Should Michigan fire Jim Harbaugh?
Depends what you believe
about Michigan football
College football = PGA Tour (top-level golf)
The University of Michigan = A city that cares about golf
Michigan football = The best golf club in that city, a training ground for potential pros
Jim Harbaugh = The head golf coach at this club and the caddie to all the players on the team
Michigan football team = The golf team training at this academy
Michigan football won a NCAA national title in 1997. Michigan football has a long, storied history of success. Is Jim Harbaugh living up to that successful tradition?
Keep Harbaugh
Vasatorp GolfKlubb is Michigan football. Butch Harmon isn’t coming.
Gabriel Hjertstedt won the BC Open (a PGA Tour event) in 1997. He was taught at Vasatorp GolfKlubb, one of Sweden’s premier clubs.
We’ve never had anyone at Butch Harmon’s level. We haven’t created many PGA Tour winners - in fact, none since Gabriel in 1997.
The world has changed since 1997.
34 Swedish players have won on the PGA Tour since Gabriel won in 1997. None of the 34 trained at Vasatorp.
Vasatorp is not built to succeed at the highest levels today. It’s in Sweden. It’s publicly funded. It doesn’t pay pros to train there.
Butch Harmon isn’t coming to Vasatorp.
Bo Schembechler’s the best we’ve had at Michigan.
Bo’s no Butch Harmon.
Jim Harbaugh is just like Bo.
Fire Harbaugh
Rio Secco Golf Club is Michigan football. We need a new Butch Harmon.
Tiger Woods won the Masters in 1997. At the time, he was a product of Butch Harmon, who is the face of the Rio Secco Golf Club.
We once had our own Butch Harmon (Bo Schembechler). We’ve had plenty of PGA Tour winners in the past, though none since 1997.
The world has changed since 1997.
Still, Tiger Woods won another major championship in 2019 - why can’t Rio Secco?
The Rio Secco Golf Club has all it takes to succeed on the highest levels. It’s in the US. Elite facilities. Access to money. A stellar reputation.
All we need is our next Butch Harmon.
Bo Schembechler’s the best we’ve had at Michigan.
Bo was our Butch Harmon.
Jim Harbaugh is no Bo.
Michigan football is definitely Vasatorp.
We have great facilities, but Michigan may as well be in Sweden compared to the football hotbeds scattered across America and the academic and moral norms associated with some institutions within them.
Michigan football should not expect to win national championships.
They only give out one national title a year. That’s like winning the Masters. The expectations of patrons at a golf club in Sweden should not be to produce Masters winners.
Jim Harbaugh is the best Michigan football can hope for.
Michigan football has won 1 national title since 1950 and 0 since 1997.
There have been 13 teams that have won 2+ since 1950, 7 of which have won 2+ titles since 1997. So let’s call Michigan football the 14th best program in the country.
Worst to best end of year national ranking for all five Harbaugh-coached Michigan teams (only 25 teams are ranked):
Unranked, #19, #,14, #11, #10