"We want to live up to the traditions and the legacies and high regard. We understand what Michigan football is. … This is a about a program. This is about a team."
With those words, Michigan's new football coach brought great promise of restoring the Wolverines to their place among the nation's best college programs.
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The coach speaking? Brady Hoke.
What will Jim Harbaugh say when he meets media members for the first time as Michigan football coach? It wouldn't come as a surprise to hear him echo the words of Hoke … or Rich Rodriguez, for that matter.
As news and social media burst with reports of Harbaugh's imminent departure from the San Francisco 49ers, attention was focused as well on Ann Arbor, Mich., where a fan base was eager for the return of a Wolverines hero.
Jim Harbaugh is headed to Ann Arbor. The deal is reportedly done. http://t.co/kDxQjWm8Dj pic.twitter.com/T6BYT7OSGx
— Sporting News (@sportingnews) December 28, 2014Exit strategy: 49ers likely to sit down with Jim Harbaugh tonight or tomorrow morning. Would get him to Ann Arbor for a Tuesday presser.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) December 28, 2014I just got off the phone with more sources tonight. It's done. Jim Harbaugh is coming to Michigan - and his friends are flying in Monday.
— John U. Bacon (@Johnubacon) December 28, 2014Michigan officials are in California. Their hope is to bring Jim Harbaugh home and introduce him Tuesday. Meeting may happen tonight or Mon
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 28, 2014Since Hoke's Dec. 2 firing, Harbaugh has been on the lips of Michigan fans. It's almost a messianic fervor.
If, as CNS Bay Area reported Sunday, Harbaugh has agreed to coach at Michigan, he would stand before the media on Tuesday in Ann Arbor.
It's best to remember what interim athletic director Jim Hackett said at the media gathering to announce Hoke's demise.
"I want you to be patient," he said, as we are reminded by MLive.com. "If you get an answer quickly and you can wait a little longer and you believe you upgraded, you might be willing to take that risk."
That advise applies equally to Michigan's coaching search and what Harbaugh might bring to the Wolverines.
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Cheapest ticket for U-M vs. Illinois Tues. is now $124. And oh - the marching band has been called back early from break to be on campus.
— Chris Balas (@Balas_Wolverine) December 28, 2014Hope Harbaugh signs with an NFL team, just to prove to people not to believe everything the media reports.
— OneOutOfANation (@Krazydiamond81) December 28, 2014MORE: 10 best replacement options for Harbaugh | If not Harbaugh, who else for Michigan?