Adam Schefter opens up on Jim Harbaugh's legacy at Michigan

As Jim Harbaugh moves from Michigan, his alma mater, back to the NFL, he leaves behind an interesting legacy. That’s a legacy that fellow Michigan graduate and ESPN reporter Adam Schefter recently shared his thoughts about.

During an appearance on the College GameDay podcast, Schefter praised Harbaugh, emphasizing how much his tenure at Michigan means to those who care about the school.

“Well, you and I would probably have differing answers there, Pete, right?” Adam Schefter laughed. “But I would say that Jim Harbaugh goes down as a legendary figure in the school’s football program. Bo Schembechler, I don’t believe, got them a national championship…Jim Harbaugh did.”

Prior to Jim Harbaugh, Michigan hadn’t won a national title since 1997. That was a shared title during the Lloyd Carr era. Before that, the Wolverines hadn’t won a national championship since 1948. So, for all the winning the program does, Harbaugh was able to do something that is much rarer by winning a national championship.

“So, Jim Harbaugh outdid his predecessor in terms of winning national championships, and again, restored prominence to that school, and returned it to the way it was under Bo, where it was a super power in college football.”

Adam Schefter then remembered other Michigan fans growing frustrated with Jim Harbaugh. However, he also remembered how many great moments Michigan football had thanks to sticking with him for as long as the program did.

“I remember when Jim took over. There were some of my friends who were like, ‘Time to get rid of him. Time to move on from Harbaugh.’ Like, there were people that thought that four, five years ago. There were people that got impatient with him,” Schefter said.

“And I can say I always felt like he was the right guy and he could be there as long as he wanted to be there and he did exactly what he was born to do and set out to do, and that’s make Michigan the type of program that all the people who went there, like myself, are obviously proud to be a part of that university and follow that school and they’ve provided some tremendous moments like you want your school to give you moments that you’ll always remember, and I can tell you I can count a number of those that Jim Harbaugh has given my friends, my family, myself in recent years. Many of them.”

For Adam Schefter, at least, the moment that stands out to him in hindsight is the first win against Ohio State during a snowy Saturday in Ann Arbor.

“My son went to school there. He was there in the stands when Jim Harbaugh led his Michigan football team to a win over Ohio State and my son sat in the stands with his buddies in disbelief that Michigan finally beat Ohio State in the snow when the Big House was a snow globe and everybody was watching it and I remember how excited I was that day when I think back to going to school there and graduating in ’89,” Schefter said.

“If I could think of all my singular memories that that school has created for me, that day, which Jim Harbaugh helped author, would be in the top five most memorable days of Michigan sports moments, and there have been plenty, in the 50 years that I’ve been associated with the University.”

Adam Schefter believes Sherrone Moore not being Michigan’s next coach would be a ‘major upset’

It looks like offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore will be elevated to head coach at Michigan, with Adam Schefter saying that it would be a major upset if he doesn’t get the job.

“Well, I think we got a glimpse of the future when we saw Sherrone Moore. He stepped in, they went unbeaten under him. He has a lot of the qualities, I think, that school would be interested in,” Schefter said.

“I think they’ll look at some other people but I think he goes into this as the undisputed favorite to get the job. I think it’d be a major upset if he didn’t get it in the end.”