Harbaugh parents "try not to compare" Super Bowl sons
(CBS News) NFL coaches John and Jim Harbaugh will square off against each other in Sunday's Super Bowl, becoming the first sibling coaches to face each other in the big game. Their parents, Jack and Jackie Harbaugh, will be on hand -- although, out of sight -- on Sunday to share in their sons' anxiety, wins, and losses.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Jack said like most parents, they will feel the sting of defeat right along with the son who loses the game.
"Every single parent can identify with that. That thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. On Sunday night, we're going to experience both of those great emotions. Our thoughts will be with the one that comes up a little short," Harbaugh said.
Friday on "CBS This Morning," the Harbaughs said that for now, they are focused on enjoying the moment.
"The message that John and Jim gave us both on different occasions," Jackie explained, "was 'Please Mom and Dad, enjoy this,' and we're really trying."
For her part, Jackie said that once the game starts, "they will be so well prepared ... I will relax and enjoy the game." Still, she joked that come Sunday, the reality may differ from expectations. "My daughter at home is saying, 'Sure, right,'" Jackie said of the unrealistic prospect that she will be relaxed come game time.
The Harbaughs are certain about one thing, that they will stay out of the spotlight and off camera throughout the Super Bowl broadcast.
"It's about the players. There's 106 players," Jack said. "Their entire lives, they've been preparing for this moment ... and the less we see of Jack and Jackie Harbaugh, the more we're going to see of those players and coaches."
Jackie said she's not sure "how they will handle it," but said she does not see her two sons that differently. "They're more alike ... they are each other's best friends," she said.
Jack added that he got some choice advice from NFL Hall of Famer John Elway "when Jim was junior at Palo Alto high." Elway told Harbaugh, "Anytime you have two youngsters like this and you compare, you're demeaning one or the other. So we try not to compare. We try to find similarities in the two," Jack Harbaugh explained.
A healthy dose of enthusiasm seemed to contribute to the success of Jim and John. Jack said raising their three kids, they started each day in the Harbaugh household with a reminder to "Attack this day with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind!"
Jackie added that raising three successful children required taking "each day as it comes," and setting the expectation that her children "always do their very, very best no matter what they were doing."