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| Jim (left) & John (right) Harbaugh. Rob Carr/Getty Images |
Jim Harbaugh and
John Harbaugh have bumped heads since their youth. Growing up as brothers,
competition became a way of life. Fast forward to now. Never before have two
brothers faced each other as coaches in any of the major sports. In the biggest
American sports media event of the year, Super Bowl XLVII, the Harbaugh brothers
will be rehashing a decades-old rivalry. Each man has followed in their
father’s coaching footsteps. Jim Harbaugh (San Francisco 49ers) and John
Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens) have led their team to the Super Bowl.While both
teams share similar playing styles, the paths their head coaches have taken
them are entirely different. While Baltimore has relied on a savvy veteran
presence led by the fiery linebacker Ray Lewis (who will be playing his last
game), they also couple that with an old school approach to offense. Running
back Ray Rice combines his tough running with lots of deep passing by Joe
Flacco. Experience is also on the Ravens’ side. San Francisco retooled its
rosters in the last couple of years. Jim Harbaugh, now dubbed the quarterback
whisperer for his success with signal callers in recent years, even benched
starting quarterback Alex Smith, in favor of the explosively talented Colin
Kaepernick. The 49ers are hoping to take advantage of their team speed and
athleticism.
The
only glowing similarity the two teams have could be traced back to their roots
as children. Discipline and intensity are two words that have to come to mind
when watching these defenses. The Ravens and 49ers both display a physical
brand of football that no doubt comes from their head coach. The “Har-Bowl”
will surely not disappoint. As to which brother’s team hoists the Lombardi
Trophy, guessing that could be dangerous.
