ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Forget the score.
Michigan’s spring game, which ended in a 7-0 win for the Blue team, will have no little-to-no bearing for Jim Harbaugh’s return to college football on Sept. 3 at Utah.
MORE: Three takeaways from Michigan spring game | Fan gets 'Saved by the Bell' Harbaugh tattoo
That low score is going to create a narrative — it already generated a discussion about the term “virtual punt” on Saturday. That’s not going to be enough for a fan-base of a program that bottomed out in 2014. It’s not going to impress anybody in Columbus or East Lansing. Those teams averaged more than 40 points per game last season.
Are there doubts about what's going on in Ann Arbor? Sophomore cornerback Jabrill Peppers will field that one.
"I would say the biggest misconception is our offense is actually, very, very good,” Peppers said. “Offense takes a little bit longer than defense to develop, not to mention our defense, we're playing out of our minds right now. Our game-plan, the play calls; it lets us play without thinking."
In 2014, Michigan was a team that thought too much. Teams that think too much don't pay attention to details. Dropped balls, tipped passes, fumbles and missed assignments were the formula that led to virtual punt fever Saturday, and that’s where Harbaugh's obsessive coaching acumen is needed most.
Forget the score. If you’re looking for the closest comparison from Harbaugh to Bo Schembechler this is where you’ll find it. Take it from Michigan play-by-play announcer Jim Brandstatter.
Brandstatter told Sporting News that Harbaugh stopped practice last week and made everybody watch for five minutes as he explained the intricacies of a handoff exchange between quarterback and running back. So it’s not a surprise when senior linebacker Desmond Morgan says players must stand 15 yards behind the offense during practice. It's also not a suprise Harbaugh stopped the spring game before it started to switch footballs and had 30 extra seconds put on the clock before halftime.
That’s straight Schembechler.
“Bo was an adamant teacher,” Brandstatter said. “Jim has that same commitment and passion and attention to detail that Bo had. Some guys just love the inner workings and details of the job. It’s about loving the game. Even the most minute details interest you.”
It's also about running it until it’s done right. Quarterback Shane Morris tried to hit Amara Darboh on a streak in the second quarter, and Darboh couldn’t complete the catch before falling to the ground. Morris later went back to Darboh on the same play twice, and both times they connected for the two most explosive plays of the day.
Harbaugh will iron the details out, and the spring game answered at least a few questions. Morris pulled ahead in the quarterback race. Peppers looks like the breakout defensive star Michigan fans are begging him to be. The two defenses forced four turnovers Saturday, and that will be the strength of the team. Then again, the defense ranked seventh in the nation (311.3 yards per game) last season. The offense must follow. How fast can this whole thing come together?
“Expectations are high, but that’s nothing new,” Brandstatter said. “As a coach, as a player, you just have to deal with it. That’s where Jim is right now. He’s not going to tell everybody to get off the ledge. That’s all he can do.”
Forget the score. Harbaugh pulled out a few extra trick plays with advice from Michigan coach Gary Moeller, yet another reminder the new hire is the perfect homage to Michigan’s past. Harbaugh is attacking that job with the hottest buzz word in Ann Arbor: Enthusiasm. Everybody's saying it.
"Never let his enthusiasm over-trump ours,” Morris said. “I love that. He's a very enthusiastic guy; helps us come to practice with energy, ready to go."
Forget the score. This wasn’t the rain-drenched spring game at Saline High School in Rich Rodriguez’s first year or the under-whelming showing in Brady Hoke’s last year. That’s all in the rear-view mirror. It’s on to Utah in what might be the most-watched Thursday night opener of all time. Will Michigan be Michigan again?
Harbaugh still has time to find out, but when Week 1 comes around, you can’t forget the score anymore.
“It’s starting to surface, we’re finding the guys we can count on, the guys we need more to be counted on and the guys we need a lot more to be counted on,” Harbaugh said. “It’s a process, and it’s well underway.”
