The Michigan Wolverines won the national title under head coach Jim Harbaugh during the 2023 college football season. After Harbaugh left Michigan, he went back to the NFL to coach the Los Angeles Chargers.
When he left for the NFL, the Wolverines only had a 7-5 record during the 2024 college football season. Sherrone Moore is the current head coach for Michigan, and they hope to have a bounce back season. Well, Harbaugh no doubt had a major impact coaching at the college level. Where does he rank amongst the top coaches in the sport over the last 25 years?
Former Michigan Wolverines Head Coach Jim Harbaugh Is Ranked 8th In the Top 25 Coaches In College Football Over the Last 25 Years
Chris Vannini of The Athletic ranked his Top 25 college coaches over the last 25 seasons. The former Wolverines head coach was ranked eighth on that list. Not only did he coach Michigan in his career, but he also turned around a Stanford Cardinals football program. Vannini said about Harbaugh’s college coaching career,
“Accomplishments: One national championship, three FBS conference championships, three CFP appearances, four top-five finishes, nine double-digit-win seasons
Harbaugh took over a 1-11 Stanford team and turned it into a top-five program, leaving four years later on the heels of a 12-1 finish. After an NFL run, he returned home to Michigan, which was coming off a losing season, and won at least 10 games six times, capped by the 2023 national championship in the Wolverines’ third consecutive CFP appearance. Harbaugh left town before the NCAA dropped penalties on him for rules violations, most notably the Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal. He took two different programs to top-four finishes and won a title, but every coach ahead of him here has at least three national title game appearances, while Harbaugh had one.”
A lot of people will remember that Michigan team in 2023 for cheating and Harbaugh was also suspended for a couple of games. He coached the Wolverines from 2015-2023. Harbaugh won a couple of BIG10 titles as well with Michigan.
When he was with Stanford, he coached them from 2007-2010. Harbaugh no doubt had an interesting coaching career with college and also the NFL. Had he won another national title or two, Harbaugh may have been ranked higher on this list. He also was successful with the San Francisco 49ers at the NFL level and also hopes to be the same for a while with the Chargers also.
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