macs"
"EXCUSES."
October 8th, 2017 at 10:08 PM ^
We haven't recruited on even close to the level OSU has. We have two top 5 ish class in the last two years. Those kids are Sophmores and Freshman. The classes before that were subpar and we are feeling it. Especially on the offensive line where it takes time to develop kids unless they are uber elite. I understand you have to coach them up but it isn't easy. Look at PSU for an example, they were ready to run Franklin off and were so inept we had a good time mocking them. Now something clicked and they are a top 3 team. Youth can be frustrating.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:19 PM ^
Jim Harabaugh for Michigan. There will be "unacceptable" losses as the entitled fanbase cries for perfection, but get your shit together.
Shit luck and/or officiating cost us 2 games MSU 2015 and OSU 2016.
Last night sucked and JH was outcoached...it happens...even the wonderful Urban and Saban get outcoached on given nights. Harbaugh is a top coach and will soon start winning more of these games than losing - especially has his system comes together and games don't stay so close.
We need a fucking O-line and a QB - I'm quite sure he realizes what is lacking right now. It wil get fixed.
Losing sucks, but grow the fuck up and realiz that JH is a damn good coach, but not the second coming of the messiah as some here were wishing.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:20 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:20 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:22 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:59 PM ^
Maybe a man who turned down the NFL and more money to come back to his alma mater due to a love for Michigan, the ties that he has, and feeling wanted?
Maybe a man who took a 5-7 team and turned them into a 10-3 squad?
Maybe a man who went 10-3 last year, losing those three games by a combined five points?
Maybe a man who was a few questionable calls and unlucky bounces from being 3-0 and 1-1 against MSU and Ohio State and winning the Big Ten East last year?
Maybe acknowledging that we were competitive in all of those games save OSU 2015, and it's not all directly on Harbaugh's shoulders?
Maybe two consecutive top 5 recruiting classes, with two borderline five stars and two high four stars locked up in the 2019 class?
Maybe acknowledging the youth of our team, and the fact that we have one of the best defenses in the country despite our youth?
Maybe giving thanks for being competitive in a monsoon despite five turnovers while playing our backup quarterback, losing by only four points?
Other than that, nothing, of course. HARBAUGH IS GARBAGE!
I'm not saying that it's all sunshine and rainbows, and changes definitely need to be made on the offensive side of the ball, but give me a break with the "THANKFUL FOR WHAT?!" spiel.
October 8th, 2017 at 11:46 PM ^
Saying what I've been thinking.
Yes, losing sucks. And losing to MSU really sucks. What sucks even more is losing to MSU in the way we have this year and in 2015 and to see Dantonio act as if coaching brilliance rather than dumb luck underlies his two victories. Yes, I see the scoreboard and know that that's the *one thing* that counts at the end of the game.
Yeah, I know that O'Korn was 5.7 ypa. You know who was worse? Lewerke had 4.3.
All 4 fumbles went MSU's way. And Lewerke's had some weird juju where he rolled over his own players to get that 1st down on his own fumble.
How many 3 and outs did MSU have? about 8? That's some offensive wizardy by Dantonio right there. ( /s by the way)
I'm not sure about the official first downs for each team, but I know UM was ahead on that measure (something like 15-10 or so?).
I know I'm doing some cherry-picking. And I'm not trying to claim anything like we "outhit" them. I'm saying that good process generally -- but not always -- gets good results. Luck plays a role sometimes. And if I were to take some idea of the expected value from each play, averaging out stupid luck (like fumble recoveries), I would take Harbaugh's game plan in a heartbeat over Dantonio's. I think we'd win more times than we'd lose. I think we *were* piecing together drives, as he said. Bad penalties at key times and unrecovered fumbles stopped the progress.
October 8th, 2017 at 11:48 PM ^
for "Get a Grip" and this thread.
Definitely rather read appreciation threads instead of, I'm Crying Into My Whiskey/Scotch/Beer threads. NTTAWWT.
Also, if we're assigning blame. I had a lengthy list of to-do items for today and absolutely none of it got accomplished. I am blaming all of you people!
October 9th, 2017 at 1:00 AM ^
but at some point he has to win a signature game. Almost every top level coach out there had a signature win within their first 3 years.
I am sick of these excuses, especially re. OSU. We "almost" beat OSU in 2005, 2006, 2012, 2013, and 2016. The other other years we got our asses handed to us. When do we get to start winning those "almost games" and start kicking their ass in a few others?
October 9th, 2017 at 1:58 AM ^
Good luck. A lot of people in here are straight slappies who think JH shits gold. Any criticism brings attacks and negs. A few lucky bounces, the weather, youth, blah blah blah. Whatever. I like Jim Harbaugh as much as the next objective person, but I don't have some weird irrational man-crush on the guy like many on here do. Right now, his record against rivals is worse than what Hoke's was. When it gets better, and I do think it will get better, then it's a different story. But until then, I don't give a fuck about how many NFL opportunities he turned down, or what the recruiting classes have been ranked, etc. When he beats MSU and OSU we can talk. That is what he is being paid for. That is why we wanted him in the first place.
October 9th, 2017 at 4:44 AM ^
And yes it does seem like criticizing Harbaugh in any way on this board just unleashes a brigade of slappies who will make any excuse to deflect blame for embarassments like Saturday's.
I love Harbaugh but there have been extremely legitimate concerns about the offense. They are concerns that we had for much of last year and they've carried over into this year. Harbaugh is not even close to being on the hot seat and he will get all the time he needs to prove himself. But if the team that showed up last night is what we get for the rest of the season, hello 8-4.
October 9th, 2017 at 6:51 AM ^
October 9th, 2017 at 8:48 AM ^
Nobody is shitting on the thread. Take it easy. We can have opinions without you and others trying to shut them down. THAT is the douchebag move. It's football. People don't need to cope.
October 9th, 2017 at 11:18 AM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:22 PM ^
No one is more pissed about yesterday than I am. I literally lost sleep over it. I made up for it by sleeping in church.
But I will not let one disasterous loss in Harbaugh, Year 3 make me lose my mind. Harbaugh is the coach most of us wanted, we were thrilled to get him, and I am certain he knows more about football than all of us armchair quarterbacks. I was disgusted last night, just like I was disgusted when Michigan lost to Purdue in 1996.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:24 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:25 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:25 PM ^
Funny how people walk back their complaints when in every other thread they sure sound like they want him fired. I guess it's because when put in a position where they'd have to own up to the sentiment, they realize how dumb it makes them look.
I'm not happy with the offense that we send out on the field this season and I said as much during and after every game pretty much. But some people are showing what pieces of work they are when they start talking crap about Harbaugh like this is frickin Bert Bielema getting blown out by an average team in year 5 at Arkansas. First sign of real effing adversity in 3 years and they lose their sh#t.
Time to pull yourselves together and show some consideration for the context of all of this. Not everything's always going to be a best case scenario. Time to show some patience and to accept, nay, embrace the journey we have ahead of us.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:40 PM ^
Nobody wants him fired.
People want his assistants fired.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:26 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:30 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:30 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:31 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:34 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:46 PM ^
I forgot about all those promising OL/QB/RB underclassmen and recruits we have in the pipeline.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:16 PM ^
October 9th, 2017 at 12:13 AM ^
And they have not. It's not just the fact that they don't have top rated O-linemen in the pipeline--they have a severe shortage of any OL period.
October 9th, 2017 at 11:49 AM ^
how we lost Newsome for 2 years? What about LTT?
98% of all college OL suck until they hit year 3. How many upperclassmen do we have at that position again?
October 9th, 2017 at 2:01 AM ^
Nobody is dissing Harbaugh. It's okay to have differing opinions on things. So maybe shut the fuck up yourself if you can't handle that. And it's not the end of the world, you're right. Who is saying it is?
October 9th, 2017 at 9:35 AM ^
October 9th, 2017 at 12:25 PM ^
Our program is fine. It is in good shape with JH. But saying we can't compare him to others is unfair. Everyone gets that in any job.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:34 PM ^
...to Mott's Childrens Hospital or some other worthy local charities. He certainly doesn't deserve to keep it.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:35 PM ^
But he is really laying turds since the Iowa game last year. He needs to personally take over the offense and fix this mess. Drevno, Hamilton et al have created an offense that harkens back to Threet and Sheridan running the option.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:37 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 10:19 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 9:43 PM ^
I appreciate he came when no one thought there was a snowball's chance in hell he would. He is not going anywhere. There are not better options right now that aren't just a shot in the dark.
The thing I do not appreciate is losing to our rivals constantly and finishing 3rd in the divison. Harbaugh has zero signature wins. He absolutely needs one this year or there will be a LOT of grumbling over the offseason.
To me, there is really no difference between going 10-2 and losing to OSU/MSU every year and going 3-9 or 5-7. The pain is worse when we think we have a chance and lose anyway. I would much rather we go 8-4 every year and win 50% vs. our rivals.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:45 PM ^
Michigan has a great coach. And some of these miserable/insufferable fans are trying to ruin that.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:55 PM ^
People are understandably upset that Harbaugh isn't coaching like a great coach. I really haven't seen any crazies actually calling for Harbaugh himself to be fired.
When Tressel came into OSU he beat U-M in year 1 and won the National Championship in year 2. When Dantonio came into MSU he went 4-1 against Michigan his first 5 years and beat the spread each time.
Harbaugh's teams have had chances to beat their rivals and win other critical games (e.g. 2016 Iowa) but they've choked the games away. 20% vs. our rivals is not acceptable.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:01 PM ^
Michigan has a good* coach.
Until Harbaugh can beat Meyer or Saban, he should not be in the discussion.
Hell even Chris Petersen, Dabo Swinney, Mark Dantonio and James Franklin have better accomplishments than he does at this point in his career.
The comparisons with Meyer and Saban need to STOP especially when Michigan keeps choking away close games.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:45 PM ^
October 9th, 2017 at 2:04 AM ^
This is a fallacy. He isn't in the same ballpark as Saban and Meyer yet no matter how much you love him. Those two have multiple national championships. Harbaugh doesn't even have a league title here yet. So stop with that bullshit. He is a "good" coach until the results say otherwise.
October 8th, 2017 at 9:46 PM ^
October 8th, 2017 at 10:06 PM ^
I never said or acted like we were going fucking 3-9. So get the fuck out of there.
I said a 10-2 season where we lose to OSU and MSU and go to the fucking Outback Bowl for the umpteenth time is just as hard to stomach as a 5-7 season. I dont care if we beat fucking Purdue and Minnesota and even Penn State if we can't ever win a Big Ten Championship, compete for the playoff, and beat our most important rivals.
Excuse me for being pissed we have lost literally every meaningful game to OSU and MSU over the last 10 years. Excuse me for being pissed we bill ourselves as a conference blue blood despite the fact we have never played in a Big Ten Championship game that is reaching 7 years old this year. Excuse me for being pissed that if we don't win the conference this year we will tie the longest drought ever (1951-1963). The only wins we have against OSU and MSU the last 10 years are against 1) Dantonio's 2 worst teams in 10 years, and 2) Luke Fickell's scandal-ridden OSU team. We were heavily favored in all three of those wins and failed to cover the spread.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:13 PM ^
...to this post.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:25 PM ^
Boom. Roasted.
It's over.
bo_lives just killed a man.
October 8th, 2017 at 10:26 PM ^