The Los Angeles Chargers announced on Wednesday night that head coach Jim Harbaugh will be returning to the NFL after accepting the position on Wednesday.
According to ESPN, Harbaugh and Los Angeles have agreed to a five-year contract.
Owner and board chairman Dean Spanos stated, “I can think of no one better to lead the Chargers forward than Jim Harbaugh. He is football personified.” “Over the past 20 years, Jim has coached hundreds of men to success wherever he has been. He is a coach’s son, brother, and father who was personally coached by Schembechler and Ditka. Jim Harbaugh is back with the Chargers today, but this time he’s our coach. Who is more successful?
The Chargers have intensified their pursuit of Harbaugh in recent days after it was previously reported by NFL Network that they were nearing the end of a deal.
Harbaugh is returning to the West Coast to coach a Chargers team that finished with a 5-12 record in the 2023 regular season, following nine years as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, where he most recently won a national championship.
“My love for Michigan endures because I played there and returned to coach there. I’ll be a devoted Wolverine for eternity,” Harbaugh declared. “I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been given the opportunity to coach in settings where my life’s journey has forged meaningful personal bonds with me.
All of those experiences—from coaching alongside my father, Jack, as an assistant at Western Kentucky, to working as an assistant with the Raiders, to leading USD, Stanford, the 49ers, and Michigan—carried importance and felt deeply personal. The Spanos family was the most kind and welcoming to me during my time as a Chargers player. Returning here feels like coming home, and it’s wonderful that those things haven’t altered.
“We understand that we have to earn our way because the only job that starts at the top is digging a hole. Make an effort to improve upon yesterday’s performance. Make tomorrow better than today. My top three priorities are football, family, and faith, and we’re going to attack each with unwavering fervor.
