Ravens coach John Harbaugh likens handshake-gate to Grant and Lee at Appomattox

Most football fans remember the now infamous handshake between 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh and Lions coach Jim Schwartz after their two teams played each other a season ago.

It's also clear which side Ravens coach John Harbaugh took in the minor dispute -- his brother's, of course. So with the 49ers and the Lions meeting again Sunday, John Harbaugh was asked if he had any thoughts about the hard handshake his brother gave Schwartz a season ago.

“I don't think there's been so much attention paid to a handshake since Grant and Lee shook hands at Appomattox,” Harbaugh quipped.

The joke, referencing the two generals at the end of the Civil War, drew a lot of laughs at Harbaugh's Tuesday press conference. With Detroit leading 19-15 over San Francisco in the fourth quarter of last October's game, the 49ers scored 10 points in the final 1:51. Jim Harbaugh was thrilled to the point that he gave Schwartz a powerful handshake and slap on the back. This angered Schwartz, so he chased him down the field with words being exchanged before they were separated. The two coaches have since reconciled and have both said they'd like for last year's ordeal to be kept at a minimum in this week's game coverage.

Good luck with that.

Going back to John Harbaugh's analogy: The History Channel ranks the handshake between Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee at the top of the eight most famous handshakes in history. With Grant and the Union Army winning the Civil War, John Harbaugh stated who Jim would be in a matter-of-fact manner.

“Obviously, he was Grant,” he said.

Follow Ravens reporter Jason Butt on Twitter: @CBSRavens and @JasonButtCBS.