What They're Saying: Jim Harbaugh's Contract And Future With Michigan Wolverines Football In Question

It’s cliché, but it’s obvious — football is a game of emotion. We can talk about match-ups, Michigan’s secondary vs. Rutgers’ receivers, etc., but we’ve seen it so many times over the years … upsets happen when a more motivated, less talented team brings the fight to its higher-rated (and less motivated) opponent for 60 minutes.

We saw it in the second week of the season, when Michigan State punched the Wolverines in the mouth early and U-M never responded.

This is clearly a flawed Michigan team, even more so with all the injuries. But there’s no excuse to go through the motions and lay down when things aren’t going well.

That should never happen in Ann Arbor.

The Breakdown: Michigan Wolverines Football At Rutgers

Our last line in last week’s breakdown read like this:

“This is their last chance to get some of their dignity back and flip the script on the season. We’ll find out how badly they want it.”

The answer — not very.

The Wolverines are playing for pride now, just as they were in the second half of last week’s game. The 28-0 home deficit was the worst in Michigan Stadium history.

On a positive note, they did come out with much more fire in the second half and moved the ball on offense, played better defense. That, though, should be a given on every snap, every play, and it hasn’t been too often this year. The confidence has waned, and the body language has been terrible too often when things go wrong.

U-M has more talent than Rutgers at most positions, but the Scarlet Knights will be hungry to take another step under Greg Schiano. If the Wolverines don’t match their intensity, and if they continue play the way they have for much of the last three games, they’ll lose.

Bob Wojnowski, The Detroit News: If Jim Harbaugh wants to stay at Michigan, plenty must change

[Jim] Harbaugh isn’t making excuses, or promises. The Wolverines are young and without several of their best players due to injury – offensive tackles Jalen Mayfield and Ryan Hayes, defensive ends Kwity Paye and Aidan Hutchinson. Also, receiver Nico Collins and cornerback Ambry Thomas opted out. This already was shaping up as a rebuilding year, with practically an all-new offensive line and a new quarterback. And if the Wolverines had slugged it out with Wisconsin and Indiana and just fell short, the outcry would be muted.

But this is unacceptable, and that 28-0 first half against the Badgers was as awful as we’ve ever seen in Michigan Stadium. The final resolution seems plain to many fans – move on from Harbaugh. If you wonder how it could get worse, go ahead and lose to Rutgers this Saturday, or surrender another 60-plus to Ohio State and find out.

There’s a gleeful obsession from media and other fan bases to mock the situation, and frankly, the Wolverines set themselves up for it. Former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer has become Harbaugh’s personal psychoanalyst, breaking down Michigan’s woes on every TV appearance. Paul Finebaum surely utters Harbaugh’s name in his sleep. On the Michigan-Wisconsin ABC broadcast, Kirk Herbstreit alternated between expressing horror and shock, then summed up his disgust when he blurted, “Where in the heck is the backbone and fight from Michigan?”

Since the opening victory at Minnesota, it’s a completely fair question. The loss to Michigan State grows more dreadful by the minute, the worst of Harbaugh’s career. For what it’s worth, he’s taking the hits like a coach who knows he’s facing a reckoning.

“It hurts losing,” he said. “The reaction with the guys, you can tell, they felt it. I felt it. We felt it. Come back, shake it off and you go forward and you push through with enthusiasm, with a bounce in your step.”

It’s hard to tell where the bounce went, or why it went. The message hasn’t changed much, but the results have. Too many players have transferred, too many haven’t developed, and the quarterback situation is the puzzle that Harbaugh simply hasn’t solved.

Something has to change, and something will. Maybe by the end of this confusing, confounding season there will be complete clarity on both sides. I just wouldn’t count on it.

Dennis Dodd, CBS Sports: Hope feels lost at Michigan, and 2020 looks to be the end of the road for Jim Harbaugh

It's always been complicated with Harbaugh. He remains the most successful coach at Michigan since Lloyd Carr. All the bluster was amusing. Some of it was warranted. Harbaugh had been to a Super Bowl. Beginning the season, only 10 coaches had a better winning percentage than Harbaugh at their current school (.723).

He has won 10 games three times at Michigan. But this season is trending toward the worst in his 13 years as a coach in college or the pros.

It's complicated with Michigan, too. The Ohio State chase seems futile -- at least at the moment. Michigan likes to think of itself as an equal, but consider this amazing stat: The Wolverines have won 12 games just once since 1905, the last national championship season in 1997. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes have won at least 12 games seven times -- since 2012.

Maybe it's a case of managing outsized expectations.

Then there is the thorny situation of a Michigan legend's departure. The guess here is that Harbaugh will not allow himself to be fired. He will walk away to the NFL or there will be some sort of mutual agreement.

After that, if not Harbaugh, then who? The two best candidates might be Urban Meyer and Luke Fickell. Both are near impossibilities at Michigan given that Meyer coached at Ohio State. Fickell, currently Cincinnati's coach and a native of Columbus, Ohio, played there and was later an assistant under Jim Tressel and Meyer.

Meyer forced a lot of programs -- Michigan among them -- to look in the mirror with this Fox pregame show breakdown of how losing programs get to be that way.

If not Meyer or Fickell, then pay attention to recently fired Texans coach Bill O'Brien and Iowa State's Matt Campbell. If Brian Kelly doesn't retire at Notre Dame, there's a limited list of places he may consider going in college.

But that's speculation for a few weeks from now.

"I'm energized as a coach," Harbaugh said removing his glasses Monday during his weekly Zoom availability. "… It's in my eyes. I'm cheerful, excited to go coach the day. As I said before, never going to stop, never going to quit, never going to slow down. We're just going to keep attacking and coaching guys. I don't think I could live without that. That's darn sure what I'm going to do."

Austin Meek, The Athletic: Joe Milton, Cade McNamara suddenly in a battle for Michigan’s starting QB job

At 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, [Cade McNamara] doesn’t have [Joe] Milton’s size, arm strength or downhill running ability. But in his brief audition Saturday night, he showed touch and accuracy on his deep throws, including a perfectly placed ball to Mike Sainristil for a touchdown.

McNamara set Nevada state records for passing yards and touchdowns as a prep player at Damonte Ranch High School in Reno. He was the third option in the offseason competition to replace Shea Patterson, overshadowed by Milton and Dylan McCaffrey. With McCaffrey opting out, McNamara became the No. 2 quarterback and now has a chance to unseat Milton as Michigan’s starter.

McCaffrey’s decision is worth revisiting in light of Milton’s recent struggles. At the time McCaffrey opted out, Milton appeared to be a heavy favorite to win the starting job. But offensive coordinator Josh Gattis maintained there was little separating Michigan’s three quarterbacks and said any of the three could have led the team with confidence.

McCaffrey hasn’t spoken publicly about his reasons for opting out. He’s still listed on Michigan’s roster with an opt-out designation, meaning it’s possible he could return next season. Meanwhile, his younger brother Luke unseated Adrian Martinez as Nebraska’s starting quarterback and led the Cornhuskers to their first win of the season last week against Penn State.

Quarterback play was hardly the only issue in Michigan’s 49-11 loss to the Badgers. Looking only at the offense, the running game has been abysmal and drops have been an issue, especially from Michigan’s tight ends. Those problems won’t be solved by switching quarterbacks, but at 1-3, the Wolverines are desperate for a spark. McNamara provided a tiny one against the Badgers, and at this point Michigan has to explore every option.

“Cade came in and Joe was supportive of Cade,” Sainristil said. “When Joe was in, Cade supported Joe. Whoever is out there, we have their back as an offense.”

Staff, CBS Sports: Michigan vs. Rutgers odds, line: 2020 college football picks, predictions from model on 39-21 run

Why Michigan can cover

The Wolverines are hoping to get more from their quarterback. Joe Milton leads Michigan in passing, completing 74 of 126 passes (58.7 percent) for 967 yards and four touchdowns. He has been picked off four times, but has a rating of 127.3. Milton is second on the team in rushing, carrying 32 times for 117 yards (3.7 average) and one TD. But coach Jim Harbaugh opened up the quarterback competition this week between Milton and redshirt freshman Cade McNamara.

Regardless who is at quarterback, they'll have a consistent target in junior wide receiver Ronnie Bell, a two-year letterwinner, who has 18 receptions for 325 yards (18.1 average) and one touchdown. Two weeks ago at Indiana, he caught six passes for 149 yards (24.8 average) and one TD. In two-plus seasons at Michigan, Bell has 74 receptions for 1,228 yards (16.6 average) and four scores. He also has 10 career punt returns for 74 yards, including a long of 27 yards. He was the 2018 Team Rookie of the Year on offense.

Why Rutgers can cover

The Scarlet Knights have improved greatly over last season. Senior quarterback Noah Vedral is the team's top passer and second-leading rusher. He has completed 82 of 130 passes (63.1 percent) for 723 yards and five touchdowns. He has thrown seven interceptions, but has a rating of 111.7. Vedral has also carried 36 times for 77 yards (2.1 average) and one TD, including a long run of 24 yards.

Junior running back Isaih Pacheco leads the Scarlet Knights in rushing with 286 yards on 55 attempts (5.2 average) and two TDs. He has also caught 12 passes for 79 yards (6.6 average), including a long of 16 yards. Last week against Illinois, he ran wild, carrying 20 times for a season-high 133 yards (6.7 average), including a long of 32 yards. For his career, he has carried 335 times for 1,566 yards (4.7 average) and 12 touchdowns. He also has 27 receptions for 173 yards (6.4 average).

Isaiah Hole, WolverinesWire: Urban Meyer: How Michigan 'could win every game they have left'

Appearing on Big Ten Network as a Fox Sports analyst, Meyer shared his thoughts on where Michigan football is as it struggles as a program, noting the same — it cannot change scheme, it must work on being technically and fundamentally sound.

“We’ve all been there as a coach — you get hit in the jaw,” Meyer said. “And then all of a sudden, where do you go? Where do you go — football is older than all of us. And the fundamentals of the game are the only thing that can get you through tough times. I agree with what he said 100% — you can’t really start going crazy about scheme, it’s too late for that. You gotta really make sure they’re on point fundamentally.

“When you watch them play, fundamentally, if they can just take care of their business at a certain position — especially on pass defense — I think they’ll be in every game or win every game they have left. And if for some reason, fundamentals get away from them, you’re looking at arguably one of the worst seasons they’ve had.

“Fundamentally, lock in, hold every coach accountable, hold every player accountable for fundamentals. It’s not time to start re-addressing scheme. It’s too late for that.”

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