Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh lands on 2022 Dodd Trophy preseason watch list
The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc. released the preseason watch list for the Dodd Coach of the Year award, and Michigan Wolverines football head coach Jim Harbaugh was one of 20 to make the cut.
The honor celebrates “the head coach of a team who enjoys success on the gridiron, while also stressing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity — the three pillars of legendary coach Bobby Dodd’s coaching philosophy.”
RELATED
• Former Michigan TE Jake Butt on NIL: ‘I’m not sold that this is ruining college football’
• Gary Moeller was as ‘Michigan’ as anybody
The watch list members who joined Michigan’s head man are below:
| Coach | School | Conference |
| Dave Aranda | Baylor | Big 12 |
| Paul Chryst | Wisconsin | Big Ten |
| Dave Clawson | Wake Forest | ACC |
| Ryan Day | Ohio State | Big Ten |
| Dave Doeren | NC State | ACC |
| Kirk Ferentz | Iowa | Big Ten |
| Luke Fickell | Cincinnati | AAC |
| Jimbo Fisher | Texas A&M | SEC |
| Mike Gundy | Oklahoma State | Big 12 |
| Jim Harbaugh | Michigan | Big Ten |
| Lane Kiffin | Ole Miss | SEC |
| Pat Narduzzi | Pitt | ACC |
| Sam Pittman | Arkansas | SEC |
| Nick Saban | Alabama | SEC |
| Kalani Sitake | BYU | Independent |
| Kirby Smart | Georgia | SEC |
| Mark Stoops | Kentucky | SEC |
| Dabo Swinney | Clemson | ACC |
| Mel Tucker | Michigan State | Big Ten |
| Kyle Whittingham | Utah | Pac-12 |
Per the foundation: “The watch list was created through a selection process by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc., taking into consideration each program’s graduation rate, commitment to service and charity in the community, projected success for the 2022 season and Academic Progress Rate (APR). Coaches in the first year with their current team are ineligible to receive The Dodd Trophy.
“College football has seen many changes in recent years, but all of these coaches have held true to our award’s three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity,” said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation. “What separates The Dodd Trophy and truly makes it the most coveted coach of the year award, is our commitment to recognizing all that these coaches do, not only on the football field, but in the classroom and throughout their communities as well. This is why we require coaches to have at least two years of experience leading their current programs, so that they have had time to establish a precedent, both on and off the field.”
Harbaugh led Michigan to the 2021 Big Ten title and College Football Playoff, with the Wolverines winning 12 games for just the third time in history. He was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year.
