Jim Harbaugh’s debut for Michigan
It doesn’t matter that Michigan is unranked or that the Wolverines haven’t been a national powerhouse for the past decade. Harbaugh’s arrival at Michigan signals an immediate expectation of success, as everywhere he’s gone he has ushered in a culture of winning.
The unranked Wolverines have a lot of work to do this season to meet those expectations, and the test begins in earnest on Thursday night when Michigan takes on Utah in Salt Lake City.
As usual, success has a lot to do with whether or not teams have a reliable quarterback. To this point, Michigan’s quarterback competition between Jake Rudock and Shane Morris remains a mystery. Harbaugh named both players No. 1 on the depth chart Monday and won’t reveal a starter until game time.
“I want both to prepare like they’re going to be the starter. I don’t know how to make it any clearer than that,” Harbaugh said when pressed about not revealing the starter even though the quarterbacks know who it is (h/t AP).
If Harbaugh’s opener with his old alma mater is to be a success, then he’ll need to defy the expectations of Las Vegas, which has the Wolverines as three-point underdogs (OddsShark.com). Utah is not a pushover, and it may take a bit of Harbaugh’s magical “enthusiasm unknown to mankind” to inspire his team to victory.