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Finebaum commends Harbaugh for honoring scholarship to retired Michigan commit
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No. 14 Michigan’s lone quarterback commit in the 2020 cycle, Pinnacle (Phoenix, Arizona) three-star JD Johnson announced his medical retirement from football on Wednesday due to an issue with his aorta.
In a strong gesture of character, head coach Jim Harbaugh announced the program will continue to honor Johnson’s scholarship offer.
Normally very critical of Harbaugh and his program, SEC Network & ESPN Radio host Paul Finebaum commended the fifth-year head coach for his show of loyalty on Twitter:
Class move by Coach Harbaugh. Much respect for this. https://t.co/yS0tTvcvuS
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) October 31, 2019
As the attached Tweet says, Johnson will have the option of joining the Michigan staff in an unknown capacity when he enrolls as a student.
Taking Johnson out of the equation, the Wolverines’ 2020 class stands at 23 members. Ranking No. 9 nationally and No. 2 in the B1G, Michigan’s haul is headlined by Lincoln-Way East (Frankfort, Illinois) wide receiver A.J. Henning and Port Huron Northern (Port Huron, Michigan) defensive end Braiden McGregor.
In his final year of eligibility, the Wolverines will have to become acclimated to life without Shea Patterson next season. Redshirt sophomore Dylan McCaffrey and redshirt freshman Joe Milton are the other two quarterbacks to attempt a pass for Michigan this year.
Coming off perhaps the biggest win of Harbaugh’s tenure, the Wolverines (6-2) will look to build a win streak on Saturday when they travel to College Park to battle the Maryland Terrapins (3-5) at 12:00PM ET on ABC.
A graduate of Bowling Green State University, Rydquist has been contributing to Saturday Down South and Saturday Tradition since 2019. He can be found on Twitter @TeddyRydquist.