One of the biggest college football news stories of Monday was a report that Jim Harbaugh is tempted to leave Michigan for a return to the NFL. If Harbaugh indeed leaves his alma mater, an Alabama assistant is already being linked to UM.

ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg tweeted Monday, “If Harbaugh left, would expect #Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien to generate some traction for the job.” Rittenberg added that O’Brien would have been a candidate if Harbaugh had left after Michigan’s disappointing 2020 season.

O’Brien has Big Ten familiarity as the former head coach at Penn State. He coached the Nittany Lions in the 2012 and ’13 seasons, in between NFL stints as an assistant with the New England Patriots and head coach of the Houston Texans. O’Brien has a 15-9 record as a college football head coach.