Getty Alabama football coach Nick Saban (left) and Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh
It has been a while since Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh and Alabama’s Nick Saban had a proper go at each other. The last signal of a rivalry of any sort came in the 2020 Citrus Bowl, when Saban ticked off Wolverines everywhere by scoring a cheap late touchdown with former Michigan recruit Najee Harris, despite Alabama already having a 28-16 lead with time running out and Michigan having no timeouts.
NAJEE HARRIS TOUGH RUNNING!💪
#CrimsonTide #RollTide #CitrusBowl
The pair do have history. But according to longtime college football commentator Paul Finebaum, who appeared on the Detroit Free-Press’s “Hail Yes!” podcast this week, Saban’s disdain for Michigan extends well beyond Harbaugh’s arrival in Ann Arbor, back to his tenure as Michigan State’s head coach from 1995-99.
Said Finebaum, who has had his own tussles with Michigan football and Harbaugh over the years, and has been known to cuddle up to Saban: “He doesn’t like Michigan. That would include a lot of us, wouldn’t it?”
‘This Is Not a Normal Opponent’ for Nick Saban
No surprise there. Finebaum has been outspoken in his criticism of Harbaugh over the years, and especially in the sign-stealing “scandal” that marked the NCAA’s latest crusade against Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football. In 2017, after Finebaum accused Harbaugh of “cheating,” Harbaugh tweeted that Finebaum, “the unabashed SEC water carrier, really needs to get his facts straight. #AlternativeFacts.”
But Finebaum is right to say that Saban’s distaste for Michigan football runs deep, and that despite the passage of 24 years since his MSU days, the Wolverines remain in a different category for Saban.
“This is not a normal opponent,” Finebaum said. “I have seen Saban do a few things like that (in the Citrus Bowl), that I normally would not have seen. But during most of his tenure, he would never score at the end of the game. I don’t know if it’s really personal with Harbaugh, I can’t answer that. But, yeah, when you’re the Michigan State coach for five years, I would say you spend plenty of time having your face rubbed in the dirt by Michigan folks.”
Finebaum Sees Jim Harbaugh Leaving Michigan Football
As one might expect, Finebaum was hardly kind during the interview with the Free-Press podcast. He called Harbaugh a, “dinosaur,” who does not adjust well. He also is of the opinion that Harbaugh will, and should, leave the collegiate ranks as the NCAA closes in.
“I still think he’s a fascinating figure. I am not sure we’ve had many people like him in college football,” Finebaum said. “But I don’t know him very well, and I have had some interactions over the year and some near-misses. I think he is somewhat of a dinosaur in a changing world. Like many, I will be surprised if he’s there whenever Michigan’s season ends because there is too much baggage built up.
“I respect his coaching ability. I certainly respect the fact that he has been able to get to three CFPs doing it the way he’s done it because it is so unconventional and contrary to what, say, Georgia and Alabama, the way they do it. Frankly, I think he would be wise to leave.”