Jim Harbaugh era in San Francisco comes to an end

Tomsula was one of two internal candidates for the position, along with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. Tomsula served as the team’s defensive line coach since 2007 and is the longest tenured member of the coaching staff. He’s reportedly well-liked and highly regarded within the organization, which is how he survived regime changes after new head coaches like Mike Singletary and Harbaugh were hired.

“The coaches keep the pressure on me, to be better than the last time, to get the best out of me. But see, I realize that. There is nothing older than yesterday’s success.”

-- Jim Harbaugh on October 9, 1986 as Michigan’s senior quarterback

New Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh will make around $5 million per year, with the same basic contract he had with the San Francisco 49ers, per prominent Michigan author John U. Bacon. That number is still among the highest in the nation, but lower than the previously reported $8 million figure.

Update, 1 p.m. ET: Michigan confirms it’s $5 million a year for seven years, similar to his 49ers contract.

“Obviously the program at Michigan, as a former player, has not been in the best of places for one reason or another,” Tom Brady told WEEI on Monday morning. “If he does go there he brings a lot of credibility and winning. He’s been a great coach in college and the pros. To have a great coach like that lead a program is awesome.

“You see in college football with the teams that are still playing right now, those ones that are in the playoffs, they got some great coaches. If Michigan could get that type of coach it would be incredible, especially with him knowing the history of the school and the tradition, playing there. Just to have him back as part of the school would be phenomenal.”

Whoops!

WHOOPS. That’s your new hometown newspaper, Jim! Welcome!

Following four seasons and a combined winning percentage near 70 percent, Harbaugh was more successful than the majority of head coaches who get a chance in the NFL. San Francisco is an organization that will be expecting similar success right out of the gate from his replacement. But, who will his successor be? Is there someone from within that the team feels can take control, or will there be an extensive interview process to determine who will operate under owner Jed York and general manager Trent Baalke?

At this stage of the process, the list of potential head coach candidates generally includes current offensive and defensive coordinators, NFL head coaches who could be fired or are on expiring contracts, college head coaches and an increasingly short list of former head coaches currently out of the league.

The NFL isn’t going to be nearly as much fun as it has been since Harbaugh took the job in San Francisco in 2011. To say goodbye, we collected some of our favorite Harbaugh moments of the last four seasons. And there are a lot to catalog, so if we missed your favorite moment, drop it in the comments.

(via AP)

“He’s done numerous things for me, not only as a quarterback, but as a person,” Kaepernick said. “I think he’s not only a great coach, but a great person and that’s what he preaches to the team. Go out, give everything you have to your team, but make sure you’re taking care of your family and you’re taking care of your teammates and those are the things that are important.”

“I think it was huge,” Kaepernick said. “A lot of us have been with coach Harbaugh since he’s been here. And the players that were here before him saw how he turned things around and turned this organization back into a winning one. It’s tough to let that go, but at the same time, we have to keep moving forward as players because our careers keep going on.”

His departure has sparked a wide range of emotions. Players shared positive feelings about their former head coach, but 49ers fans were more bittersweet. Below is a sampling of some of those thoughts. There are sure to be many more in the coming hours and days.

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick:

“I can still play this game,” Gore said, “and I want to be back here.”

After Sunday’s game, Harbaugh announced that he and the 49ers would “mutually part ways.” Gore spent four seasons with Harbaugh, who made the running back a focal point of his offense. Gore finished among the top 10 players in the NFL in rushing every season of the Harbaugh era. A late-season surged this year propelled him to No. 8 in the league in rushing.

Michigan has reportedly found its man to replace Brady Hoke. Former Wolverines quarterback Jim Harbaugh will be hired to lead his alma mater, according to Michigan author John U. Bacon, as the Wolverines were able to lure him away from the NFL and his contentious yet successful run with the San Francisco 49ers. This follows a report by Brian Cook of MGoBlog that set the likelihood of Harbaugh’s return to Ann Arbor at 99 percent.

“Jim Harbaugh is coming to Michigan,” Bacon tweeted Sunday night, “and his friends are flying in Monday.”

Jim Harbaugh’s long-rumored departure from San Francisco has become a reality. Harbaugh and the 49ers mutually parted ways, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Harbaugh is expected to be introduced on Tuesday as the new head coach at the University of Michigan per multiple reports.

He will reportedly take a six-year, $48 million contract to coach the Wolverines. Harbaugh had one year remaining on his five-year, $25 million contract signed with the 49ers in 2011.

Update: Harbaugh and the 49ers announced they agreed to mutually part ways after the game

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UPDATE: The Harbaugh era in San Francisco is officially over after the team announced it and Harbaugh had agreed to mutually part ways.

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For years, Alabama fans were mocked throughout the SEC for living in the past. The criticism went something like this:

You guys think that it’s your birthright to dominate college football, but in reality, you just happened to have Bear Bryant, one of the best coaches of all time, for a two-decade stretch. Otherwise, you’re just another program, one that is located in a state with average talent relative to the rest of the SEC and has to share at least some of that in-state talent with a bitter rival. Just accept reality. You’re no better than at least five programs in the conference.

Those wouldn’t be abnormal tweets had they come on Sunday after the game. The night before a game in which Harbaugh will coach is a little unusual. That said, not much about the end of the Harbaugh era in San Francisco has been traditional.

It’s looking more and more like Jim Harbaugh will be spending next season in Ann Arbor.

Days after Michigan’s athletic director reportedly told players the school feels good about having its guy, Brian Cook of MGoBlog has added more pieces to the puzzle, including whisperings from current coaches, heightened levels of confidence throughout Michigan media, and packages addressed to Harbaugh reportedly being delivered in Ann Arbor.

After reports earlier this month that Michigan would likely not get its target, Jim Harbaugh, to fill its vacant head coaching position, it’s looking more and more likely that the Wolverines can lure him to Ann Arbor. Harbaugh was reportedly offered a massive, $8 million-per-year contract, and according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Harbaugh is now more likely to take the Michigan job than he was before.

We could be getting actual news soon either way, as 247 Sports’ Steve Wiltfong reports that interim athletic director Jim Hackett has met with the Wolverines’ players and told them that they could have a new coach soon.

Harbaugh has been cryptic recently about his future with San Francisco, but by all indications he will not be returning for the final year of his contract in 2015. He’s been connected with the Michigan job since before Brady Hoke was fired, and if he wanted to leave to take over the Wolverines, the 49ers would reportedly not ask for any compensation to let him out of his contract early.

Very subtle, Michigan. Very smooth.

Jim Harbaugh, meanwhile, is being somewhat less open about things.

I mean, it’s probably unrealistic to expect Harbaugh to come out and say “Oh, I’m definitely taking the Michigan job next week, take care!”

Harbaugh could be a stabilizing presence in Chicago’s locker room. He certainly has a proven track record of winning in the NFL. The Bears may have trouble luring him away from the University of Michigan, however. Glazer reported that Michigan has relayed its interest in Harbaugh, but Harbaugh has thus far demurred, telling the school, “You know, right now, I just don’t know what I wanna do.”

According to Glazer, Michigan will have its answer somewhere between 24 and 48 hours after the NFL regular season ends. If Harbaugh spurns his alma mater, Chicago could make sense as a destination.

You’re familiar with the Jim Harbaugh saga, right? Well, anyway, during Saturday night’s 49ers-Chargers game, these two apparently ended up on the Levi’s Stadium Jumbotron:

So, yeah. The Niners’ stadium staff presumably pick the stuff that goes on the big screen, and they ended up showing a pair of people asking the Niners’ coach to leave and go someplace else. That is weird.

Michigan’s head coaching search continues to be the focus of the early offseason, with 49ers head coach and former Wolverine quarterback Jim Harbaugh rumored to be the leading candidate. There have been a lot of rumors flying around in both directions, so we’ve attempted to compile as many as we could right here.

Once you look at everything that’s out there, it’s not hard to conclude this could really happen, no matter how unlikely that might seem.