LITTLE ROCK — Jim Harbaugh still seems to bow to no man or team, though he is being quieter about his confidence now that he is the leader of the San Francisco 49ers.
Slightly quieter. Or just more subtle about it.
“Probably the smarter thing to do is just lay in the weeds here, sharpen our swords,” Harbaugh said recently.
But wait. Isn’t this the brash coach who declared, in his first days at Stanford four years ago, that he would “bow to no man” or program?
“We won’t kiss the ring of anybody about anything,” Harbaugh said last week with a smile. Then a pause.
“I haven’t changed, if that’s what you’re asking. I don’t need to make any statement. But I haven’t changed a bit.”
Of course not. The 49ers would not want that to happen; part of the Harbaugh charm and edge is that his confidence flows to all corners of his team.
When Harbaugh is in charge, everybody knows it, and it has usually resulted in victories for his team.
Harbaugh repeated his opinion that he can clearly envision Alex Smith competing for the 49ers’ starting quarterback role and confirmed that offensive coordinator Greg Roman will be the main play caller.
Harbaugh also said he and his staff are planning as if there will be no work stoppage next month - and then will adjust schedules upon further developments, if need be.
But the main theme was Harbaugh’s tacit acknowledgment that coaching the 49ers is something more than a $25 million lark.
“I understand that it’s an important job,” Harbaugh said, “and it’s important that I be good about it.”
There are responsibilities involved and plans for a new stadium at stake, which has made Harbaugh just a little more thoughtful about the endeavor.
It’s not that Harbaugh worries about the transition from Stanford to the NFL - not at all. Harbaugh ran a pro-style system at Stanford and logically says that his playbook won’t need major tweaks for the NFL.
“I once heard Rodney Dangerfield say: Don’t change who you are because of the audience,” Harbaugh said. “There’s not going tobe a dramatic change of who we are, what we believe in, and how we go about it, just because we’re going from college to professional football.”
The difference is that Harbaugh is now in charge of saving an NFL franchise from the Mike Singletary doldrums, not just beating USC and Cal. That changes things a bit.
After taking the job in early January - and picking among offers from Michigan, the Miami Dolphins and the chance to stay at Stanford - Harbaugh seemed calm and settled.
“I guess just to sum it up, about two months removed here and I haven’t had any remorse about the decision or buyer’s remorse,” Harbaugh said.
“I can look back on my life and say that hasn’t always been the case - a decision you make or an investment you make or something you do, you look back a week or two later, you go, ‘Oooh, why’d I do that?’
“You can relate to that, huh? I feel like this was a great decision and everything I felt about it while I was making the decision has come true.”
Which leads to the QB decision, and the fate of Smith, who has failed to live up to his potential for more than six years now.
Thanks to the labor situation, the 49ers might not have the choices they would have in a normal offseason. If Smith wants to return, he might have a leg up on the job.
Isn’t Harbaugh concerned that Smith has already failed so many times with this franchise?
“To me - this goes for all of us - this is a chance for us to write a new script,” Harbaugh said. “For me, for everybody else, that’s the approach, the attitude that I’m coming in here with, and I hope everybody else does, as well.”
This is also what Harbaugh is making clear: Smith is an option, but not the only option, presuming the 49ers have a shot at a veteran QB or two in free agency or can find a good prospect in the draft.
“We’ll get the best possible guys we can on the roster and then throw the balls out there and let them compete for it,” Harbaugh said.
“I don’t think starting quarterbacks are anointed. I think that’s an earned position. And that’s about as much as I can say about it.”
That’s prudent. That’s thoughtful. That is not quite the Jim Harbaugh we always saw at Stanford, but these are different times, and he is running a very different team.
He bows to no man. He just won’t announce it as much, at least until he has defeated Pete Carroll a few more times.
Sports, Pages 20 on 02/24/2011