Getty Images49ers coach Jim Harbaugh scored another victory Saturday, and this one was decisive.
The Associated Press named Harbaugh their Coach of the Year. He received 45 votes, Packers coach Mike McCarthy got three, and John Fox got two votes.
We think the honor is well deserved for Harbaugh. He made the most of what he had on both sides of the ball. He took an also ran team and made them Super Bowl contenders. He played to his team’s strengths and hid their weaknesses.
There were many games where he out-coached the competition and he changed a losing culture in San Francisco quickly.
Since we have to complain about something, we can’t believe two people voted for John Fox. His team won eight games and were outscored by 81 points. They collapsed at the end of the regular season. That got Mike Shanahan fired, not Coach of the Year votes.
Jim Schwartz, Marvin Lewis, and Bill Belichick all did great jobs this year and were worthy of recognition, but the voting system only allows for one vote. Harbaugh was the right choice.
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I can’t stand him but he did turn the 9ers around….at least for one year.
I’l take the coach that wins the Super Bowl.
Kubiak certainly deserved a couple votes…..
Unfortunate that classy leadership doesn’t play a role in the voting.
And he was able to have his players false start but not actually false start. Amazing.
Yes! I had a crush on him since I was 8 years old.
Congrats!
Gatorade bath!!!!
Harbaugh definitely deserves it, but John Fox deserves Honorable Mention, as I recall Denver beat Pittsburgh.
..while brother John complains the refs screwed him again.
And he’ll probably still complain and make cranky baby faces
Rookie Coach. Great Job.
I hate him with a passion, but deserved.
Mike McCarthy rarely gets the credit he deserves, but this year it has to go to Harbaugh. He performed miracles with that team.
And John Fox. You have got to be Fox-ing kidding! The most memorable thing he did this year was cede personnel decisions to fans who only know a fraction of what he knows about the team, it’s players and their respective abilities. He’s lucky to still have a job. If I was an owner, I would being having serious doubts about him.
Congrats coach , super bowl next year sir ?
John Fox led a team from 4-12 to a playoff win in one season. Pretty damn good. Also took a 1-4 team, switched to a non conventional QB and beat the #1 defense in the league and reining AFC champions in the Steelers.
How’d McCarthy only get three votes?
Pat Shurmur didn’t get one lousy vote? I’m tellin’ ya, this thing is rigged.
Great job, thank you for an unexpectedly great season !
Hairbaugh will be complaining the trophy isn’t big enough.
Whoever voted for McCArthy or Fox should lose their vote.
Whether u ignoramuses agree with me or not, coach McCarthy deserved this. Sure it was a disappointing season for the Pack, but let me tell you somethin, there is not a coach I’d rather have in this situation. He is a true leader who stands for something. The example he sets is why the Packers can will themselves to greatness. They will always be a threat under him and they statistically have improved every year, yet he hasn’t been recognized as the coach of the year. Where’s the love?
mistakenny says:
Feb 4, 2012 7:03 PM
Congrats coach , super bowl next year sir ?
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Nope, back to 7-9. Cool story this year though, bro.
Team expectations going into the season play a lot into the voting hence why Harbaugh was the clear and easy choice for the award.
It’s not a knock on his talent but McCarthy had what a majority of people thought was the best team in the league so it’s not a huge shock when they finish with the best record in the NFL.
The difference between Fox and Shananhan is Shananhan was supposed to go to the playoffs and Fox was supposed to have a team that was supposed to be in the bottom 10 in the league not the playoffs.
Which is why Harbaugh won because he was a rookie NFL head coach, with limited practice time due to the lockout, with largely the same team that went 6-10 the year before, and he shattered expectations.
Nobody would’ve ever predicted a 13-3 record, very few picked them to win the division, and most thought the team was going to be in the suck for luck campaign.
Well, Handshake Hairbow was the obvious choice. Now after next season, when the 49ers have to play some real teams outside of the NFC West and end up 7-9, we’ll see if Hairbow keeps his job.
THE GREAT DETROIT LIONS
got over look again the Lions against the world.
Why do people say he’s not classy? “cuz he got excited that his supposed to go nowhere team beat the Lions and Handshake gate happened. Correct me if Im wrong but Schwartz chased him puffing out his chest.
Just the beginning. More to come. Congrats!
They [Packers] will always be a threat under him and they statistically have improved every year
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2010 stat: 1 Superbowl
2011 stat: 0 Superbowls
To me that looks more like a statistical regression in the one stat that matters.
Kubiak gets no love..he only lead his team to the playoffs after not having his starting RB healthy til week 6, not having his star receiver for most of the season, lost his starting LB to a season ending injury, playing a 3rd string rookie QB after losing his starting QB..dat deserves some kinda love rather than not getting any votes at all
anything else would have been an absolute travesty. Lions and Packers fans need to put down their gallon-sized jugs of kool-aid.
It was him or John Fox. Congrats to a true ahole.
McCarthy only gets 3 votes?
Very rarely does a team win a Super Bowl and get better the next year but the Pack did. Very rarely does does a team win a Super Bowl and yet stay hungry and motivated but the Pack did.
No way around it—he got jobbed.
To the haters: hate only makes you burn inside. Harbaugh’s not losing any sleep over it
He also unanimously wins prick of the year
They can’t give it to Belicheck EVERY year.
this cry baby deserves it! he doesn’t handle losing well and makes too many excuses for it…
mjkelly77 says:
Feb 4, 2012 7:33 PM
Well, Handshake Hairbow was the obvious choice. Now after next season, when the 49ers have to play some real teams outside of the NFC West and end up 7-9, we’ll see if Hairbow keeps his job.
Look at their schedule again. They beat 5 playoff teams.
Why all the hate for Harbaugh?
theripster30 says:
Feb 4, 2012 7:21 PM
Whether u ignoramuses agree with me or not, coach McCarthy deserved this.
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Please.shut.up.
Harbaugh, who is clearly not liked by many of the posters, simply deserved this award…
I hate the guy but anyone that can go 13-3 with Alex Smith as the Qb clearly deserves COY!
I love how he’s geting Bellichick type of hate from other teams fans after just one season ! Makes me an even bigger fan.
Great choice! He took a bad team and beat up a bad division, but well deserved! HOF coaches can’t turn around the Skins!
Congrats and well deserved!
Yes wait until next year all those rough teams. Except they beat 5 teams that were in the playoffs this year.
He’s a genius in the red zone
Expect everything to be better next year, including his post game handshake persona. He was a ROOK for gawds sake!
“Since we have to complain about something, we can’t believe two people voted for John Fox.” — Oh really? Fox took a 4-12 team to .500; ditto Rivera at Carolina. Both got it done facing top-5 strength of schedule. McCarthy stayed the course against an average schedule. “We, are legion” can’t believe ANYONE takes “Greg Rosenthal” seriously.
“Fox [coached up 4 more wins this season}; ditto Rivera at Carolina. Both got it done facing top-5 strength of schedule.”
WHO’S GOT IT BETTER THAN US?
Much earned and well deserved. None of you commenting on the character of this man even know him. Keep winning Jim.