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| Jim Harbaugh |
I already posted a somewhat in-depth summary of Harbaugh's career and accomplishments (LINK), so I won't rehash most of that info. Harbaugh played for Bo Schembechler at Michigan in the 1980's, went on to a successful but unspectacular NFL career, turned around programs at San Diego and Stanford as a head coach, and then had a good four-year run with the 49ers. Despite making it to three straight NFC championship games - and one Super Bowl - the wheels came off during the 2014 season, when Harbaugh's clashes with the front office became public and the team fell to 8-8, missing the playoffs. It had been understood for half the season that Harbaugh would not return, regardless of how the season turned out.
In my ranking of viable coach options, Harbaugh was #1 on my list for numerous reasons. First and foremost, I guess, is that Harbaugh embodies what Michigan's administration, fans, and alumni want. He is demanding and intense, and for a program that deifies Bo Schembechler, that intensity pairs nicely. Harbaugh's competitiveness showed during his career. He was never the fastest guy or the most accurate or the one with the strongest arm, but he was a Heisman contender as a senior and scrapped as a pro football player and coach to try to get to the highest levels.
Another somewhat nice thing about Harbaugh is that his desired personnel and systems are already mostly in place. He had to rebuild at San Diego and Stanford, while the 49ers job had some decent talent already in place. Either way, he wants to run the ball, pass efficiently, and play good defense. Michigan has recruited and developed the roster to do just those things. There are a couple highly touted running backs on the roster, some big-time recruits on the offensive line, some solid tight ends, and good defensive players at every level returning in 2015. The question marks are at quarterback and wide receiver, but a commitment to running the ball should take some of the pressure off of whoever wins the QB job. Harbaugh will regularly send out multiple tight ends, and with the current quarterback situation, he'll probably use a fullback quite a bit instead of the read option that he used with San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
There are a few drawbacks with Harbaugh, as there are with any coach. Most immediately, he is a different breed of coach than Brady Hoke; Harbaugh is still a good leader, but he may turn off some players with his intensity. Hoke is a fatherly type and a great guy, by all accounts; Harbaugh is an in-your-face task master. Secondly, Harbaugh probably can't be described as controversial, but he will be outspoken at times. Some of his antics, comments, and behaviors will be dissected by local and national media, such as his post-game handshake with the Lions' Jim Schwartz a few years ago or his negative comments about Michigan's academics when he was at Stanford. Lloyd Carr kept everything behind closed doors and was mostly tight-lipped with the media, and Brady Hoke was the same. In between, Rich Rodriguez was an outsider who ruffled some feathers by having a West Virginia accent and screwing up some Michigan traditions. Harbaugh will be given some leeway because of his local roots, but the spotlight will be bright.
Lastly, I do not believe Harbaugh is a long-term answer at Michigan. Unfortunately, virtually everyone agrees that he wants a Super Bowl ring. He might fall in love with being Michigan's coach, but I think there's a good chance that in, I don't know, four years, he might want to head back to the NFL. However, if he can get Michigan back on the right track and develop a coaching tree like he did at Stanford, then Michigan might be okay post-Harbaugh. The Wolverines might be looking for a new coach in 2018 or 2019, but he set Stanford up for success (they won double-digit games for the first three years after he left) and could do the same in Ann Arbor.
Regardless, I'm happy Harbaugh is back at Michigan. This was the ideal choice at this juncture, and interim athletic director Jim Hackett somehow made it happen. Harbaugh will be welcomed back with open arms, Michigan is getting some positive publicity, and we should see some improvement on the field next year. Hoke did a good job of recruiting a roster full of talent. Now we can watch as Harbaugh molds that talent into a quality football program once again.
Like everyone else, i hope Harbaugh falls in love with coaching Michigan and never leaves, but Pete Carroll went back to the league at 59. Harbaugh impresses me as a young 51. He could stick around here for a good long time and then pick his spot somewhere around 60.
ReplyDeleteThere is little doubt in my mind that this will be the negative recruiting meme starting probably next year,
TTB: Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't be surprised if Harbaugh left for the NFL after N seasons. Change of pace, new challenge, etc. ...
ReplyDeleteStill ...
How much of this "Jim would prefer the NFL" has come from the NFL's publicity machine? To even a jaded person like me, the amount of manure and narrative-crafting from that source has been mind-blowing. Harbaugh could publicly regret his time spent there and that weasel John Clayton would still say, with a straight face, "Jim would prefer the NFL." It's #^@$ing amazing.
I just get the vibe that Harbaugh wants to coach at the highest level. He hurried to Stanford in 2011, he's extremely competitive, and he said the other day "Is the NFL going somewhere?" when asked about leaving. I think he's accomplishing one dream by coaching Michigan, but I don't think that's the only thing on his bucket list.
DeleteAs an aside, Stoops got good and thumped yesterday. I watched that game and his QB didn't seem to care the tiniest bit that he sucked. And he did suck ..... big time.
ReplyDeleteThey won the fourth quarter 6-0 against Clemson's third string kids. It was an epic embarrassment. If ever there was a guy who looked like he's lost his team, it was Stoops yesterday.
Have I ever mentioned Clemson University's fine academic tradition and lovely but extraordinarily chaste women?
These Clemson girls sound intriguing. Tell me more!
Delete"but he may turn off some players with his intensity"
ReplyDeleteMaybe ... but my guess is that won't be much of a problem. I think players want first to play for a winner. Those players that want a softer atmosphere are probably not the players that should be at Michigan.
Yeah. I don't even want those players who can't handle their coach being in their face when they make a mistake. Hoke was just too soft, and things got out of hand because of it. Ultimately, it will make everything better.
DeleteI expect there will be some attrition during spring practice and maybe even sooner, from guys who can't handle the ramped-up intensity. Which is good. Let's get the chaff out of here as soon as possible, even if it means losing some notable players.
DeleteThe NFL is its own worst (and some day, mortal) enemy. That day draws ever closer. Jim's choice reminds them of that, and they do not like it.
ReplyDeleteHarbaugh bolting for the league is something that even Harbaugh doesn't know. Let me say this though, we'll have him for a good 5~6 years. I think he'd want to win a national championship before leaving his alma mater, so if he wants a super bowl ring after winning a national championship here in Michigan, fine.
DeleteAnother narrative I keep hearing in the media is its going to take him awhile to rebuild. That Michigan doesn't have the talent to win.
ReplyDeleteRecruiting classes say other wise. Obviously the biggest concern heading into next year is QB. I would say a 9-3 year is a fairly optimistic estimate on my part, but still very attainable. Where would your "way to early" projection put us?
This is driving me crazy as well. There are highly recruited players filling the roster.
DeleteIf Harbaugh can just lock down a QB and get his WRs to not drop balls all over the place, our team can be elite. Everything else is in place. I expect Harbaugh to rack up 10 wins next season.
DeleteIf he can get good production at QB, Harbaugh has 9-3 talent for 2015. There are 4 and 5 star recruits in every position group, it's just going to be a matter of upping their intensity and knocking several years of mediocre coaching out of their heads.
DeleteI’m very excited we have Jim H! as our head coach. But the hard work is just beginning. Learning from the last two hires/fires I want to see results not only in recruiting ranks but in win column because that is what really matters. I believe developing players and surrounding himself with great Assistant coaches is what separates good coaches from the Greats, Which he has shown in his coaching tenure.
ReplyDeleteI think you have to worry about every coach wanting to take on a new challenge either at an Elite college football school or the NFL. Does anyone believe Saban will go back to the NFL? Probably not, but you never know especially if he wins another title this year.
"There are a few drawbacks with Harbaugh, as there are with any coach. Most immediately, he is a different breed of coach than Brady Hoke"
ReplyDeleteGood lord, this is in no way a "drawback" about Jim Harbaugh; it is certainly not the most "immediate" one.
Who is "virtually everyone" who agrees that Harbaugh wants a Super Bowl ring? I agree with the posters above that the concerns about a return to the NFL are overblown, and appear to be perpetuated by the NFL. By all accounts, he had agreed in principle to take the Michigan job prior to the NFL season ending, and there is no doubt that he hopped on a plane to Ann Arbor the day after the season ended. If he was that set on the NFL, he could have waited literally one full day to see what positions opened up. Notwithstanding the 49er smear campaign, he's still a highly-respected coach who was going to garner lots of interest. He chose not to. Those aren't the actions of a guy who is dying to be in the NFL, regardless of what John Clayton says.
Ummm...I mean, how is it not the most immediate drawback? If he turns off some players and they transfer before/during/after spring ball, that's a negative. You might say that it's cleaning house or trimming the fat or whatever, but it's still not generally a good thing if people start transferring. If that's not an immediate drawback, then what is?
DeleteIt's a negative if guys transfer, but for every guy he might turn off with his intensity, there might be a guy who is inspired to take his game to the next level because of it. There's no way to tell right now what the net effect will be, and it seems that there is no support to say it's a drawback.
DeleteAs for his coaching longevity, I think 6-8 years is the expectation for me. I think if he had an eye on a quicker return to the NFL he would have insisted on a 5 year deal, and he would have gotten it. That he took a 7 year, deffered comp type deal says to me he does not intend to leave after 4.
Please Jimmy, please get at least one receiver who runs fast and can catch the ball before signing day.
ReplyDeleteIn honor of his attire, the Maize Rage, Michigan basketball's student section, is requesting all members show up for this afternoon's game against Illinois dressed in full khaki garb. The game is set for 3 p.m. at Crisler Center, and will feature a sellout. Once word got around that Harbaugh would be introduced to the crowd during the game, following his news conference to introduce him as football coach, ticket prices skyrocketed to between $100-plus and $3,000-plus
ReplyDeleteWith the new information of the 5 mil/year I think Harbaugh wants to come here and be here for a long time.
ReplyDeleteIn his presser Harbaugh said that he wants Michigan to be his permanent home and he hopes he can make that happen. Does this change your assessment that he is not a long term answer?
ReplyDeleteNot really. Lots of coaches say they plan to be around for a long time and/or forever. Obviously, most of them do not. I will say that he had a very good press conference and was very convincing, but I still have doubts that he wants to spend the next 15-20 years at Michigan.
DeleteThe thing that drove me crazy about Hoke was the lack of intensity. If they had played every game with the intensity they did against OSU they would have been 8 & 4, at worst. Something tells me intensity won't be an issue with Harbaugh coaching.
ReplyDeleteI'm in the "if he wanted to be in the NFL he would be there" camp. There were, are, and will be NFL options for Harbaugh. He chose to come back, for less money. You don't need to fall in love with something you already love. Harbaugh is already there.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Harbaugh is leaving Ann Arbor for the next 15 years. The only way that happens is if he fails to win at Michigan (in which case the program is probably dead) or Harbaugh wins multiple national championships and feels the need for a NEW challenge. And if so, no one will fault him for leaving.
I think the fact that he came back to college is fact enough that he would love to stay at Michigan. The public perception of Harbaugh is greatly misconstrued. But the Media is excellent at doing that. He wants stability and Michigan offers that. He is a huge family man and the NFL offers no stability.
ReplyDelete