Harbaugh

[Chicos' Buzz Scandal Countdown]

Seems to be working out. Somehow this hire is still not overrated. Unbelievable. Love this guy.

[chapman]

DATE   OPPONENT   RESULT

Sat, Sept 26   
vs #22 BYU
W31-0

Sat, Oct 3   
@ Maryland
W28-0

Sat, Oct 10   
vs #13 Northwestern
W38-0


Meanwhile...

NFC WEST   W   L   T   PCT   HOME   ROAD   DIV   CONF   PF   PA   DIFF   STRK
San Francisco 49ers   1   4   0   .200   1-1   0-3   0-1   1-3   75   140   -65   L4

Thanks, Jed.

[Chicos' Buzz Scandal Countdown]

DATE   OPPONENT   RESULT

Sat, Sept 26   
vs #22 BYU
W31-0

Sat, Oct 3   
@ Maryland
W28-0

Sat, Oct 10   
vs #13 Northwestern
W38-0


Meanwhile...

NFC WEST   W   L   T   PCT   HOME   ROAD   DIV   CONF   PF   PA   DIFF   STRK
San Francisco 49ers   1   4   0   .200   1-1   0-3   0-1   1-3   75   140   -65   L4

Thanks, Jed.

Exactly. If I weren't a Lions fan, I'd deem SF to have incompetent management.

[77ncaachamps]

Jed York should be laughed at especially during SB 50.

Harbaugh is a polarizing figure. Too much of a college coach in him to be an NFL coach.

Greg Roman (ex-OC) mucked up playcalling with Harboo and tried to turn Kap into something he wasn't.

York gets the bulk of the blame but Harboo and Roman get their share as well.

- BYU was at home
- MD sucks hard
- NU was at home

still impressive victories, but you need to win away to impress people.

Not that intimidating of an away schedule left: @Minny, @Indy, @PSU

[keefe]

- BYU was at home
- MD sucks hard
- NU was at home

BYU and NU were both ranked teams. And throwing three consecutive shutouts is a feat at any level.

I bleed Maize and Blue but fully expected this year and next to be rebuilding. Harbaugh has them playing together. Hoke could recruit but he was not a good game coach.

The excitement in Ann Arbor is real. And it should be.

[Chicos' Buzz Scandal Countdown]

Jed York should be laughed at especially during SB 50.

Harbaugh is a polarizing figure. Too much of a college coach in him to be an NFL coach.

Greg Roman (ex-OC) mucked up playcalling with Harboo and tried to turn Kap into something he wasn't.

York gets the bulk of the blame but Harboo and Roman get their share as well.

- BYU was at home
- MD sucks hard
- NU was at home

still impressive victories, but you need to win away to impress people.

Not that intimidating of an away schedule left: @Minny, @Indy, @PSU

The "polarizing figure" "running people the wrong way" items about Harbaugh don't seem any greater than any other successful coach (Saban? Miles? Meyer?) all coaches at that level are maniacally competitive.

And the wins are impressive because he turned the same talent into the #2 defense in the country and three consecutive shutouts. Hasn't been done in 20 years.

You can only play the schedule you have in the order it's set. They've outplayed OSU and MSU thus far, and their only loss is on the road to a Top 5 team.

[JWags85]

Harbaugh is a crazy person, no doubt, but I think the failings in SF had more to do with ownership and front office than him.  Similar as you are seeing with Pagano in Indy, who is a pretty well-liked guy.

UM's turn around has been stunning.  The Utah game is even more interesting now cause that was a top 5 team in a very tough home environment whereas at the time it seemed like UM was still overmatched against a 20-25 range team.  The BYU and NU games are impressive in the way that they were won.  BYU was a bit tired, but as said, was ranked and they got their doors blown off.  Same with NU, this is a very good NU team who embarrassed Stanford and is probably the 4th best team in the B10 behind UM, MSU, and OSU, and they were never even in the game.  I have a lot of very good friends who are huge OSU fans, from my time going to school in Ohio, and needless to say, they are getting kind of anxious and antsy.

[GGGG]

Some NFL team is going to give Harbaugh the keys to the kingdom eventually.  He has been an extremely good coach at all levels, and I think Wags is spot on...time will show (if it hasn't already) that he wasn't the source of SF's problems.

[keefe]

I have a lot of very good friends who are huge OSU fans

WTFO?

Don't ever call me again, Justin. Ever!

[JWags85]

WTFO?

Don't ever call me again, Justin. Ever!

Ive always subscribed the the Christian principles of acceptance and tolerance to the less fortunate and mentally challenged amongst us.

[Goose]

Harbaugh is the real deal and Keefe is going to have a lot of fun Saturday's watching his boys win and win big over the next few years.

[keefe]

Some NFL team is going to give Harbaugh the keys to the kingdom eventually.  He has been an extremely good coach at all levels, and I think Wags is spot on...time will show (if it hasn't already) that he wasn't the source of SF's problems.

I agree that most of what happened in SF was not on Harbaugh. But from what is being said in UofM circles, Harbaugh is very, very happy to be back home in A².

While I certainly have no crystal ball, I do think he is much more suited in style and temperament as a college coach. Word is that being given the keys to Schembechler's car was a very big deal for him.   

[GGGG]

I agree that most of what happened in SF was not on Harbaugh. But from what is being said in UofM circles, Harbaugh is very, very happy to be back home in A².

While I certainly have no crystal ball, I do think he is much more suited in style and temperament as a college coach. Word is that being given the keys to Schembechler's car was a very big deal for him.   

And that very well could be the case.  Like Nick Saban, the college game and lifestyle may suit him more. 

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

One of the few times where the novelty of an alum like Harbaugh works out cause he's actually a really good coach. I wish Northwestern would part ways with Fitz. He's done good things for the program but he's just not that good of a coach.

[Chicos' Buzz Scandal Countdown]

Wisconsin chancellor says Michigan, Ohio State overpaying coaches

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2015/10/08/wisconsin-chancellor-michigan-ohio-state-overpaying-coaches-jim-harbaugh-urban-meyer/73578490/

I've never understood the problem any school would have with this as long as they are profitable. In Michigan, OSU's and (if the most recent AD stats are to be believed) Wisconsin's cases they are.

The role of an Athletic Dept is to reinvest proceeds into the student athletes through scholarships, better facilities and personnel.

Bucky is cheap.

[wadesworld]

Don't know why, but I turned on 105.7 FM The Fan on my ride home from work.  I heard the genius that is Gary Ellerson talking about how arrogant Michigan fans are and that MSU can't let them win this weekend because if they do they'll be in the top 5 in the rankings, and, as he said, "They aren't good.  They're really not a good football team."  I turned my iPod back on immediately.  What a dope.

[JWags85]

One of the few times where the novelty of an alum like Harbaugh works out cause he's actually a really good coach. I wish Northwestern would part ways with Fitz. He's done good things for the program but he's just not that good of a coach.

In favor of?  I totally disagree that he's not a good coach.  He's been badly snakebitten by injuries for a few years, and even still, his record overshadows any of the most successful NW coaches, by and large.  Last 2 years were rough, but he has a very good team this year, regardless of a rough showing on the road at a top 5 team.  He's in a very difficult spot, same restrictions as somewhere like Stanford, but without the weather and fertile grounds to recruit in.  To top it all off, he's still incredibly young for a coach at 40.  NW is in great shape with him.

[GGGG]

One of the few times where the novelty of an alum like Harbaugh works out cause he's actually a really good coach. I wish Northwestern would part ways with Fitz. He's done good things for the program but he's just not that good of a coach.

I don't think you realize how difficult the Northwestern job is.  It is not a program that is going to have sustained success at the highest levels given their admission standards and their exposure.  They just aren't going to become TCU or Baylor because they won't sell out to do so.

[77ncaachamps]

And that very well could be the case.  Like Nick Saban, the college game and lifestyle may suit him more.

And the same with Harbaugh.

No doubt, the SF FO was nuts but most high profile, winning coaches in the NFL aren't so blaring or attention loving like Harboo.

He'll undoubtably do well at UM. College kids love coaches like him.
NFL players maybe not so much.

[keefe]

Ive always subscribed the the Christian principles of acceptance and tolerance to the less fortunate and mentally challenged amongst us.

There are misguided souls in the world. Your act of charity is acknowledged!

[keefe]

I don't think you realize how difficult the Northwestern job is.  It is not a program that is going to have sustained success at the highest levels given their admission standards and their exposure.  They just aren't going to become TCU or Baylor because they won't sell out to do so.

People always cite this but universities with comparable admissions profiles have proven to be competitive without compromising their academic standards. Michigan, UVA, UCLA, Notre Dame, Stanford, and Cal are in the same class as Northwestern and have fielded more consistently successful programs.

When I was a grad student at U of M there was talk of booting Northwestern out of the Big 10 because they were atrocious - in every sport.

Marquette should not be a national program that can compete with state schools that are 500% larger. But it has made a firm commitment to being so and invests accordingly.

Northwestern has access to significant resources. It chooses not to employ them as have other nationally prominent academic schools.  The "we are academically great so we can't be competitive in athletics" argument is simply wrong. 

[wadesworld]

People always cite this but universities with comparable admissions profiles have proven to be competitive without compromising their academic standards. Michigan, UVA, UCLA, Notre Dame, Stanford, and Cal are in the same class as Northwestern and have fielded more consistently successful programs.

When I was a grad student at U of M there was talk of booting Northwestern out of the Big 10 because they were atrocious - in every sport.

Marquette should not be a national program that can compete with state schools that are 500% larger. But it has made a firm commitment to being so and invests accordingly.

Northwestern has access to significant resources. It chooses not to employ them as have other nationally prominent academic schools.  The "we are academically great so we can't be competitive in athletics" argument is simply wrong.

All of those schools that you listed other than Stanford will make exceptions to their admissions standards for student athletes.  Stanford and the Ivy's require that even their student athletes meet the minimum admission requirements for the general student body in order to be accepted into the school.  Those schools may set a minimum requirement of (just using examples) a 29 ACT and 3.4 GPA on a 4.0 scale, but the reality may be that to even be considered a student really needs a 32 and 3.7 GPA plus a bunch of extracurriculars, which is where the student athlete gets their preferential treatment from in that they simply need that 29 ACT and 3.4 GPA.  But they must meet those minimum listed academic requirements to get into Stanford and the Ivy's.  Cal, Michigan, UVA, UCLA, and Notre Dame do not require that.

[GGGG]

Yea I can pretty much guaranty that Michigan, Stanford, Notre Dame, etc have many more "admissions exceptions" built into their agreements with coaches than Northwestern does. 

This is the main reason that Northwestern basketball has been so long without an NCAA birth.  Here's a story.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2011/01/11/bernstein-northwestern-should-just-play-ball/

[keefe]

Yea I can pretty much guaranty that Michigan, Stanford, Notre Dame, etc have many more "admissions exceptions" built into their agreements with coaches than Northwestern does. 

This is the main reason that Northwestern basketball has been so long without an NCAA birth.  Here's a story.

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2011/01/11/bernstein-northwestern-should-just-play-ball/

Those schools may have "admissions exceptions" but UNC excels in creating purpose-built curricula for today's student-athlete.

[MerrittsMustache]

And the same with Harbaugh.

No doubt, the SF FO was nuts but most high profile, winning coaches in the NFL aren't so blaring or attention loving like Harboo.

He'll undoubtably do well at UM. College kids love coaches like him.
NFL players maybe not so much.

College kids are with a coach for the short-term (3-5 years) and, for the most part, have no previous experience with other head coaches at that level. Styles like Harbaugh's can wear thin after too long or may never be fully accepted by players who've played under other regimes (i.e. NFL vets). It's important for them to get players out the door before they turn on them, which is why some coaches are much better suited for college. The Harbaughs, Sabans, etc of the coaching world could never sustain a successful long-term NFL career.