Michigan Wolverines Roundtable: Thoughts On Assistant Coaches, Hoops, More

TheWolverine.com staff weighs in on a number of topics in this week's roundtable, from Jim Harbaugh's coaching staff to hoops expectations.

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What was your reaction to the Jim Harbaugh extension? Was it good or bad, and how confident are you that he will right the ship?

CHRIS BALAS: Starting with confidence level … not very high, only because the confident, cocky Jim Harbaugh who signed on in 2015 seems to have given way to a less-motivated version of himself. We can speculate on the reasons why, and he’ll deny he’s changed (and has), but it’s pretty obvious. And without the ‘what’s your deal?’ Harbaugh, it’s going to be hard to be competitive against the best teams on the schedule.

In addition, it seems he’s too often relied on others on personnel decisions that have left this team bare at positions (defensive line, for one).

But the terms are great for both parties. If it works, and Harbaugh regains his edge, great. If not, you start getting your ducks in a row for the next guy and make a move in a year or two.

The goodwill is long gone, though. The jackhammer needs to return.

AUSTIN FOX: No reaction. This might be a boring answer, but Harbaugh coming back isn’t disastrous for the program, and it’s probably not great either — it’s somewhere in between. Harbaugh’s tenure from here on out is more likely to resemble the 2019 9-4 campaign we saw, as opposed to this past season’s horrendous 2-4 debacle. It doesn’t seem likely that he can take the program to the elite heights so many were hoping for when he was hired, with contention for national titles once being the expectation.