UM Football Recruiting - by WM Wolverine

[Jeff Buchanan]

Not completely about recruiting but, some comments in here by talent suggesting that Harbaugh was roster cleaning in the Pipkins release and M fans shouldn't be talking about ufm in this regard, this is a good discussion in this mgoboard link that sort of clears the air on the subject. It starts with a link to Harbaugh's statement in response to what Pipkins said about JH trying to pressure him to sign a medical waiver.

http://mgoblog.com/mgoboard/harbaugh-pipkins

[Wellington_beefhouser]

Lots of buzz on twitter about Harbaugh's interview on Colin Cowherd's show this morning. Cowherd goes, "If I'm an 18-year-old kid and I just heard Jim Harbaugh on this show, I'd go with Urban Meyer."

Apparently JH answered all his questions with one or two words...LOL

[iam416]

I don't get why JH does these interviews if he plainly has zero fucking interest in doing these interviews.

[Mackenzie]

I watched the interview. It was not the JH that I was expecting and several notches below boring, at best. Colin was right to somewhat abruptly end the interview. Kids who have never met him in person may scratch their heads and be confused about what they saw. I do think that a golden opportunity to promote M and their program went down the drain.

[lineygoblue]

Cowturd is a jerk, and takes pride in it. He and Jim Rome get their on-air personalities from the same vending machine. Harbaugh has done many excellent interviews, and You Tube is packed with them. Kids who want to come to Michigan and have had the opportunity to meet Harbaugh and his staff know the real guy. All coaches have a media personality that they wear, and Harbaugh is no different.

The Urban Myth and Dantonio aren't exactly bubbly examples of great personalities. Neither is the mighty Nick Saban. Seems like I've heard in here before that personalities don't win football games. Maybe that was somewhere else ....

[Mackenzie]

Colin aside, the interview sucked. Period. Lost opportunity to perhaps promote the program. Does that mean that JH is not the "real guy" and that JH has not done many great interviews and that the parents, coaches, and kids who meet him don't love him. No. Just sayin it was a dull, boring presentation of the JH we have come to know and love.

[froot loops]

The point isn't about guys who want to go to Michigan, recruiting is the science of getting guys who have initially have no interest in the university. Cowherd is a turd, but you know that going in.

[lineygoblue]

Harbaugh has gotten kids to commit and sign who initially showed no interest in Michigan. Zach Gentry was committed to Texas, then decommitted and signed with Michigan. Mostly due to Harbaugh.

The interview wasn't Harbaugh at his best, but maybe he remembers a few things that Cowturd said about him in the past, and he wasn't really interested in talking to him that much. Who knows ...

Its not the end of Harbaugh's coaching career.

[iam416]

Colin aside, the interview sucked. Period.

Ummm, that's not in the HARBAUGH!!!! apologists' playbook. You better come correct, and fast.

[Da Geezer]

Jeff: above at post number 10723 you mention a good read, and your comments make me want to read what you read. Can you send me a link, because I don't find one here.

Thanks.

[SeattleLionsFan]

The interview sucked big time and Jim sounded a little bit like an ass. The main reason for that is he is kind of an ass. He's not a politician and hasn't learned the trick of using a stupid basic question as a starting point for hitting your talking points.

The first question was a great example. "what was the first thing you changed?" Well of course he isn't going to say he changed much (it would be a slap in the face to Hoke and runs counter to one of Bo's lasting lessons). The political answer would be to launch into what great shape the program is and when you have a history like Michigan you don't need to change anything. It's about working hard and the TEAM. Unfortunately Jim answers the question and says "there were no drastic changes."

The questions were basic and were only there to tell Jim when to start talking about whatever points he wanted to make. Unfortunately Jim actually answered the stupid questions put to him.

He's an ass, but he's our ass. (just like Bo)

[iam416]

He'll eventually cost himself and M a fair amount of ESPN exposure. At the moment, he ranges from a mediocre to awful interview. I have no idea what the lost value is -- I suspect it's not much. But it can't hurt to be on ESPN a lot talking coherently and enthusiastically about your program.

[entropy]

Colin aside, the interview sucked. Period. Lost opportunity to perhaps promote the program. Does that mean that JH is not the "real guy" and that JH has not done many great interviews and that the parents, coaches, and kids who meet him don't love him. No. Just sayin it was a dull, boring presentation of the JH we have come to know and love.

I would agree.. Lost opportunity and doesn't help Michigan.

[lineygoblue]

If he's winning games, ESPN and all sports outlets will be shoving microphones in his face. He's been one of the biggest sports stories of the entire off season. That won't stop due to one bad Cowturd interview.

Name one of the "elite" NCAA coaches in America that has a bubbly-loves-everybody-loves-him demeanor. Most of the "great" or "mighty" college coaches in the US are a bit prickish in nature. Urban Meyer isn't a jolly sort of fellow. Neither is Saban. Mark Dantonio acts like a combination of Vito Corleone and WC Fields.

I don't think the interview costs him anything other than a few pissy words from Cowturd. No great loss.

[Jeff Buchanan]

When rumors were flying about that M was going to hire Harbaugh out of SF and he was still coaching there, I poured through video interviews trying to find a slip up where he might let on something about the hire.

Nothing.

Not only that, he was an ass-hole. His interviews with the press while at SF are notorious for him saying nothing, using yes, no responses then getting this look on his face that was to be read as WTF are you asking me about that for?

He is NEVER going to win a personality contest with the press, he doesn't care and he knows he'll recruit most effectively here at M by winning and getting face to face with the kids he has interest in and their families.

His persona, while raw and sometimes abrasive, is going to have ZERO impact on recruiting.