RAVENS HIRE JOHN HARBAUGH

[James_Brooks21]

OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- John Harbaugh was hired Friday as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens, who hope their second choice proves to be a first-rate success.

Harbaugh spent this season as Philadelphia's secondary coach after making a name for himself working with special teams.

He has never been a head coach, but has coaching in his genes -- his brother, Jim, a former NFL quarterback with the Bears and Colts and three other teams, including the Ravens, is the head coach of Stanford. Their father, Jack, is former head coach at Western Kentucky.

The 45-year-old Harbaugh will be introduced as the third coach in Ravens history at a news conference on Saturday.

Harbaugh interviewed a second time at the Ravens' training complex Friday with owner Steve Bisciotti, president Dick Cass and general manager Ozzie Newsome. Harbaugh arrived around 9:30 a.m. and finally reached an agreement around 5:30 p.m.

He then left in a limousine for his home in Philadelphia without talking to the media.

Ravens spokesman Kevin Byrne said Harbaugh wanted to first share the news with his wife and parents before sharing his feelings in front of cameras and reporters.

Harbaugh replaces Brian Billick, who was fired on Dec. 31 after a nine-year run. The Ravens earlier this week offered the job to Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, who spurned Baltimore in favor of staying in Dallas. Garrett rejected the Ravens' job offer after receiving a raise from owner Jerry Jones and a promotion to assistant head coach.

Harbaugh was selected the NFL Special Teams Coach of the Year by his peers in 2001. He shifted to the secondary last season, working under Eagles coach Andy Reid.

Very interesting hire that they would hire this guy over Rex Ryan, a secondary coach over there defensive coordinator who always had the team in the top ten despite injuries. Look I'm already making the mistake of calling him Jim rather then his name John on the topic headline.

[AGrizzlyBaer]

That would be john not jim...

[James_Brooks21]

That would be john not jim...

I beat you to correcting my mistake buddy so you don't get any credit. You get an A for effort though.

[gregstephens]

I feel better about next season. With Harbaugh, I don't figure we'll be last.

[HairOnFire]

I'd say the Ravens search for a new head coach ended in disaster. Their own version of the three-headed hydra each had a favorite, but in the end the final choice wasn't the first choice of any of them. And like Atlanta they managed to get punked at least once along the way.

[Ox]

Woah. That came out of no where. They should have stuck with Billick. At least he is a horrible coach who the players like. I doubt they even know who JOHN Harbaugh is.

[COB]

I'd say the Ravens search for a new head coach ended in disaster. Their own version of the three-headed hydra each had a favorite, but in the end the final choice wasn't the first choice of any of them. And like Atlanta they managed to get punked at least once along the way.

Yea, and this was the new owner's first hire, since he inherited Minnesota Genius from Art Modell. I was starting to sweat when I heard Schottenheimer was thinking about taking that job, his teams are always hard to play. It is surprising to me that they hired a guy who's never been a coordinator in the NFL.

[Casey]

Nice hire...for the rest of the AFC North. This should keep them in the cellar for another few years.

[Spor_tees]

I thought they were bring in Jim Harbaugh to play quarterback...

[steelers7]

Glad to see the Ravens making a terrible choice,Harbaugh has his work cut out for him

[BengalszoneBilly]

I must go visit their forum to see what Ravens fans are saying...

[skyline]

What makes you guys so confident that he's going to do a terrible job? He's unknown...I get that part of it. Is there something else that I'm missing?

[Casey]

I just can't see someone who has never held a position higher than a special teams coach in the NFL coming in and doing a great job. Plus, I'm glad they hired him instead of Schottenheimer who would have brought a lot more credibility.

[Ox]

per wikipedia..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Harbaugh

John Harbaugh (born September 23, 1962) is the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens. Prior to his assignment with the Ravens, Harbaugh coached the defensive backs for the Philadelphia Eagles and served as the Eagles special teams coach for nine years.

Early years

Harbaugh graduated from Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan, during which time his father Jack was an assistant under Bo Schembechler at the University of Michigan. He played collegiate football for Miami University, where he was a defensive back.

Coaching career

Harbaugh was hired in 1998 by then-head coach Ray Rhodes, and was one of four assistant coaches retained by new head coach Andy Reid in 1999. Prior to that, Harbaugh spent time as an assistant at Indiana University (1997), University of Cincinnati (1989-1996), Morehead State University (1988), and Western Michigan University (1984-1987).

In 2004, Harbaugh was mentioned as a possible candidate to replace Gary Darnell as the head football coach at Western Michigan University. Harbaugh received his master's degree from WMU and was an assistant football coach from 1984-1987.

In 2007, after serving as a Special Teams Coach for 9 years, John was switched to Defensive Backs coach. Andy Reid did so in order to fulfill John's desire to obtain a head coaching position in the future, as special team coaches are rarely hired as head coaches. The move paid off the following year, as Harbaugh has been hired as Head Coach of the Baltimore Ravens on January 18, 2008. The official announcement will be made at a press conference on January 19, 2008.

Personal

His younger brother, former NFL quarterback and current Stanford University football coach, is Jim Harbaugh. His brother-in-law (through sister Joani) is Tom Crean, the current head basketball coach at Marquette. His father is Jack Harbaugh, former football coach of Western Michigan and Western Kentucky University.

[BengalszoneBilly]

I must go visit their forum to see what Ravens fans are saying...

And here it is...

Rolling the Dice.

No promotions, then this.

I can't omit his bio from the Ravens website. Turns out he's worked locally at the University of Cincinnati!

John Harbaugh: Bio

January 18, 2008

The Ravens ended their 18-day coaching search with the hiring of John Harbaugh Friday. Here is a look at the career of the new head coach in Baltimore:

After a nine-year successful stint as the Eagles special teams coordinator, Harbaugh took over a new role as the club's secondary coach in 2007. Said Eagles head coach Andy Reid of Harbaugh's move, "John wants to be a head coach some day and maybe a defensive coordinator. This gives him a different responsibility. It gives him a professional opportunity to step out of that special teams mode and it strengthens our staff."

The new role gave the 45-year-old Harbaugh the opportunity to work with defensive coordinator Jim Johnson.

John Harbaugh was hired as the third head coach in Ravens team history on Friday, January 18th.

"This is a chance to grow as a football coach and a chance to contribute in a different way," said Harbaugh. "The biggest part of it, really, is to be with Jim Johnson and to learn his system more thoroughly. I want to learn the ins and outs and the details - how he attacks an offense. I can't wait to do that."

From 2000-04, Harbaugh's units were the only club to rank in the top ten in the articulate special teams ranking system by Dallas Morning News columnist Rick Gosselin. They finished first in those rankings following the 2001 and 2003 seasons and from 2000-05, his units cumulatively ranked first in the entire league.

Harbaugh was chosen as the league's special teams coach of the year in 2001 by a vote of his peers. Two of his assistants, Dave Toub (Chicago) and Ted Daisher (Oakland and Cleveland), have gone on to earn special teams coordinator jobs in the NFL in recent years.

Under Harbaugh's guidance, David Akers progressed from a street free agent pick-up in 1999 to a three-time Pro Bowl selection and one of the league's most reliable kickers. Punter Dirk Johnson, also a street free agent signing, recorded the two best net punting averages (38.4 in 2005, 37.4 in 2004) in team history.

In addition, Harbaugh's units have produced 15 NFC special teams player of the week honorees: Akers (7), Brian Mitchell (3), Sean Landeta (2), Brian Westbrook (1), Jevon Kearse (1), and Allen Rossum (1). Akers earned NFC Special Teams player of the month honors in November, 2000.

In 2005, Reno Mahe led the NFL with a 12.8 punt return average, while long snapper Mike Bartrum became the third Eagles special teamer to earn a Pro Bowl berth (Akers and Ike Reese were the others) under Harbaugh's tutelage.

Originally hired by Ray Rhodes on February 18, 1998, Harbaugh was one of just four assistant coaches to be retained by Andy Reid in 1999.

Harbaugh began his coaching career in 1984 at Western Michigan. Three years later, he joined the University of Pittsburgh staff, serving under Mike Gottfried (now a college football analyst for ESPN).

After a one-year stint at Morehead State, Harbaugh worked eight seasons (1989-96) as an assistant coach at the University of Cincinnati. Harbaugh then joined Cam Cameron's Indiana staff for the 1997 campaign as defensive backs and special teams coach.

The versatile Harbaugh coached on both sides of the ball throughout his collegiate coaching career and became the assistant head coach at Cincinnati.

The product of a football family, Harbaugh has been in and around the game his entire life. His father, Jack, is a 41-year coaching veteran and won the 2002 Division I-AA National Championship as head coach of Western Kentucky. In 2003, Jack was hired as Associate AD at Marquette where he oversees community affairs and public relations. John's younger brother, Jim, a former NFL quarterback, is the head coach at Stanford, and his brother-in-law, Tom Crean, is Marquette's head basketball coach.

Harbaugh (born 9/23/62) attended Ann Arbor (MI) Pioneer High School before earning a degree in political science from Miami (OH) where he also played defensive back. He went on to earn his master's degree from Western Michigan.

John and his wife, Ingrid, reside in suburban Philadelphia, with their daughter, Alison (6).

Source: PhiladelphiaEagles.com

[HairOnFire]

What makes you guys so confident that he's going to do a terrible job? He's unknown...I get that part of it. Is there something else that I'm missing?

Anything is possible, but not only has he never been a head coach...he's never even been a DC. And none of the articles seem to be mentioning how he interviewed for the head coaching job at UCLA but was quickly eliminated from consideration because of the experience he lacks.

Bottom Line: I have no doubt he's a bright man, but I have a hard time picturing him in firm control of the Ravens lockerroom.

[skyline]

What makes you guys so confident that he's going to do a terrible job? He's unknown...I get that part of it. Is there something else that I'm missing?

Anything is possible, but not only has he never been a head coach...he's never even been a DC. And none of the articles seem to be mentioning how he interviewed for the head coaching job at UCLA but was quickly eliminated from consideration because of the experience he lacks.

Bottom Line: I have no doubt he's a bright man, but I have a hard time picturing him in firm control of the Ravens lockerroom.

Oh, I agree. The deck seems stacked against him.

Still, I'm going to wait and see before gloating and acting as if they've just cemented their place at the bottom of the AFCN.

[HairOnFire]

Oh, I agree. The deck seems stacked against him.

Still, I'm going to wait and see before gloating and acting as if they've just cemented their place at the bottom of the AFCN.

I'm very curious about how he'll be greeted in the Ravens Lockerroom. Frankly, I thought Ray Lewis went out of his way to very openly put a knife in Brian Billicks back, and regardless of if Billick deserved his fate....other players followed Reverend Rays actions, in part because so many of the aging veterans feel their window closing. So in that regard it seems like a questionable hire, as I have my doubts that those same players will be quick to embrace a rookie head coach with no experience. And if they're slow to "buy in" then it's likely the team will need to make more changes than might have been needed had another head coach been hired.

[skyline]

Oh, I agree. The deck seems stacked against him.

Still, I'm going to wait and see before gloating and acting as if they've just cemented their place at the bottom of the AFCN.

I'm very curious about how he'll be greeted in the Ravens Lockerroom. Frankly, I thought Ray Lewis went out of his way to very openly put a knife in Brian Billicks back, and regardless of if Billick deserved his fate....other players followed Reverend Rays actions, in part because so many of the aging veterans feel their window closing. So in that regard it seems like a questionable hire, as I have my doubts that those same players will be quick to embrace a rookie head coach with no experience. And if they're slow to "buy in" then it's likely the team will need to make more changes than might have been needed had another head coach been hired.

I think they'll give him a fair shot. I read that they're trying to keep Ryan on as DC, which would be a huge help to the new guy.

[BengalszoneBilly]

I think they'll give him a fair shot. I read that they're trying to keep Ryan on as DC, which would be a huge help to the new guy.

Or not. There's a good chance Rex might be a little peeved over not getting the job himself. It's not like Ryan has less qualifications than Harbaugh.

[BengalszoneBilly]

I think they'll give him a fair shot. I read that they're trying to keep Ryan on as DC, which would be a huge help to the new guy.

Or not. There's a very good chance Rex might be a little peeved over not getting the job himself. It's not like Ryan has less qualifications than Harbaugh.