Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh made comments about former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer recently and they have added a little offseason fuel to the heated rivalry.
On a podcast with The Athletic, Harbaugh said, “Urban Meyer’s had a winning record. Really phenomenal record everywhere he’s been. But also, controversy follows everywhere he’s been.”
A few days after making those comments, and a smell of controversy ensuing, Harbaugh addressed it again and said what his comments were hardly new or any kind of bombshell.
That's quite accurate.
Meyer was a huge winner. He went an incredible 83-9 at Ohio State and 54-4 in the Big Ten, simply mind-boggling numbers for a coach who should go down as one of the best in college football history. In his career, Meyer was 187-32 and won three national titles.
But when the history books are written on Meyer – and some are already out there – things will be written negatively about high numbers of arrests during his Florida tenure and his questionable handling of the Zach Smith spousal abuse situation at Ohio State.
Perhaps Harbaugh knew exactly what he was doing making those comments and realizing it would rile a passionate fan base in a rivalry where every word is scrutinized. Or perhaps he was simply saying something filled with fact, however painful it could be for Meyer's fans to accept.
FARRELL'S TAKE
We ask Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell for his thoughts on whether Harbaugh should have made the comments.
“Were the comments accurate? Probably so, as many have been critical of Meyer from his Florida days to the Zach Smith situation at Ohio State. Did they need to be said by a former rival coach? No. But people don’t get Harbaugh apparently; that’s what he does.
"In this day and age of trolls on the Internet and social media and people taking shots at everyone else, Harbaugh plays the game very well. So you can’t criticize him for what he said; you can only criticize him for saying it.
"To me, who cares? Ryan Day is the man at Ohio State now. Move on.”
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