Jim Harbaugh won’t be in attendance for Michigan’s home opener this month, despite being announced as an honorary captain less than a week ago.
The new Los Angeles Chargers head coach had been planning to make the trek to Ann Arbor despite his recently announced NCAA suspension and show-cause penalty, which won’t affect him as long as he remains in the NFL. However, Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore told reporters Tuesday that Harbaugh wouldn’t make it.
The reason presented for the absence was something you would have already expected Harbaugh to consider: He didn’t want to leave his current team alone.
Moore’s explanation:
“I actually just talked to Coach yesterday and really what went into the decision is — we made the decision in March, or I think it was January or February actually — it was really to honor him for what he’s done for Michigan. He came back for nine years and took us to where we are now, so it was really to honor him and nothing beside that.
“Yesterday he called me, told me that he didn’t feel like he could leave his team in true Coach Harbaugh fashion and wanting to be in the foxhole with his team and not wanting to make it look like he was taking a deep long bow.”
Instead, Michigan will reportedly host Harbaugh’s parents, Jack and Jackie Harbaugh, as honorary captains for the game against Fresno State on Aug. 31. Harbaugh will continue to prepare the Chargers for their own season opener, scheduled for Sept. 8 against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Chargers aside, Harbaugh’s presence at the Wolverines’ opener had already become a story in itself. That might not have been great for Michigan considering it threatened to amplify a pair of narratives the program would like to dampen, between the NCAA’s ongoing investigation and questions over whether Moore can hold up as a successor.
