John Harbaugh has said that crossing the field to shake his brother's hand after winning Super Bowl XLVII was one of the hardest things he's ever had to do.
The post-game meeting between John and Jim Harbaugh after the Ravens' victory was a quick embrace, as the two coaches shook hands without exchanging hugs.
Over the weekend, John Harbaugh explained why there was no hug between them.
"I've never told this story publicly, but I'm going to tell it now," Harbaugh said during a speech at Miami University honoring his induction into the school’s Cradle of Coaches.
With Jim sitting a few seats away from him, John joked about the post-game handshake.
"I walk up across the field to shake his hand, and he's a big, strapping guy. I look at him and I'm going to give him a little man hug, a little bro hug to say congratulations," Harbaugh said.
John then demonstrated how he went to hug Jim, but his brother instead met him with an outstretched forearm to the chest, blocking any kind of hug.
"It was like then he says, 'There will be no hug!'"
The story incited huge laughter from the crowd of 260 people at the reception. Harbaugh's entire family attended the event, and it was the first time all of them were together since the Ravens' Super Bowl victory in New Orleans.
