Jim Harbaugh will be back at Michigan Stadium as an honorary captain for the Wolverines’ season opener against Fresno State on Aug. 31, Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel told the “1 Star Recruits” podcast this week. Harbaugh, who led Michigan to a 15-0 record and national championship last season, will make his debut as coach of the Los Angeles Chargers eight days later.
“I look forward to seeing him in September,”Manuel said in his appearance with 1 Star Recruits. “He’s going to be an honorary captain for our first game, and I look forward to having him back here in Ann Arbor for that game.”
The news of Harbaugh’s return comes as the Wolverines navigate the fallout from two NCAA investigations stemming from his nine-year tenure as coach. NCAA officials announced a four-year show-cause penalty for Harbaugh this week for recruiting violations that occurred during the COVID-19 dead period. Harbaugh’s “unethical conduct” and “failure to cooperate” as well as what the NCAA described as “his provision of false or misleading information” constituted a Level I NCAA violation, according to the NCAA’s announcement.
Michigan is also awaiting final word on punishments for the sign-stealing scandal that embroiled the program during its 15-0 march to last season’s national title. Between those two NCAA cases and Harbaugh’s repeated flirtations with NFL opportunities, his relationship with Manuel became a regular source of speculation.
During his recent podcast appearance, Manuel made it clear that he advocated for Harbaugh to remain the program’s leader, even as NCAA penalties loomed.
“I wanted to have Jim stay here,” Manuel said. “I really had a great conversation with his lawyers, I had great conversations with him. He, I think, was looking at two options. As he said when he had his press conference, he couldn’t win a Lombardi Trophy if he remained at Michigan, and that was something he wanted to do. When he called me to let me know he was going to leave, I told him I was sad for us but happy for him and want him to be successful, and I’ll be cheering him on this season to have great success.”
