Jim Harbaugh, family embrace after winning national championship

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh made it his goal to bring the Wolverines a national championship when he became the head coach of his alma mater ahead of the 2015 football season. Nine years later he’s done just that, leading the Wolverines to a 34-14 win over Washington on Monday night to secure their first national championship win since 1997.

After making the College Football Playoff in two consecutive seasons, Harbaugh has now taken Michigan over the hump and to the mountain top of college football. Adding yet another accomplishment to his impressive coaching career.

But Harbaugh’s coaching journey starts as the son of a coach, Jack Harbaugh, who raised Jim and his brother John (the current head coach of the Baltimore Ravens) around the game of football. After the championship win, Harbaugh celebrated with Jack, John, and his mother Jackie in a special moment that can be seen below.

Harbaugh and his family after the game ❤️#NationalChampionship pic.twitter.com/fTIqtlUxhA

— ESPN (@espn) January 9, 2024

Harbaugh moved frequently in his childhood thanks to his father Jack’s coaching career, making various stops as an assistant coach before landing his first collegiate head coaching gig with Western Michigan in 1982. After five seasons with the Broncos, he’d become the head coach at Western Kentucky ahead of the 1989 season, a role he’d continue to be in for the next 14 years.

Both of Jack’s sons would take up coaching, with John Harbaugh currently in his 16th season as the Baltimore Ravens head coach and Jim Harbaugh attaining success at both the professional and collegiate levels. The two head coaches squared off against each other in Super Bowl XLVII, with John coaching the Ravens and Jim in the midst of his second season as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.

Super Bowl XLVII was likely a high point and a proud father moment for Jack Harbaugh, with both of his sons reaching the pinnacle of professional football. John’s Ravens took home a narrow 34-31 over his little brother in the Super Bowl, but Jim has now reached the pinnacle of college football in a moment that the entire Harbaugh family got to enjoy in Houston on Monday.

There are a lot of rumors and speculation regarding if Jim Harbaugh will return to the NFL following Michigan’s national championship victory, with numerous NFL teams needing a head coach in 2024 and the Wolverines’ sign-stealing investigation still pending.

Regardless, all eyes will be on Harbaugh to see what his next coaching move will be moving forward.