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Did San Francisco 49ers push Jim Harbaugh to Michigan?

By Brian Spaen

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Reports are coming in that San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh is going to accept the University of Michgian’s offer to become their new football coach. If reports hold true, there’s multiple reasons — such as the luxurious contract and ties with the program — why he would take the job. However, his first head coaching gig in the NFL could be the reason why he won’t be pursuing another job in the league.

After all the success Harbaugh had in his first three seasons with the 49ers, the relationship will all but likely come to a bitter end after Sunday’s regular season finale against the Arizona Cardinals. There’s no reason to have much hope for the head coach to stick around in San Francisco. He’s not fighting back with reporters and has the typical “whatever happens, happens” mentality on his future.

There was obvious disconnect between Harbaugh and the 49ers after a report was released shortly after the 2013 season that the coach was involved in a possible trade to the Cleveland Browns. Multiple reports of dysfunction in the locker room and players siding against the coach were rampant in the early parts of this season.

Despite all the distractions, San Francisco still won a lot of games in the first half of the season with a couple of missteps. They had close losses against Chicago and St. Louis, and the offense clearly took a step back in trying to make Colin Kaepernick more of a passing quarterback. Even with that, they headed into Thanksgiving night against Seattle and would have been in a great position had they beaten them.

Instead, that’s where the season spiraled. The 49ers mustered just 164 total yards of offense and lost 19-3. They went on to lose their next three games, again beaten by the Seahawks and two losses to the AFC West — including the Oakland Raiders. Now San Francisco is ready to part ways with their head coach

This isn’t your typical head coach firing though. Just one late season meltdown should never cost anybody their job, but it’s clear the 49ers didn’t like how Harbaugh was running the ship. Instead of letting him do things his way, they butted in and decided that he wasn’t worth the apparent headache. Two names in the front office — owner Jim York and general manager Trent Baalke — have been the most talked about guys that have clashed with Harbaugh’s personality.

For Michigan football, they’re clearly hitting the restart button. The Wolverines registered five or more losses in the last three seasons. Their athletic director, Dave Brandon, resigned in late October and head coach Brady Hoke was fired the night after the season was over.

With a six-year, $48 million contract on the table, a fanbase that is craving success, and all the power in the world with a program he was once a quarterback of, it looks to be enough to convince Harbaugh that it’s the next chapter in his journey. He would never get this kind of power with any team in the NFL. His coaching style may fit better with kids then it does grown men, and some clearly had a problem when they whined about it to the NFL media.

Harbaugh’s future in the NFL may not be completely over, but all signs are pointing to it having a hiatus. If it is the end, then his first experience with the 49ers is likely the reason why.

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