As the Michigan Wolverines take the field next week against East Carolina to open the season, they’ll do so without coach Jim Harbaugh on the sidelines. Earlier this week, Michigan self-imposed a three-game suspension of Harbaugh after the coach was accused of providing false information to the NCAA, which is a Level I violation.
It’s a classic example of a school trying to dish out its own punishment to avoid having the NCAA deliver harsh sanctions. And like most of these attempts, it’s completely meaningless. Here’s why.
Michigan’s Easy Early Schedule: A Cushion for Harbaugh’s Absence
The Wolverines didn’t exactly plan to test themselves before Big Ten play. East Carolina is a good mid-major, but the Pirates only return 10 starters and shouldn’t be a problem in Ann Arbor. It does not get tougher from there, as UNLV starts a rebuild under Barry Odom and Bowling Green is a bottom-tier MAC squad.
Plus, all three games are at home in front of over 100,000 Michigan fans. Michigan could probably have one of the concession stand employees at Michigan Stadium coach the team and still pull out a 3-0 start against this schedule.
Harbaugh’s Role: Limited, But Still Influential During the Week
The suspension only prevents Harbaugh from being in Michigan Stadium on game day. He still gets to put his team through practice and a walkthrough in the lead-up to the game. If someone makes a mistake with a rep, Harbaugh will be there to correct it before the team takes the field for real.
Plus, his assistants will be the ones running the team in his absence. East Carolina coach Mike Houston even weighed in on the situation that it really doesn’t matter if Harbaugh’s on the field; odds are that he’s taught his players and coaches well enough that they’ll still be executing his instructions on Saturday. If he’s done his job, his absence won’t make a difference.
Missing Opportunity: What Would Have Made Harbaugh’s Suspension Impactful
Michigan’s schedule is so weak in the early going that it was always going to be difficult for the Wolverines to add any teeth to the suspension. But the Wolverines could have tried by saying Harbaugh would miss the first two Big Ten games, which would have kept him out of their Sept. 30 visit to Nebraska.
Forcing Harbaugh to miss a league game would have shown Michigan’s taking this seriously and doesn’t want this to happen again. As it is, it reads more that Michigan’s seeing this as a nuisance and just hoping it goes away with hardly any punishment at all.