COTA MESA (AP)— Two sources told The Associated Press that Jim Harbaugh will coach the Los Angeles Chargers after leaving Michigan after winning its first national title since 1997 in his ninth season for the club.
After another interview, Harbaugh returned to the NFL on Wednesday to pursue a Super Bowl as a quarterback and coach.
The first former Chargers player to coach again. His Bolts career ended in 2001.
After a 63-21 loss to the Raiders in Las Vegas on Dec. 15, Los Angeles was seeking for a new coach and general manager.
Fans of the Arizona Cardinals should be optimistic about 2024.
On Jan. 15, Harbaugh met the Chargers. The Spanos family interviewed eight of 15 coaching candidates including him. The only second interviewee was him.
Harbaugh interviewed with the Falcons on Jan. 16 and scheduled a second interview before the Chargers hired him.
After New England, Las Vegas, and Tennessee, the Chargers are the fourth of eight clubs to add a head coach. Openings remain in Atlanta, Carolina, Seattle, and Washington.
Someone said Harbaugh phoned Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel to tell him he was leaving to manage the Chargers.
He may elevate Sherrone Moore to replace Harbaugh after the offensive coordinator filled in for him in the final three games.
Harbaugh was 86-25 at Michigan and revived college football’s winningest program after Brady Hoke and Rich Rodriguez ran it down when Lloyd Carr retired.
Harbaugh broke the Ohio State Buckeyes’ eight-game winning run over the Wolverines in 2021, leading to their first of three straight Big Ten crowns and College Football Playoff looks.
Michigan defeated Alabama at the Rose Bowl and beat Washington to win the national title with a school-record 15-0 record after going down two straight in the semifinals, extending Harbaugh’s bowl winless skid to six.
One source informed The Associated Press that Michigan offered Harbaugh a six-year contract for $11.5 million each season. Because they couldn’t discuss the arrangement, the source talked anonymously.
He couldn’t get a Super Bowl title at his alma mater.
The Chargers lost eight of their past nine, including the last five, despite having Justin Herbert as a quality quarterback. Herbert can play for his fourth head coach and perhaps offensive coordinator in five seasons.
In 2007, Norv Turner replaced Marty Schottenheimer as Chargers head coach. Three consecutive playoff visits, including the 2007 AFC title game, were led by Turner.
With Turner, the Chargers haven’t won a division championship since 2009.
A culture shift is most needed for Harbaugh’s club. This season, they tied the 1984 Houston Oilers for poorest record in games decided by three points or less.
Due to wide receiver and offensive line injuries, the offense underperformed this season. Herbert missed the last four games after breaking his right index finger, but Los Angeles was 18th in total offense after six consecutive years in the top 11.
The defense placed 28th for the first time since 1986, after three years of 20th or below.
New general manager Harbaugh and the Chargers will hold the fifth overall choice in April’s draft, their fourth pick in the top seven since 2016. Jaguars (five), Giants (six), and Jets (five) have had more.
Hired Don Yee as his agent, Harbaugh planned for an NFL return. Yee, who represents seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Tom Brady and Denver coach Sean Payton, the most sought-after coaching free agency last year, is active in Pasadena.
Harbaugh interviewed with the Minnesota Vikings on college signing day two years ago and the Broncos and Carolina Panthers last year about possible NFL returns.
This hiring cycle gave this 60-year-old Harbaugh more league alternatives.
To return to Michigan, where he was a standout quarterback in the mid-1980s, Harbaugh went 44-19 in four years in San Francisco. His 49ers tenure was marred by front-office conflict. He lost three straight NFC championships and the Super Bowl to Baltimore and his coach/brother, John, about 11 years ago.
His game-ending desperation pass in the AFC championship game at Pittsburgh on Jan. 14, 1996, nearly won the Indianapolis Colts the Super Bowl.
After three seasons at San Diego, Harbaugh went to coach Stanford for four years. His accomplishment in college prepared him to coach the 49ers from 2010 to 2014.
His accomplishment has brought him back to the league to win.
This may have been due to NCAA issues. The NCAA punished him for the first three games for a Level I violation as he mislead investigators.
Harbaugh was punished for the last three Big Ten games for breaching the conference’s sportsmanship standard for accused sign-stealing, a matter that dominated the second part of last season.
The eight finalists have college or NFL head coaching experience, including Harbaugh. Other coaches included former Stanford coach David Shaw, Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator and Minnesota coach Leslie Frazier, Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel, Dallas defensive coordinator and former Atlanta coach Dan Quinn, Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris (who coached Tampa Bay and Atlanta), San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks (who coached Arizona and Carolina), and Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Mon
The Chargers interviewed interim coach Giff Smith, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, Baltimore defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, and Brian Callahan, who was hired by Tennessee on Jan. 23.
Nine candidates, including interim GM JoJo Wooden, interviewed. Other assistant GMs include New York Giants Brandon Brown, Baltimore’s Joe Hortiz, Chicago’s Ian Cunningham, Buffalo’s Terrance Gray, New Orleans Saints’ Jeff Ireland, Indianapolis Colts’ Ed Dodds, Chicago’s Jeff King, and NFL chief football administrative officer Dawn Aponte.
