jim harbaugh contract stuff

You don't have to rouse those who asked to be woken when this round of Harbaugh to the NFL is over, but this makes it sound like it's about to be. Michigan's new president announced Harbaugh assured him he'll coach here in 2023, and Harbaugh reciprocated:

And...uh...Santa is making MGoBlog jokes in response.

I think this new president might work out. Also:

We're all still waiting for word that Harbaugh's signed an extension to his contract that is more in line with his recent performance. It does seem from this exchange that they are close enough that the Harbaugh side no longer needs the threat of the Broncos job as a negotiating tactic. It also seems that Michigan's new president and old football coach are very much having this conversation without Michigan's sitting Athletic Director, with whom the negotiation over the terms of Harbaugh's employment are supposed to be taking place.

The details of that contract renegotiation will matter much. While nothing will stop NFL reporters and rival coaches from reporting Harbaugh-to-the-NFL stories, the term of the contract, and the severity of the buyout, will determine whether Michigan can dismiss future rumors out of hand, or expect two weeks of head coach limbo every new year to become the norm. Insiders have suggested the sides were close on a deal that makes it all but impossible for Harbaugh to leave for at least three seasons, and in return pays him like a top-five head coach, with a competitive assistant pool, strong support for players through NIL programs similar to those of peer institutions, and support for Harbaugh as they shoo away violations from a feckless NCAA that hoped to find a sentient being in 2023 who still takes them seriously.

Things discussed:

• Moving the Comerica Park fences: fine, but why do it AFTER Cabrera?!
• Blake Corum's return: Thank NIL that it's possible. Gonna be a Denard/Gardner/Braylon/Hart/Marlin whose name is etched in history.
• Jim Harbaugh's contract negotiation.
• Warde Manuel: Brian goes off. Sam clarifies it's a message board post that USA Today picked up on, and not everything in that contract negotiation timeline is correct.
• Seth: They're probably not arguing about the money but the buyout because Michigan needs a long-term commitment and Harbaugh wants a chance to take an NFL job.
• Solution: MAKE A DAMN DECISION!!!! You're all just losing value the longer this goes on. If Harbaugh's not going to say it's his last job, name a successor so when it does happen the program rolls on.

[Hit the JUMP for the player, and video and stuff]

The Athletic’s Austin Meek won the race to FOIA Harbaugh’s new contract.

Just received Jim Harbaugh’s new contract. If my math is right, he’ll earn $7.05 million in base pay next year, up to $7.6 million by the end of the deal.

— Austin Meek (@byAustinMeek) February 17, 2022

I’ve put a full copy of it on our site if you’d like to see it yourself.

Let’s discuss.

1. How much is it?

The number I came up with is an average of $8,486,000/year counting his base salary, additional compensation, the retirement contribution, and an easily achievable (for him at least) bonus for team academic performance.

For whatever reason the "base" is a paltry $655k/year with "additional compensation" representing the bulk. Together those parts increase annually from $7.05M to $7.6M, plus a $1 million/year contribution to his retirement fund and other doodads like an extra $150k/year for academic progress rate scores of 960+, and a summer football camp using school facilities from which Harbaugh gets to keep the profits. The sum is on par with what Ryan Day gets from Ohio State, and what Harbaugh was making on his 2015-2020 contract. The incentive structure of his 2021 contract seems to be unchanged.

Big Ten Coach of the Year would be $50,000, or $75,000 if one of the national selectors name him Numero Uno.

This is in line with what Sam Webb reported earlier this week. It’s sensible: Michigan wasn’t going to try to match the deals that Franklin and Tucker extracted from their schools but it isn’t so significantly different that Harbaugh’s going to be living a different lifestyle than the best-compensated college coaches in America.