Coming out of the 2020 pandemic season, it seemed like Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan homecoming was headed for a not-so-amicable divorce. What once seemed like a sure thing — Harbaugh bringing his alma mater back to the top of college football — had been reduced to a punchline.
It wasn’t that Harbaugh had failed. Michigan could — and has — employed coaches who did worse than finish in the top 20 four out of his first five years. But under the surface, there were problems.
Harbaugh wasn’t beating Michigan’s biggest rivals with enough regularity. He seemingly couldn’t beat Ohio State at all.