Why Hasn’t the Harbaugh Era Worked?
Looking back over Harbaugh’s tenure thus far, I’m legitimately surprised that it hasn’t worked out. The guy won big literally every other place he’s ever coached. I’m curious what you guys would point to as the reason why he hasn’t been successful so far at Michigan because I honestly don’t get why the hire hasn’t panned out.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:33 PM ^
I'm not sure if he's more overrated than stubborn or the other way around. His welcome is long gone. Let him finish the season and he can simply move on.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:36 PM ^
He just can't wrap his head around the fact that scoring points is how you win games now.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:36 PM ^
He’s a dinosaur now.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:42 PM ^
Maybe, he was anointed as the savior too soon and he believed it. I don’t understand how year 6 shows little to no improvement in winning a big ten championship.
2016 was the closet we were, with hokes players.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:01 PM ^
That's kind of the problem that fanbase has. We celebrate what happens on paper, instead of on the field. We anoint Devin Gardner, or Shane Morris, or Shea Patterson, or Brandon Peters, or Dylan McCaffrey as sure fire Heismann candidates before they even play a snap, only to see they are average once the games start.
October 31st, 2020 at 8:45 PM ^
Agree with this 100%. We'll win a few games, read the glowing Detroit press articles, and believe in the team again--only to get our asses beat again by OSU and wonder why it happened.
We're part of the problem because we believe more than we think.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:43 PM ^
Because he's dumb.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:44 PM ^
One thing about Harbaugh. He does not fire poorly performing coaches.
Pep Hamilton stayed around too long. Tim Drevno too.
Now we have Ben McDaniel who has been the constant at UM and its bad QB play. Our offense is always clunky because we can't get great QB play. We might get QBs to fire on 4 of our 6 cylinders, but never all six.
I keep seeing Power Concepts inside of the Josh Gattis offense. This is probably Harbaugh and he needs to stop. Just mind numbing complexity in an offense from another era.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:14 PM ^
I dont think Milton played poorly for a guy in his second start.
More disappointed in staying with man coverage on defense when it was clear to everyone Gray was overmatched and the game was called tight.
The same thing as running into the teeth of the defense over again. For what purpose?
October 31st, 2020 at 5:44 PM ^
Because he became a "coaching not to lose" guy in the NFL. It colors everything he has done at Michigan. You just can't go backwards and then expect better results.
Plus, he's way too comfortable in Ann Arbor. Or at least he was, until a few hours ago.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:47 PM ^
I’m done with any righteous indignation. I’m done with the constant underperforming. There is no moral high ground to take.
Find a way to get as much money into the hands of high school recruits as possible. Full Bama/Clemson. Pay whoever needs to be paid.
Done with Don Brown. We gave up the same number of points as Rutgers and looked a lot worse doing it.
Done with Gattis lighting goal-to-go reps on fire. Not even EMU would want him after that performance.
Pathetic and embarrassing, maybe the new site tag?
October 31st, 2020 at 11:25 PM ^
Done with Gattis lighting goal-to-go reps on fire.
I nearly lost my mind after those two wildcat plays. If you want to fool a defense and run a pass play from it instead of running, no need to set it up, it's already on film! Just have Haskins take a step forward to suck in the linebackers then toss the pass.
If it doesn't work, bring Milton back for 3rd down. I really questioned the playcalling competency burning two downs inside the 5-yard line on wildcat. What a terrible waste that may have cost the game.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:47 PM ^
Two related things happened:
1) Urban Meyer turned OSU into Alabama North;
2) That meant we lose just about every 5* recruit to someone else.
I do think Harbaugh is frustrated, and it may be time to move on. That said, I don’t see anyone out there who would do better. Unless Meyer or Saban would be interested.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:58 PM ^
Then we should accept the 7-5 to 9-4 record and move on. The loss today Rich Hokebaughez will not recover from.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:28 PM ^
TOM ALLEN
October 31st, 2020 at 6:57 PM ^
He has great energy and passion.
Would he even want to come here and be under the microscope 24/7?
He makes almost 4 million at Indiana.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:49 PM ^
It's because he's good, but not great.
Good means 8-10 wins a year at a place like Michigan.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:50 PM ^
Harbaugh just isn't right in the head. Players sense it. Tough to respect a guy who doesn't have all his marbles. Brown is overrated. Gattis hasn't impressed.
In general, Michigan is stuck worshipping a man and an idea that never was that successful to begin with. So if that's what you're striving to emulate, what do you think your ceiling will be?
Only time the offense was exciting and super fun to watch in the 40+ years I've been watching was in Denard's first two years. Other than those years, mostly just frustration and disgust.
Tom Brady is the best thing about Michigan football... maybe like ever... and most of that has nothing to do with his time at Michigan. Charles Woodsen and Desmond's Heisman years were special too but think about how much mediocrity and disappointment we've had to endure outside of these small windows?
I remember arguing with fans on MgoBlog back in the mid 2000's about how overrated the program was back then. Even before Michigan was losing to OSU every year. Lloyd and his staffs were terrible with the X's & O's. Yet, I still remember being told by Magnus and Clarkie from Canada about how wrong I was and that as a fanbase we could absolutely be "*cocksure* " in our superiority. I also wanted Brian Kelly back when they hired RR but was labeled part of the "GVSU mafia" for those that remember that search.
Our fanbase has never demanded excellence. Harbaugh should have been run out of town after going 0-5 against OSU and shitting his pants in every big game we've played since he's been here. And that's coming from someone who absolutely supported his hire and knew him personally.
We need an up & comer. Maybe it's the K-state coach or someone like that. I also don't think having a UM pedigree should exclude someone. Perhaps take a flier on Charles Woodsen even though he has no coaching experience? Or extend Tom Brady a "coach in waiting" invite and run the program with robots in the meantime (only 50% kidding). It's the Scot Loeffler's and Mike Hart's of the world that you need to stay clear of because of their history of arrogance about Michigan's place in the world.
Not watching another UM game the rest of the year. I used that approach after the '15 MSU debacle and I really enjoyed the rest of my fall more than usual. Brady and the Buccaneers is must-see TV and I watch all of their games with excitement (as I did with the Pats). How he doesn't get more admiration or mentions in main page posts is just weird. I guess he's just too old for most on here to connect with.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:06 PM ^
Woodsen? Really dude? F off
October 31st, 2020 at 6:27 PM ^
This is exactly the type of Michigan fan arrogance I'm talking about. If you don't agree with someone or like their opinion, you try to belittle it.
October 31st, 2020 at 7:58 PM ^
Spell his name right then.
October 31st, 2020 at 8:00 PM ^
Lol what’s the worst that could happen? The team isn’t prepared and they get embarrassed by a dog shit MSU team?
Oh wait...
October 31st, 2020 at 5:50 PM ^
Duplicate post by archaic website that has never functioned well.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:54 PM ^
Right now, his loyalty to Don Brown has probably hurt him.
In all of our “Big Loses” our Defense hasn’t shown up. Teams adapt to our man defense and either beat us with crossing routes or the deep ball.
I also don’t know what happened to the coach who had a chip on his shoulder when we hired him.
October 31st, 2020 at 8:39 PM ^
Offense hasn’t shown up either
October 31st, 2020 at 5:55 PM ^
It's pretty simple, really.. and obvious to anyone who follows our recruiting closely..
Harbaugh more or less retired from his position of "big time head college football coach" and assumed something more of an "emeritus-spending more time with my family" position about two yrs after he got here. He recruited Rashan Gary and many others very hard his first year here.. Satelite Camps, climbing trees, sleeping over, etc. Then he recruited Najee Harris very hard the next year, and then made a last ditch effort-visit to Chuck Filiaga's high school at the end of that cycle. But I'm literally not sure he's been on a single non-southeastern Michigan recruiting visit since. And I imagine that lack of effort/interest translates to other areas as well.. assistant hiring research, QB development, game planning, etc. He hired Josh Gattis (Alabama's #3 offensive coach) over the phone, after a 20-minute conversation? He called Bill Belichick to ask about DC candidates; Belichick, who happened to have a Boston College game on tv at the time of the call, replied "this guy at Boston College is pretty good." I guess he at least interviewed Brown?
Greg Roman and Vic Fangio were (/are) two pretty outstanding coordinators. They were with him at Stanford and SF. Maybe he just got lucky with those hires?
At Stanford he obviously worked his arse off. But NFL HC'ing jobs are significantly easier, with an actual nice, long off-season and no 24/7/365 recruiting.
Completely speculatively, this is also a guy who suffered a lot of concussions as a young man, and who is entering the age where that typically really starts to rear itself.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:55 PM ^
He did good with Hoke's recruits.. 2016 Citrus Bowl win, most of the 2016 season but ever since then he has tinkered with the offense that he knows how to run. He brings in OCs but he still wants to have elements of his O and then it is either too complicated because of two philosophies that change throughout the season. Even this year you can see it in two games - part Gattis part Harbaugh. To be successful he either has to go with his old Stanford style offense or give complete control over to an OC. This hasn't happened and today was a clear example of that.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:55 PM ^
Hate to say it but maybe the Harbaugh era has worked and this is what it is.
Listen, we don't have to win every fucking game but we also shouldn't be shitting the bed to that MSU team in year 6. Outside of OSU and a game or two against Wisky or PSU, this was one of the first times I saw our defense apply -zero- pressure through out the game. This could be a big regression year and when that happens, changes typically follow.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:56 PM ^
I can’t understand why we can’t get a WR open down field. Every game I watch, other teams get WR’s wide open. The staff says we are fast but it doesn’t equate into getting open and getting the ball deep. Tired of hearing it.
November 1st, 2020 at 3:13 PM ^
I watched the game with a couple of other OSU buddies yesterday, we all agreed, Milton throws like Braxton Miller. UM had some open receivers, Milton just threw lasers when some touch was needed... there were a few throws that ended up travelling 5-10 yards too far in front of the receivers.
October 31st, 2020 at 5:56 PM ^
When you recruit at a 4* level you'll be very good but always have a giant flashing weakness. And every Harbaugh team has had a fatal flaw. We lost today because our corners aren't athletic enough.
October 31st, 2020 at 7:17 PM ^
And a great coach can make adjustments.
Did Michigan play a single snap of zone defense today? Or did they just continue to let their CBs play on an island? Because that's the way it looked to me.
October 31st, 2020 at 7:23 PM ^
That was only one of the reasons. We could have overcome that if our OL showed up. We also could have overcome that if our DL did anything to put pressure on their QB
October 31st, 2020 at 5:57 PM ^
He needs to recruit. The state better. Look at all the top players leaving the state. 3 star recruits out of the north East does not replace the 4 and 5 star kids that leave the state. Also look at all the kids that transfer out or decommit. I’m sure we have way more than any other school.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:01 PM ^
In 6 years Harbaugh hasn’t had any elite QBs. NONE
That is the very simple reason.
It’s clear Harbaugh has raised the level of recruiting, we put more kids into the NFL than ever...he just can get them to elite level of performance while they are in the program for the most part
October 31st, 2020 at 6:02 PM ^
He doesn’t give a shit anymore. It’s obvious that the fire is gone from Harbaugh for whatever reason and he should resign.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:04 PM ^
I think all you need to know is in the press conference clips that just came out on the radio.
He sounds bored, tired and really struggled to say anything.
If that was a coach that gave a shit, he'd be fucking pissed.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:15 PM ^
I think he is gone. He sounds like a coach that is waiting his time.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:24 PM ^
If he knows he's gone, he just needs to leave today. There's no reason to keep on with this dude.
October 31st, 2020 at 7:21 PM ^
He has sounded like that for 2-3 years. Must be a long exit strategy.
October 31st, 2020 at 7:43 PM ^
I think he was waiting for the right NFL team to open up and he probably got feelers from one of the NFL teams that he wants to coach that they will hire him next season. This may be the reason he seems not to care that much about winning or recruiting. I wonder who are next coach will be? I hope the AD does not fuck it up like the previous AD did with the RR hire.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:09 PM ^
His soul was seen leaving his body on 11/26/16. Hasn’t been the same since.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:12 PM ^
I still say he's medicated. Dunno what he's taking, or for what reason, but his personality is night and day different than it was in 2015 and 2016.
He needs to flush those things. Or add Adderall to the mix.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:16 PM ^
I'm a big believer in this explanation. I've never seen a public personality change so dramatically overnight like Harbaugh's between 2016 and 2017.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:27 PM ^
Right? It's like a switch was flipped. It honestly reminds me of when my wife's doctor put her on mood stabilizers several years ago. It completely changed her personality.
Bright side is she went back to normal (crazy, but better than being a zombie) when she stopped taking them.
October 31st, 2020 at 8:44 PM ^
I'm starting to think his chill demeanor compared to his fiesty personality the first 2 years has trickled down through the program. Those first 2 years, we'd lose games and were outclassed a few times, but I never thought the team played under their potential. Since 2017, the one constant is we start flat, the team rarely seems fired up (except when provoked like the MSU game in 2018). I think he's still a good/great game plan coach but his lack of fire and competitive spirit has turned our team soft. Look at the team when just a few breaks don't go our way, they just fold and fall apart. The 2019 Penn State game is really the only game of the last few years I can recall where the team rallied back despite a mountain of misfortune falling on us
November 1st, 2020 at 12:33 AM ^
And we still lost that 2019 PSU game....too little, too late. Really has never ever had a successful comeback in a significant game.
October 31st, 2020 at 11:35 PM ^
My wife, who is a therapist, posited this very thing a few years ago based on her observations of his behavior. I posted this here when people started noticing and people lost their sh-t for me even suggesting it.
No, I don't have absolute proof, just the keen eye of a trained professional used to dealing with people who take these kinds of medications. Certainly explains his spaciness.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:14 PM ^
Clearly MSU is on a historical run and we can't hope to beat them because they focus solely on us and we'll never be able to get someone better.
October 31st, 2020 at 6:14 PM ^
It’s something only a subset of people will ever know.
I know it’s not ‘constraints’. It’s not money cannons. It’s not bad luck. It’s not the Refs. It’s not all other lame ass excuses Mgoblog whacks think about.
Harbaugh can’t get it done. Period.