Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh is a bit of a Twitter master with his ability to subtweet on the fly. He unloaded 140 characters or fewer on Wednesday in what can only be described as a silent retaliation against the SEC, which is attempting to go to the NCAA to shut down his spring break plans.

Last week, Harbaugh mentioned his plan to take the Wolverines down to Florida for spring break to conduct spring football practices. This is essentially the next step in Harbaugh’s master plan to establish relationships and connections in the south in the footsteps of his national satellite camp tour we saw last summer. Just as they opposed the idea of Harbaugh going barnstorming in the south during summer camp season, the SEC once again did not take kindly to the thought of Harbaugh bringing the entire Michigan football program down south over spring break. Behind the veil of protecting the student-athlete’s best interests, the SEC requested the NCAA make a ruling to prevent spring football practices from being conducted over spring breaks. The news could only be described as the SEC crying foul with the possible fear others could follow Michigan’s lead in packing up and heading south for spring break football practices.

Harbaugh responded on Twitter the only way you would expect Harbaugh to respond in this situation.

Harbaugh has a history of using his Twitter account to take veiled shots at others. Last year, Harbaugh shared a quote from Sir Walter Scott alluding to deception and the mess that can come from it as Ohio State was battling a bit of a troubling headline in which a recruit’s family suggested Buckeyes coaches lied about their jobs in Columbus.

There is no question Harbaugh has quickly become one of the more polarizing figures in college football, which is supported by Paul Finebaum calling Harbaugh the Donald Trump of college football (which would make Finebaum the Rush Limbaugh of college football I suppose). whether you like Harbaugh and Michigan or not, you have to give props to the head coach in Ann Arbor for working within the NCAA rules to find new and innovative ways to spark interest and excitement for the Michigan football program. It seems to be working based on Michigan’s first full recruiting cycle under Harbaugh. Until the NCAA determines spring football practices over spring breaks are out of line, Harbaugh should not hesitate to come up with new ideas that will benefit his program moving forward.

The SEC is not so worried specifically about Harbaugh, but the possibility it leads to Urban Meyer and Ohio State, James Franklin and Penn State, Pat Narduzzi and Pittsburgh, Mark Dantonio and Michigan State, Mike Riley and Nebraska and so on doing something similar. Before we know it, half the Big Ten will be setting up spring break camps in Florida and South Carolina or Louisiana. Then the MAC and American Athletic Conference could soon send a few programs down as well. The SEC has every right to look out for the best interests of its member institutions. This is why conferences exist, but just because the SEC has a rule prohibiting spring break practices does not necessarily mean every other conference should adopt the same rule. If the Big Ten waves a green flag and the NCAA is cool with it, then the SEC will just have another reason to let Harbaugh rent space in their footprint.

About Kevin McGuire

Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.