In Harbaugh we trust

Getty Images Gregory Shamus

I know, I know, every single non-Michigan fan reading right now hates me for typing this, and I already know what they’re going to say. Something to the effect of: “What did Harbaugh actually do last year?” or “He’s still got to beat Ohio State and Michigan State before he proves anything to me.” But while that last part is fair, the first is not.The simple truth is that the “What has Harbaugh actually done?” narrative might be the single, dumbest one in college football entering the season. What has Harbaugh done at Michigan? Well, how about take a team that won five games in 2014 and in one year, completely flip them around, tallying 10 wins, with two of the Wolverines’ three losses coming by a touchdown or less. If one or two things went the other way, we could have been talking about an 11 or 12-win team. Not that 10 is too shabby.But more than just the wins, it's how the Wolverines’ accomplished them. As I mentioned at the top, it isn’t just that Harbaugh won, but that in a few short months he completely changed the culture in the process. Prior to his arrival, Michigan was a plenty talented team, but lacked the toughness, heart and desire to compete with the best teams on their schedule. Fast forward one year and Michigan was an absolute force in the Big Ten, a team that physically overwhelmed everyone they were supposed to, and were every bit as good as the Michigan State team that beat them on the final play of their game. Only Ohio State was clearly more talented than them, and with what the Buckeyes’ lost following last season, and the Wolverines return, that gap seems to have closed.At the same time, no one should be surprised, because, well, that’s just what Harbaugh does. Sure, it’s easy to get caught up in the satellite camps and rap videos, but the one thing that gets lost is that he’s a damn good football coach. He proved it at San Diego, Stanford and with the 49ers, and once again last year.So to answer Ann Arbor’s most rhetorical question: Who’s got it better than Michigan? No one.The Wolverines are a true national championship contender.Aaron Torres covers college football for Fox Sports. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook or e-mail at ATorres00@gmail.com