The Michigan Wolverines and Jim Harbaugh have certainly made a lot of headlines over the last few weeks. Michigan’s alleged sign-stealing scandal has had many fans wondering if this would be the end for Harbaugh at Michigan.
Well, the latest reports indicate that is far from the case. Harbaugh and the University of Michigan appear close to agreeing to a contract extension.
Jim Harbaugh Contract Discussion
There were reports earlier about the possibility of Harbaugh having a contract extension offer rescinded by the University of Michigan. However, Harbaugh has publicly stated that those reports were inaccurate.
In addition, a spokesperson for the Michigan Wolverines stated that the school would not comment on employment contracts before they are completed.
Harbaugh has been equally tight-lipped about this outside of calling past contract reports inaccurate. He prefers to keep his focus on Saturday’s game against Purdue.
However, according to Chris Balas of the Wolverine, the University of Michigan administration unanimously supports a contract extension for Harbaugh.
Michigan Wolverines Football Success Under Harbaugh
There is no denying that Harbaugh has taken Michigan’s football program in the right direction during his tenure. This is his ninth season as head coach for Michigan, and the program has elevated significantly during that time.
To state the obvious, Michigan has made the College Football Playoff the last two seasons. Plus, they finally beat Ohio State the last two seasons after losing to them during Harbaugh’s first six years.
The Michigan Wolverines have 72 wins in seven full seasons (2020 excluded) since Harbaugh arrived. They could get to as high as 85 total wins in full seasons after the 2023 season.
Sign-Stealing Scandal
So, what is stopping the Michigan Wolverines and Harbaugh from completing this contract extension? The answer is the alleged sign-stealing scandal. Currently, the NCAA is investigating to determine the validity of these claims.
This all started because of details released by a private firm. It has arguably spiraled since then, with more and more details coming out connecting the dots in this story.
Because of all of this scrutiny, there is language written in Harbaugh’s new contract that covers this NCAA investigation.
TCU Details
Recently, more details came out, raising suspicion about this sign-stealing. An anonymous TCU coach revealed that the Horned Frogs changed their signs before last year’s semi-final game against the Michigan Wolverines.
On top of this, that coach claims to have used their old signs as fake ones to fool Michigan and that Michigan had been stealing signs as far back as 2021.
If this report is true, it certainly worked to perfection. TCU scored 51 points in that game and went on to the national championship.
Plus, if you look closer at the box score, you will see that TCU got off to a commanding 14-0 lead in the first quarter and a 21-6 lead at halftime.
Right now, the NCAA sign-stealing investigation is still pending. We will have to wait and see if it has a true impact on Harbaugh’s contract extension. However, outside of additional language about the investigation in Harbaugh’s new contract, it appears to have a minimal impact.
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