Does Michigan want to win? Jim Harbaugh saga raises questions

According to multiple reports, Warde Manuel is low-balling Jim Harbaugh and it makes you wonder if Michigan football is even committed to winning? 

There are plenty of Michigan football fans who are upset with Jim Harbaugh over his flirtation with the NFL and this contract re-negotiation with the Wolverines.

But let’s not forget, that Michigan football just finished off its best season in 24 years. The Wolverines finished third in the final AP Poll, won the Big Ten, and beat Ohio State.

So why is Warde Manuel still trying to pay Jim Harbaugh less in annual salary than guys like Mel Tucker and James Franklin, who finished third and fourth respectively in the Big Ten East?

I get that Tucker is 2-0 against Harbaugh. But we all know the Wolverines were robbed in East Lansing. Plus, Harbaugh’s program actually won the Big Ten and wasn’t embarrassed by Ohio State 49-7.

Even so, Tucker basically got $10 million a year from the Spartans, the second that LSU started sniffing around about MSU’s head coach. It was the smart move and now has set up Sparty for long-term success, which is aided by the efforts of the Spartans in NIL.

The question is, why won’t Michigan make the same moves?

Nick Baumgardner of the Athletic reported this last week about Harbaugh. That he was in talks with Michigan football and that they had offered Harbaugh a raise.

But as he reported later and as Chris Balas reported on Monday night via The Wolverine (subscription required) that Michigan has offered Harbaugh something in the $7-8 million range which would still leave him behind Ryan Day, Tucker, and James Franklin.

If that’s true and I believe it is because Balas isn’t the only one reporting that number, then it’s a slap in the face of Jim Harbaugh.

The day after he won the Big Ten championship, Manuel should have offered him a 10-year deal worth $100 million and all the money he wanted for assistants. If he had, my bet is that we wouldn’t be talking about Harbaugh to the NFL at all.

Instead, Manuel sat on his hands, and when it was time to negotiate, he lowballed Harbaugh who is coming off this best season with the Wolverines and is as hot as he’s been in a decade.

That makes about as much sense as the University not allowing players to use the Block M logo for NIL purposes.

Michigan could do more with NIL. It chooses not to. Michigan State is going to have a big advantage in that department because it actually wants to win.

When it comes to Michigan football, you have to wonder if it feels the same way?

Michigan dropped the ball with Jim Harbaugh

As Harbaugh once said, actions speak louder than words, and his actions right now, are speaking pretty loudly.

As John Bacon indicated on Twitter Monday, nobody knows anything but that he’s hearing some about the Vikings. Balas reported that the Dolphins are showing some interest and after Stephen Ross said just a couple of weeks ago he wasn’t going to take Harbaugh from Michigan, that’s really concerning. It could mean Harbaugh is set on an NFL return.

And with the way Manuel has treated him, it’s hard to blame him. Yes, he should have had his salary cut. But when he climbed the mountain, he should have been given a blank check.

Not just in terms of salary but everything this program needs to compete. Right now, trying to win a national title at Michigan is like an NFL team trying to do it without a first-round pick every single year. That’s basically what the Wolverines are up against.

Why? Because the program won’t do what it takes to win. Not when it comes to NIL and definitely not when it comes to keeping its elite head coach.