Former All-World Prospect Shea Patterson Still Being Unsigned Makes Jim Harbaugh and Michigan Look Awful

Shea Patterson entered the college ranks as one of the best prospects in all of high school football, and was considered the top pro style quarterback in the 2016 class. He ended up spending two years at Ole Miss before transferring to Michigan in 2018, where he figured to be resurrected under Jim Harbaugh.

Landing Patterson was initially a huge coup for Harbaugh and the Wolverines, as he was on pace for a historic season in 2017 at Ole Miss before going down with an injury.

Fast forward to today, and Patterson remains undrafted and unsigned a whole day after the completion of the 2020 NFL Draft.

This is terrible for Patterson and makes Harbaugh look like a career-killer at Michigan; according to 247Sports, Patterson was the No. 64-rated prospect in the history of its ranking system dating back to 2000.

Even UM wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones, who was a top recruit himself, didn't get drafted until the sixth round by the Cleveland Browns. He was likewise considered a can't-miss guy, with 247 ranking him as the single best pass-catcher in the 2017 class.

Patterson regressed in 2019 and finished with a 56.2% completion percentage and 3,061 yards in 13 games. All of this came from a player who looked like a future star back in 2017. In fact, in early 2018, Walter Football declared him a candidate to go No. 1 overall in the following year's draft.

Yikes.

The dramatic drop in Patterson's stock has to reflect poorly on Harbaugh's ability to land top recruits. Why would a top offensive player choose Michigan over Ohio State if the Wolverines' big-name guys just aren't even getting drafted? This fact could be what ultimately causes Harbaugh to lose his job. Not making the College Football Playoff is one thing, but mismanaging the development of singularly talented players is another one entirely.