Mark Snyder

Detroit Free Press

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh is not leaving for the Los Angeles Rams or any other job.

"I'm not leaving Michigan," Harbaugh said near the end of Tuesday's U-M football bust at Livonia's Laurel Manor. "Not even considering it. A lot of this talk is coming from our enemies, from coaches, you know the names. You probably know the names of the top three I'm referring to. They like to say that to the media. They like to tell that to the recruits, to their families, try to manipulate them into going to some other school besides Michigan.

"We know them as jive turkeys. Say it like it is. that's the way it is."

That's what he told his players in an unsolicited offering Monday.

"After practice, he said, ' I'm not leaving, I'm staying here,' " U-M safety Dymonte Thomas said . "'A lot of people say I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that. That's a lie. I haven't talked to anyone.' He said he's going to stay here for us. He joked and said, 'You're stuck with me.' Then he quoted jive turkey, something like that off a movie, Tropic Thunder, I think."

Various reports have linked Harbaugh as a candidate to replace the fired Jeff Fisher with the Rams, starting with Fox Sports Radio host Colin Cowherd saying Friday that NFL insider Albert Breer told him during a commercial break that the Harbaugh-to-the-Rams rumor was a "very real thing."

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Harbaugh bringing up the topic unsolicited didn't shock the players, because they feel he's always been honest with them and if there was any doubt, they believed he'd be just as honest with them.

"He told us that the other day, after practice," U-M right tackle Erik Magnuson said. "He said he's staying here, he's not going nowhere. He's not leaving."

That message was delivered in classic Harbaugh fashion.

“Short, sweet and to the point: I’m not leaving,” U-M nose tackle Ryan Glasgow said. “Don’t worry about it. These are lies made up by our enemies. ... It got the team all riled up. We don’t want any enemies infiltrating the fortress.”

Glasgow pointed out that he can see “it could be at the University of Michigan, 15-20 years down the line, the folklore like Bo Schembechler. I don’t see him leaving anytime soon.”

Harbaugh is obviously an attractive NFL candidate because of what he did in his four years with the San Francisco 49ers, reaching three NFC championship games and one Super Bowl.

But he was courted by NFL teams after being forced out by the 49ers at the end of the 2014 season, but only considered coming to Michigan and taking the job for less than he would have reportedly been offered by teams with NFL vacancies.

In two years at Michigan, he's proven his value, taking the Wolverines to consecutive 10-win seasons after U-M was a five-win team the season before.

Magnuson has a theory about where those rumors originate.

"Unfortunately distractions caused, some of it's by other teams," he said. "It really hurts recruiting if they're saying Jim Harbaugh's going to go to the NFL. Some recruits could think there's instability in the coaching job at Michigan, so that could hurt him. So a lot of it is created for distraction in that aspect as far as recruiting. I couldn't see him going anywhere. This is where he wants to be."

U-M offensive guard Kyle Kalis: "It's all planned."

Magnuson clarified that he doesn't think the U-M coaches do that negative recruiting and said it could happen to any program, including Ohio State when others speculate about Urban Meyer's future.

Some players were angered by the entire premise of the rumors about Harbaugh.

“I can’t even take those reports serious,” U-M tight end Jake Butt said. “There’s no factual basis. There’s no facts coming from anywhere. (Like) I’m going to create a fake Twitter account and start tweeting the most absurd stuff and people will believe it. I’ve always thought Twitter was ridiculous to get a lot of reliable news from.”

The idea that Harbaugh brought it to them may have been intended for the younger players who are returning and not the seniors, who have only a month left in the program.

“I’ve always felt Coach Harbaugh was Michigan through and through,” Butt said. “When he addressed that, he just solidified that even more.”

The appeal of the NFL in most of the rumored circles is the potential that he could be offered more money than at U-M, where he will make the nation’s largest compensation this year, $9 million.

“He’s not driven my money,” Butt said. “He gets paid because he does a really great job. But I don’t think his No. 1 goal in life is to make as much money as possible. I think he’s got a lot more bigger goals in life and that’s the kind of guy he is.”

While the younger players were reminded about stability for their future, the older players have appreciated his investment in their lives. Recently he has offered to help his seniors find an agent when they’re ready for the NFL, to help weed through multiple options.

On the outside, in the fan base particularly, the fear multiplied when the Rams fired Fisher because there was a real NFL job in a place where many coaches would be thrilled to go. Great weather, a new stadium and a hungry fan base, in a state where Harbaugh has history.

But what most are forgetting: Harbaugh is not like many coaches or many people. He has always had a different focus, shown when he came to Michigan despite the NFL offers – and speculation from NFL sources that this job would not happen.

The Wolverines said they didn’t need it but were reassured by Harbaugh's comments.

"Coach Harbaugh's going to stay here," Thomas said. "He's a Michigan man. He's turned the program around, he's done all the right things. He fits perfect in this program. I'm excited to see how he takes care of the teams the next few years."

Contact Mark Snyder at msnyder@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter at @mark__snyder. Download our Wolverines Xtra app on iTunes and Android!