A number of the Big Ten's coaches were at the Sound Mind Sound Body camp in Michigan over the weekend, including Jim Harbaugh, Urban Meyer, and Mark Dantonio. The talk of the Big Ten this offseason has been Harbaugh coming to Michigan as he tries to bring the Wolverines back to prominence both in the conference and nationally.
Everyone, including Harbaugh's now rival coaches, has been asked about having him among the Big Ten coaching ranks, and at Friday's press conference at the camp, many of the Big Ten's biggest coaching names were asked about Harbaugh. Some chose to address the question directly, while others took it as an opportunity to talk about the strength and competitiveness of the conference as a whole, quotes courtesy of SB Nation's MaizenBrew.
Ohio State's Urban Meyer: "I think the Big Ten Conference, for some reason, was kicked around for a while and there's never been more momentum in our conference right now, with the success of some programs. Whatever was the perception three or four years ago is not the perception anymore. I think we all have a job to ride that momentum and hiring quality, quality coaches is a big part of that momentum."
Michigan State's Mark Dantonio: "The Big Ten Conference has the best coaches in America. If there's an opportunity that arises to hire someone else, we're going to hire somebody who's a very, very good football coach."
Penn State's James Franklin: "We get asked questions all the time about all the coaches. I think we appreciate it and we thrive with the opportunity to compete against the very best athletes, very best coaches, very best college campuses and academic resumes, all those things I think are exciting."
Minnesota's Jerry Kill: "With Coach Harbaugh — I know his daddy, I competed against his daddy, so I've known their family for a long time — competition makes you better. This is a great conference, it makes you compete, and we're all going to do this."
