Jim Harbaugh reminds everyone of his admiration for Judge Judy amid pending legal battle

On Friday, Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh will attend a court hearing in hopes to receive a restraining order that would nullify the Big Ten’s three-game suspension. While Harbaugh isn’t certain whether he’ll testify, he’s done his research.

“That’s not my dance floor,” Harbaugh said. “I’ve watched a lot of shows. I’ve watched Judge Judy a lot.”

Although he isn’t under oath yet, the 59-year-old head coach isn’t lying. Harbaugh is a massive fan of former family court judge Judy Sheindlin, also known as Judge Judy. In the past, Harbaugh went as far to refer to the pop culture icon as his “role model for truth-telling.”

Jim Harbaugh is not just a fan of Judge Judy.

Back in 2013, Harbaugh sat in the audience for a Judge Judy episode.

Harbaugh calls Judge Judy his “role model for truth-telling”. https://t.co/OC8GJ2cZmt pic.twitter.com/L99tLiapbz

— Ben Stevens (@BenScottStevens) November 13, 2023

“Trust is big to me,” Harbaugh said in 2013 at the NFL combine. “I’m a big fan of the ‘Judge Judy’ show. When you lie in Judge Judy’s courtroom, it’s over. Your credibility is completely lost and you stand no chance of winning that case. I learned that from her. It’s very powerful. And true. If somebody lies to you, how can you trust anything they say after that?”

Still not convinced? In 2013, while coaching the San Francisco 49ers, Harbaugh sat in the audience for a Judge Judy episode. Harbaugh’s jaw hung to the floor while he soaked in the moment with front-row seats.

Unfortunately for Harbaugh, his hero won’t be hearing his case on Friday. Instead, Judge Carol Kuhnke, who earned a bachelor’s degree from Michigan in 1990, will be the one making the decision. The hearing is scheduled to take place on Friday at the Washtenaw County Courthouse in Ann Arbor.

The defense for Jim Harbaugh

Harbaugh won’t be alone in his efforts. The program has firmly stood behind Harbaugh during the tumultuous scandal. Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel is no exclusion. Following the Big Ten’s announcement of Harbaugh’s suspension, Manuel claimed the conference’s decision was unjust.

“No one here, and no one at other universities around this country, wants to be convicted and penalized without due process of a complete investigation and with significant harm to our student-athletes,” Manuel wrote in a statement. “This is a fundamental principle of our justice, NCAA and, until yesterday, our conference systems. Sadly, that is not what happened yesterday.

“Yesterday, under the guise of the NCAA Rule regarding Head Coach Responsibility the Big Ten decided to penalize Coach Harbaugh without knowing all the facts, and I find that completely unethical, insulting to a well-established process within the NCAA, and an assault on the rights of everyone (especially in the Big Ten) to be judged by a fair and complete investigation.”