Jim Harbaugh has been known to interject himself in high school football situations, particularly when a recruit he wants to bring to Michigan is involved. When Harbaugh traveled to the Dallas-Fort Worth area to recruit star Aledo offensive lineman and U.S. Army All-American Chuck Filiaga, he happened to be there as the team prepared for a spot in the Class 5A Division 2 state title game.
Naturally, the occasion warranted a fire and brimstone speech from Harbaugh, who was all too happy to oblige.
You can watch the entire speech above, thanks to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, which was filming the practice sessions as part of its coverage of Aledo’s run to the state title in an excellent series called Titletown. We can’t recommend highly enough that you watch the entire series, which has shades of Friday Night Lights and an NFL Network documentary, but Harbaugh’s unscripted (in the run of the series) arrival was a clear highlight, particularly his “six seconds of rage” line.
Will that be enough to land Filiaga in Ann Arbor. We’ll have to wait and see. If nothing else, it provided an unexpected jolt that may have helped get the Bearcats over the line en route to a state crown, something the Wolverines will try to recreate in the Orange Bowl on Friday.