Records show Jim Harbaugh spent nearly $136K in 2015 recruiting

Hell yes they will, that's nothing. Shit, Auburn spent that much on Cam Newton alone a few years back!

If anything, the AD should be pissed that Harbaugh didn't hit 7 figures.  

Sleeping on a recruit's floor saves a bundle. 

The cost was for the private jet.  I have clients that have private jets and I can attest that the operating costs of a jet are CRAZY expensive.  You pay for rent to house the plane, pilot, mechanics, insurance, fuel, a ridiculous amount of maintenance and parts and a management company to oversee all of it.  

Any University that uses a private jet will have similar costs.  

I dislike Notre Dame.

James Franklin signs off on this.

I recognize the Underwear Gnome theme, but here are some guesses at No. 4:

A."Coach up the recruited players with an enthusiasm unknown in the prior regime".

B."Prepare gameplans that make sense, make half-time (and in-game) adjustments, and pay attention to all three phases of the game"

C. "In your spare time, figure out ways to recruit that are good for the program, good for h.s. and college football players, and irritate the shit out of your competitors."

D. "Remember to heavily salt your fuck garden, so that when it's harvest time you still have nary a fuck to give."

Have I covered the most likely possibilities?

10 coaches can travel to recruit, I believe (HC + 9 assistants).

$136k/12 days = $11,333/day.

$11,333/10 coaches = $1,133 per coach per day.

One flight plus one rental car plus one hotel stay plus meals adds up to $1,133 pretty easily, especially considering travel was booked on little-to-no-notice because the staff was just assembled and targets identified and travel itineraries allocated quickly.

I booked flights today for a Monday business trip (DTW-LAS) for $1,200 in coach.

If there's a second flight involved, it's even more of a bargain.

of the minimum salary for a rookie in the NFL

Thank you for using this acronym. I really want this to become standard nomenclature in these parts. 

Yes I am suspicious.  This is a non story targeting Jim Harbaugh.  You really want to raise your eyebrows at costs, start following the money on ANY of the major programs.  

You're right, especially with a title like "Jim Harbaugh's jet travel valued at more than $10,000 a day".

Doesn't mention the cost of any other coach or school. It's yet another negative article (by someone with ties to the SEC) directed at Harbaugh and Michigan.

Article is from last year and cites 2012-2013 years, but shows that UM spent $665k on recruiting.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/recruiting/2015/02/03/college-football-recruiting-signing-day-sec-power-conferences/22813887/

Alabama spent $984k; LSU: $577k; Auburn: $1.38M; Tennessee: $1.29M; Ohio St.: $565k; MSU: $627k

Article also points out that every school tracks these numbers differently and that different line items probably fall into different categories that might not be accurately captured under "recruiting".

Yahoo article provides that UM spent $585k in 2013-14 and $739k in 2014-2015

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaaf-dr-saturday/report--michigan-recruiting-trips-cost-over--130k-in-late-jan--2015-203818362.html

This makes sense. Harbaugh was hired late & had 3 weeks to put a recruiting class together. It was a mad scramble and probably necessitated private transport to see as many recruits as possible. I am guessing the 2015-2016 numbers will look very similar to other schools.

Expand seating to 136,010 in The Big House.............charge everyone $1 at first game......Balanced Budget, Done Deal.....Next?