The external perception of Jim Harbaugh is a stark contrast from how Michigan's eighth-year head coach is perceived internally.
Following a storybook 2021 season, the former 49ers head coach interviewed with the Vikings, and in doing so, he gave certain media pundits a long list of narratives to blast on a national stage.
Here's a 7-minute ESPN segment as an example:
Typically, you'll hear coachspeak in response to media thrashing, especially from Harbaugh. In years past, his answers in press conferences were criticized, and rightfully so. It's no secret that Harbaugh didn't perform the media side of things exceptionally well in the past.
Whether it was an outburst about the officiating following Ohio State or telling reporters, he'll 'answer your questions, not your insults,' when asked about the talent gap between his Wolverines and the Buckeyes, his media "skills" lacked in comparison to his peers. At the very least, though, Harbaugh wasn't lying. He didn't give opening statements or reveal depth charts, but he was doing it his way and probably saw no wrong because that's who the guy is: unorthodox, outside the box, and 100-percent authentic.
He certainly hasn't changed his character. He is who he is. He will always be who he is. But to ignore his evolution is to neglect reality. How he acts now -- the way he interacts with media, handles its questions, and his ora overall -- is a stark contrast to how he interacted with media in years past.
In his first press conference of spring practice, and his first since taking an NFL interview with the Vikings, Harbaugh was receptive, interactive, and engaged with the media. He made it clear his interest in the NFL had closed. A media scrum included multiple reporters asking questions about his allegiance to the University following his NFL interview, and he didn't budge. Reporters are bound to ask baited questions only to receive snarky responses in today's times. It happens everywhere, but it didn't happen in Ann Arbor that day.
Harbaugh held his own. Throughout the presser, he joked, smiled, and playfully referenced those "who love to hate and hate to love" Michigan.
Seemingly stress-free following a month of widespread rumors, narratives, and hearsay, Michigan's head coach is right where he wants to be in Ann Arbor. Because it's his alma mater, and he loves U-M, now more than ever because his roster and coaching staff are loaded and bought into the football-loving, contact-craving team identity he's dreamed of building as the head coach.
The difference now is what's gone on internally. There are no egos in the locker room, and there are more leaders. There are no internal questions surrounding Harbaugh and his staff. The staff is embraced, appreciated, and loved by players. Meanwhile, Harbaugh's relationship with the entire building has never been as glowing.
I never realized what Jim Harbaugh was trying to build in this generation until he built it in 2021.
What he tried and failed to create in his first six seasons finally came to fruition in 2021. A team that embodies his craziness for the sport enough to give him the confidence to let them be themselves in a more hands-off approach rather than restricting them with a scheme or peculiar technical preferences.
You can credit this culture shift to a more open-minded Harbaugh, who revamped his staff that turned a 2-4 roster into a Big Ten title and a win against Ohio State, which are two things it didn't achieve Harbaugh's first six seasons.
The bottom line is that Harbaugh started looking more at what's around him and letting his personnel have more freedom with careful guidance rather than trying to steer the wheel.
He hired young, energetic, personable assistants with easy-to-approach personalities who relate to the players while keeping collaborative, team-oriented thinking at the forefront.
The product of all of that? A group of football players and coaches at a place they all love to be right now.
Yet, this NFL interview was like a gloomy cloud hovering over his external reputation. Along with a report that he had already accepted the Vikings' job, more rumors and fairytales found their way to the internet.
Harbaugh scheduled a week off for the staff from Jan. 31-Feb. 4, which happened to fall during Harbaugh's interview. Shortly after the Georgia loss, that was scheduled to give the building's staff a break. It's not uncommon.
Harbaugh, of course, took the interview on National Signing Day, and that's uncommon. From there, it turned into a plethora of angles. Michigan wasn't signing any recruits that day. The only unsigned recruit it was pursuing was Josh Conerly, who pushed back his decision to sign and has still yet to announce. Was it a good look? No, but did Michigan lose a recruit? No.
Then, offensive coordinator Josh Gattis left after Harbaugh decided to stay. That recharged more theories surrounding Harbaugh's interview's negative impact on the program. Gattis interviewed for head coaching jobs, didn't get them, and found himself still at Michigan when the NFL rumors wrapped around. Once Harbaugh decided to stay, Gattis was gone four days later.
This chaotic noise surrounded the program following its most successful season in two decades, yet internally, it was the same atmosphere as before.
"I honestly forgot that happened until you asked me about it," one source said this week when asked about the internal aftermath to Harbaugh's NFL interest. "Nothing's changed. It was never different in here."
While Twitter and message boards alike lost their minds over what it would be like for Harbaugh to 'return' to Michigan, it was another day at the office when the staff returned to work that following Monday, even without Gattis.
"They don't know what's going on here."
When he took the interview with the Vikings, he hid nothing from his players or staff.
"I know Coach Harbaugh well. I don't blame him for what he did. He was straight up with us. He told us what he was doing. He didn't lie to us. I respected that a lot," Michigan sixth-year tight end Joel Honigford said. "I know that he loves Michigan, and I know he loves us. He's here now for a reason -- it's not by chance that he's still here for a reason. People like to put their own twist on it and make it seem a certain way that it's not. Fortunately, we're able to know the real reasons why everything happens."
"I know Coach Harbaugh, and I know why he does what he does. So I didn't bat an eye once."
That wasn't the only player loudly supporting Harbaugh either.
"Honestly, he was so honest and upfront with me that I felt comfortable and happy to show him my support no matter what he chose," quarterback Cade McNamara said. "I think my relationship with him, and for him to be so honest with me in a moment like that, I appreciate that as a player, as a man. We're happy he's here."
Yet, externally, guys like Aaron Torres claim Harbaugh ruined any chance of carrying momentum into 2022 because Gattis and a conveniently unnamed assistant were upset that Harbaugh, who signed a 7-year contract, interviewed for an N.F.L. job after the seven years were up.
He also claimed Harbaugh was 'scrambling' to replace Gattis when, in real life, Harbaugh seamlessly reshuffled the staff with who many internally to be an upgrade over Gattis in the duo of Sherrone Moore & Matt Weiss.
"Jim is aggressive by nature. It's how he was as a player, and it's how he is as a coach. I think that's one reason why people are drawn to him and players love him," Michigan co-offensive coordinator Matt Weiss said. "He's smart, logical. Anytime you can reason things out with him, he has great ideas. He's really easy to work with. He's been awesome."
The widespread negative dialogue surrounding Harbaugh by national and some local media led to a porous start to the year in terms of P.R. for Michigan. Meanwhile, internally, it was like the 19th second of "Juicy" by The Notorious B.I.G. on repeat because 'it's all good baby, baby.'
"Been a lot of words used of 'tumultuous off-season,' or 'weird off-season,' 'so much going on off-season' — if the word tumultuous means we got a lot of momentum, and we're having a blast over here at Schembechler Hall, then that's what we're having," Harbaugh said in his first press conference of spring football.
That's not coach-speak. The halls of Schembechler have never been as productive and healthy under Harbaugh as they are now.
Behind closed doors, multiple TMBR sources aligned with these thoughts. To keep it authentic: media members typically have a book of things they know that they'll never be able to share. Additionally, we're bound to hear intel from various sources that often provide different perspectives.
In the case of this program, though, it's consistently high praise for the well-oiled machine it became in a year.
These aren't quotes for the television to save face. What you hear from the players and coaches at the podium is what's going on behind the curtain. That wasn't always the case here, and it happens at schools across the country.
Michigan has become an all-hands-on-deck, live-action version of what a Jim Harbaugh-directed football movie about his alma mater would be.
Whether or not the Wolverines can return to the College Football Playoff, repeat as Big Ten Champions, and beat the Buckeyes for a second consecutive season remains the offseason's biggest question. However, there's no questioning that the program's culture is at a new peak.
In college football, stability and consistency don't come easy. Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma overnight, Brian Kelly did the same to Notre Dame, and Texas gets coaches from Rent-A-Center every 3-to-4 years.
And even when you've won over 90% of your games as a head coach, you can end up being forced to resign, taking a media job for a year, then go to the N.F.L. only to be forced out again and the subject of the world's most extraordinary hit piece on a former N.F.L. head coach.
To know your ceiling is the roof with your head coach, who you know isn't centered around controversy or looking elsewhere, is a luxury as a college football fan.
"Right now, it’s scary good. To try to define what that is, you know the law of averages is going to catch up to you at some point, but that’s the place we want to be," Harabaugh said. "As I walk around our field, whether it’s our weight room, whether it’s out there with the guys, coaches, and players, it’s people that are engaged, players come up to you, they’ve got a smile on their face. ‘What’s up, coach? What do we got today?’ It just makes the days fly by.
Michigan lacks no talent on its roster, especially at the offensive skill positions. So long as the culture continues to be what it's been for the past calendar year, this program will consistently contend for the first time in a long time.
Harbaugh's reconstruction project in Ann Arbor took longer than expected. Still, with a mauling offensive line, double-tight end sets, and an NFL-schemed defense, it has the makeup of a repeatably successful program year by year. This is what he built.
Externally, the media will always angle Harbaugh, which may sometimes be justified. Harbaugh's antics sell, so they'll likely blow his next 'stunt' out of proportion, and we'll have this conversation all over again.
While all that's going on, internally, he's got a group of guys who take him seriously when he says he would cut his arm off to play football again.
Maybe it's because they would, too.
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