At a school like Michigan, events usually fall under one of three categories: normal, sizable and huge.
About five minutes before the clock struck noon, 175 credentialed media members were asked to find their seats inside Michigan’s Junge Family Champions Center. (For a point of reference, Ford Field’s main press box features 200 seats.)
But the media made up less than half of the crowd. An estimated 600 people crammed into the spacious Junge Center on Tuesday and hordes more stood outside, their faces pressed against the windows. All to catch a glimpse of one man.
One longtime Michigan public relations professional estimated this was the largest press conference gathering the school’s had since Bo Schembechler officially retired after the 1989 season.
ESPN carried Harbaugh’s introductory presser live. NFL Network cut into programming for a live standup just minutes before the event began. Hordes of photographers crowded around the room’s entrance, enough to actually make Michigan’s new coach nearly trip and fall before taking his seat.
“A lesser athlete would’ve went down,” Harbaugh smiled.
For some Michigan fans, watching Tuesday’s event might’ve been an out-of-body experience. For NFL executives, it probably had to be seen to be believed. Jim Harbaugh, one of the most successful coaches in football — period — left buckets of NFL cash on the table to return to his alma mater.
Urban Meyer and Nick Saban, coaches preparing to play for a spot in the national title game in just two days, both were asked to comment on Harbaugh’s hire. NFL coaches prepping for playoff battles were asked to do the same
