Michigan and George Helow officially part ways
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh hired Chris Partridge to his staff recently without saying which position he’d coach. We learned last week he’d be coaching linebackers, which created speculation about current linebackers coach George Helow’s future.
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On Thursday, Bruce Feldman confirmed what many knew — Helow will be moving on.
“Michigan and Wolverines LB coach George Helow have mutually agreed to part ways to pursue other opportunities,” Feldman reported in a tweet.
Sources informed us Feb. 3 Helow might be moving on. Others hinted he might be offered an analyst position, but that he was interested in coaching elsewhere.
Regardless, he’ll no longer be with the Michigan program.
Helow joined Harbaugh’s staff in 2021. He helped Michigan to a top-20 ranking in total defense and scoring defense, ranking eighth in the latter category. Linebacker Josh Ross led the team in tackles (106) and picked up third team All-Big Ten honors as well as the team’s Roger Zatkoff Award.
Under Helow, Ross set career-highs in tackles and tackles for loss. Junior Colson earned Freshman All-America honors after finishing fourth on the team in tackles.
Helow originally joined the Michigan football staff as linebackers coach after spending the 2020 season as the special teams coordinator and inside linebackers coach at the University of Maryland.
Despite losing Nikhai Hill-Green to what turned out to be a season-ending injury, Helow did a solid job with the linebackers this year. Colson earned second team All-Big Ten honors from the coaches and third team from the media this year after leading the team with 101 tackles, including 6 for loss and a pair of sacks.
Michael Barrett, meanwhile, had the best year of his career on the inside. The fifth-year was a third team All-Big Ten selection from the coaches and honorable mention by the media. He was also named the team’s most improved player on defense this season after finishing with 72 tackles.
Watch for more on this development in the hours to come …
