It would be a record commitment in college football, but according to Michigan football reports, head coach Jim Harbaugh has agreed to a 10-year, $125 million contract extension with the top-ranked Wolverines. That equates to a $12.5 million-per-year salary, making him the highest-paid collegiate coach in history.
Nick Saban of Alabama currently holds the record for the wealthiest deal on a per-year basis, earning $11.4 million.
According to the Harbaugh contract,
The Harbaugh contract, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, has a contingency in it that is currently holding up the process. Harbaugh would be forbidden, at least in 2024, from pursuing an NFL coaching job in the terms of his current offer.
“There is a caveat, and it’s NFL-related,” Rapoport wrote on Sunday. “If he signed the deal — which he has not yet done – Jim Harbaugh would agree not to entertain or accept an NFL job for the 2024 season. The NFL clause would be one season only, but that’s apparently been enough to drag out the process.”
Michigan Football Rumors: Jim Harbaugh Eyeing NFL
That would be difficult for Harbaugh to accept given that he has long sought to validate his career by returning to the NFL after he had a successful run with the 49ers from 2011-15. The 49ers went to a Super Bowl and an NFC championship game in Harbaugh’s short tenure, which ended with a bizarre mutual parting of ways that Harbaugh later claimed was not really mutual.
Harbaugh Took Over Michigan Shortly Thereafter
Harbaugh has actively pursued NFL jobs in each of the past two seasons. He was interviewed by the Vikings in 2022 and, this year, he interviewed with the Broncos before they hired Sean Payton. If he wanted a job in the NFL, he would be a candidate in a number of places, most notably the Los Angeles Chargers, who would give him the opportunity to coach star quarterback Justin Herbert.
Would Harbaugh leave Michigan football while he’s sitting on the No. 1 team in the game? Ten days ago, Jason LaCanfora of the Washington Post reported that the NFL remains an obstacle for a long-term Harbaugh commitment to UM.
