Harbaugh Pro vs. College

I think it takes a different man to be wildly successful in the NFL vs NCAA. Very few coaches have what it takes to do well at both and I think that's been shown (albeit with a rather small sample size). NFL is more prestigious because it is the top league in the sport. Period. But I don't think every great NFL coach would be great college coach and vis versa. They are two totally different management styles...I don't think pure technical coaching talent is the basis on which to judge college vs pro football.

This is not an absolute argument anymore.

Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, ND, USC, Alabama, LSU, OSU, FSU >>>>>>>>>>Oakland, Jacksonville, Carolina, Buffalo, Cleveland

Pittsburgh, NE, Denver, GB, Dallas>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Duke, Purdue, IU, MAC

As has been previously mentioned, there is nuance to this argument today, and the money and salaries shows this clearly.

 

This is not an absolute argument anymore.

Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, ND, USC, Alabama, LSU, OSU, FSU >>>>>>>>>>Oakland, Jacksonville, Carolina, Buffalo, Cleveland

Pittsburgh, NE, Denver, GB, Dallas>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Duke, Purdue, IU, MAC

As has been previously mentioned, there is nuance to this argument today, and the money and salaries shows this clearly.

 

It's only a step down (or not) in the mind of the person in question. The talking heads' opinions should be irrelevant.

I think on average and on an objective basis, the NFL is more prestigious than the college level due to talent, pay, etc. but if that were the end all be all then you wouldn't have lifer college coaches. High school teachers would always be striving to be professors at college, small town lawyers would always strive to become big city litigators, and coffee house guitar players would all strive to play arena sized rock concerts. Sometimes there are other factors at play. In regards to college vs NFL however:

1) The way college football has developed over the past 20 years that gap has narrowed considerably in terms of money and prestige from a coaching perspective.

2) Michigan is a far above average program in terms of prestige, resources available, name recognition if the coach is a successful one, etc.

3) Let's face it. We are talking about this from the lens of Harbaugh and his decision. Objectivity has very little weight here. The issue is, subjectively, how would Harbaugh view this choice? Particularly if the choice is consistent tire fire Oakland Raiders versus his struggling but otherwise prestigious & beloved alma mater Michigan. Other subjective issues are living arrangements (he's got like 6 kids--three young school age. One applied to Michigan's incoming class, another wants to break into coaching and could easily be hired by his dad in a new coaching regime in Ann Arbor), perceived stability perhaps as his kids go through schools for the next 5-10 years, ultimate power and control for successful coaches on campus, developing young men vs running a locker room of millionaires, etc.

Ultimately what matters is what Harbaugh views as his best choice, and individuals don't normally simply follow the most objectively prestigious option in front of them. They factor in their own personal and family needs & wants as well.

one of the better threads on the ramifications of Harbaugh to Michigan under these circumstances.

I think that you could see this again IF a situation similar to what happened to Jimmy Johnson in Dallas occured AND there were a high profile college job that opened up (and that would depend on the nature of the coach's contract with said pro team)

Under those circumstances, if...let's say the Oklahoma or Florida State job was open and if I were Johnson's (or fiil in the name of the NFL head coach...I'm just using Jimmy Johnson as an example) agent then, sure, I might put out some feelers and who knows what might bite.

I can see the higher level of sophistication in strategy and tactics as a huge NFL draw. Having most talented and intelligent players with more practice time must be irresistible to the X and O driven coaches.

That said, Michigan is the best place, nay, the ONLY place for Harbaugh.
It's happening.

... if you assume that everyone's goal is to reach (and remain at) the top of their chosen profession, and the top is defined by fiercest competition and technical level of play. On these counts the NFL is unquestionably superior. There are a very limited number of jobs, and they by and large get the best coaches to fill them. The level of play in the NFL is so far above the college play that it is almost a different game. (Look at all the articles on this site and elsewhere about how hard it is to teach sophisticated schemes to inferior players who have a limited amount of time inseason to grasp them.) So yes, in general, if you've proved you can hack it in the pros, it's going backwards to return to college - judged by those metrics. Harbaugh has an entirely different calculus - he's going back to his alma mater, and may prefer teaching and molding young men to perfecting sophisticated schemes with dedicated professionals. The general may not be relevant to the specific here.