Jim Harbaugh: The Top 5 Destinations for the Stanford Cardinal Coach
Stanford Cardinal head coach Jim Harbaugh is the subject of numerous coaching rumors and much speculation.
His name seems to surface as a candidate for every opening in the NFL, as well as some in the collegiate ranks.
When he took over the Stanford program in 2007, he inherited a 1-11 team from the previous Cardinal coach, Walt Harris.
Within four years he has turned the program around, winning a school-record 12 games following his Orange Bowl victory over Virginia Tech, 40-12.
This is only the fourth time in the 90-year history of Stanford's football program that the team finished with 10 or more wins.
Most of the speculation has Harbaugh leaving Stanford for the NFL.
Is he ready to join his big brother John as an NFL coach?
Should he take over as coach of his alma mater, Michigan?
Would he be better off staying at Stanford and going for a national championship next season?
Here's a look at five possible destinations for Harbaugh, weighing the pros and cons of each of them.
No. 5: Oakland Raiders
1 of 5
Tom Cable led the Oakland Raiders to an 8-8 record in 2010, including going 6-0 in the AFC West.
It was the best record the team has had in eight years—but still not enough to save Cable's job.
Pros
The home of the Oakland Raiders is only 29.4 miles from Stanford University. Jim Harbaugh would not have to move his family, and the Raiders organization would save on relocation expenses.
Harbaugh has some familiarity with the Oakland organization. In 2002 and 2003 he served as an assistant coach on Bill Callahan's staff, as an offensive assistant in 2002 and the quarterbacks coach in 2003.
The Raiders appear to be a team on the rise. They averaged 155.9 rushing yards per game, second best in the NFL.
As a former NFL quarterback, Harbaugh can appreciate the value of a good running game and make the best use of it to improve the quarterback play.
Cons
The Raiders have gone though eight head coaches over the past 16 years, and only one of them, Jon Gruden, finished with a winning record. Six of them failed to make it any longer than two years, and two of them coached for only a single season.
There's also the fact he would have to work for Al Davis.
Although the pros appear to outweigh the cons on this situation, Harbaugh would be wise to decline an offer from the Raiders.
No. 4: Denver Broncos
2 of 5
John Elway will be taking over football operations for the Denver Broncos. As former NFL quarterbacks, he and Jim Harbaugh might get along beautifully, as they have the same perspective.
No doubt Timmy Tebow would get plenty of advice from the two.
Former Broncos coach Josh McDaniels only lasted one-and-three-quarter seasons as the head coach. Perhaps his success as the offensive coordinator of the New England Patriots can be attributed to the pieces that were in place and not necessarily what he brought to the table.
The four wins in 2010 were the fewest for the team since a 4-9-1 record in 1971—that's 40 seasons ago!
Pros
The organization has shown great stability over the years. Since 1981 the team has had only four head coaches. Dan Reeves coached for 12 years, followed by Wade Phillips for two, then Mike Shanahan for 14 years and them McDaniels 1.75.
If the pattern holds, the next head coach of the Broncos should enjoy 16 years of success.
The Broncos have a potential franchise quarterback in Tebow. He had five touchdowns and three interceptions in seven games this season for a decent 82.1 quarterback rating. He also led the team with six rushing touchdowns.
Cons
It's never a good thing when your rookie backup quarterback leads the team with six rushing touchdowns.
Denver had the 26th-ranked rushing offense in 2010.
The defense was even worse, ranked last in the NFL, giving up over 390 yards per game.
With the return of Elway to the Broncos, the expectations could be sky-high in the Mile High City.
No. 3: San Francisco 49ers
3 of 5
At just over two-and-a-half years, Mike Singletary's tenure in San Francisco was slightly less than that of Tom Cable's in Oakland. Relieved of his coaching duties after 15 games in 2010, Singletary finished with an 18-22 record in San Francisco.
Like the Raiders, 2002 was the last time the team won at least 10 games and made the playoffs.
Pros
San Francisco's Candlestick Park is slightly closer at 28.8 miles from Stanford Stadium. Again, no need to uproot and move the family.
The tenure of coaches in San Francisco is slightly better than that in Oakland. Since George Seifert took over in 1989, there have been a total of five head coaches, an average of 4.4 years per coach.
The 49ers play in the NFC West, the weakest division in the NFL. This season Seattle was able to win the division and secure a playoff berth with a 7-9 record.
By accepting the San Francisco job Harbaugh would get the opportunity to renew his rivalry with former USC head coach Pete Carroll, who in his first year as Seahawks coach guided his team to the 7-9 record and the NFC West division title.
Cons
The 49ers appear to be a team heading in the opposite direction than that of the Raiders. In 2010 the offense was ranked 24th overall with only the 19th best rushing offense.
They have a nice young set of receivers in Michael Crabtree, Vernon Davis and Josh Morgan; the problem is they don't have the franchise quarterback to feed these guys the ball.
Perhaps with his background and experience as an NFL quarterback Harbaugh could get things turned around in San Francisco.
No. 2: Stanford Cardinal
4 of 5
Ah, it's good to be king.
With a 12-1 record and a top five ranking, Jim Harbaugh has done what no other coach in Stanford history has been able to do.
Perhaps by sticking around another year Harbaugh can convince sophomore quarterback Andrew Luck to wait one more year and take the Cardinal to the BCS National Championship Game.
Pros
From an offense that averaged 40.3 points per game, Harbaugh only loses one skill player to graduation in wide receiver Doug Baldwin, who led the team with nine touchdowns—provided, of course, Luck decides to stay.
Without an NFL collective bargaining agreement in place for next season, there is always the possibility there will be no players to coach. There is a stable situation in place for him next season at Stanford.
This will give Harbaugh the opportunity to pursue a national championship and take the Cardinal to the next step.
Lastly, you cannot beat the weather in California come November!
Cons
If Standford regresses at all next season, there's a chance that Harbaugh's stock could drop. With so many openings in the NFL right now, it might be best to strike while the situation is ripe with coaching vacancies.
With a stadium capacity of 50,000 seats, Stanford recorded only one sellout this season in the game against USC. Going into their last home game, sporting a 10-1 record, they were unable to sell out the stadium, drawing only 38,775 fans.
In six home games the average attendance was 40,042—only 80 percent of the capacity. How can the fifth-ranked team in the nation not draw any better than this?
No. 1: Michigan Wolverines
5 of 5
Yeah, I know this one is a long shot.
Even University of Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon believes Jim Harbaugh is heading for the NFL.
Rich Rodriguez' dismissal was made official Wednesday. In three years he had two losing seasons. Before that the last time the Wolverines did not have a winning season was in 1984. That year coach Bo Schembechler went 6-6 with a sophomore quarterback named Jim Harbaugh.
If Harbaugh was to go to Michigan as the head coach, he would be only the fifth coach of the Wolverines since he last played in 1986.
Pros
The Michigan program is about as low as it has been in 50 years. Harbaugh should find it easier to turn around a football powerhouse like Michigan than it was at Stanford. Within four years he could turn the program back to its winning tradition and forever be a hero.
Over the last three years under Rodriguez, when the Wolverines suffered through two losing seasons, Michigan Stadium, known as "The Big House," still drew over 110,000 fans for every home game.
He knows what it takes to coach college kids. In making the move to the NFL he would have to find the right way to motivate professional athletes—and there's precedent for him to struggle.
Cons
If he fails at Michigan, he would set his career back to an irreparable state. It would be difficult to get a lucrative NFL job after failing as a collegiate coach, regardless of his success at Stanford.
Just like in Denver, his return to Michigan could heap some high expectations onto the program, and the boosters may not be patient enough to allow him to turn the program around.
Lastly, it can get pretty cold in Michigan late in the season, especially with games in Minnesota or Wisconsin.
.png?w=600 "Who Will Panthers Take at No. 9 ? 🤔")