Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan run left behind two very different kinds of memories, depending on who you ask. Wolverines fans point to the championship.
Plenty of others think first about the scandals and cheating allegations. But one thing from that era is hard to dispute: Harbaugh had a real knack for spotting and developing coaching talent.
That thread is front and center this week as the Los Angeles Chargers, in Harbaugh’s third season there, prepare to face Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald for the first time in a regular-season matchup. Macdonald coached under Harbaugh at Michigan in 2021 before moving back to the NFL as the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive coordinator, and he made it clear that his lone year in Ann Arbor stuck with him.
"I had the honor ot work with both Jim and John [Harbaugh]; obviously, one year with Jim, he gave me so much autonomy and the belief that he had in our staff on defense, me personally as well," Macdonald said."It felt like he never left your corner, ya know? That meant a lot for a guy that was unproven and trying to figure things out on the fly, but that was kind of a foundational year for me."
Ahead of the Seahawks vs. Chargers game this weekend, Mike Macdonald says his year at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh was “special.” pic.twitter.com/5X3urNvdGj
- Clayton Sayfie (@CSayf23) September 29, 2026
Macdonald’s path since then has only added to the story. After working with John Harbaugh in Baltimore, he was hired to lead the Seahawks and went 10-7 in his first season. Seattle then won the Super Bowl in the 2025 season, making Macdonald the third-youngest coach to win it all.
He’s not the only one from Harbaugh’s Michigan staff to climb quickly. When Macdonald left after the 2021 season, Harbaugh turned to Jesse Minter as his next defensive coordinator. Minter spent two seasons with the Wolverines, including the penultimate National Championship season in 2023.
Minter also ended up serving as the interim coach for the first of Harbaugh’s three-game suspension in 2023, and that gave him his first win as a head coach. He was the one running Michigan’s defense when it dominated in the National Championship game, and after that season he followed Harbaugh to Los Angeles.
Minter’s rise kept going after his time with the Chargers. He was hired by the Baltimore Ravens early in 2026 to replace John Harbaugh as head coach, and he’s off to a 2-1 start in his first season. His next meeting with one of Harbaugh’s former teams comes on November 16 in Baltimore, when he faces his old Michigan and Chargers boss.
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The biography also revisits the kind of dorm-room gossip that followed him at the time, including an anecdote in which a student heard enough from Bradys room to settle speculation among teammates about his sexuality. Its a reminder that even in Ann Arbor, Bradys off-field life drew as much curiosity as his on-field rise, and the book suggests those early years were shaped by a private, tightly controlled focus that carried forward into the high-profile relationships and marriage that came later. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Basketball Just Got A Huge Boost With One Big Catch
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Gayles arrival comes with an important wrinkle, though, because his eligibility is still tied to an NCAA appeal even after a court case allowed him to play pending that process. It gives Michigan another piece to build around, but also leaves a layer of uncertainty over how quickly the roster picture settles as the program moves toward another pivotal season. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Faces An Early Big Ten Test It Cant Afford To Flunk
Michigan heads into its Big Ten matchup with Minnesota at 3-1, and the stakes already feel a little bigger than a midseason conference game. Kyle Whittingham has pointed to the Wolverines uneven start and the penalties that have disrupted their rhythm, while Minnesota comes in with some momentum after a recent win and the kind of confidence that can make early league games feel especially tricky.
P.J. Fleck has had plenty of respect for Michigans defense, and the matchup also puts a spotlight on two young quarterbacks who have helped shape their offenses, Bryce Underwood for the Wolverines and Drake Lindsey for the Gophers. For a Michigan team trying to steady itself before the Big Ten race tightens, this one offers an early chance to look like a contender rather than a work in progress. [Read more 🡒]