Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh Dodges Chargers Questions Ahead of Rose Bowl

University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh dodged questions about the Los Angeles Chargers at a Rose Bowl press conference Wednesday. Harbaugh has been named as a potential candidate for the NFL team’s head coach position in 2024.

Harbaugh is currently preparing the Wolverines for a College Football Playoff matchup with Alabama in the Rose Bowl. The winner of that game advances to play either Washington or Texas for the national championship.

The Michigan head coach is currently under investigation for recruiting violations and has also been barred from the sideline during games more much of this season for allegations of sign stealing. But instead of focusing on his potential future in college football or the NFL, Harbaugh has repeatedly stated that he is focused on the present moment.

“Yeah, just a very one-track mind about this game,” Harbaugh said. “Right now, just have fun with the family and the team and the players…. We’re gonna enjoy ourselves. And then get back to business, see if we can’t dominate the day. Got some good meetings tonight. We’ll wake up tomorrow and practice, see if we can’t dominate that day. … One day at a time, one play at a time, and that’s how we’re approaching each day.”

Rumors about Harbaugh returning to the NFL have come about as a result of the Chargers’ profound struggles and the coach’s own issues in college football. Shortly after the Chargers emphatically fired coach Brandon Staley after an embarrassing 63-21 loss to the Raiders, Harbaugh was hit with renewed allegations from NCAA officials that Michigan violated a number of recruiting guidelines.

Harbaugh has coached in the NFL twice, most notably as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014. In 2012, he led San Francisco to the Super Bowl but the team lost to the Baltimore Ravens, coached by his brother, John Harbaugh.

The Chargers have gained a reputation as one of the NFL’s worst underachievers in recent years. The team has quarterback Justin Herbert leading an offense featuring stars Austin Ekeler and Keenan Allen.

The team also has household names like Nick Bosa and Khalil Mack on defense. Despite all this, Los Angeles has not won a playoff game since 2018 and notoriously blew a 27-point lead to the Jaguars in the Wild Card round last year.

Article by Patrick Moquin