Jim Harbaugh and Colin Kaepernick are having a reunion of sorts eight years after they last worked together as head coach and starting quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers.
The Michigan Wolverines‘ Maize and Blue Spring Game will be held on Saturday, April 2. On Wednesday, Michigan announced that Colin Kaepernick will serve as an honorary captain.
Football Family.
Excited to share the field with our honorary captain for Saturday’s Maize and Blue Spring Game, @Kaepernick7 #GoBlue 〽 pic.twitter.com/2H6Yj2Ivwl
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) March 30, 2022
If there’s one thing we’ve learned in the previous six years, it’s that there are very few unbiased viewpoints on Kaepernick. This news was no exception.
On Twitter, several college football fans are certain that the Wolverines should not commemorate the former 49ers quarterback.
Colin Kaepernick compared police officers to slave catchers, praised a murderous communist dictator, wore socks depicting police officers as pigs and refused to stand for the anthem.
In the eyes of Michigan football, he’s a hero. Disgusting. https://t.co/GTtR9qsrTN
— David Hookstead (@dhookstead) March 31, 2022
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Corny. https://t.co/57E52dKBhX
— Eric Bandazewski 🥃 (@EricTWBB) March 31, 2022
What a massive L. The fact that this man has any respect left in the football community is beyond me https://t.co/F5u07ToHXz
— Ben Morrissey 🇺🇸 (@BenMorrissey16) March 31, 2022
In general, though, the reaction to the news was positive. Non-Michigan fans also voiced their support for the decision.
Welcome to Ann Arbor, @Kaepernick7. We appreciate your courage and sacrifices to help our country live up to our promise of equal justice under law. https://t.co/J8PPv9SHvj
— Barb McQuade (@BarbMcQuade) March 31, 2022
I love this. Anyone who’s ever met Colin Kaepernick knows his heart. He’s a good dude and whatever he said to the team was positive. https://t.co/z7e4pLlhQR
— Trevor Woods (@WoodsFootball) March 31, 2022
From 2011 through 2014, Kaepernick and Harbaugh were teammates with the 49ers. After a sparse rookie season, Kaepernick was named the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers midway through the 2012 season. The year ended with a loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Super Bowl XLVII.
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Harbaugh was fired by the 49ers after the 2014 season. Throughout the 2016 season, Kaepernick remained in San Francisco. During the 2016 season, he became increasingly political, as evidenced by his decision to sit, then kneel, during the national anthem. While the 49ers finished the season with a 2-14 record, including a 1-10 mark in his starts, Kaepernick threw 16 touchdowns and only four interceptions. Regardless, he hasn’t appeared since that season.
However, Kaepernick has remained in the limelight, with a recent session with Tyler Lockett attracting a lot of attention.
