Barry Sanders wowed anyone who watched him during his Hall of Fame career. That includes Jim Harbaugh, who was quarterback for the Bears when Sanders ripped off a legendary touchdown run in the 1992 season opener between Chicago and Detroit.
The score was tied at 10 in the fourth quarter when Sanders took a handoff near midfield, ran through one tackler and then shed three more before racing 43 yards to the end zone. Harbaugh was probably seething at the time.
But he couldn't help but smile when reminded of the play Tuesday on the Stoney & Jansen Show.
"I watched the whole play and it was at least nine tacklers, maybe 10, got their hands on him and he was spinning and spun out of three guys who had him all at once. I mean, triangulated. Six hands were on him and I saw him spin and duck out of that. That was the most amazing run I’ve ever seen," Harbaugh said.
Yeah, it was pretty good:
But Harbaugh got the last laugh that afternoon when he threw a last-second touchdown to Tom Waddle to lift the Bears to a 27-24 victory. He's still laughing about it 29 years later.
"Yeah, little five-yard touchdown pass," he said.
(Harbaugh's selling himself short. It was actually a six-yard touchdown pass.)
But enough of the past. Here's what Harbaugh had to say about his Michigan team that ranks No. 9 entering a Saturday night game against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are 3-3, but have pushed No. 6 Oklahoma and No. 11 Michigan State to the brink and are coming off a 56-7 rout of Northwestern:
On Michigan's defense this season: "They look fast. There’s some guys that look really fast. Josh Ross looks a lot faster, playing more instinctually. Looks like he’s getting a step, anticipating. Whether that’s experience, coaching or instincts, he’s got those and it's showing up. Dax Hill is running. Aidan Hutchinson is a freak. He’s on the freak list."
On getting J.J. McCarthy more playing time: "We’re trying to get J.J. in as much as possible. We’re trying to get Donovan Edwards in as much as possible. (WR) Andrel Anthony’s another guy. Guys that are really good and can help our football team and you can see them growing as players and developing. Those guys can help us, too."
On Michigan gaining 'tough yards' against Wisconsin: "Blake Corum took some shots that would have knocked a lesser man right out of there, but he just kept getting up and kept going. It didn’t even faze him. He had a little cut, that was it. Practically would have killed a lesser man. That’s one tough son of a gun."
On what to expect from Scott Frost and Nebraska: "Every play known to man on offense. Every misdirection or run it right at you. Physical, tough. His defenses always produce guys that hit and hit hard, so it’ll be a heck of a game."
On reminding his players of the challenge posed by Nebraska: "They’re going to see it for themselves when they watch the tape. This is a smart team. But we’ll also tell them, ‘Hey, this Nebraska team is really good, they’re hitting their stride and this is going to be the same environment and even more so than what you saw last week.'"