Michigan President Santa Ono releases ambiguous statement on retaining Jim Harbaugh
There has been a lot of uncertainty surrounding Michigan’s football program in the week since losing in the College Football Playoff Semifinal to TCU, and things got even more confusing as Michigan President Santa Ono released an ambiguous statement regarding Jim Harbaugh’s future with the Wolverines.
There have been rumors of Harbaugh’s departure for the NFL, and Ono gave a statement about his feelings toward the situation.
“I pleased to share that I have been having very positive and constructive conversations with our Athletic Director and Football Coach,” Ono said in the statement on Twitter. “Warde Manuel and I both want to see Jim Harbaugh stay as the head football coach of the University of Michigan Wolverines”
Harbaugh gave a statement in response to Ono’s, but it didn’t clear up the situation that much.
“I am in full support of President Ono’s message to our fans and appreciate his support of me and the team,” Harbaugh said.
Harbaugh has had two stints in the NFL. He was a quarterbacks coach for the Oakland Raiders from 2002 to 2003 and coached the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014 before taking the job at Michigan.
While the statements on Thursday didn’t seem to clear the air much, we at least know that Harbaugh is having conversations with the higher-ups.
#GoBlue https://t.co/hBHOyqotDx pic.twitter.com/Fce3ddopKx
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) January 12, 2023