Harbaugh's Debut Ends With Loss At Michigan

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Published on September 4 2015 6:44 am
Last Updated on September 4 2015 6:45 am

Jim Harbaugh was swarmed by cameramen from the moment he stepped off the bus at Rice-Eccles Stadium. College football's newest rock star had finally arrived to play a game after eight months of hype. And Utah was sick of hearing about it.

The Utes felt disrespected despite being favored and spoiled Harbaugh's Michigan coaching debut with a smothering defense, beating the Wolverines 24-17 on Thursday night in the opener for both teams.


"We beat Michigan for the third time in a row," Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. "That's a heck of an accolade for our program."

Harbaugh came as advertised -- blue long-sleeved shirt, blue cap with the block "M," khakis and lanyard with whistle attached.

Unfortunately for Michigan fans, the team didn't look drastically different from the 2014 version. The quarterback struggled, and the run game was nonexistent. That spelled trouble for the offense.