Brian Manzullo

Detroit Free Press

At around midnight last night, Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh tweeted thanks to Drake for a shout-out to the University of Michigan on "Saturday Night Live."

In the skit, Drake, the popular recording artist, was seen drinking out of a Block "M" mug and, in character, saying he went to U-M as an undergrad in Ann Arbor.

"Hope to see you at the Big House soon!," Harbaugh tweeted.

Apparently, some Twitter users wanted Harbaugh to prove his Drake fandom after that tweet. So to prove he wasn't a "fake," Harbaugh listed his Top 5 Drake songs later this afternoon.

Solid list, right?

This seems like a humorous and harmless exchange. But U-M cornerback Jourdan Lewis came to his coach's defense on Twitter after a user wondered whether Harbaugh, in tweeting about Drake, was manipulating and exploiting black culture to recruit top high school athletes and "stuff his pockets."

"We play the system just like they do," Lewis tweeted in response. "Don't get it twisted, I'm trying to use this to empower mine!

"Plus I love it here! What a opportunity.

"(Harbaugh) is acknowledging our culture. Something that has not been done. You call it what you want, I call it appreciation."

It's worth noting that last April, when Drake's "Views" album was released, Michigan football made its own "Views" album cover rendition, featuring Harbaugh sitting on top of the Michigan Stadium scoreboard.

Contact Brian Manzullo: bmanzullo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianManzullo.

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