Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has been receiving some heavy criticism over the Wolverines’ recent de-commitments, especially since recruits have implied that Harbaugh and his staff have not communicated and basically pulled scholarships or even forced de-commitments so that the program may sign higher-ranked players.
Just what actually went down is unknown but, speaking to reporters including ESPN’s Dan Murphy, Harbaugh commented on the situation.
Jim Harbaugh says he's been open with recruits during process. "It's a meritocracy."
— Dan Murphy (@DanMurphyESPN) January 29, 2016
Whether Harbaugh has been open and honest with recruits is an unending case of he-said-she-said, but he’s absolutely right in recruiting being a meritocracy. The object of it is to put together the best possible team for the immediate and long-term future and if certain players don’t fit the system as well as others, they may get brushed aside. The onus is on the coach to communicate as much, but this happens in the recruiting game.
To quote Herman Edwards, you play to win the game!
Harbaugh is also quite a polarizing figure to begin with so on top of what has already gone on regarding de-commitments, one can’t help but wonder if this would be getting as much publicity if it were another coach in question.