For those of you hoping for a breezy, milquetoast version of Jim Harbaugh here in May, we have some bad news: He hasn't changed a bit.
The San Francisco 49ers coach was in midseason form Wednesday, presiding over a squad that came within one game of the Super Bowl during his first season with the team in 2011. That's history now. Quarterback Alex Smith confirmed Harbaugh is already in regular-season form.
"Let me tell you, things have not changed," Smith told The Sacramento Bee on Wednesday. "If you talk to anybody about the first day of Football School and it was like, 'Holy smokes.' I think it blew everyone's mind. I know Randy (Moss) came out here and was like, 'Holy smokes.' It was 100 miles per hour. This coaching staff, coach Harbaugh, only knows one speed. It's not 'relax' time, it's full throttle even more."
It wasn't so long ago the 49ers were a wild mess of a franchise. Many of the players who toiled under previous regimes finally enjoyed success last season. Smith headlines that list, and Harbaugh's coaching, investment and confidence in his quarterback made all the difference. Few knew what to expect with Harbaugh out of the gate: The man is edgy, bizarre, cantankerous and extremely talented. He won't be told how to run a team, and it doesn't matter if it's May or September. His players are learning that.
