Presser Bullets: Jim Harbaugh Addresses Alleged NCAA Violations, Luke Fickell Expects to Play For Championships At Wisconsin

Ryan Day and six other head coaches joined new conference commissioner Tony Petitti in addressing media members on the podium at Lucas Oil Stadium on Wednesday, but Michigan's Jim Harbaugh and first-year Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell headlined Thursday's group.

Beyond Harbaugh and Fickell, Indiana's Tom Allen, Maryland's Mike Locksley, Minnesota's P.J. Fleck, Purdue's Ryan Walters and Nebraska's Matt Rhule all issued opening statements before taking questions from the media during 15-minute windows for each coach.

We took notes on everything all seven head coaches said below:

Jim Harbaugh

• "The offseason has been one of work for our entire football program. Our players have had a tremendous offseason."
• On J.J. McCarthy's development as a quarterback: "I have searched my memory for someone who's been a first-time starter and been better. ... He's a once-in-a-generational type quarterback at Michigan. ... He's at the top of his game right." Harbaugh says what makes McCarthy most special is that he's willing to do "anything for his team," and compares him to Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen.
• "We'll play that whenever it's scheduled to be played. We know we're gonna play it every season, at least once. I don't have a particular opinion on when it should be played." Harbaugh says the final week of the regular season is "when we'll expect" to play the Buckeyes.
• Harbaugh is "not allowed to talk about any aspect" of his expected suspension due to alleged NCAA violations. Harbaugh says "now is not that time" to talk about it, although he said he has "nothing to be ashamed of."
• Harbaugh says NFL teams are "definitely" not going to get a player with a better work ethic or is more "infectious to his teammates" than Blake Corum.

Luke Fickell

• Fickell says he's "thankful and grateful to be back in the Big Ten."
• "Everything" he's been involved with over the past eight months has "exceeded my expectations." Fickell says seeing the culture of young men at Wisconsin "by far exceeds anything else that I've learned."
• On expectations for his first year: "We have one objective, and that's to play for a championship." Fickell says success is "when you play your best ball at the end of the year," and if Wisconsin does that, "we will have a chance to play for a championship."
• On why Wisconsin: "It has a lot to do with being back in the Big Ten." Fickell says he felt like the Wisconsin job would be "really, really in my wheelhouse." Fickell says Wisconsin felt like a "natural fit" for him.
• On changing "the philosophy" of the Wisconsin offense: "It's gonna look different. ... But the core values won't change." Fickell says he isn't changing the offense just for the sake of changing it. "They never asked about that."
• Fickell says he "borrowed, stole, became a part of" a slew of principles and philosophies from John. Cooper, Urban Meyer and Jim Tressel over the years. Fickell says "The failures I had in those eight or nine months" as head coach at Ohio State helped shape his career as a leader and coach.

Tom Allen

• Allen is "very familiar" with the process of starting the season against a Big Ten opponent. Allen says it "forces you to grow up really fast" when you open the year against a team like Ohio State. Allen says there's an "urgency" on his staff because of the matchup with the Buckeyes.
• Allen says the two stats that matter in football are turnover ratio and explosive play ratio. Allen says the Hoosiers "aren't creating enough of those" on offense, and are looking to do so in 2023.
• "It's challenging" to have to "immediately" play an opponent like Ohio State right off the bat without much of a build-up process.
• On the quarterback competition, Allen says the Hoosiers would like to have a dual-threat passer under center moving forward. "That ability to extend plays, I think you see at the NFL how valuable that can be."
• On the future of the Big Ten in 2024 and beyond: "Last time we played the Trojans, O.J. Simpson was the tailback."

Mike Locksley

• On opening the season against his alma mater, Towson: "The game of football has provided me an opportunity to change the lineage of my family. ... The four, five years I spent at Towson molded me into the man I am today." Locksley says "This one is really special to me."
• On competing with the best teams in the Big Ten in the trenches: "We really feel like we have done that. ... We will continue to recruit those positions in that manner."
• On dealing with pressure to continue moving the program forward: "We don't feel the external pressure. ... It starts from within." Locksley says the previous year never factors into the following year for a football team. "Every year you start from ground zero."
• Locksley "came in with a pretty good understanding" of the Big Ten, but now understands that "good teams don't beat themselves." Locksley says the next step for the Terrapins is competing for a Big Ten title.

P.J. Fleck

• Fleck says the word "poise" has been central for Minnesota in trying to accomplish its goals for 2023, and that the team actually listens to the band Poison in the weight room every day in order to drive that point home.
• Fleck has "a ton of respect" for Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule, and says he was a "phenomenal culture." Fleck says "Starting Big Ten play right away really gets the season off to an exciting start right away."
• On the recent report citing the use of a "Fleck Bank" in the program, Fleck says "There was no currency ever exchanged, no coins ever existed." Fleck says the term was an analogy for getting the most out of life, investing in yourself, etc. Fleck says "These allegations are baseless." Fleck says "We're one of the most transparent programs in the country."

Ryan Walters

• "Definitely a humbling experience. I've known for a long time I wanted to be a head coach at some point."
• Walters is "blessed to be a part of a conference that is the best in ht country and one I'm familiar with."
• Walters says he needed to figure out "what it means to be a Purdue Boilermaker" upon being hired, and says the team has responded well to the "authenticity" he's brought to the table.
• Walters plans to "eliminate explosive plays and keep points off the board" on defense and hopes that will be a formula to win games at Purdue.
• "The blueprint for success in any program, you gotta take care of your home state." Walters says recruiting in-state prospects is "priority No. 1."

Matt Rhule

• Rhule says his time in the Big Ten thus far has been "first class. ... It's been an amazing six months and I'm excited to get to the season."
• On playing Colorado in Week 2: "I'm a college football junkie. ... I think it's great when you have regional rivalries where fans can drive to them." Rhule says he sat on YouTube watching some of the old Nebraska-Colorado games.
• Rhule says his coaching style has evolved over the years because he's been to the NFL and back and he's also sought feedback and advice from former Nebraska head coaches of the past.