Thank you, Jim

Submitted by Njia on

The one board, forum or diary topic I haven't seen is really quite simple: "Thank you, Jim." Lots of "thank yous" for Jim Hackett (well deserved) and a few others, but none that I can find for ol' #4 himself.

Our new head football coach certainly had other options open to him. Returning to Michigan may or may not have been his first choice. Nevertheless, here we are.

Some of the Edge of the Internet posts have suggested that it was the "overwhelming" support and love shown by the MGoCommunity that "surprised" him and contributed mightily to his decision to leave the NFL behind, at least for now, and return to Michigan.

Frankly, this outpouring of affection doesn't surprise me. I was fortunate enough to see his last game at Michigan Stadium in 1986. Anyone who ever watched him play all those years ago knew we had someone special at quarterback. We lost that game, of course, but his "guaranteed" win the following week is the stuff of legend and sent him out a champion in all of the ways one can be.

Thank you, Jim. Your return to the University of Michigan that so many of us love and cherish means more than you will ever know.

Go Blue!

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Coaching Deliverance 2014

JamesBondHerpesMeds

December 29th, 2014 at 12:17 PM ^

I'm giddy. He gave up the potential to win a Lombardi...for now.

But let's also be realistic. If the choices came down to a) coaching a middling NFL team with notoriously bad owners, situated across the Bay from your old team; or b) going back to your alma mater to build a tradition-heavy program back to greatness AND getting paid more than a) to do it...

Hackett and the boosters were able to sweeten the pot so much that Harbaugh would have been a mighty fool to turn it down. Ol' Number Four counted the cost, and he chose wisely.

Joined: 04/13/2009

MGoPoints: 39546

ijohnb

December 29th, 2014 at 12:29 PM ^

Michigan is just such a sleeping giant.  I think that he understood that this really could be a pretty substantial move for both Michigan and the Big Ten.  His arrival will truly be like a Saban to Alabama kind of experience for Michigan.  There was a post the other day about Spring Game attendance and if we will get 50%, 60%, 75% etc.  If, and I am still saying if, this gets done I think the Spring Game may sell out.  Harbaugh to Michigan is big, nationally.  It is the collaboration of two of the biggest brands in football.

Joined: 09/21/2009

MGoPoints: 69986

Auerbach

December 29th, 2014 at 12:19 PM ^

Thanks to both Jim H's. I haven't been this excited about Michigan football since 2006. I'm also excited that "Harbaugh" will be my 3-year-old son's "Schembechler." 

Joined: 12/15/2014

MGoPoints: 841

umhannon

December 29th, 2014 at 12:22 PM ^

To have an interim AD pull this off is very special. It speaks volumes about the University and the talent it nurtures. This was not about a brand. This was about returning to glory. Welcome home, Jim.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 5391

COLBlue

December 29th, 2014 at 12:28 PM ^

First and foremost - thanks Jim H and Jim H! :)

Anyone wonder what might have happened if Michigan had beaten Maryland, and been playing in a bowl game - which presumably Brady Hoke would be coaching?  How might that have impacted the timing of all of this?

 

Joined: 11/28/2010

MGoPoints: 1498

LSAClassOf2000

December 29th, 2014 at 12:39 PM ^

In a way, JH begets JH. Jim Hackett helped make Jim Harbaugh's return to Ann Arbor possible, and I thank the former for doing things in a professional and determined manner and I thank the latter for coming back to his alma mater to attack a problem with the same intensity and fight that he has wherever he has been. 

I am also thankful that I can now see an era where my kids - born in 2006 and 2007 - can potentially have memories of Michigan football which don't involve their father with his face in his hands more often than not.

Joined: 01/07/2011

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2timeloozer

December 29th, 2014 at 12:46 PM ^

Thanks Jim. Please don't suck. Thanks Brady. You are a Michigan man and we appreciate your commitment and integrity. Thanks Lloyd. We never knew how good you were until you left. The only 2 coaches that you didn't beat were cheaters (JT and PC). Thanks Bo. This is your legacy.

Joined: 04/29/2012

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