Michigan is working on a lifetime contract for head coach Jim Harbaugh, according to a conversation former Notre Dame quarterback and current Fox Sports college football analyst Brady Quinn had with an unnamed Michigan insider.
Quinn shared the conversation on Fox Sports Radio:
“I talked to someone who’s kind of an insider within that program, and we had a long, drawn out conversation,” Quinn said on FOX Sports Radio, according to Mike Sullivan. “What he told me was that they’re working on a lifetime contract. I swear to you, that was his words. I kind of pressed him on it and said ‘Really?! A lifetime deal? What would that even look like?’ He couldn’t give me the particulars, but he said that’s one of the things they are talking about. That’s how confident, that’s how good they feel about Jim Harbaugh and how glad they are to have him there. So maybe that’s something Harbaugh wants.”
A lifetime deal would be the first of its kind in modern, major college football, though Michigan has already gone to considerable lengths to compensate Harbaugh. He received a raise to a $7 million salary after a 10-3 debut season in 2015, and Michigan pays the $2 million premium on a life insurance policy Harbaugh owns each Dec. 6 in the form of a retention bonus.
Harbaugh is in his third season at Michigan, coaching on a contract that runs through the 2021 season. Harbaugh is 28-9 with the Maize and Blue heading into Saturday's regular season finale against No. 9 Ohio State.
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