ATHENS, GA – OCTOBER 12: Isaiah Wilson #79 of the Georgia Bulldogs celebrates after the Swift touchdown during a game between University of South Carolina Gamecocks and University of Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on October 12, 2019 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Steve Limentani/ISI Photos/Getty Images).
Isaiah Wilson is no fan of Jim Harbaugh.
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, the sam man who sleeps over with kickers on recruiting trips, has become known for his eccentric quirks in his efforts to turn the best high school players in the country into Wolverines. Sometimes, however, that behavior can have the exact opposite of Harbaugh’s desired effect, as evidenced in the case of former Georgia star and Tennessee Titans rookie Isaiah Wilson.
Wilson claims that he had Harbaugh over his house for a visit, but the coach refused to take off his cleats when walking around inside on Wilson’s hardwood floors. Not long after, Wilson committed to Georgia.
Isaiah Wilson could have been a star at Michigan.
Harbaugh might have brought Michigan back from the dead, but he has become a lightning rod for criticism due to his propensity for losing out on top recruits and failing in big games. News of his odd behavior in the recruitment of a star lineman won’t go down well in Ann Arbor.
Wilson, per 247sports, had a 92 percent chance of going to Michigan, a program that consistently churns out NFL linemen. Instead, he opted to join Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs, which helped both him and Andrew Thomas get selected in the first round.
The Titans finally agreed to terms with Wilson, who was picked 29th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. Wilson might sit behind Dennis Kelly in his rookie season, but Mike Vrabel has tagged the mammoth Georgia tackle as the right tackle of the future in Nashville.
Harbaugh’s insistence on living up to his quirky persona cost Michigan a chance at one of college football’s best right tackles and a player that ended up being drafted in the first round. Harbaugh has done a lot of good at Michigan, but little incidents like this that help push elite talent away from the program reflect poorly on him.