Why James Franklin is making Michigan football fans grateful for Jim Harbaugh
Never a doubt, eh Jim Harbaugh?
Michigan football came up clutch for its head coach in a 21-17 win Saturday at Beaver Stadium. Harbaugh certainly would have taken some heat had his team lost, but it's now James Franklin who fans are questioning.
If you missed it, the game was a snoozer that finished with a whirlwind fourth quarter, similar to many Big Ten matchups. Michigan led by one possession from the second quarter through the third but could not extend its lead. Penn State roared back, scoring the first 10 points of the fourth quarter to take a 17-14 lead with about 6 minutes left.
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The Nittany Lions' lead was short-lived; crossing routes on second-and-10 freed Erick All for a 47-yard touchdown with a little less than 4 minutes left in the game.
A hobbled Sean Clifford looked to be in pain before taking the field with 3:29 left, and Michigan sealed the win a stop on fourth down and some kneel-downs.
Fans of both teams were upset with their head coaches for various reasons on social media, but some Michigan fans took the opportunity to show appreciation for Harbaugh who finally got another win on the road vs. a ranked team.
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YOU SAW ME BASHING JIM HARBAUGH?!!? NO YOU DIDNT
— Down Horrendous Deputy (@JustJT_4_3) November 13, 2021
Enormous dub for Jim Harbaugh
— Nick Bradley (@Nick2ndstring) November 13, 2021
“Penn State needs a touchdown” might be the most hopeless phrase in all of sports
— Jon (@burger23_18S) November 13, 2021
The football gods when Jim Harbaugh is playing an AP top 25 team on the road, but that team is coached by James Franklin playing against a top-10 team. pic.twitter.com/x6GZSWbRbN
— Nathan Grube (@DrNBarnabyGrube) November 13, 2021
There weren't as many "Jim Harbaugh is really good" tweets as there were "James Franklin is really bad" tweets.
I get it that Harbaugh gets so much heat, but how in God’s green Earth does Franklin still have a job at PSU
— Hami (@hami0316) November 13, 2021
It's on Jim Harbaugh -- this is how they cut every game. The margins do not have to be this tight every single time. https://t.co/KqGaoMuXij
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) November 13, 2021
Penn State is 3-4 in the BIG 10. Rutgers is 2-5. WTF would any top school want to take Franklin?
— starblazer (@01Starblazer) November 13, 2021
Never good when your offense is lumped in with those guys.
Iowa. Illinois. Michigan.
All three games the vaunted 2021 Penn State defense took the field in the 4th quarter with the lead, but failed to keep it.— Tony Beard (@tonybeard) November 13, 2021
For all the Harbaugh haters out there, I don’t think another team in the country this year had 3 road games as tough as Wisconsin, MSU and PSU and he went 2-1 in them. This has been a great year for michigan. Their floor now is likely the rose bowl but people will still hate.
— Midwest Football Guy (@Midwestman21) November 13, 2021
Some love for the ever-trusty nine-win season.
Since 2016 (not including 2020 because of COVID) only 7 active coaches have had 4 or more 9+ win seasons.
Nick Saban
Kirby Smart
Bryan Harsin
Dabo Swinney
James Franklin
Lincoln Riley
and with today’s win….Jim Harbaugh.#MichiganFootball— SportSource Analytics (@SportSourceA) November 13, 2021
The good news is I'm genuinely shocked that Michigan not only won, but didn't fold when they fell behind late in the game.
The bad news is this means we threw away our chance at getting our first 11-win season under Harbaugh last week at MSU.— Steven Sinishtaj (@stevesinishtaj) November 13, 2021
Follow the Free Press on Facebook and Twitter for more news. Tyler Davis can be contacted at tjdavis@freepress.com or on Twitter @TDavisFreep.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football fans grateful after win vs. Penn State
