Michigan hires Mike Hart, the Wolverines ‘all-time leading runner, as the runners’ coach, the school announced Wednesday.
Hart set Michigan records in running yards (5,040 yards) and carries (1,015) and hit 41 running touchdowns as a four-year starter. He won the Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors in 2004 and was a triple selection of the first All-Big Ten team. He was also a two-time Doak Walker Award finalist and finished fifth in the 2006 Heisman Trophy voting. Hart set a 28-game team record with 100 or more running yards.
“Michigan has always had a special place in my heart,” Hart said in a statement. “It’s a place I’ve always believed in myself and a place I’ve always believed in. I’m thrilled to meet Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan staff, and I can’t wait to work with a group of current talent.”
Hart, 34, has spent the past four years coaching runners in Indiana.
A pick for the sixth round of the Indianapolis Colts in 2008, Hart played three NFL seasons before entering coaching in eastern Michigan. He later coached runners in western Michigan and Syracuse before joining the Indiana staff in 2017. The Hoosiers promoted Hart as associate head coach in 2020.
Michigan last week announced a new four-year contract for Harbaugh, who is 49-22 in six seasons but went from 2 to 4 in 2020.