Click HERE to sign up for a subscription to TheWolverine.com and get your FREE gift code for $99 in Michigan apparel and gear!

Michigan junior quarterback Shea Patterson had been trending toward returning for a while, but he made it official last week.

There was no way he was leaving on the note he did, he said after he and his teammates lost 62-39 in Columbus … and head coach Jim Harbaugh is thrilled to have him back.

“It's a big lift. We're excited about it,” Harbaugh said. “It starts making you think, ‘we've got a lot of good players coming back next year … a lot of good people, players, coaches coming back next year.’”

And that’s all he’s thinking about. Harbaugh shot down rumors of a return to the NFL in December, but that hasn’t stopped some from suggesting it’s still on the table. The New York Jets are apparently the latest poised to make a run, though their brass has denied reports they're thinking of pursuing Harbaugh.

"This is a choreographed message that comes up at this time every year before signing day," Harbaugh told ESPN in early December. "It's people spreading messages to further their own personal agenda. But I'm on record right here, right now: I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying at Michigan. We have big plans here, and there's a lot we want to accomplish.

"I can't be any more clear about this -- it's not true. I'm not going anywhere."

Though winning the Dec. 29 Peach Bowl against Florida is first and foremost on his mind, he said he can’t help but think about next year’s team.

“That thought’s in our mind, too. You want to win this game for this team, this season and knowing it will change ... some players on the team won't be back next year,” he said. “But a lot of them will; a lot of good ones. We want to start building momentum for next year, as well. We could be able to do both at the same time.”

Patterson’s a big part of that equation. Florida coach Dan Mullen saw him last year when Patterson played at Ole Miss, and he knows what he’s up against.

“He's a very talented quarterback, has a great arm, makes reads, stays in the pocket and delivers the ball, but the thing to me that really makes him even more difficult to defend is when he starts to improvise,” Mullen said. “When he gets outside of the framework of the offense. Where he drops back, you get a good rush and we have the route covered and now he takes off and starts making things happen, and that is one of the things that makes him very difficult to defend. He has the ability to improvise within the offense and not just take off and run to try to scramble to stay alive and make big plays.

“He probably trusts the offense a little bit more when you talk about his improvisation. He’s going to hang in the pocket a little bit longer and he’s going to trust the system and not all of a sudden try to take off and make a play. He is going to trust the system a little bit more.”

He’s part of a much-improved offense that Harbaugh expects to be even better next year. Patterson should be the catalyst — and yes, Harbaugh will be there to coach him.

“He's been just great at getting better at everything. He's an ascending player,” he said. “Everything you ask him to do, he's got the athletes ability to go out and do it. He's serious about being good, so focused at practice, the type of player you can give a coaching point to and he gets it, he practices and improves on it.”

---

• Talk about this article inside The Fort

• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes

• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolverine

• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolverineMag, @BSB_Wolverine, @JB_ Wolverine, @AustinFox42, @Balas_Wolverine, @DrewCHallett and @Qb9Adam.

• Like us on Facebook