Jim Leavitt Is Back, Hired by 49ers

It’s a day of redemption for former South Florida coach Jim Leavitt who has been hired by the San Francisco 49ers. Leavitt coached South Florida for 14 years since the program’s first season in 1997. The Bulls started as a D-II and then D-I Independent, then joined Conference USA, and eventually became part of the Big East.

Leavitt went 94-57 with the Bulls and 3-2 in bowl games, but he was sacked a year ago after allegations surfaced that he hit a player at halftime of a game. It wasn’t just the act of hitting his player that resulted in the firing, but also the issue that he had people lie about it. After a year out of a job, Leavitt is back in coaching.

The former South Florida coach will coach linebackers in San Francisco and serve under Vic Fangio who followed Jim Harbaugh from Stanford to SF. Leavitt actually has an excellent gig given how talented the Niners’ linebackers are — they have All-Pros Patrick Willis and Takeo Spikes working in the box — giving them serious weapons. This will be a great jumping off point for Leavitt to rebuild his reputation in football.