ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Despite initial reports that Michigan would have to make Jim Harbaugh the richest coach in college football history to lure him away from the NFL, the former Wolverines quarterback accepted a much smaller annual salary of $5 million over seven seasons to return to his alma mater.
Why would the most coveted coach in the country accept a smaller salary? Because as a new regime begins at Michigan, Harbaugh is hoping to put together one of the best all-around coaching staffs in the game. As a result, Harbaugh will have more flexibility and resources at his expense while filling the open coaching positions on his staff.
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Since his official hiring on Tuesday, Michigan's new head coach has been slammed with coaching duties. He spoke to the press for nearly an hour during his introductory press conference, addressed the Michigan fan base at halftime of the basketball team's overtime win against Illinois and started gauging interest from some of the top uncommitted recruits for the upcoming season.
But most importantly, Harbaugh has been bouncing around the college and NFL ranks to put together his 2015 coaching staff.
The earliest reports surrounding Harbaugh's staff centered around current Florida interim head coach D.J. Durkin, who took over the Gators after Will Muschamp was fired during the season. According to 247 Sports, Durkin put an offer from Texas A&M to become the Aggies' new defensive coordinator on hold to see if Harbaugh would take the job at Michigan. Reports say that Durkin is expected to take the Michigan defensive coordinator job after coaching Florida in the Birmingham Bowl Saturday.
Durkin led the Gators to the No. 20 scoring defense in the country this season, despite playing a tough schedule that included Alabama, LSU, Missouri, Georgia and Florida State. He coached special teams and defensive ends for Harbaugh from 2007-2009 at Stanford.
On the other side of the ball, Harbaugh has hired Tim Drevno as his offensive coordinator, according to the LA Times. Drevno spent 2014 coaching offensive lineman at USC and did the same under Harbaugh at San Diego, Stanford and San Francisco from 2003-2013.
Drevno most recently worked with Harbaugh in San Francisco, where he helped lead three offensive linemen to the Pro Bowl from 2011-2013. He also played a major role in the emergence of Frank Gore, who is the franchise's rushing leader.
At Michigan, Drevno will lead an offense that has been buried by struggles up front, where a group of talented lineman haven't been able to keep defenders out of the backfield or open up holes for the rushing game.
With Durkin and Drevno reportedly filling the top two coordinator positions, two other names have already surfaced in regards to position coach openings. The first is San Francisco 49ers receivers coach John Morton, according to the Sacramento Bee. Morton would coach wide receivers at Michigan, but his official title could be WR coach or co-offensive coordinator.
Morton is a Michigan native, born in Auburn Hills, who coached with Harbaugh when both were offensive position coaches with the Oakland Raiders in 2002-2003. Morton then joined Harbaugh as a WR coach at San Diego in 2005 before moving to USC and eventually reuniting in 2011 in San Francisco.
In reports that surfaced as recently as Thursday, Greg Mattison is expected to return to the Michigan staff in a lesser role under Harbaugh, according to 247. The reports say that three Michigan recruit targets have heard from Mattison this week, and the school's former defensive coordinator "plans to recruit them going forward."
Though it's not clear what position Mattison will coach, he has specialized with defensive linemen and linebackers at Michigan. He led the Wolverines defense to the No. 29 national ranking in 2014, allowing just 22.4 points per game.
From 1982-1986, Mattison coached under Jim's father, Jack Harbaugh, as a D-line coach and defensive coordinator at Western Michigan.
The Michigan coaching staff won't be polished off until after the bowl season, when coaches will accept and decline offers. But with National Signing Day around the corner and a massive rebuilding job ahead of him, expect Harbaugh to move quickly in nailing down his staff.