With Harbaugh, The Proverbial Line Was Non-Existent

By Kyle Golik

Former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh will most likely get one of the strongest ovations when he appears at Michigan Stadium as an honorary captain on August 31 when Michigan hosts Fresno State. Harbaugh will be seen as a conquering hero, who slayed the Ohio State demon and won the elusive national championship, something Michigan shared in 1997 with Nebraska and hadn’t won solely since 1948. As the likely cheers serenade Harbaugh’s on-the-field accomplishments, there should be accompanying jeers that shower Harbaugh for his off-the-field exploits.

When the NCAA Committee on Infractions released its findings on Harbaugh’s role in the impermissible contact with recruits during the COVID-19 dead period, a quote from an anonymous recruiting director left an impact, “As a general matter, 'the culture (in the football program) wasn't to be safe, the culture was to go to the line and cross it if you had to.’"

Now this can be construed in multiple ways, we all remember some of the policies and mandates that were cautionary measures during the pandemic. One could argue Harbaugh was against them and this was a directive to try to gain an advantage for Michigan. Another angle could be Harbaugh simply doesn’t respect boundaries, rules, or policies. To Harbaugh, these “proverbial lines” are simply suggestions when applied to him and his program. There are other scenarios you can derive from the quote, but what is true is neither are mutually exclusive and both can be true in some ways.

When you begin to unravel the Connor Stalions espionage scandal at Michigan, you look at what is alleged by the draft of the Notice of Allegations involving current head coach Sherrone Moore , Chris Partridge , and others. You notice a pattern of behavior by those close to Harbaugh where the rules don’t apply.

The complicated layers of this onion gets deeper when you begin to go beyond these two issues.

How many schools had the FBI arrive when a coach was accessing sensitive data that he did not have authorization to access? That was Harbaugh’s offensive coordinator Matt Weiss who left disgraced.

Harbaugh even had a staffer caught soliciting an underage woman for sex on video, apparently the word ‘no’ wasn’t enough for him.

This behavior has gone on long before Harbaugh arrived in Ann Arbor.

Back when Harbaugh was coaching at Stanford, the Cardinal’s motto was 'We're going to win with character but we're also going to win with cruelty.'"

On the field, how can many forget Harbaugh going for two up 48-21 against Southern California leading former Southern California head coach Pete Caroll to ask “What’s your deal?,” and being up 40 against Wake Forest and icing kickers.

Off the field, the accusations of terrible culture does not escape Harbaugh.

C.J. Easter , a cornerback who played for Harbaugh, commented , when D.J. Durkin was in hot water over how he handled players, especially around the death of Jordan McNair, about Harbaugh and Durkin, “I’m not really one to say negative things on the internet, but I’ll make an exception here. I played for Durkin under Jim Harbaugh. They are both terrible human beings. Glad to see them get exposed.”

Easter’s former teammate Blaise Johnson would vouch for his testimony.

Again, I take Easter’s comments, especially around that time, with heightened emotions around the lack of compassion Durkin showed, with a grain of salt.

There are multiple fronts again how to interpret this quote.

It shows that Harbaugh has serious character issues, if someone is willing to say you are a “terrible human being,” and someone else is willing to vouch for it. It goes to show the extent Harbaugh is willing to push the button. It shows the cruelty he will display. It also can be interpreted when you look at the history of flippant behaviors towards decency and the rules Harbaugh’s assistants demonstrate. There is that toxic culture that surrounds Harbaugh’s program that he welcomes.

On the flipside, always remember, a journalist can create a narrative against a coach if they find enough malcontents willing to talk and say the same thing. With Harbaugh, however, there is a long history of this behavior.

I am not naive to realize the gap between the rules and what programs nationally do is razor thin, that the envelope is pushed. The difference when we begin to look at Jim Harbaugh, that envelope or respect to the “proverbial line” did not exist.

When Michigan fans at Michigan Stadium and around the nation toast Jim Harbaugh when he trots on the field, they cheer a man that they only experience what he wants them to see. What they don’t see and all the turmoil that surrounds Harbaugh, fans will come up with defenses for him. They got their trophy, they got the wins, they happened. There is no denying it, but the style Harbaugh and his staff went about it goes beyond reprehension. Maybe the Michigan Marching Band can change the lyric for Harbaugh to “Hail To the Frauds” because that is what he is.