Michigan’s Massive Contract Offer To Jim Harbaugh Includes A Clause Where He Can’t Leave For The NFL
ByJoey Heldon January 3, 2024inArticles›Sports News
Jim Harbaugh had a fascinating 2023. The head coach of the Michigan Wolverines led his team to an undefeated season and a victory over Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Rose Bowl. Harbaugh was also suspended for three recent games as part of an investigation of sign stealing. Beyond that, the NCAA is charging Harbaugh with violations of reportedly providing false or misleading information during a recruiting investigation around the COVID-19 dead period. The allegations also include impermissible contact with recruits.
While Harbaugh deals with all of that, he’ll have something else to consider: a massive contract offer from Michigan.
The school has offered Harbaugh a ten-year, $125 million extension. That would make Harbaugh one of the highest-paid coaches in all of college football. The deal would boost his average annual salary from $7.5 million to $12.5 million.
There’s an interesting clause in the contract, too. If Harbaugh were to agree, he couldn’t leave for an NFL job during the 2024 season.
Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Since Harbaugh departed the San Francisco 49ers after the 2014 season, teams have been clamoring for him to return to the NFL. Last year, the Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos both interviewed Harbaugh, though they ultimately went in different directions. This offseason, the Los Angeles Chargers have a head coaching vacancy, and the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots have expressed interest in Harbaugh, as well.
The clause in the Michigan offer only applies for the 2024 season. If Harbaugh finds an NFL job he likes after next year, he could take it without issue, though he’d likely forfeit some or all of his remaining Michigan salary.
Harbaugh is currently under contract through the 2026 season. Since joining his alma mater, the Wolverines have won at least 10 games on six different occasions, including Big Ten titles each of the past three years.
However, Michigan hasn’t been able to win the postseason. The team is just 1-6 in bowl games under Harbaugh’s watch and hasn’t advanced to the championship of the College Football Playoff.
Perhaps the third time will be the charm, and Harbaugh and the Wolverines will celebrate a championship this year. Yet, in a bit of an ironic twist, winning a national title could be the final obstacle for Harbaugh to accomplish before heading back to the NFL. Especially with the various allegations surrounding him and the team, it would be an understandable move.
We’ll see how everything shakes out. For now, Harbaugh is focused on helping the Wolverines win. Then, he can focus on whatever comes his way — good or bad.
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- Could Jim Harbaugh Be The Next Coach Of The Los Angeles Rams?
Could Jim Harbaugh Be The Next Coach Of The Los Angeles Rams?
ByJoshua R. Woodon December 19, 2016inArticles›Sports News
With the playoffs looming, there are very few things that are certain in the NFL these days. Here are a couple of things that are certain: The Browns will get another great draft pick (and probably squander it), the Patriots have a great shot at winning another Super Bowl, and the Los Angeles Rams desperately need a change – and fast.
The Rams started on the path to change by firing head coach Jeff Fisher , who was obviously leading them down every wrong path he could find. The franchise, fresh off a move to L.A. from St. Louis, has made some decent draft choices, has a franchise running back and a great defense, and appears poised for success… but they’re missing one extremely important piece of the puzzle: a good coach.
Sure, there are a lot of coaches out there. For instance, there’s Hue Jackson, the Bengals’ Offensive Coordinator. Or, they could go with either one of the Coordinators from the Patriots, Josh McDaniels or Matt Patricia (I mean, they have to be good after a few years under Belichick, right?), or Todd Haley, Offensive Coordinator of the Steelers. But none of those guys is time-tested. They simply don’t have the head coaching experience – the proven ability to win – that the Rams need to see in their dire situation.
There is one guy who stands out: Jim Harbaugh.
Pros: Harbaugh is a proven winner at every level. He’s hard-working, he cares about his players, and he loves to win.
Harbaugh stepped in to coach the San Diego University team back in 2004. At the time, he had zero head coaching experience. He stayed with the squad for three years, posting a 15-1 conference record with two conference titles, putting him on the shortlist for best coach of all time at the school.
(Gene Sweeney Jr/Getty Images)
He then moved on to Stanford University. The two guys before him had gone a combined 16-40 in the past four seasons. Harbaugh came up huge, improving the team’s record each season, and culminating his Cardinal career with a 12-1 record in 2010, with a victory in the Orange Bowl to cap it off. All told, he was 29-21 at Stanford. Outside of current coach David Shaw , that’s the best winning percentage for a Stanford coach since the 60s.
After that, he took over an awful 49ers team that had gone 6-10 the year before he arrived, and hadn’t had a winning season in 8 years. What did he do? Took them to three straight conference championships and one Super Bowl. After one tumultuous season where disagreements between the coach and the front office reflected poorly on the team’s record, the 49ers inexplicably gave him the boot.
Now he’s at Michigan, where he’s the highest paid coach in college football, and for good reason. The year before he arrived, the Wolverines were 5-7. In his first two years with the team, he’s taken them to a 20-5 record, and they’ll be competing this season in the Orange Bowl.
Cons : Well, there’s really only one. It’s uncertain whether or not he’ll actually want to come back to the NFL (even though he definitely prefers the NFL to college). It’s estimated that, to get him to L.A., it would take a contract worth between $10 million and $15 million per year! That would make him the highest paid football coach at any level.
So, is it worth that much money for the Rams? Absolutely.
One major issue is that the Rams need a change right now. It’s highly likely that the Chargers will be headed to L.A. from San Diego, and about 25% of the Chargers’ season-ticket holders already live in L.A. Honestly, right now, given the choice between a Rams game and a Chargers game, which would you rather see? Yeah, that’s what I thought.
The Rams need dynamic change, and they need it right now. Harbaugh is almost certain to give them that.
The team’s owner, Stan Kroenke, is worth almost $8 billion, and he’s pouring a huge amount (over $2 billion) into the Rams’ new stadium . For that investment to make any sense, he needs to hire a coach who will direct a team that will fill the seats. The price tag is unimportant.
The question is: how long will it take before Kroenke heads out to Michigan to make an offer? And when that day comes, will Harbaugh take the bait?
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- Jim Harbaugh Could Reach The $10 Million Mark This Season – Here’s How
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