How Mike Macdonald’s path to Super Bowl 60 runs through Harbaugh coaching trees originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Seattle Seahawks coach Michael Macdonald comes from the Harbaugh coaching tree.
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Both trees.
Macdonald – who led the Seahawks to a Super Bowl 60 matchup against the New England Patriots in just his second season as head coach – worked his way up the coaching ladder with the Baltimore Ravens under John Harbaugh, where he started as a coaching intern in 2014. He also had a one-year stint at Michigan as a defensive coordinator in 2021 that helped push his career forward.
“To have people in your life like John and Jim Harbaugh that have faith that you can do a job like that gives you a lot of confidence,” Macdonald said at Super Bowl 60 Opening Night in Santa Clara, Calif., on Monday.
Macdonald also has a chance to become the second NFL head coach off the Harbaugh coaching trees to win a Super Bowl. Here is a closer look at Macdonald’s connections with the Harbaugh family and the respective trees for both coaches.
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Michael Macdonald connection with Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
Jim Harbaugh hired Macdonald to replace Don Brown as defensive coordinator at Michigan 2021. The Wolverines finished 2-4 during the COVID-impacted 2020 season.
“I think going into that opportunity, you had a vision for what you wanted to create on a defense that was aligned with how Jim wanted his team to roll, then showing you can go do it,” Macdonald said Monday.
It worked. Michigan finished 12-2, won the Big Ten championship and made its first appearance in the College Football Playoff. The defense ranked eighth in the FBS in scoring defense at 17.4 points per game. Aidan Hutchinson had 14 sacks and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting.
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“That was a really special, connected, tough football team,” Macdonald said. “It was like, ‘OK, this is what works.’ This is a formula that you can apply to another group, and I felt like we did that in Baltimore on the return and ultimately what we’re trying to do here.”
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Michael Macdonald connection with Baltimore Ravens
Macdonald left Michigan after the 2014 season and returned to the Ravens, where he served as the defensive coordinator under John Harbaugh from 2022-23. Baltimore ranked third in the NFL in scoring defense in 2022 and 18.5 points per game. In 2023, the Ravens had the best scoring defense in the NFL at 16.5 points per game.
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The Ravens finished 13-4 and reached the AFC championship game before losing 17-10 to the Chiefs. Macdonald took the job with the Seahawks, where he is 24-10 the last two seasons. Macdonald credits John Harbaugh with a lot of that success.
“I don’t think it’s possible to overstate his influence on me. I love John Harbaugh. He’s one of my biggest mentors. He’s willing to take chances on me when other people.”
“He had a vision for me and my career that I probably didn’t have for myself.”
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Michael Macdonald and Jesse Minter connection
Macdonald isn’t the only other NFL coach with connections to both Harbaughs. Jesse Minter – who was a former assistant for the Ravens – coached with Jim Harbaugh at Michigan.
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Minter helped the Wolverines win a national championship as a defensive coordinator in 2023, and he spent the last two seasons with the Chargers. The Ravens hired Minter after John Harbaugh departed Baltimore and took the same position with the Giants.
“I think it’s a situation where you’re happy for everybody involved,” Macdonald said. “I think John is in a great situation in New York. It seems like he’s really excited. He’s going to do a great job. Jesse is in a great situation for him. He’s going to do a phenomenal job.”
Jim Harbaugh coaching tree
Here is a look at Jim Harbaugh’s assistants at Stanford or Michigan who went on to be head coaches in college football or the NFL.
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David Shaw
Shaw was the offensive coordinator at Stanford under Harbaugh. He replaced Harbaugh and compiled a 96-54 record with the Cardinal from 2011-22. Shaw is currently the passing game coordinator for the Detroit Lions.
Vic Fangio
Fangio was a defensive coordinator with Harbaugh at Sanford and with the San Francisco 49ers. He had a 19-30 record in three seasons with the Broncos. Fangio is the defensive coordinator for the Eagles and helped Philadelphia win Super Bowl 59.
D.J. Durkin
Durkin was Michigan’s defensive coordinator in 2015. He had a 10-17 record at Maryland. He was fired before the 2018 season after complaints about the team’s culture following the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair. Durkin was the interim coach at Auburn last season after Hugh Freeze was fired.
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Don Brown
Brown was a defensive coordinator at Michigan from 2016-20. He took the job at UMass in 2022, where he compiled a 6-28 record in three seasons.
Sherrone Moore
Moore took over for Harbaugh after he left for the Los Angeles Chargers in the NFL. Moore had a 16-8 record in two seasons with the Wolverines. He was fired at the end of the season after the university found “credible evidence” that he had an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.
Jedd Fisch
Fisch was the passing game coordinator at Michigan under Harbaugh from 2015-16 before taking the job as offensive coordinator at UCLA. He is 32-33 as a head coach in the FBS, with stops at Arizona and Washington.
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John Harbaugh coaching tree
Here is a closer look at John Harbaugh’s other assistants in Baltimore who went on to become NFL coaches after coaching in Baltimore:
Rex Ryan
Ryan was the defensive coordinator in Baltimore in 2008. He led the Jets to back-to-back AFC championship appearances in 2009-10 and compiled a 46-50 record from 2009-14. He had a 15-16 record with the Bills from 2015-16.
Chuck Pagano
Pagano was the defensive coordinator in Baltimore in 2011. He coached the Colts from 2012-17 and compiled a 53-43 record. Indianapolis finished 11-5 in 2014 and reached the AFC championship before losing 45-7 to New England.
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Jim Caldwell
Caldwell led the Colts to a Super Bowl appearance in 2009 before landing with the Ravens as an assistant from 2012-13. He then took the head coaching job with the Detroit Lions, where he was 36-28 with a pair of playoff appearances from 2014-17.
Gary Kubiak
Kubiak was the Ravens’ offensive coordinator in 2014. He was the head coach for the Broncos from 2015-16 and led Denver to a victory in Super Bowl 50 against the Carolina Panthers. Kubiak stepped down after the 2016 season because of health concerns.
Todd Monken
Monken was Baltimore’s offensive coordinator from 2023-25. He took the job with the Cleveland Browns this offseason.
