Harbaugh refutes reports that he is leaving - Bleacher Report
Good for him. I think it takes some courage to acknowledge that he wants to stay. It may not be his choice if he continues to fail to meet expectations. It is respectable to put yourself out there and state that you want to/ intend to stay in a situation where you may be fired against your will. I respect his character - regardless of how this works out for him.
Go blue - and if Jim stays, may he realize his/ our dreams at Michigan. If he leaves, may our new coach help us realize our dream.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:21 PM ^
Michigan needs to take action, either fire him or support him. Don’t let your football program swing in the wind. This article is embarrassing to the program. The head coach has to advocate for his job...that smells bad.
December 4th, 2020 at 10:17 PM ^
Extension needs action now. Riding it out (lame duck, would be wild to play this card) or parting of ways doesn’t need action until end of year. College coaches rarely get pushed out mid season. Rules with ncaa on transfers and getting out of your NLI are loose anymore. These kids will go anywhere they want if they sign with Harbaugh and he leaves.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:26 PM ^
I’m at the point where I truly do not care if he stays or if he goes, so long as a decision is made ASAP. If he’s staying, Warde needs to announce an extension prior to the early signing date.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:31 PM ^
Dammit
December 4th, 2020 at 9:37 PM ^
Whatever. My team is Michigan.
Go Blue !!!
December 4th, 2020 at 9:59 PM ^
So not “pathetic” anymore.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:41 PM ^
What a nothingburger of an article that is. Lotta speculation now on the board about what Harbaugh and Manuel need to do, but no one knows what they're actually doing.
I'm in the boat that if Harbaugh gets rid of Don Brown, I'll give him more time. Matt Campbell is a hot name, but so was Jim Harbaugh when he was hired.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:56 PM ^
And Rich Rodriguez ...
December 4th, 2020 at 10:48 PM ^
And what would that fix though because it is not just an defensive problem. If anything the constant underachieving on offense/having no offensive identity has been going on far longer.
December 5th, 2020 at 2:24 AM ^
I'm a lot more willing to be patient with the offense than the defense. Brown's defense has been pounded into oblivion several years in a row by both Wisconsin and Ohio State. Now it's being pounded by everyone. Michigan State just told their receivers to run in a straight line and lobbed up moon balls and that offense was unstoppable.
Regarding the offense, it looked straight up good in the second half of last year despite Shea playing an absolutely abominable game against Alabama. Regarding this year, almost the entire offense is new. On an offensive line where we had 4 new starters, three of our current starters are injured. One of the guys who came in as a result of the injuries is also injured. We found a quarterback who can execute the offense and he was immediately injured too. A few years ago Bill Connelly found that returning receiving production was the best predictor of offensive success on a roster. We returned Ronnie Bell and none of our other starters. Considering the circumstances, the offense having some stinkers this year was understandable. The defense getting nuked by everyone they play is a problem.
December 5th, 2020 at 10:36 AM ^
It was just few years ago NDs defense was a sieve. I think they fired the DC before the season. Right now everyone is talking about how dynamic NDs defense can be. Certainly a change needs to be made.
I struggle however on the offensive side of the ball. We see moments of what it could be. But just the inability to understand clock management down two scores with limited snaps available is really grade school shit.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:45 PM ^
"Harbaugh is planning on remaining in his role long enough to welcome them to campus."
Wtf kind of out of context implication is that to end a story with?
December 4th, 2020 at 9:57 PM ^
That’s the money line of the whole article. It means they are going to let his contract run its course and then everyone moves on. Which makes that sentence literally true.
December 4th, 2020 at 10:38 PM ^
The only way you let the contract run its course is if you've already promised the job to Gattis.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:46 PM ^
Either give him an extension or fire him. I'm tired of this song and dance bullshit where we don't know what is going happen. The longer we wait the worse things become with recruiting and the media's ability to make shit up
December 4th, 2020 at 9:50 PM ^
It’s so funny that if the refs spot the ball 3 inches shorter in 2016, none of this conversation is happening. We’d have a playoff, if not a national championship under our belt. But because of 3 inches, Harbaugh is going to get fired.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:54 PM ^
Sports are cruel and fickle. There is a reason these guys are compensated so highly - being the fall guy for a hundred million dollar program can be quite costly (and of course, absurdly lucrative at the same time).
December 4th, 2020 at 10:08 PM ^
Blaming the spot entirely for Harbaugh’s failures is like blaming the spot for us losing the game. Never mind the fact that we threw an INT and a pick six and could hardly gain a yard of offense in the fourth quarter. We lost that game due to our own failures. If we did our jobs, then we’d never have put ourselves in a position where a spot could cost us the game to begin with.
Harbaugh failed because HE failed. HE never developed a QB in six years despite several highly touted recruits. HE never addressed the holes in the roster or the lackluster organization of our recruiting department. HE never did anything about the clearly free falling defense and their inability to make adjustments beyond Don Brown’s lone fastball pitch. HE never got the offense organized and firing on all cylinders like it should be by year six, either insisting or allowing constant dead-end runs up the middle into stacked boxes rather than actually using RPOs.
Did “the spot” suck? Damn straight it did. I screamed obscenities at the tv in the little sports bar I was in for that game and darn near broke my fists as I slammed them into the table in anger. But guess what, leaders and best don’t put themselves into those positions, and even if they do end up there they find ways to adapt and overcome.
Unfortunately for all of us, Harbaugh hasn’t and there’s no signs that anything will change for the better if he stays on. It’s his job to fix these issues and if he does get fired or “mutually parts ways” it will be because he failed to do the job he was hired to do and no other reason.
December 4th, 2020 at 10:10 PM ^
Here's another possibility for that universe:
- After making the playoff, Michigan gets poleaxed by Clemson just as OSU did. Maybe not 31-0, but probably not great.
- Whatever started ailing Harbaugh commences.
- Michigan goes 8-4 the next year. Harbaugh is clearly not himself. Recruiting dips.
All in all, maybe a slightly better outcome than we got.
I don't buy the idea that the OSU game crushed him and ruined the program. (It certainly didn't help.) OSU's national recruiting wasn't going to fall off a cliff because of a single close loss to Michigan. The Death Star was already up-and-running.
It isn't just one thing with Harbaugh. It's several things. A plane crash ...
December 4th, 2020 at 10:49 PM ^
National championship under our belt...? Did you see the Iowa game that year or how Osu faired in the playoffs?
December 4th, 2020 at 11:35 PM ^
It’s recruiting. Overrated classes, underdeveloped players, and processing out upperclassman has contributed to this disaster. There’s no leadership on the team and too many young guys forced to play before they are ready.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:54 PM ^
What Harbaugh thinks or says in irrelevant and he knows it.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:55 PM ^
I don’t disagree with this entirely - but a coward would keep his lips sealed right now.
December 4th, 2020 at 11:02 PM ^
He’s certainly no coward. The opposite in fact. Almost reckless by believing his way will prevail in spite of mountains of evidence to the contrary.
December 4th, 2020 at 9:59 PM ^
Just fucking do something already.
December 4th, 2020 at 10:48 PM ^
Well probably offer him an extension but only until after early signing day so we lose most recruits. The Michigan difference.
December 4th, 2020 at 10:49 PM ^
I bet they announce an ~3 year extension or a mutually agreed upon departure at least a few days before the early signing period. UM is already likely to lose 2-3 big time guys and you have to make some kind of decision...fast.
The thing I don't get is did I read it right that his buyout is "only" $6 million. I get the current financial situation but that seems low as hell...impossibly low to the point that can't be right?? I don't think Warde will fire him but I thought for sure he had a massive buyout.
Either way, I bet we know what's happening this week.
December 5th, 2020 at 12:12 AM ^
Isn’t the buyout related to how much $$$ is left on the contract?
December 5th, 2020 at 8:34 AM ^
You know what you are right I wasn't even thinking about that. That makes sense since there is one year left. I was just looking at other coaching buyouts and many are $15 mill+ but like you said it's because he has one year left.
Well even in that case this is probably the lowest his buyout will ever be if he did need to be fired.
December 5th, 2020 at 8:59 AM ^
His buyout is 6.5 million i think, since he hasn't year left. Which like you said os the lowest it will be
December 4th, 2020 at 10:54 PM ^
Sorry, but this part of the quote does nothing for me:
"Good. Good relationships, tight bonds being made. Personally, on our staff. With the families. Feeling really good about it."
This is how the head coach speaks today? I can only imagine the uhh's, ahh's, and umm's mixed in that didn't get printed. This isn't who was hired 6 years ago...
December 4th, 2020 at 11:05 PM ^
Try putting subjects and verbs together, Coach.
December 4th, 2020 at 11:31 PM ^
The fucking craziest shit from this year is that as bad as the defense has looked, michigan if they had any kind of a gameplan on offense we could of ran over fucking MSU and Penn State and be 4-2, and if the maryland game wasnt cancelled could of been 5-2 most likely and everyone is freaking out because of how young our team is and we are still winning.
But here we are, who knows what would of happened had we started Cade, from Day 1
December 4th, 2020 at 11:46 PM ^
MSU and PSU were clearly the better teams. We’re also a missed FG in OT from being 1-5.
We’ve seen this at other programs, the writing is written boldly on the wall, the fans are usually the last ones to acknowledge it. If he comes back it will get really really ugly for Michigan Football.
Everyone knows Harbaugh needs to move on. Our rivals are praying we keep him, and they’re not just trolling saying that. They honestly believe keeping him will do long term damage.
If we are going to extend his contract, something would have to be announced in the next few days. Once the noise is like this, recruiting is dead.
December 5th, 2020 at 12:41 AM ^
The thing is that it isn’t going to get better for Michigan. Michigan is a 3-4 loss program. Generally has been for thirty years.
The university isn’t going to treat football like OSU does. Fans have to accept that.
It’s not going to get better. Michigan will still be a second tier program. It will still struggle to beat OSU. It will still disappoint in bowl games. This has been Michigan football for two decades now.
There is zero reason to expect change.
December 5th, 2020 at 1:07 AM ^
I guess this is the prevailing attitude that Urban Meyer was referring to when he talked about "culture" at Michigan.
Horse-SHIT. This is the demon that needs to be exorcised from the athletic department with respect to football. We just need a fucking sound plan and build the program around it with utmost attention to detail from top to bottom. It can and should be clean and by the rules. We have one of the largest followings and biggest bags of money in the country. There is no reason that we can't compete with OSU. None at all!
December 5th, 2020 at 8:07 AM ^
You sir are the problem with UM football.
December 5th, 2020 at 2:30 AM ^
Michigan still had most of their starters on defense for the MSU game. The "run fast in a straight line" offense was borderline unstoppable. A Michigan offense with two returning starters scoring 24 points in a rivalry game the second week of the year is understandable, even if the other team sucks. A defense with 6 returning starters doing THAT, is not understandable.
December 5th, 2020 at 10:38 AM ^
This Salvatore guy.... if Michigan is going to be Iowa without the success then go out and hire a 3 million dollar a year coach. I’d be fine with that. What I’m not fine with is paying a ridiculous salary and also being a dogshit program.
December 4th, 2020 at 11:40 PM ^
Maryland would probably be a competitive game that we would probably lose some how. OSU will trounce us if we end up playing them, even if half their team has COVID. My guess is that the game will be cancelled. It will be interesting see if Harbaugh is interested in any of the NFL jobs. If not we may be stuck with him for the next several seasons. I suppose he will get us back to the 8 to 10 win seasons.
December 4th, 2020 at 11:54 PM ^
Until something gets leaked from a coach's agent, assume this job is not going to be open. Seems like agents leak any type of information to get their guy a significant pay raise.
December 5th, 2020 at 12:18 AM ^
Don’t believe Harbaugh has an agent so there won’t be this kind of tell here.
December 5th, 2020 at 7:48 AM ^
Agent of other coaches is what he’s implying
December 5th, 2020 at 6:16 AM ^
If Warde Manuel plans on retaining Harbaugh with an extended contract, he’s going about it in the dumbest way possible.
December 5th, 2020 at 7:17 AM ^
December 5th, 2020 at 8:20 AM ^
It's inexplicable that signing day is less than two weeks away but because the athletic department refuses to communicate anything, Harbaugh has been forced to come to his own defense. That's hardly going to reassure those who've already committed and those who are considering committing.
If Manuel waits until after signing day has passed to announce an extension he's an idiot.
December 5th, 2020 at 7:16 AM ^
He's gonna get a pass for this season. He'll do the coach-on-the-warm-seat shuffle and get rid of one or more coordinators. If things don't go well next year, yeah, he'll be gone.
December 5th, 2020 at 8:47 AM ^
Sadly I think you are right. But how often does that dance work? Can’t think of a single instance where a coach was on the hot seat, changed up coordinators and suddenly resurrected this situation.
December 5th, 2020 at 9:46 AM ^
It'll work for Harbaugh. New coordinators will stabilize the defense, and the offense will be better because the OL will be better, along with the returning QB's. So the season will be better next year. That will be enough for Manuel to keep from having to make a hard decision about his friend.
Can't have nice things...
December 5th, 2020 at 8:43 AM ^
Make a decision Warde. One way or the other. We need to keep as many as these recruits as we can.