Michigan overcomes biggest deficit under Jim Harbaugh to beat Northwestern

Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines had their biggest comeback under his watch.

In the first half of Saturday’s Big Ten showdown at Ryan Field, things weren’t looking too promising for Jim Harbaugh’s crew.

Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines surrendered a 17-0 lead to the Northwestern Wildcats in the first half. If history had held up, it would’ve been another disappointing road defeat for Michigan against a team they shouldn’t have a whole lot of trouble beating.

But the Wolverines slowly but surely chipped away, and finally overcame Northwestern for a 20-17 victory.

This was a history-making victory for Harbaugh, and even for Michigan for the most part. It was the first time in Harbaugh’s career as a college football coach that his team overcame a 17-point deficit to win the game. Previously, he was 0-31 in those situations, and 0-3 at Michigan.

Even more so, it was only the sixth time in Michigan’s 139-year history that they came back to win after trailing by 17 points. The comeback by the Wolverines is tied for the third largest comeback in school history and the team’s biggest comeback since 2011 against Notre Dame.

In the first half, Michigan more or less looked like a no-show. The defense gave up quick scores to Northwestern, and despite outstanding efforts by quarterback Shea Patterson, the Wolverines could not get the offense moving. Tight end Sean McKeon even dropped a wide open pass that hit him right in the chest, which would’ve probably been at least a 20-yard gain.

Luckily for Michigan, the defense then came to life and shut the Wildcats down for the rest of the game, allowing Patterson to slowly chip away at the 17-point deficit. Finally, Karan Higdon bolted for a five-yard touchdown with 4:06 remaining to give Michigan a 20-17 lead, and the defense once again held on for the win.

At last, Harbaugh can finally say that he overcame a 17-point deficit to win a game. It was a long, tough day for the Wolverines, but nonetheless, an ugly win still counts as a win.