JUST IN: Jim Harbaugh breaks silence on Michigan win vs. Ohio State, return after suspension with a classy message to other coaches amid player compensation

Jim Harbaugh’s three-game suspension is over, and his Michigan Wolverines (12-0, 9-0) have survived and will play Iowa in the Big Ten championship game on Saturday.

The final of his three missed games was against archrival Ohio State (11-1, 8-1) in which the Wolverines won 30-24. The win was Michigan’s third in a row over Ohio State, after the Buckeyes had dominated the series by winning 15 of the previous 16 meetings.

If the Wolverines win the Big Ten Championship, they will almost certainly be the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. Harbaugh is pleased with his team’s performance in the last three games and throughout the season.

“My emotion, my focus has been with the team the entire time,” Jim Harbaugh explained. “It’s been a fantastic season, right in the position we hoped for and worked so hard to achieve.” It’s time to move on. Many of our objectives have been met, but not all of them.”

While Harbaugh was not present for any of the final three games of the season, he was present in the weeks preceding each game. He was permitted to take part in the team’s practice sessions. “I would say it’s good to be back, but I never left.”

Harbaugh praised assistant coach Sherrone Moore for filling in for him in all three games. When he brought back the words of the legendary Bo Schembechler, he also quoted his former head coach at Michigan.

Harbaugh advocated for athletes to be able to earn NIL (name, image, and likeness) money before the term existed. Harbaugh advocated for expanding the College Football Playoff before it became popular. While Harbaugh is nearly 60 years old, he has a progressive mind in comparison to the NCAA and its unwillingness to evolve.

In August, Harbaugh advocated for revenue sharing and a share of the multibillion-dollar television contracts that athletic conferences like the Big Ten have with broadcast networks.

During a press conference following the Big Ten Championship Game on Sunday, Harbaugh elaborated on his thoughts on player compensation.

Harbaugh wants other coaches to follow in his footsteps and use their influence to help student-athletes from all sports get compensated.

“I invite other coaches to join us.” To use their platform and voice to advocate for student-athletes. Not just football players, but all student-athletes will benefit from this rising revenue.” According to Harbaugh. “That was another thought that I had, and I just don’t know who could be against that.”

Some people, according to Harbaugh, have even discouraged him from bringing up the subject.

“I’ve had people tell me, ‘Don’t say anything about it, it’ll cost the coaches money.'” “I would take less money to give the players a stake,” Harbaugh said. “I hope other coaches would use their voice to express the same thing.”

We’ll see how many coaches agree with Harbaugh’s ideas. In this case, Harbaugh will be on the right side of history, but the NCAA is frequently compared to Michael Douglas’ character Gordon Gecko in the film Wall Street. Perhaps one day, what is fair will triumph, but for the time being, the rich are getting richer — which is why Harbaugh is making these remarks in the first place.