Jim Harbaugh says he, Warde Manuel have a good relationship

Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh is back in the saddle for another ride with the Wolverines in 2023. This was not a forgone conclusion during this past season, as rumors swirled that Harbaugh might be interested in making a jump back to the professional ranks. There were other rumors that he and UM Athletic Director Warde Manuel weren’t on great terms, which were only further fueled when the Wolverines were tapped with some NCAA violations back in early January.

Putting aside all the outside noise, Harbaugh did come back to Michigan for the 2023 season following the two most successful years of his tenure in Ann Arbor — both of which ended in losses in the College Football Playoff semifinals.

At his offseason press conference this week, Harbaugh made sure to clear the air over any issues people may have perceived between he and Manuel. Michigan reporter Brandon Brown reported the following from the presser:

“Jim Harbaugh says everything is great between him and Warde Manuel. Says the narrative out there simply isn’t true. Everything is good and there isn’t a worry about a contract situation.”

Per Jim Harbaugh, it’s all blue skies and rainbows between he and his boss. Michigan fans have to like the sound of that after an uneasy stream of news regarding their relationship in the past few months.

Harbaugh also gives Blake Corum update during press conference

The bigger news out of the press conference, perhaps, is the important update Coach Harbaugh gave on the recovery of star running Blake Corum following his meniscus tear at the end of the 2022 season.

Here was that update, per On3’s Anthony Broome:

“Blake Corum is not participating in drills this spring, but is still working out and keeping up with strength and conditioning. Harbaugh says they expect him to be full go sometime around June.”

Corum put together a tremendous 2022 campaign, amassing over 1,400 yards in the 12 games he appeared in before having his year cut short ahead of Michigan’s return trip to the College Football Playoff. To the surprise of some, Corum opted not to go to the NFL Draft and instead will return to the Wolverines next season. With his health so up in the air, many folks believed he would go ahead and put his name in to avoid dropping significantly if he’s not 100% next year.

Alas, Corum will be back on the field and is expected to be fully healthy by the fall, where he’ll have an opportunity to prove to the professional ranks that he’s as good as new.