Michigan football: Jim Harbaugh could get a raise out of NFL rumors

Jim Harbaugh has been chatting with Dolphins majority owner Stephen Ross, but not about the NFL team’s recent vacancy at the head coaching position. 

The NFL’s infamous Black Monday comes at the end of every season to cull the least effective coaches from their prestigious ranks, and the results are rarely a surprise.

The “Fire Matt Nagy” chants turned to cheers in Chicago, Vikings Twitter was heeded in firing Mike Zimmer, and in a shocking twist, the Dolphins are done with Brian Flores after the team won eight of their nine final games.

With that vacancy now available, some are speculating that NFL ownership could be looking to borrow success from the NCAA’s premier coaches, so reports that Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh and Dolphins owner Stephen Ross have been chatting this week could look like Harbaugh is considering a jump back to the big leagues.

Alas, that is not the case: Harbaugh isn’t interested in coaching the Miami Dolphins. However, he is leaning on Ross’ powerful influence to advance his career in a different way: Harbaugh is talking to Ross about getting a raise at Michigan.

Ross, who is a major benefactor at Michigan, has the sway to advocate that Harbaugh deserves a raise — and stoking NFL rumors only helps Harbaugh to increase his value as the Wolverines convince him to stay.

Jim Harbaugh uses NFL connection to advocate for a bigger contract

Ross, who got his Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Michigan in 1962, is the largest donor in Michigan’s history, donating a total of $478 million to the university over his lifetime. Recent Wolverine alumni would remember Ross, as several campus buildings are named in honor of his multi-million dollar contributions, including the Ross School of Business, the Stephen M. Ross Academic Center, and the Stephen M. Ross Athletic Campus.

Although Harbaugh is coaching at Ross’ beloved alma mater, he makes considerably less than he would if he were to coach the Miami Dolphins. Last year, Harbaugh signed a four-year contract with a base salary of $4 million per year, with $100,000-plus increases per year and incentives for making Big Ten titles, College Football Playoff appearances and national titles.

Harbaugh reached some of those bonuses this year, as Michigan made its first College Football Playoff appearance after a Big Ten Championship victory.

In the NFL and NCAA, Harbaugh has the accolades and the wins to argue for a more valuable contract — and now, he has Michigan’s biggest benefactor in his corner advocating for more than $4 million a year.