Sean Payton to Broncos

Not good, because it takes the pressure of UM to get an extension done with Jim Harbaugh. People seem to think the extension is for Harbaugh's benefit. It's not. He made over $7 mm in 2021 (and donated $1+ mm to AD employees) and over $10 mm this past year. The extension is for recruiting. No extension and '24 recruiting gets much more difficult. Whether Harbaugh leaves after '23 or not, we need a good '24 recruiting class. If Michigan does not get an extension done, the class suffers and whoever is the HC in '24 suffers. And UM suffers. Harbaugh will be fine under his existing contract and will get more NFL interest after the '23 season. He will have very good options. UM ... idk about that.

Here comes all the NFL didn’t want him, Sparty and TSDS (STDS) trolls.

Looks like we've crossed the finish line with Jim staying at Michigan. Unless the finish line gets moved back again, this should do it until next year.

I hope Jim gets to be the highest paid HC on the Big-10 and maybe Top 5 in the nation. at least. Remember, Michigan had a $17M surplus in their budget this past fiscal year so the $$$ is there to pay Jim what he deserves.

They really wanted Jim Harbaugh.

But they got second best.

WBO?

EDIT [repeat]

Odd fact: Jim Harbaugh and Sean Payton were born six days apart in December 1963.

I mean they got their consolation prize.  Not bad. 

Good. Now leave us alone. We have National Championship to win

Ha.  This might end it for this annual but expect it to start again in 330 somethin days.

It must be true. Schefter's a Michigan man. Michigan undergrad, Northwestern  professional school. Like someone else I know.

Is Oakland still in play?

So, is Payton going to be on Harbaugh’s staff in Denver?   I thought JH to the NFL was a done deal…

That's why they call him Payton. You gotta pay a ton to get him.

Even though this news is out there, Harbaugh will still have a 3rd interview, hell maybe a 4th

But what's his buyout 

For the last couple of weeks, there have been countless posts about our head football coach and our AD. These seem to be the consensus views on this Board:

1. It is essential that M offer an extension to JH because of 2024 recruiting. 

2. All this NFL talk re: Harbaugh was nonsense. 

3.  An extension with more $$ & a larger buyout will insure JH will stay at Michigan after this year. 

4. Everything is the AD’s fault. 

IMO, there are serious flaws with the logic and reasoning on all four points. 
 
1. Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t the extension JH signed last year go past the 2024 season? Furthermore, the damage to 2023 & maybe, 2024 recruiting is not a result of a contract issue. It is the direct result of JH’s dalliances with the NFL the last two years  

2. All of the reporting re: JH having interest in the NFL the last two years was accurate. He did fly to Minnesota, interview, and said that he would have accepted the HC position if offered. This year, he spoke with Carolina, then, Denver, and, then, inexplicably, after stating that he was staying, welcomed the Denver owner to AA for a face to face meeting and interview. 

3.  A contract extension with a larger buyout will have zero impact on JH’s decision to leave for the NFL. An NFL team that really wants him will have no problem forking over the $$ to get him. And don’t come back with some suggestion of a ridiculously high buyout amount. JH won’t sign that. No top college head coach would. 

4. The situation over the last two years was entirely JH’s fault. JH has not only entertained NFL offers, he has been dishonest throughout the process. He had that Albom interview after the Vikings turned him down saying he was here to stay and forever done with the NFL. That turned out to be patently false.

He then sent out that tweet after talking with Ono and a week later, met with the Denver owner. Once again, he was dishonest. If his tweet was the truth, all he had to do was tell the Denver owner no thanks, don’t come to AA, I’m staying at Michigan, I’m not going to talk with you. BUT HE DIDN’T DO THAT! His actions completely undermined the credibility of his earlier tweet.

As for our AD, this idea that he mishandled, mistreated and “insulted” JH is totally hogwash.

Fact #1-In any of the big time programs we compete with, JH would have been fired either before 2020 or shortly thereafter. You think Ohio State would have retained a head coach who was 0-5 vs us, 3-3 vs MSU, 1-5 in bowls and zero B1G championships? All of the other top Power 5 schools would have fired a head coach with that record.

Our AD should be commended for sticking with him, but formulating a reasonable revised contract that was heavily performance based. He accomplished something no major program AD has done recently. Got the head coach to take a pay cut but gave him the ability to make the same amount of $$ with incentives. And, he, unlike all the “experts”, accurately gauged the lack of NFL interest with JH at that time. I would argue that he lit a fire under JH. JH has certainly been a different coach since then.

JH has been an outstanding coach the last two years, resulting in the best back to back seasons since the days of Yost and Crisler. And, not to take anything away from the 1997 NC team, but, if the last two teams played under the 1997 rules, they would have been 11-1 & 12-0 playing Utah both years in the Rose Bowl, who they probably would have beaten, and, at worse, been #2 both years with the possibility of a co-NC one or both of those years. 

But both years, JH ruined the off season and recruiting by his NFL dalliances. And, even if the NCAA situation is total BS, it was certainly not a result of anything the AD did or didn’t do. One more headache JH has added to the mess. All of this together, all 100% the direct results of JH’s actions, have negatively affected recruiting. 

And, sadly, this will go on every single offseason until JH ends up back in the NFL. What the AD should be doing now is assessing potential HC replacements for the inevitability of JH’s departure.

I am happy he is here for at least one more year. This may be the most talented team we have had since 1997. We have a legitimate chance at a NC and when I look at the other contenders, I think we should be the favorite. I look forward to another 13-0 season, a win in the semifinal and an appearance in the NC game. Then, we can say goodbye to JH when he most certainly finally returns to the NFL, thank him for the greatest three consecutive years of Michigan football in over a century, and, then, we will find out whether our AD can make the right decision for his successor. GO BLUE!!