Panthers rookie Michael Barrett on playing Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers: ‘That’s Michigan 2.0 now’

You’ll have to forgive Panthers linebacker Michael Barrett for looking ahead to a specific game. There’s still a chunk of time to get through, but the rookie has his eye on the second Sunday of the regular season.

Panthers versus Chargers. Book it. The Sunday happens to be the day when Barrett, a former Michigan star, gets to meet up with his old coach, Jim Harbaugh. Since the Wolverines won the national championship back in January, Harbaugh decided to go back to the NFL, taking the head coaching job in LA.

It could be a big maize and blue reunion. Barrett’s fellow linebacker and Michigan ex Junior Colson plays for the Chargers. And Harbaugh hired several Wolverine assistants to be on his staff.

“It’s going to be exciting to look over on the sideline and see them on the opposite side,” Barrett told Panthers.com. “I know they’ll talk trash. But excited to see all my old coaches, old teammates.”

Panthers rookie linebacker Michael Barrett is looking forward to the second week of the season. That’s when Carolina takes on Jim Harbaugh, seen here at Chargers minicamp, and the rest of the Chargers. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

Barrett recently said Panthers got him ‘on sale’ during draft

Barrett mentioned that Harbaugh called him after the Panthers selected him in the seventh round. “He just told me how proud he was of me,” Barrett recalled. “And he wished he could have got me as a free agent. And then just told me good luck with everything.”

As for the Chargers, Barrett referred to them as “Michigan 2.0 now. They pretty much, they got, I want to say like (seven) Michigan guys over there. Plus Junior Colson. I actually I text them and I was like, I’m going to make you all pay for (passing me over), I’m going to make you pay for it.’ “

The Panthers play host to the Chargers at Bank of the America Stadium on Sept. 15. It’s an early afternoon kick on CBS.

Barrett and Carolina recently completed minicamp. And there will be a six-week break before the Panthers report for training camp. His near-draft snub still stings and serves as his motivation. On the final day of the NFL Draft back in April, Barrett was trying to make peace with the idea of being a free agent. Then Panthers general manager Dan Morgan called him. Barrett was the 240th pick of the NFL Draft, with his selection coming 17 slots before the end. Barrett was the 10th former Wolverine off the board. Three more went after him.

“I’m most definitely the steal of the draft,” Barrett told reporters during Panthers rookie camp. “Carolina got a great player, a great teammate, a great person, a heck of an athlete.

“I really like to say they got me on a sale.”

Harbaugh took a number of his Michigan defensive staff to Los Angeles along with other support personnel.

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