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Jim Harbaugh reacts to Michigan tying program record for most first-round picks: 'Just awfully, awfully proud of them'

clayton-sayfieby:Clayton Sayfie•05/01/25•

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Jim Harbaugh
Former Michigan Wolverines football head coach Jim Harbaugh is now the head man of the Los Angeles Chargers. (Photo by Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

Michigan Wolverines football tied its program record with three first-round NFL Draft picks in 2025. Defensive tackles Mason Graham (No. 5 to the Cleveland Browns) and Kenneth Grant (No. 13 to the Miami Dolphins) and tight end Colston Loveland (No. 10 to the Chicago Bears) all went off the board in the first 13 picks.

Grant (Merillville, Ind.) and Loveland (Gooding, Idaho) held draft parties in their hometowns, while Graham and cornerback Will Johnson, a second-round choice, attended the event in Green Bay, Wisc.

Former Michigan head man Jim Harbaugh, meanwhile, was hard at work as the head coach in the Los Angeles Chargers’ war room, with the organization picking North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton in the first round, No. 22 overall. However, he took the time to appreciate the special moments of each Wolverine being picked.

“Just awfully, awfully proud of them — personally and everybody at Michigan,” Harbaugh said. “I texted [current Michigan head coach] Sherrone [Moore]; I know he’s proud.”

Harbaugh saw some familiar backdrops while watching the television broadcast.

“Just watching the guys … Colston was in his home in Gooding,” Harbaugh noted. “I’ve been in that home. That was cool to see the whole family there. Got a lot of the residents of Gooding there.

“To see Kenneth. I think he was at his school. Looked familiar that way.

“And Mason, his parents have moved since I recruited him, and he was at the draft.

“Just awful proud. It’s cool.”

There was one projected first-round pick available when the Chargers were on the clock at No. 22 overall, but Harbaugh and Co. chose Hampton over Johnson, whose slide out of the first 32 picks was one of the most notable storylines of the first night.

Harbaugh said before the draft, on an interview with Yahoo Sports, that he would’ve loved to pick a Michigan player but acknowledged that it’s overwhelmingly more likely that they end up on one of the other 31 teams.

“They’re like beloved sons,” Harbaugh said. “You look at the players, and it’s like, you get one pick every 32 picks. You can see who the good players are, and most likely you’re gonna be playing against them. That’s just the math of it all.

“It would be awesome if someone is there for us at 22. Who knows?”

The Chargers chose Hampton, though, and it’s understandable given the team’s needs were more on offense than defense. Los Angeles picked Michigan linebacker Junior Colson last year but didn’t take or sign any Wolverines during or after the 2025 NFL Draft.

Johnson wound up being snatched up by the Arizona Cardinals with the No. 47 overall pick in the second round.

Michigan tied its draft record with three first round picks, joining the 2001 and 1995 classes. Harbaugh was excited talking before the draft about the possibility of breaking the mark.

“All four could be first-rounders,” Harbaugh said of Graham, Grant, Loveland and Johnson. “We looked this up. I said, ‘I don’t think there’s ever been four first-round draft picks from Michigan in the history of the draft. We looked that up, and the most is three. 

“It could be four, could be five. There could be a fifth that jumps in there. We’ll see. But super proud of those guys.”

It’s safe to say he feels the same way even with the tie.

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