Warde Manuel states the belief he did not want to keep Jim Harbaugh was 'dead wrong'

Michigan is about to really begin life in the post-Jim Harbaugh era, yet there remain some misconceptions out there about the process of his departure, according to athletics director Warde Manuel.

Manuel joined The Michigan Insider for a sit-down interview and pushed back on the idea that he let Harbaugh go without a fight.

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“All the stuff that’s out there, man, it’s just ridiculous,” Warde Manuel said. “And again, it’s not that we didn’t have our differences. We did. But the feeling, the sense of people out there is just dead wrong about me not wanting Jim Harbaugh around and not doing enough to try to keep him.”

Harbaugh, of course, departed for the Los Angeles Chargers job right after winning a national title at Michigan. Things were never going to be better in college, but Harbaugh still had that NFL itch.

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Manuel explained from his perspective how things went down.

“We did a lot to try to keep him,” the Michigan athletics director said. “But the Chargers did a lot to bring him to the NFL. It is what it is, it’s competition at the highest level. As I told him when he called me, I said, ‘Man, I wish you luck. I’m sad for us, but I’m happy for you and I wish you the best and I’ll be pulling for you.’

Obviously Harbaugh departed and that’s that for Michigan football. However, the plan was always in place for Warde Manuel. This wasn’t something that snuck up on the Wolverines.

“I wasn’t sitting, waiting and then all of the sudden I would do this plan and put it in action or develop it at that time,” Manuel said. “But I wanted to be supportive of him like I am of many of my staff. Almost all of my staff and what they want to do. So for me I appreciated what he had done at that point and how he had done it. And I was supportive of him as he looked.”

Warde Manuel explained that he doesn’t think stiff-arming your staff into doing what you want is a valid approach.

Instead, he hopes to build a culture where everyone feels wanted and actively chooses to be at Michigan even when other opportunities arise. That wasn’t the case with Harbaugh, but it’s a philosophy he applies to the whole athletic department.

“One of the things I always have done in my career is I’ve never, ever stopped people from if you want to take a look at something else, take a look,” Warde Manuel said. “I don’t want people to feel trapped by me and decisions I make and backing people into corners to make a decision.

“Either you’re going to stay here or you’re going to leave. Jim and I talked throughout those processes. And like I said, I had an understanding of where he was and why. And so for me, I was willing to have let him do the things that he was doing because I knew how important it was to him and we had a plan if he did leave.”