8702250319
DETROIT FREE PRESS
871123
Monday, November 23, 1987
METRO FINAL
1E
MITCH ALBOM
Copyright (c) 1987, Detroit Free Press
HARBAUGH'S DEBUT A SNAP:
ONE PLAY AND 15-YARD LOSS
CHICAGO -- He ran in. He took the snap. He got sacked. He ran out.
Jim Harbaugh had just made his first play in the National Football League.
"What'd I lose, nine yards?" he asked in the locker room after his Chicago
Bears mauled the Lions, 30-10, Sunday.
"Actually," someone said, "it was 15."
"Fifteen?" He shook his head. "Oh . . . bleep."
Welcome to the NFL. One play. One sack. This was not the moment Jim
Harbaugh dreamed of when he was quarterbacking the Michigan Wolverines last
year. But then, a lot has happened since then. And anything can happen with
the Chicago Bears.
Witness Harbaugh's moment of, well, it wasn't glory, it was more like, not
really celebrity as much as . . . well, let's just call it his moment. Here is
how it came about: Jim McMahon, the starter, had been quarterbacking the
Bears and guiding them to an easy lead. But suddenly, with less than two
minutes left in the first half, the Bears ran out on offense -- and their
quarterback did not.
"What's the matter with McMahon?" someone quickly asked. "His ankle? His
head?"
Who knew? In came backup Mike Tomczak, who ran a few hurried plays. On the
sidelines, coach Mike Ditka was waving furiously. He was mad about something.
Harbaugh, sensing an opportunity, eased into position a few feet away.
"What's the matter with Tomczak?" someone quickly asked. "His ankle? His
head?"
Who knew? But suddenly, he was coming out. Ditka was yelling at him.
And Harbaugh was trotting in.
Trying for a big play
What a perfect opening. Remember, this is the same guy who arrived late
for his first freshman team meeting with Bo Schembechler. He'd forgotten the
time. "You'll never play at Michigan!" Schembechler lectured him that day. And
look how that turned out.
So little wonder that, although Harbaugh took that snap Sunday, spun
around and was smothered by the Lions' Mike Cofer, and came out immediately,
replaced again by Tomczak -- well, he really wasn't that upset. "I just
should've stepped up in the pocket. I was trying to make a big play. You know
me."
You know him. Jimmy Harbaugh. Coach's kid. Played tag along the Michigan
sidelines as a 10-year-old. And now he was dressing alongside McMahon and
Walter Payton and Refrigerator Perry -- a member of the wildest team in pro
football, and perhaps the best in the NFC. He slipped on his loafers and his
Michigan jacket.
You know him.
"To be honest, it's been a little boring," Harbaugh said, when asked about
his pro career. "I'd really like to play. I try to stay mentally ready on
every down. But not even handling snaps . . . it's just weird."
He says he's adjusting OK. He has an apartment in a Chicago suburb ("I got
a bed, a couch and a 35-inch TV"). Says he watched the Michigan-Ohio State
game Saturday, and wagered Tomczak -- a former Buckeye -- that Michigan would
win. The prize was a week of "slavery."
"Now I gotta clean his toilets or whatever," Harbaugh moaned.
All around, the Chicago press pushed past him, clamoring for interviews
with the "stars." It cannot be easy for Harbaugh, who probably mumbles "Put me
in, coach" in his sleep. But it is part of the process. Wait for your chance.
Make the best of it. Even if it lasts only one play.
"Fifteen yards I lost?" he asked again.
"That's what they said."
His eyes drifted far away. "I shoulda stepped up into the pocket. . . .
Ditka is spittin' image
It was strange to see Harbaugh, who led Michigan to the Rose Bowl a year
ago, now a smaller name on a team full of video stars and taco salesmen.
Strange, and in a way, familiar. On those sidelines Sunday, he shadowed Ditka
the way he once shadowed Schembechler, his helmet on. Put me in, coach. Never
mind that Ditka may be the most fiery-tempered coach in the NFL.
"Last Monday night in Denver, he got so mad, he was screaming at an
official and he just spit his gum right into the guy's ear! I've never seen
that. Not even with Bo."
Well. Yeah. That does sound original.
So anyhow, here it was, his NFL debut. He said he wasn't nervous. He said
he was supposed to stay in for another play, but, well, you know.
One play. One sack. Years from now, Harbaugh may be a star in this league.
And it is doubtful the words "November 22d, second quarter, 47 seconds left .
. ." will give him goose bumps. Nausea, maybe. Not goose bumps. "I guess it
wasn't the perfect first snap," he said, shrugging. "But, hey. Could be
worse."
Yeah.
He could be playing for the Lions.
FOOTBALL;COLUMN