T1B

or the Dolphins...

That is a ridiculous offer. UM is clearly desperate and selling their souls.

They back up the Brinks truck and all they get is "I'll consider it."

Translation: Thanks for the sweet offer. Should come in handy as leverage for my next NFL gig.

I talked to a guy with some insight that told me tonight that "it was happenng"...FWIW, I hate that the offer went public. He's got great leverage for any and all NFL gigs, I would love for him to come home but I just can't let myself believe it's happening.

One thing I don't get is the NFL reporter guys and radio hacks saying how coaching in the NFL is the "highest level"... I mean, to me CFB is as big or bigger than the NFL and winning at an elite level is at least as rewarding. Making a program elite, winning conference titles and getting into the playoffs on the level of the top CFB guys is as impressive as winning a division title or getting a wild card.

So the word is that the leak of the offer came from Harbaugh's end. This is bad because it allows Jim to use the offer as leverage in any other negotiations. Michigan may not be pleased that the offer got out into the public, but all would be forgotten with him signing.

There are signs going both ways. If I had to bet I would say that he is not coming, but would be thrilled to lose that bet. Word is the back up plans include Stoops, Mora, and Mullen.

These searches always amuse me. Being an ND fan, I have a ton of experience with them.

If he was going to say yes, why not already say it? San Fran completely hung him out to dry this year and fucked him. If he leaves, the 49'ers get nothing but a severance buyout from Michigan. All this prattling about Harbaugh being a "competitor" and wanting to go out with "his head held high" is fucking nonsense. There is a huge talent issue in Ann Arbor and every day that Harbaugh waits to accept that position it only gets worse.

My guess is that 3 people know what is going on. Harbaugh, Hackett and Harbaugh's agent. Anyone else who says differently if full of shit.

As for the "back ups", that's a nice fantasy list. Now that this number is out there, how could UofM go to Stoops/Mora/Mullen with a lowball offer? Michigan just lost a ton of leverage in this search if those numbers are accurate. Mora turned down his alma mater, Texas (rumor) and the NFL (rumor). Why would he say yes to UofM?

I agree on the plan b's. That's why UM can't be happy that the terms got out. As for Mora, it's a smart and typical play by coaches and agents to have their clients names linked to jobs. It can't hurt.

Why wouldn't Harbaugh say yes now? Because he's got a job. My guess is Hackett will give him some sort of time limit close to whenever he gets sacked or Dec 28, whichever occurs first.

Talent? Michigan has much better than 5-7 talent. They haven't had a decent throwing QB since Henne. Speight redshirted and Malzone will be on campus next season. I think Sugar Shane is a career back up. Besides that UM is deep at LB, DB, Oline. They are thin at WR. They have 10+ win talent and would get there immediately with Harbaugh.

As a UM slappy I have to say props to UM for tossing huge money at JH. Even if he turns it down and chooses to stay in the NFL you have to be happy that they did all they could. It's not like he's going to another CFB team. It's UM or the NFL.

I don't want Mullen myself....he's a spread guy and dependent on Jucos. I think Mora is interesting. Some folks can't let go of Miles others can't let go of his indiscretions. He won't say on a hot mic that he won't come. I don't think he gets offered, but it think he'd come. No way Stoops comes, but I would expect the search team to reach out and gauge interest from him and a dozen other guys.

Sudden Sam wrote:

WolverineSteve wrote:Word is the back up plans include Stoops, Mora, and Mullen.

Good luck if your school signs Mullen.

As I've said before, mediocrity reigns.

Mississippi State was #1! Whoopee. Big deal. Look who they'd beaten. One "big" win. That win over a young LSU propelled them to the top. They weren't going to beat Alabama. Losing to Mississippi wasn't a big shocker either.

He'll be your Bo Pelini...win the ones he should and lose the important ones.

While you might be right, look at where MSU was before he got there. The fact that he had them at #1 was almost as astounding as what Bill Snyder accomplished at KSU.

Since 1956, only 1 coach besides Mullen finished his time at MSU with a .500 or better record. Jackie Sherrill finished at exactly .500. Mullen is at .605. This is at a school that has a below .500 winning percentage all time. He has had 5 straight winning seasons at MSU. Prior to his arrival, they had one winning season in eight. Since 2001, here are MSU's records with point differential:

2001 3-8 -92 points
2002 3-8 -112 points
2003 2-10 -246 points
2004 3-8 -107 points
2005 3-8 -106 points
2006 3-9 -88 points
2007 8-5 -22 points
2008 4-8 -113 points
2009 5-7 -14 points (Mullen's first year)
2010 9-4 +119 points
2011 7-6 +73 points
2012 8-5 +82 points
2013 7-6 +61 points
2014 10-2 +213 points

Mississippi State is a god awful football school and Mullen is winning at an unprecedented clip. He is anything but mediocre.

Probably a good chance that it leaked from Harbaugh's side, just to leverage another NFL gig as some of you have mentioned.

I really hope he takes the UM job, would make kicking their ass every year even more fun.

I'm sure it came from Jim. On top of the bargaining power it gave him he also raised the bar for others in the coaching profession.

If Nick wins another title Bama would have to raise his salary, no?

Maybe Les Miles will reconsider now that the $8M figure is floating around

Chatter out of the UofM camp is that the $8 mill figure is bogus, that it's considerably less than that.

Who knows, but regardless, it's probably smart to deny that report in case they don't land Harbaugh.

As a Niners fan (since I was a child, but for me, NFL is a distant second to BTPCFB)... they can have him.

As far as assembling and coaching a team, he's the man. He just doesn't seem to get the concept that part of his job is interacting with ownership/management, or at the college level, dealing with the AD. He's miserable at that aspect of it, hence his inability to keep a job, despite the on-field results. And with the sense-of-entitlement he has towards Michigan, it's only going to get worse.

Some accounts seem to say he's poisoned the lockerroom in SF with his Big House-sized ego.

But he'll get Michigan back on track, bet on it.

And I think he'd go back to the college ranks, so long as he made more dough than Saban, not because of the actual money, but because it's a contest to him, like everything else in his life.

Dude is a straight-up dick.

I'm leaning toward cautiously optomistic after a day of positive reports. Word I hear is that the money may be right but the years a bit off. The deal may be eight years and heavily back loaded according to some sources.

They can't have him until the NFL season is done so all these reports are just that. This is the prime opportunity to get him. I don't see it happening in the future if he turns them down now. That programs needs a shot of excitement and energy and this is a guy most of the fanbase has wanted.

Shoalzie wrote:They can't have him until the NFL season is done so all these reports are just that.

Say what?!?

Sincerely,

Bobby Petrino

Hate to break it to you Michigan fans. He's going to the Oakland Raiders. Owner Mark Davis loves him; it was his 1st NFL gig under Gruden; his wife loves the Bay Area and they have a home; their young daughters are in school there along with a newborn son.

He has zero expectations other than to bring the Rrrrraaaaduhs back up. He has a franchise QB in Derek Carr and a few new talented defensive players like Sio Moore and Khalil Mack. He will rebuild the franchise and hopefully GM Reggie McKenzie is tossed aside so Harbaugh can draft a new team and not sign old has-beens like Shaub, McFalldown, MJD and those type of failures.

Atomic Punk wrote:Hate to break it to you Michigan fans. He's going to the Oakland Raiders. Owner Mark Davis loves him; it was his 1st NFL gig under Gruden; his wife loves the Bay Area and they have a home; their young daughters are in school there along with a newborn son.

He has zero expectations other than to bring the Rrrrraaaaduhs back up. He has a franchise QB in Derek Carr and a few new talented defensive players like Sio Moore and Khalil Mack. He will rebuild the franchise and hopefully GM Reggie McKenzie is tossed aside so Harbaugh can draft a new team and not sign old has-beens like Shaub, McFalldown, MJD and those type of failures.

Wager?

Like?

Atomic Punk wrote:Hate to break it to you Michigan fans. He's going to the Oakland Raiders. Owner Mark Davis loves him; it was his 1st NFL gig under Gruden; his wife loves the Bay Area and they have a home; their young daughters are in school there along with a newborn son.

If the Bay Area is the draw along with their home and the kids staying in the same school, the Raiders might not be such a good choice.

I heard a rumor that Michigan was going to move out of Ann Arbor, to Albuquerque or thereabouts. Still just a rumor at this point.

Reason #87 why BTPCFB is better than the NFL.

Atomic Punk wrote:Like?

Name it. Cash, donation, sig...

Smart move ignoring the bet AP. I now have talked with three guys who are dialed in to the program that are all sure it's going to happen. There is positive JH to UM chatter all over the place. Unless this is the greatest smoke screen ever, Oaktown is out.

I wouldn't count your chickens just yet. Oakland hasn't been able to do anything due to tampering rules, but once the regular season officially ends on Sunday, then the Raiders will get their chance to put a full court press on Harbaugh, which will probably involve meeting or beating whatever UM has offered. I will say your chances look a hell of a lot better than they did three weeks ago, but we'll see.

WolverineSteve wrote:Smart move ignoring the bet AP. I now have talked with three guys who are dialed in to the program that are all sure it's going to happen. There is positive JH to UM chatter all over the place. Unless this is the greatest smoke screen ever, Oaktown is out.

Okay, fair enough now that I saw your response now. I didn't want a BSmack bet in the 1st place. My theory is Harbaugh is safe taking the Oakland job as he has nowhere to go but up with that organization. I don't trust Mark Davis to give him the ability to do what is right with the franchise. You have a GM in Reggie McKenzie that is unpredictable. I have no idea if JH would take the job if RM is allowed to stay there to screw up free agency again by signing old has-beens as I've previously stated. THAT is the big question and I don't have any idea if the right decisions from the Silver Spoon owner Davis will do the right thing.

That being said, JH can always go to UM after the next coach fails at UM if the Oakland project doesn't pan out. Currently, he would love nothing better than to shove it in Baalke's face if Oakland turns it around in a few years. He has young talent and has a $60 mil salary cap to work with. MgBl0w correctly stated the NFL tampering rule, so we won't know until after Sunday.

So no bet for you!
~sig nazi

Too many rumors out now to not think it won't happen. At his age, he can always go back to the NFL if he wants.

Done deal.

It's the shot in the arm that program has needed. One mediocre season in Frisco doesn't turn me off of what he's done in turning Stanford into a Pac-12 contender and turning around the 49ers. This will probably be his most rewarding reclamation project of them all. To say I'm thrilled is an understatement.

Yesterday there were links upon links about JH going to UM. What gave it credibility is that he doesn't like the situation Oakland is in with stadium future and personnel decisions/bad GM.

I for one can't believe anything until Detroit News Toy Dept Reporter Angelique Chengelis chimes in.

He essentially ended a players career by trying to be cute and practice 4th down plays in a blowout win

Claimed his team was above reproach while his players were racking up crimes that would make the bengals and chargers of the 2000s blush

Star player slams into a tree driving drunk in the early morning. He puts him on the practice field three hours later

Same player is in bad enough shape to need immediate midseason rehab....but they throw him out on the field before he goes.

Has a cop on payroll who is on the scene before Ray McDonald's domestic abuse arrest. Miraculously there was not enough evidence to prosecute.

Same player stays on the roster. Clearly he learned his lesson....till he gets mixed up in a sexual abuse case

His camp leaks word out about going to Michigan on the eve of his teams final game, which would be the scummiest thing ever if Bobby Petrino was never born.

Enjoy your new douchbag coach folks. You'll have two bowls in five years and hopefully it will be worth the eventual loss of scholarships.

BUT BUT BUT HARBAUGH IS ABOVE REPROACH!

Screw_Michigan wrote:

BUT BUT BUT HARBAUGH IS ABOVE REPROACH!

Whoever said that?

Shoalzie wrote:

Screw_Michigan wrote:

BUT BUT BUT HARBAUGH IS ABOVE REPROACH!

Whoever said that?

Harbaugh did dumbfuck

I was sad to see Brady Hoke go. I thought he was a terrific coach and an even better MAN. But it's time to move on to a new era.

THE JIM HARBAUGH ERA!

The Brilliant One has returned home.

The SAVIOR.

The MESSIAH.

I am absolutely tickled to death over this, but I can't say that I am surprised. Let's just say I had some inside information 3 weeks ago that this was happening. The University of Michigan is a very special place. It gets in your blood. When UofM calls on you to come home, you come home. It's as simple as that. Harbaugh's undying love and passion for the greatest university in the world is what sealed the deal.

There is no doubt in my mind we win the Big Ten in CJH's first year and compete in that 4 team playoff. Too much talent, and now with the best coach in the game, there is no reason we won't win multiple national championships.

I am SO JACKED!

GO BLUE!!!

Carr Guy wrote:I was sad to see Brady Hoke go. I thought he was a terrific coach and an even better MAN.

Carr Guy wrote:THE JIM HARBAUGH ERA!

The Brilliant One has returned home.

The SAVIOR.

The MESSIAH.



I am SO JACKED!

GO BLUE!!!

Bwhahahahhahahahaha



Rack this troll.

So it appears to finally be a done deal. Press conference tomorrow.

If I'm a Michigan fan, I'm happy to get Harbaugh, but I'm not happy over what it took to get him. This guy is a decorated alum and you had to offer him $3 million more than what he was getting paid in the NFL in order to convince him to take the job. I mean...yeesh. Not a good look. This is a guy who spurned you once, and also threw your program under the bus with negative remarks to the press. And yet, here's Michigan, begging him to "come home" and giving him anything and everything he desires. Michigan is like the desperate boyfriend who lures his ex back with shiny gifts who broke up with HIM and bad mouthed HIM in the past. The whole thing reeks of sadness. But hey, as long as you win, right?? Which even remains to be seen. Anything less than Alabama level success will be viewed as failure. And this is assuming he even sticks around long enough for us to find out. Personally, I think he goes back to the NFL, or goes Woody Hayes on some kid -- the loon that he is -- before too long. Selling your soul to the devil rarely ends well.

Can he at least go back to throwing a handful of sideline tantrums every year? That's what I miss the most.

funny thing...

most of the _ichigan fans that I am friends with...think Urban and the rest of the B1G should be scared to death of Captain Khakis...what the fuck ever

look at his record at Stanford...did he resurrect them? Sure but the first 2 years he had a all world QB in Andrew Luck...he went 8-5 and 12-1 with him then bolted...so excuse me if I am not kneeling at the altar of Captain Khakis

If Harbaugh can get Michigan back up to a credible level (top 15), if not elite (top 5-10)...they won't need to throw Monopoly money at the next coach. It's the equivalent to when the horrible Tigers overpaid an old Pudge Rodriguez and Magglio Ordonez but it lead to this current period of winning years...albeit, still no rings. At worst, they're credible again.

Hopefully, he can develop another David Shaw who will inevitably take over for him when he either burns out or wants to go back to the NFL. If he outlasts his contract, I won't think of him as just as a big name mercenary. He's got to leave the program in better condition than he found it...but that's not saying much.

And I'm tired of them being the other team in the rivalry games. I shouldn't dread the last Saturday in November anymore.