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Why Hasn't Michigan Been Able To Capitalize On Its National Championship? · Buckeyes TomOrrow Morning

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  Welcome to Buckeyes tomorrow morning for Sunday, February fourth, I'm your host,
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  Tom Moore. The Akron game in two hundred and nine days, the game
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  against Michigan in three hundred days, and with that game exactly three hundred days
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  away, felt like that would be an appropriate day to take a look at
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  the last few weeks, last almost month for the Michigan football team, because
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  it has been an eventful period. We did a show a couple weeks ago
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  with Tony Gerderman doing kind of a day by day look at all the stuff
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  that had happened for Ohio State, and it was a lot. Michigan has
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  had a similarly eventful month, not necessarily in the same direction as a lot
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  of the news that Ohio State has had, but eventful nonetheless. So we're
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  going to bring in Tony once again. Tony, let's just start. We're
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  going to start this on January eighth. We started the Ohio State timeline on
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  the day of the Cotton Bowl, so we're going to start this on January
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  eighth. January eighth, Michigan wins the National Championship, and then January eleventh,
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  Zach Center goes the NFL January eleven, Junior Colson goes the NFL.
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  January twelve, Chris Jenkins goes to the NFL and wrapping up that week January
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  twelfth. A Michigan writer, quoting a source quote, if you want to
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  know what Jim thinks, just listen, citing these arms, Jim Harbaugh has
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  said he'll stay at Michigan quote as long as they'll have me close quote.
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  It seems the rest is up to Michigan. Tony, Yeah, you had
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  a couple guys to go to the NFL, but it seems like, boy,
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  you won that championship. Your coach really wants to stay. Everything's turning
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  up. Everything's everything's going to Mill House. No house's way, everything's coming
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  up Millhouse. There we go. I got there eventually. Yeah, that's
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  the way it sure seemed, if only you just looked at a slice of
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  the calendar and didn't look at anything preceading it or going after it, or
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  knowing believing that Jim Harbaugh was looking for an NFL job, as he had
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  done three the prior two years. So yeah, if I saw that that
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  quote, if you know what, if you want to know what Jim thinks,
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  just listen. If you want to know what Jim thinks, just watch
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  an interview for an NFL job every year. That's what Jim thinks. That's
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  what he wanted. And yeah, and boy, there are some truthers on
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  board that he was going to be there. He's going to stick around,
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  So please please tell me more. All right, Well, let's start with
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  January thirteenth, National Championship parade in ann Arbor, Michigan. President Santa Onno
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  was not part of the parade. That was a little interesting. Then followed
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  by a rally in the Chrysler Center for ward manual says to the adoring,
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  cheering crowd regarding Jim Harbaugh. Quote, I am working on getting this man
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  a new contract. I promise you close. Quote Tony, what could possibly
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  go wrong? On January thirteenth, Braden McGregor declares the NFL Draft. Now
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  this is a compressed timeline for Michigan players because the NFL draft declaration deadline was
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  on January fifteenth, so they had a lot less time than a lot of
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  other places. So we've got some NFL draft decisions coming, Tony, January
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  fourteenth, bla Korum to the NFL Draft. January fourteenth, Josh Wallace to
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  the NFL Draft January fourteenth. J. J. McCarthy to the NFL Draft
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  January fourteenth. Michael Barrett to the NFL Draft Januar fourteenth. January fourteenth,
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  Trevor Keegan to the NFL Draft January fourteenth, Hermann Green to the NFL Draft
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  January fourteenth, Great NuGet to the NFL Draft January fourteenth, Roman Wilson to
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  the NFL Draft. That was all one day, January fifteenth. Josiah Stewart
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  returning January fifteenth. Donald Edwards also announces he's returning Johnny January fifteenth. Rod
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  Moore announces he is returning January fifteenth. Twenty Jones to the NFL Draft January
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  fifteenth, Cornelius Johnson to the NFL Draft January fifteenth, Carson Barnhardt to the
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  NFL Draft January fifteenth. McCary page returning January fifteenth. A. J.
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  Barner to the NFL Draft. Those are all the ones that the Michigan account
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  retweeted, So don't tell me who didn't have a you know, these are
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  all the people who felt compelled to tell you they were heading to the NFL
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  Draft and were retweeted by Michigan, So don't argue with me on who I
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  included there didn't include January fifteenth tweet quote. The Harball Michigan negotiations are at
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  an end pass at least for now. It isn't money plenty there, but
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  the clauses what should be covered by immunity brackets eg. Cheeseburgers, et cetera,
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  close quote and whatnot. Therein lies the rub Tony the rub January sixteenth.
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  We learn more about the rub the next day with Dan Wetzel. Specifically,
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  sources said Harbaugh is seeking language that would grant him immunity from termination from
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  any finding or sanction that could arise from multiple current NCAA investigations into the football
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  program. Harball is also seeking a delay in the start date of the new
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  contract to maintain a lower buyout that NFL teams would have to pay Michigan to
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  hire him away. The biot in his current contract dropped from two point twenty
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  five million to one point five million on January eleventh. Michigan is seeking to
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  have that increase to about four million a new new deal. Harball has sought
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  to have the new deal not starting until February fifteenth, Thus, maintaining the
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  lower and more favorable buyout number until after the NFL hiring cycle has concluded.
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  Tony. That wraps up this second week that we're talking about. I remember
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  very clearly saying to you, you know, oh, I'm starting to suspect
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  that he suspected he maybe is not quite as sure they were one hundred percent
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  innocent and nothing happened and everything was fine. And also maybe he may be
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  a little bit more interested in heading to the NFL than you might be led
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  to believe by I will stay as long as they will have everything you read.
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  There is a span of four days, which is crazy when you have
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  a dozen players leaving, and just first off, not everybody should be leaving
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  for the NFL. There are players here who are not going to be drafted.
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  There are players here who could help help their draft stock had they come
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  back or gone somewhere else. You've got a lot of people leaving. Who
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  are several people leaving who really could have stood to play some more college football.
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  But the impasse and the rub that wasn't a rub. It's a full
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  body massage that they're looking for in terms of like I want this, and
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  I want this, and I want my shoulders hurt, and if I can
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  get a hot towel as well. Also, I would please like you to
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  hold off on this buyout thing. Let's make the buy out lower, no
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  reason, no reason. We just don't want that buy out to get too
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  expensive for no reason. And then also just just give me some time.
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  And that whole the whole thing, that of wanting time and wanting the buy
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  out, and you know, it's not about the money. It's it's about
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  Jim Harbaugh wanting to go back to the NFL and using whatever he can to
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  just throughout this whole thing make himself not look like he's trying to leave.
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  I thought he did a very good job of trying to convince people that he
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  wanted to stay, especially Michigan fans and and some members of the Michigan media
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  as well, in terms of well he's saying, he's saying he wants to
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  stay. You know, he's just looking for you know, the right verbiage
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  on a contract, which we will get to here and a bit as well.
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  But everything he did was calculated, in my opinion, in terms of
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  I don't want to look like the bad guy, but I'm definitely out of
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  here. And I missed one in there. January fifteenth, that was his
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  date, the date of his first interview with the Chargers, which was the
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  same date of the Ohioborough Michigan negotiations or at an impasse at least for now
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  tony. What does foreshadowing mean anyway, Let's not talk about that. Let's
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  talk about January twenty second, when Jim Harbaugh is expected to meet with the
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  Chargers for a second time. Per Adam Schefter. January twenty third, by
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  Garoffalo reports, Harball and the Chargers are in quote striking distance of a deal.
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  We've I feel like we've done shows on a couple of these things in
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  more details. January twenty fourth, Here is a report from My Michigan reporter.
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  Harbaugh's attorneys, who have been trying to work with Michigan to keep him
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  in arbors, said, however, it took until the proverbial eleventh hour on
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  Wednesday for Michigan to give in on certain language. By then it was too
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  late. That is a report that came out from angeliue Chinellis from the Detroit
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  News, giving a little bit more of the context behind the other story that
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  broke on January twenty fourth, Jim Harbaugh leaving for the Charger. Sony Ward
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  Manual's statement in part reads, quote, we have been discussing a new contract
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  that would make Jim the highest paid coach in college football. In the end,
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  he wanted to explore and ultimately decided to pursue a return to coaching in
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  the NFL. The statement continues, Jim has always been extremely upfront with his
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  communication regarding NFL opportunities. It has been helpful with his transition and leadership.
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  We had a great conversation tonight when he informed me of this decision to return
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  to the NFL and offered his assistance and helping identify the needs for the program
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  moving forward. We are working quickly to hire the next head coach for the
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  program and will do everything possible to keep this current staff and team together.
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  Speaking of foreshadowing statement for Michigan president at Santa Ono same day, we have
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  been in talks with Jim Harball for the last several weeks and have tried our
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  best to retain him as our football coach. Jim called me today and let
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  me know he has made the difficut decision to leave Michigan had joined the Los
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  Angeles Chargers in pursuit of his NFL dreams. For the fans, the players,
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  and me personally, we are sad to hear of Jim's departure January twenty
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  six. Two days later, Jaron Moore named head coach Ben Herbert strength coach
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  is at the press conference January twenty seventh. Multiple reports that defensive coordinator Jesse
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  Minter will follow Harbor to the Chargers. January twenty ninth, Ben Herbert,
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  who was at the Sharon Moore press conference three days earlier, leaves Michigan for
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  the Chargers. Dustin Trest promoted to replace Ben Herbert. February second, Michigan
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  had QB coach Kirk Campbell is expected to get promoted from to become the Wolverines
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  new offensive coordinator. For a tweet from Bruce Feldman, the thirty seven year
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  old is very well regarded inside the program by players and staff. He's been
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  the offensive coordinator at Old Domingham for two years before coming to Michigan. You
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  know the I think the thing Tony that jumps out to me two things.
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  One, boy, everyone wants to tell you how much they wanted to keep
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  Jim Harball there. And two they wanted to really keep the staff and the
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  team as together as possible, And so far the players haven't left in the
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  portal, but a bunch of the coaches have are seemingly in the portal or
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  on their way to the portal to portal their way to the NFL. Got
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  to live out the dream, you got to go chase the Super Bowl,
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  which I've said many times. I don't blame any college football coach for heading
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  to the NFL because of the way college football has for what it has become.
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  But obviously plenty of extenuating circumstances going on around here. I did chuckle
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  at the Ward manual things saying Jim Harbaugh has always been upfront about his pursuit
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  of the NFL, including last year when he said he was never going to
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  pursue the NFL. Again, very upfront right there in terms of the honesty.
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  There the whole back and forth of the eleventh hour trying to remove some
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  of the immunity clause because it's like, Okay, we won't fire you for
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  this, but we kind of are you for this, and you get the
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  contract the wording a little bit changed, but really the thought is like,
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  if you've done something wrong, there's got to be punishment, and of course
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  Jim Harbaugh didn't want anything to do with that for whatever reason, who knows
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  why. But it was just this whole thing. I was thinking about this
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  the other day. It's like Jim Harbaugh and his attorneys, we're just throwing
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  fake throwing tennis balls, and Michigan and the administration was the dog running for
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  the tennis ball while they're holding the tennis ball the entire time. They're just
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  trying to keep them busy while they talk with the NFL and try to make
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  themselves look like, hey, yeah, we are definitely still interested. And
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  you know, just we got to get through these impasses. We've got to
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  get through this. We'll get through there together. You know, we obviously
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  want to be here. It's very tough decision, and I don't doubt that
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  it was a tough decision, but it was always going to be the decision.
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  As long as there was a team that was would take him, he
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  was going to go. And it's something he's been trying to do. Now
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  this was the third year. He finally got it done. And so I
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  think any surprise or any disappointment, like you all should have known that,
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  everybody should have known that he was trying to get out and try and would
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  eventually leave. And I think the greatest trick the devil ever Paul was convincing
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  Michigan fans that Ward Manuel botched this entire thing because I don't care who the
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  athletic director was, It could have been Bo Schembeckler. Jim Harball wasn't going
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  to stay if the NFL, the right NFL team came calling. Well,
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  I mean if it was Bou scham Beckler. You think about what he did
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  with Bill Frieder as a basketball coach, whin Bo was the ad there,
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  and you wonder how long Jim Harball would have been the head coach at Michigan
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  after the Dallians with the Vikings last year, that seemed like he was pretty
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  much sure he had one foot out the door and then suddenly didn't. So
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  I think the interesting thing here, Tony is, first of all, the
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  juxtaposition of the last month for Ohio State and Michigan, because Michigan was at
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  the highest of high in Ohio State was at the lowest of lows, at
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  least by the Ohio State standards, and they've just the lines at some point
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  feel like they've kind of crossed over the last month as Ohio State has trended
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  upwards, in Michigan has you know, all of the guys who are coming
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  back for unfinished business for Ohio State. The business has finished as far as
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  a lot of those Michigan guys are concerned. So you've kind of crossed there.
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  The other piece of this that's kind of you notice, we talked all
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  about the transfer portal in Ohio State, and we talked all about you know,
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  guys coming back and you know, all recruiting commitments and all that kind
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  of stuff. We didn't talk about a bunch of that stuff like, but
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  Michigan has not brought in people in the transfer portal. You know, they
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  don't have their Caleb downs, they don't know if their will Howard, they
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  don't have their Julian saying whoever. That that has just kind of not been
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  a part of their story this month. That's the kind of thing where,
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  yeah, you're going to have a dip after a season where you do something
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  you haven't done in what seventy five years or whatever. It was sure understandable,
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  but you know there's also not the real voting that you necessarily would expect.
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  You didn't get the bounce after the national championship that you would expect in
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  terms of bringing in a bunch of guys either. Yeah, And I'm also
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  thinking of Ohio State in twenty fifteen, after they had won a national championship.
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  They brought a bunch of people back because a lot of those guys were
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  second year players that were helping win that national championship, and it came back
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  kind of satisfied. And so I don't think you're going to run into that
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  situation with Michigan in twenty twenty four. Like the number of guys who are
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  returning, only a small portion of them had something to do really involved with
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  winning a national championship. So I wouldn't expect any type of, you know,
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  fat and happy type of thing. But there's been no capitalization on the
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  national championship. There's been no capitalization yet on all of the different areas where
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  there's a hole in the depth chart and you can come in there and play,
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  So that needs to happen. I do wonder how much the just the
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  unknown is playing into this in terms of the NCAA and how much of the
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  UH, the the negative recruiting in the portal or wherever is going on.
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  But also you hear, you're hearing complaining from the Michigan side of things that
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  the n l A NIL isn't doing their job in all of this. They
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  aren't as forcefull or aren't as available as some other schools. And so you
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  know, if you're not going to wade into that pool as deep as others
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  have, then maybe this is gonna be the kind of offseason you always have.
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  But I just think whenever you're changing a coach, it's hard to gain
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  ground from that. I mean, just look at Alabama, what's going on
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  there, what's going on at you know, Washington. It takes time to
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  stop the slide and then begin the gradual climb up. So now Michigan has
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  some time. They they are returning a pretty decent defense, and you know,
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  I I would expect them to be very busy in the spring in terms
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  of the portal, wouldn't you. I would think so, because you're losing
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  so many guys and so many veteran guys, and you're not gonna have an
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  immediate fix for all of those. And they did not. You know,
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  they have not brought in a huge recruiting class where they've got, you know,
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  thirty guys in the twenty twenty four recruiting class or anything like that.
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  They also have currently three guys committed for the twenty twenty five class, none
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  of them ranked in the national rankings and according to the two four to seven
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  composite, And they have two guys who've come in in the transfer portal,
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  both of whom were committed back in December, an offensive lineman from Northwestern and
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  the linebacker from Maryland. And that's it. So, yeah, there has
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  got to be a restocking of the cupboard at some point. And you you
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  know, I think they've just sort of been in limbo for the last three
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  weeks or so thanks to the Jim Harbaugh will he or won't he? And
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  obviously they had a plan B, but everything just sort of the machinery just
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  sort of grinds to a when your head coach is maybe going to be there,
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  maybe not, and maybe going to take your defensive coordinator and your strength
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  coach. And you know, his son, Jay Harbaugh, has obviously been
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  strongly reported. I don't think he's actually officially officially left, but he's been
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  strongly linked to a Los Angeles Chargers job, So you know there are just
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  it feels like they have just gone to a just a screeching halt from what
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  was one of the absolute high points in program history. And it's shocking how
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  quickly it's happened. Yeah, and the momentum is going the wrong way,
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  and now you're asking a first time head coach to stop it. And athletic
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  department that seems to be in a flux right now is maybe grasping his straws
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  as well in terms of control, popularity, footing, and so it's it's
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  not a great time to be a defending national championship head champion right now.
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  And just the we've seen before, like sometimes you really capitalize on it the
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  year after a national championship because recruiting takes a little bit of time. So
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  I think it's not unheard of to see the struggles like this. Now.
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  This is a lot because we also knew Michigan was going to lose twenty some
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  players to graduation in early departures and even more than that. But you really
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  got to ramp it up in twenty twenty five. And I've said that I
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  think Sean Moore can recruit, could become a better recruiter than Jim Harball Jim
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  Harbaar, I think settled a little bit and took some chances, and sometimes
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  those hit and sometimes they didn't, and when they didn't, that's why we've
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  talked about their lack of depth over the years. But you know, I
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  think Sean Moore, you win a national championship, you should be able to
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  capitalize on being a national program and recruit nationally and recruit well. And we'll
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  see if you can do that and get them out of the little funk that
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  they've got going on. Of course, if you just go ahead and go
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  ten to two eleven in one next year, I think that'll help an awful
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  lot as well. If the if the you know, sort of rebound year,
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  the drop down year is ten and two when you're the ten seed in
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  the playoffs, that's that's an acceptable step back year. If as long as
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  twenty twenty five goes back in the right direction. They are just to put
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  some numbers on this twenty seven commitments for twenty twenty four. But even with
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  all that, they are ranked number sixteen in the two four to seven composite,
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  number nineteen in the overall rank, which factors in. I believe the
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  transfers as well, so you know, you're sort of restocking the cupboards,
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  but it's not necessarily elite elite tunt one guy ranking the top one hundred nationally
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  in that twenty twenty four class. And you know, we'll see what the
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  Charon more recruiting machine looks like. He's young, he's energetic, he I
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  think is very popular with the players. So we'll see how that factors in.
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  We'll see how the nc DOUBLEA, whatever the NCAA tries to do,
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  might factor in. We may have another Michigan Timeline month coming up in a
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  month or two to depending on what the NCAA decides to do and when they
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  decide to do it. So I just thought that was an interesting kind of
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  look back, just to kind of give you a little perspective on where things
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  are and where things have been in the last couple of weeks, because there
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  has just been a lot of news flying around around both both Ohio State and
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  Michigan were good and for bad. You know, anytime you start a month
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  with winning a national championship, it can't be a bad month. But anytime
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  you have the month that Ohios date has had since since that Cotton Bowl.
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  Oh, that's not exactly a bad month either, so should be could be
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  a very interesting three hundred days until Ohio State and Michigan get together once again
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  on the football field. We can't wait. Always one of our favorite weeks
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  of the year, always one of our favorite rivalries to talk about, and
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  two teams to talk about, and we'll be talking about them all year long.
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  At bucke Huddle dot com. That's where Tony and Kevin and I cover
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  the team, Mark covers recruiting, had our whole team of ex's and those
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  guruz making you a smarter football fan. Plus a very active, lively,
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  and very fun board at the Huddle Board presented bred Jeffruby's Columbus All at Buckeye
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  Huddle dot com. We hope to see you there. That will do it
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  for today. Thank you guys all for joining us. A great day.
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  We will talk to you tomorrow.