On a day the 49ers made a predictable hire for a general
manager, they moved boldly toward landing football’s hottest
coaching prospect.
SAN JOSE
On a day the 49ers made a predictable hire for a general manager, they moved boldly toward landing football’s hottest coaching prospect.
Trent Baalke, promoted to GM late Tuesday, faces a first assignment of trying to put the final touches on an offer for Jim Harbaugh. The Stanford coach will interview by the end of the week, according to an NFL source.
Harbaugh, fresh off a 12-1 Stanford season capped by a masterful performance in the Orange Bowl, arrived back in the Bay Area on Tuesday night. As he walked to a podium outside Maples Pavilion to the cheers of several hundred Stanford followers, Harbaugh was asked whether he had considered his coaching future. “No,” he said, then pressed forward.
The 49ers declined to comment on their coaching candidates but the search can begin in earnest now that Baalke has been anointed as GM. Baalke, 46, has been with the 49ers in various capacities since 2005 and served last season as the vice president of player personnel. His hiring was no surprise. Team president Jed York made it official with an announcement shortly after 8 p.m.
“I have had the great benefit of watching Trent closely in the recent months and have been very impressed with his knowledge and leadership,” York said in a statement. “I am confident that Trent will find the 49ers an excellent head coach who will lead us to great success in the coming years.”
Baalke said: “My entire focus is now dedicated to finding the next head coach of the 49ers.”
Though Harbaugh is by far the leading contender to take over as coach, two other names emerged Tuesday. The 49ers received permission to interview Raiders offensive coordinator Hue Jackson and New York Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell. Later in the evening it became official that Raiders coach Tom Cable would not be back; whether Jackson, a candidate to take over for Cable, would still interview with the 49ers was unclear.
Harbaugh might not be first on the itinerary, but he’s first on the 49ers’ wish list. Already a sought-after commodity, the coach’s stock skyrocketed as Stanford ran circles around Virginia Tech in a 40-12 victory.
He has been linked to other jobs around the country, but some top contenders for his services faded into the rear-view mirror Tuesday. The University of Michigan had been the source of much speculation, but John Harbaugh, the Baltimore Ravens head coach, said on his WBAL radio show that his brother had no plans to return to his alma mater: “I think the Michigan thing is done now. I don’t think he’s interested in doing that, which is hard for him because he loves Michigan.”
The Carolina Panthers, who have the No. 1 pick and a shot at landing Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, are apparently not a major player in the Harbaugh sweepstakes, according to multiple reports.
The 49ers, citing team policy, did not comment on their coaching search and declined to confirm their interviews with Harbaugh, Jackson or Fewell.
Raiders senior executive John Herrera, however, acknowledged that owner Al Davis gave Jackson the green light to talk to the team across the bay. “The 49ers asked and Al said yes,” Herrera said. “He’s happy for Hue.’
Jackson interviewed for the 49ers offensive coordinator job in 2009 before Singletary hired Jimmy Raye.
Fewell had a brief stint as the Buffalo Bills interim head coach in 2009. He took over after the team fired Dick Jauron in Week 11 and compiled a 3-4 record.
Harbaugh, who starred at Palo Alto High, spent 14 seasons in the NFL, starting with the Chicago Bears, where he was a teammate of Singletary. Harbaugh made the Pro Bowl in 1995 while with the Indianapolis Colts.
His NFL coaching experience consists of spending 2002-03 as the Raiders quarterbacks coach.
At Stanford, Harbaugh resurrected a moribund program and posted a 29-21 record over four seasons.
As the head coaching candidates come in, one coordinator could be on his way out: The 49ers gave permission to the Carolina Panthers to interview defensive coordinator Greg Manusky for their vacant head coaching job, according to an NFL source.
— Story by Daniel Brown and Tim Kawakami, San Jose Mercury News. The Mercury News’ Elliott Almond and Bay Area News Group’s Jerry McDonald also contributed to this report.
