Report: Jim Harbaugh, Michigan AD have tough relationship

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh watches warmups before a game against Northern Illinois at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021.

Jim Harbaugh recently announced that he would be returning to Michigan after exploring some opportunities in the NFL. Apparently there is one difficult relationship he will be returning to in Ann Arbor.

In a story about Harbaugh’s return to Michigan, The Athletic’s Austin Meek said that Harbaugh and Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel do not currently have a good relationship.

“The relationship has grown particularly distant in recent months, two sources said, with Harbaugh and Manuel communicating mostly through intermediaries,” Meek reported.

Indeed, when Harbaugh informed the school that he would not be leaving for the NFL, it was the school president whom Harbaugh called, not Manuel.

Was Harbaugh genuinely interested in an NFL return and only went back to Michigan ater not being hired? Or was he trying to use NFL teams for leverage in contract talks with Manuel that went nowhere? We don’t know the answer to that.

What we do know is that Harbaugh had a tense relationship with GM Trent Baalke when he was with the 49ers. Now he apparently has some problems with Manuel.

Harbaugh wins everywhere he goes, but he seems to be difficult for some to work with.