5 head coaches Michigan should call if Jim Harbaugh bolts for NFL

Matt Campbell (Iowa State)

There has been talk of an in-house hire such as Mike Hart or Josh Gattis, which in theory, would help keep Michigan’s assistant coaches together — in theory.

In practice, that’s a lot harder to do, so Michigan football should seek the most proven candidates available and one of the best on the market is Iowa State’s, Matt Campbell.

Last year, when Harbaugh was doing his dance with the NFL, Campbell was rumored as a top candidate to potentially replace him. The Iowa State head coach has a lot going for him. Not only has he won at an elite level at Iowa State — he’s had four straight winning seasons — he also had three nine-win campaigns as head coach of Toledo.

Campbell is an Ohio native which would be huge for recruiting. Every Michigan football fan knows that when the Wolverines were truly competitive with OSU, they were able to get kids out of Ohio, and over the last decade or so, that’s completely dried up.

Campbell could get that going again. He’s also won a Fiesta Bowl and beaten Oklahoma twice at ISU, as well as Texas. I’m aware of the struggles against Iowa, but if the guy can win at Iowa State, my bet is that he can win at Michigan.

He’s also known for having an elite culture and was the first program to offer J.J. McCarthy. So there are some other positives as well. In general, like Shaw, he’d be a great fit on the field and off.