Category: Michigan Wolverines

Breaking: Jim Harbaugh named head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers

Jim Harbaugh is NFL-bound after being lured away from Michigan.

After weeks of speculation, the Michigan Wolverines will now join the wild coaching carousel of the 2024 offseason. It was reported that head coach Jim Harbaugh will be returning to the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers.

Harbaugh last coached in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers, where he led them to the Super Bowl but failed to secure the Lombardi Trophy against his brother John Harbaugh in Super Bowl XLVII.

As a head coach in the NFL, Harbaugh has a combined record of 44-19-1 with an NFC Championship in 2012. In each of the first three seasons in San Francisco, Harbaugh led the 49ers to an NFC Championship game berth. He left the NFL following the 2014 season in which they finished 8-8.

Adam Schefter reported the news on Wednesday. After flirting with the NFL in almost every offseason, the Chargers finally won the Jim Harbaugh sweepstakes.

Harbaugh is coming off a CFP National Championship, in which the Wolverines were a perfect 15-0. Over the last three seasons, Michigan made the CFP Playoffs in each season and finally got over the hump in the 2023 season with victories over the Alabama Crimson Tide and Washington Huskies to give UM its first title since 1997.

Now Michigan will begin its search for the next head coach of the Wolverines. Offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Sherrone Moore is the likely candidate to replace Harbaugh as the new head coach. Moore served as the interim head coach in the wins over Ohio State and Bowling Green.

Recently, Bruce Feldman listed Brian Kelly as a potential candidate as the next head coach at Michigan. Kelly last coached in the state of Michigan with the Central Michigan Chippewas from 2004 to 2006. He was also at Grand Valley State in Allendale, Michigan, from 1987 until 2003.

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh interviews for Falcons opening

Atlanta Falcons announced that the organization interviewed Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh for the team’s head coaching vacancy.

Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh is fresh off of his first National Championship with the Wolverines, but he does not appear to be taking the time to celebrate it.

On Jan. 16, the Atlanta Falcons announced that the organization completed an interview with Harbaugh amongst other potential candidates for their head coaching vacancy. This comes only eight days after Michigan defeated Washington 34-13 in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

Harbaugh has been with the Wolverines since 2015, leading them to an overall record of 86-25 in his tenure. Many believed that Harbaugh would be a Wolverine until he retired, but the recent interview begs the question of whether Jim is ready to return to the NFL. Before accepting the Michigan job, Harbaugh was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, where he was bested by his brother John in the 2013 Super Bowl against the Baltimore Ravens.

The Wolverines are still riding high off their first National Championship since 1997, but losing their beloved coach could put a damper on the celebrations. As noted, Michigan might not have to worry, for the Falcons have interviewed multiple potential candidates. However, the void that the loss of Harbaugh would create would not go unnoticed in Ann Arbor.

Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy declares for the NFL Draft

The Wolverines quarterback only lost one game in college and helped lead Michigan to a national championship this season.

Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy won’t be back in Ann Arbor for a repeat effort, as he announced on Sunday that he would declare for the 2024 NFL draft.

“This decision was not easy and how could it be,” McCarthy wrote in his statement.

“It is almost impossible to put into words what this University and my time here has meant to me,” he added.

McCarthy started for the Wolverines for the past two seasons, winning all but one of his games. He led Michigan to two Big Ten conference titles (thanks to consecutive wins over Ohio State), two College Football Playoff appearances, and the 2023 national title in a big win over Washington.

Across his three seasons as a Wolverine, McCarthy threw for 6,266 yards, 49 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He only threw 10 more attempts in 2023 than he did the year prior, but he completed 32 more passes for 272 yards as he increased his efficiency across the board.

He added 632 yards and 10 touchdowns with his legs.

McCarthy’s draft stock will be curious to watch, as his underlying stats are efficient but the Wolverines only asked him to throw 21 attempts per game across their last six games of the season, including 18 passes in the title game and only eight attempts in a victory over Penn State.

Get more Michigan coverage at Wolverines Wire.

The latest on Michigan head Jim Harbaugh and potential NFL suitors

A Saturday report from NFL Network updated Harbaugh’s status with the Chargers, Raiders, and the Wolverines.

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh might still be celebrating his first CFP National Championship, but the rest of the football world is trying to figure out whose sidelines he will be roaming once fall rolls around again.

A Saturday morning report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport elaborated on Harbaugh, a former NFL head coach with the San Francisco 49ers, and his chances of returning to the professional ranks.

The report said Harbaugh is expected to speak with the Los Angeles Chargers sometime next week and said those in Harbaugh’s circle think there’s a reasonable chance he would leave the Wolverines for the job. The Raiders are also apparently interested in the Michigan coach, but interim head coach Antonio Pierce has the locker room, including stars like edge rusher Maxx Crosby and wide receiver Davante Adams, advocating for him.

Rapoport and Pelissero added that Harbaugh and Michigan are still negotiating a potential extension in the middle of all this in a week that’s already seen Florida State and Texas in extension talks with their coaches to keep them from other jobs.

Top-selling Michigan Wolverines National Championship gear

Check out the top-selling gear since Michigan won the National Championship at places like Fanatics, BreakingT, Nike and more:

Now that the dust has settled and cooler heads have prevailed…Michigan fans are just as excited as they were on Monday night after winning the school’s first football National Championship in more than 25 years!

It’s been a heck of a season for Wolverines fans, and now it’s time to celebrate.

Wolverines Wire has compiled some of the best-selling items from sites like Fanatics and BreakingT.

Many of these top-selling items are in short supply, so act fast if you want to capitalize on the championship swag.

Gear up for a long offseason and show off your pride for the Maize and Blue with National Championship t-shirts, hats, hoodies and just about anything else a fan might want.

Best Michigan Wolverines 2023 National Championship gear: How to buy UM championship apparel

Celebrate Michigan’s National Championship with all the new gear from Nike, Fanatics, BreakingT and more:

Hail to the victors!

For the first time in the College Football Playoff era, Michigan Football are your national champions, defeating No. 2 Washington 34-13.

The Wolverines completed their undefeated season with a dominant defensive display, holding No. 2 Washington to a season low 13 points.

Michigan scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, and though Washington closed the gap for a while, the Wolverines never relinquished the lead.

Michigan fans, it’s officially time to celebrate. Luckily, Wolverines Wire has got the perfect way to commemorate this national championship.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop Michigan National Championship apparel” link=”https://fanatics.93n6tx.net/xk6ZB3″]

The list below features all the best Michigan National Championship apparel  including hats, t-shirts, hoodies and more.

Celebrate Michigan’s perfect season with new swag from Nike, Jordan, Fanatics, and BreakingT.

Michigan football wins national title

Welp.

Welp. Jim Harbaugh did something his college coach Bo Schembechler couldn’t pull off, and that’s take the ultimate prize in college football. For the first time since 1997 when Michigan shared the national title with Nebraska, the Wolverines won it all by defeating Washington 34-13 on Monday night.

Michigan jumped out to a 17-3 early in the second quarter and never trailed despite the Huskies and quarterback Michael Penix Jr. making a game of it until late in the fourth quarter. Washington pulled to within 17-10 at halftime and then 20-13 midway through the third quarter, but couldn’t get any consistency going on offense against a Wolverines’ defense that gave up just 301 yards to one of the most explosive offenses in the country.

Michigan was especially stingy on third down, allowing a conversion on just 2-of-13 attempts. Penix threw for over 250 yards but many opportunities were left on the field because of a relentless Michigan pass rush.

Now, it’s officially the offseason and we’ll have plenty of to discuss as things continue to take shape next year.

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Watch: Donovan Edwards breaks free for the game’s first score for Michigan

Donovan Edwards get the Michigan Wolverines on the board with a 41 yard touchdown run.

College football’s National Championship game has begun as the Michigan Wolverines and the Washington Huskies face off.

The No. 1 ranked Wolverines got the ball first and drove down the field for the game’s first touchdown. The scoring drive went a total of 84 yards, mostly on the ground. The drive spanned a total of eight plays, six on the ground. Quarterback J.J. McCarthy completed both of his passes for 18 yards, both to Cornelius Johnson.

Running back Donovan Edwards got loose and took the ball 41 yards for the score.

The play was the first big play of a game that could feature multiple big plays. Michigan leads 7 – 0 after Edwards’ touchdown run.

Washington will need to slow down the running game and explosive plays from the Wolverines.

Michigan vs Washington will be a battle of good vs evil

When Michigan and Washington face off for the college football National Championship, it will be a battle of good versus evil in the minds of a lot of fans.

Football Blue Blood vs the Upstart

Eighteen-time National Champion vs one-time split National Champion

David vs Goliath

Good vs Evil?

American sports fans love a good underdog story. Watching the New England Patriots win yet another Super Bowl is fun, but seeing them fall to the New York Giants was epic. Mike Tyson was everyone’s favorite boxer, but Buster Douglas became a legend after beating him in 1990. Underdog stories are the best kind of stories.

The Michigan Wolverines will meet the Washington Huskies in the college football National Championship game on Jan. 8. Both teams are 14-0 coming into the game, and both have had tremendous seasons. However, the game is a tale of big, bad Michigan taking on a Washington team that few expected to be in this position. So the underdog story is built in. However, it feels like even more than that this year.

By now, every college football fan is aware of the sign-stealing scandal involving the Michigan football team. Staff member Connor Stalions was accused of leading a sign-stealing operation that may go back quite a while. This effort included recording other teams’ sideline signals with cell phones, which is banned by the NCAA. There are also rules in place that forbid sending people to scout opponents in person ahead of games, which Michigan also allegedly did.

As the story broke, and then became mainstream, the Wolverines quickly became the villains in the college football universe. Despite their claims that other teams did it first. Eventually, head coach Jim Harbaugh accepted a three-game suspension over the incident. Michigan moved on with its season, which, of course, led to the Playoff and a trip to the National Championship game appearance, much to the chagrin of a large number of college football fans.

Many fans see Michigan as “cheaters” who don’t deserve a championship, and many are convinced that the NCAA will eventually wipe away their title if they win.

Washington, on the other hand, has loads of goodwill. They’re led by a very likable quarterback in Michael Penix, who leads one of the top ten offenses in the nation. The offense also features a terrific receiver unit, including Rome Odunze, who will likely be a top-15 draft pick soon. They’re a fun team to watch, while Michigan features an offense built around the running game with Blake Corum and defense.

Jan. 8 will be a contrast of styles, and, in the eyes of many, a battle of good vs evil. That is certainly an exaggeration of the highest magnitude, but realistically, it’s how many fans will view it. Michigan appears to be the favorite to win according to the betting lines. Washington, though, will be the favorite in the hearts of most. To those fans, the Huskies are the good guys after all.