Potential Jim Harbaugh absence will have little effect on Michigan vs. Maryland this weekend

Michigan may or may not have its head coach on the sideline this Saturday for a noon kickoff on the road against Maryland, as Jim Harbaugh will go before a Washtenaw County, Michigan, judge on Friday morning and make his case for a temporary restraining order against the Big Ten. If the order isn’t granted, Harbaugh will be kept from the sidelines for a second-straight game.

And whether or not Harbaugh serves the second game of his league-imposed suspension to end the regular season, On3’s JD PicKell and Andy Staples aren’t worried about the outcome. After besting Penn State on the road with offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore as acting head coach, beating back the Terrapins should be a task well-handled by the Wolverines.

“But, I don’t think it matters who coaches Michigan in this game. I think they’re going to beat the doors off of Maryland. But this has been a weird spot in past years — I do find it interesting that the league decided to put Michigan in this spot instead of Ohio State with the at Maryland lookahead game going into that game,” Staples said.

Ohio State famously played a game that came down to a failed two-point conversion by Maryland in 2018, allowing the Buckeyes to escape with a one-point win. And last year in 2022, Maryland pushed Ohio State to the limit most of the day, but the Buckeyes prevailed 43-30.

Michigan actually played at Maryland in 2021 in Week 12, just prior to hosting Ohio State. It’s a spot Michigan isn’t unfamiliar with — the Wolverines thrashed Maryland, 59-18, in 2021.

It is the type of spot that can cause some troubles, and PicKell knows Maryland is one of the few teams capable of pulling this type of upset in the league. But he still doesn’t see it happening, Harbaugh or not.

“Because Ohio State, like you said, they were in College Park. Michigan in this same spot a season ago against Illinois, they kind of struggled. Now, Illinois was a bit better than Maryland. If Maryland, they wake up that day dangerous with nothing to lose, you never. I still think Michigan rolls, though, to be clear,” PicKell said.

And the fact it’s all playing out in court the day before the game had PicKell and Staples likening the situation to an episode of “Suits,” a legal drama that’s taken on a new life some coming to Netflix recently.

“But yes, this is the best episode of ‘Suits.’ Like this would’ve been an entire season-long arc of ‘Suits.’ Like Louis Litt and Jim Harbaugh would’ve gotten along famously,” Staples said. “Like Louis Litt and Harvey [Specter] would’ve had to forge a grudging alliance because Harvey would need Louis to communicate with Jim Harbaugh.”