Jim Harbaugh writes farewell to Michigan and shares his excitement about joining the Chargers

In his farewell letter to Michigan, Jim Harbaugh expresses his excitement about joining the Chargers: “I shall always be a loyal Wolverine.”

In his final season as head coach at Michigan, Jim Harbaugh led the Wolverines to a national championship. Harbaugh spent nine seasons teaching at Michigan. As he returns to the NFL, he is now bidding farewell.

The Chargers concluded their coaching search on Wednesday by announcing that Harbaugh had been hired. For the first time since his firing by the 49ers at the end of the 2014 NFL season, Harbaugh will return to the NFL as a coach on a five-year contract.

As he got ready to begin his NFL career, Harbaugh bid an emotional farewell to Michigan on Thursday.

“My affection for Michigan, having both played and returned to teach there, left a profound impression,” Harbaugh penned. “I will be a devoted Wolverine for eternity.”

At each of his coaching stops, Harbaugh added, he has been able to forge “deep personal connections.”

Harbaugh was intrigued to the Chargers position in part because of this. As he stated in his statement, he already has a close relationship with the Spanos family.

“The Spanos family could not have been more courteous or more hospitable when I played for the Chargers,” Harbaugh remarked. “Seeing that those things have not changed makes coming back here seem like home.”

It was not shocking to see Harbaugh sign with the Chargers. Even without his affiliation with the team, Los Angeles was thought to have some of the NFL’s best job opportunities. Its system is well-designed, and Justin Herbert is a quarterback of the highest caliber on the team. To be a contender in the AFC, the Bolts simply need to play better defense.

Not that Harbaugh, in his second stint as head coach of the NFL, is taking that for granted. As he puts his philosophy into practice in Los Angeles, he wants to make sure the Chargers emerge, carve out a niche for themselves, and figure out how to keep getting better.

“We know we have to earn our way because the only job you start at the top is digging a hole,” he wrote. “Make today better than yesterday. Make tomorrow better than today. My three main objectives are football, family, and faith. We will pursue each of them with a zeal that has never been seen in human history.”

Harbaugh thinks that, given the Chargers’ current performance, it will not be too long until that occurs.

“This group is working hard, allocating resources, constructing facilities, and exerting every effort to succeed,” he wrote.

“We are only getting started, but tremendous work equals great outcomes.”