Michigan averted disaster against Rutgers last weekend, which is really all you need to say about Year 6 of the Jim Harbaugh era.
"The feeling I had, it was one heck of a game to be playing in," Harbaugh said Monday. "It looked like every player out there was having fun playing football."
It wasn't nearly as much fun to watch. Which is par for the course for the Wolverines this season, outside of their win against Minnesota in the opener.
The fans are frustrated. More notably, so are some former players. Braylon Edwards said earlier this month that Harbaugh hasn't done enough to keep his job. And 1991 Heisman winner Desmond Howard said Saturday on ESPN's College GameDay that the Wolverines are basically going through the motions.
“I had a conversation with a couple of friends, former players, and I asked them, ‘What do you see?' General consensus was, there's no fire. There’s no juice. They’re just out there playing," said Howard.
That's what it looked like in the first half against Rutgers. But Michigan showed some fight after falling behind 17-0, rallying to win in triple overtime. Asked about Howard's comments on Monday, Harbaugh supported his players.
"As far as the juice on the team, I think guys are playing with energy, guys are really into it and passionate and playing the game to the best of their God-given ability. And that’s everything that I ask for," Harbaugh said.
If there's a defense for Michigan this season, it's that injuries -- and COVID-19 opt-outs -- have ravaged its roster. That trend continued on Saturday when LB Cam McGrone had to be carted off the field in the first half. Then again, the roster should be deep enough in year six of Harbaugh's tenure to avoid triple overtime against Rutgers.
The Wolverines are 2-3 with three games remaining: Penn State, Maryland and Ohio State. If they don't finish strong, the objections to Harbaugh will only grow louder.