(CC) Michigan Declines Comment on Harbaugh Offer Reports

We will splash zee pot whenever the fuck we want.

And only four years ago, Urban Meyer became college football's highest paid coach when the took a 6 year 24 million contract.  Wow.

Michigan = Lots of Dollars + Alma Mater + Kicking Meyer & Dantonio"s ass + NC Ring + Living in a Great Place like Ann Arbor Michigan.

Why is it that when everyone talks about Michigan they make it sound like the North Pole. Jim grew up here. He knows how great Michigan really is.

He's coming home! December 30th!

NFL expects offers, but there are none right now! No one can top the offer of him returning to his Alma Mater, U of M.

 

All logic, including the verification of such an offer, with any doubt still in the air regarding his intentions has to indicate how unlikely it is. As much as nobody wants to hear it, while not proof at all, it screams "there is nothing you can offer me if I don't want it". I'm ok with that outside of dragging things out to the very end only to say no. It seems like every Tuesday comes a little more seemingly legit info/feeling and I'm not sure this makes it past today if he has no intention. If it did, that is where potential animosity will arise. I have zero issue with him saying "no thanks" for whatever reason. He's his own man with a family, etc. However, if this kind of money & obvious control at Michigan didn't give him a sure answer in the days after he heard it (I'm sure he's had this offer AT LEAST since Monday) then what is there to doubt? That offer is a sure "yes" or "no" within a week even if not public. Now that it is public he almost has to give some indication (even if private) to UM that he will or won't to avoid the risk of seeming careless. If we go to the New Year still waiting after this offer and he says no it's going to rub many here the wrong way. Big-time. No problem if he had already told us "no" or we get it today/Friday but now that this seems official & IMO, sadly public at this time, it almost has to force hand. In that environment, I think it's "I'm sorry but, no, final answer". I think we can say we haven't gotten that as of 8am EST. It might change as soon as today as logic dictates (not concretely) that this is not a "new" offer & once public cannot be ignored to the point it has so far. This level of privacy, IMO, can only be had with this kind of situation where both parties are close & connected with intimate backchannels doing most of the talking. I think we'll know if he declines us very soon after he does by our actions as CFB coaches, towns, fans, etc are too talkative to keep an offer anywhere near that a secret. I just think this going public was either our way of forcing his hand, their way of essentially quietly declining by letting the NFL know what the floor for Jim is OR a very unfortunate and now very awkward national story that could derail any shot by forcing hands at the concern of alienating your alma mater by directly or seeming to use them as a hostage for your career. I don't think any good comes if this being more than rumor at this time. That "shock & awe" offer in the NFL v UM bid war is now public. Teams have time to now work out how they'll top it, etc. *Basically this helps nobody by no longer being rumor, IMO. It only helps the NFL so you'd have to assume a pro-NFL intention turned it from rumor to fact to hinder any chance he goes to UM. It could be SF, Jim's agent, a shady NFL owner, etc. Finally, it could be us trying to get him to give us some idea so we aren't left holding our dong come Jan 3rd. Any angle = bad, IMO. You don't corner a wild Harbaugh, intended or not.

is becoming a toy of the rich, I don't like where this is heading.

 

I'm happy Michigan is after Harbaugh and hopefully we turn a corner but it makes me pretty ill to think that wealthy people can have so much influence on salaries of a college football coach.

I mean come on, 8.1 million to coach football.  Ridiculous.

I know this link has been posted on the site before, but yesterday's wrap up is worth the read.

http://mgofish.com/captain-comeback-latest-jim-harbaugh-to-michigan-rumors/

 

Edit:

Not sure if this summary is thread worthy, and just posted it here to avoid the "freaking out" over duplicate info...

if JH passes, just got A LOT more expensive.

Agent - Oh, you were willing to pay JH $8 million per year, but my guy is only being offered 6?  No thanks.

That's how we end up with Schiano or some other also-ran as coach.  Unless Hackett is smart enough to offer Miles the same deal.

...don't put "Harbaugh" and "Declines" in the same title.  EVER AGAIN.

Things make sense now with what's going on with the basketball team. WE CAN ONLY HAVE ONE and it's happening.

Michigan is trying to win, and win big.  To do that in today's college football landscape, they will have to spend big.  They are spending it on the best head coach available and his staff. (I haven't heard what the budget is for assistants, but have to believe JH would have the ability to hire whoever he wanted without cost being a factor.)  Spending huge money on coaches and facilities is within NCAA rules and completely legal.

Other schools are spending their money by paying players directly.  Bagmen, SEC schools, Hugh Freeze, Laquon Treadwell, OSU-I'm talking to you!  From everything I've heard and read-ever-Michigan doesn't do this.  (Fab Five and Ed Martin was 20 years ago, and in basketball, so Sparty can shut up.)  I would guess the huge majority of Michigan fans wouldn't accept us doing this, even if it meant we had Bama level success.

I want us to win and be relevant again.  If it takes 8 million a year from ticket sales, merchandise, and TV rights, I'm in.  Hell, I'll even buy a sweatshirt and cap to help out.  We could get a coach for a million bucks or so, hire a new one every 4 years when he left for greener pastures, and look forward to those magical seasons when everything came together and we went 8-4.  We would have the moral high ground on all fronts then...but it would cause us more mental anguish than I personally am willing to endure.

offer.  I'm just not fond of it being reported so widely by national media outlets.  I think it would have better served our interests if the offer stayed private.

Unless it has already been accepted of course.

In which case, w00t!!!

 

EDIT: I retract this post.  mGrowOld's argument below has convinced me.

Leaking the enormity of this offer serves two purposes and I think it's brilliant:

1. It shows the Michigan fanbase that all guns are loaded and we're deadly serious about getting Harbaugh if he's willing to come back to college.  49MM is HUGE money and an offer to make someone the highest paid football coach anywhere cannot be taken lightly, regarless of the ability of the other side (NFL) to offer more if they want.  I wonder if they will however because if Harbaugh gets more than 8MM/year what's that make the other elite NFL coaches worth?  Do they want to start a coaching arms race - I wonder.

2. It shows every other coach out there (some of whom may not have been contacted yet) just how far we're willing to go to restore the program.  I cannot immagine ANY HC (maybe outside of Saban himself) not telling their agent to make a call to Michigan this morning.  "If he doesnt want that offer - I do" would be something I would expect Hackett to be hearing a LOT today and from coaches we prolly didnt have on our radar just yet.

So far every move Hackett has made has been bang-on perfect in my estimation.  Win or lose on Harbaugh (and if he wants to stay in the NFL or bay area there is nothing he can do about that) he's conducted this search flawlessly IMO up to this point.