Michigan football strength coach Ben Herbert follows Jim Harbaugh to L.A. Chargers
For years he’s been known as the program X-factor, but now he’s moving on.
Ben Herbert, Michigan football’s head strength and conditioning coach, is leaving Ann Arbor to follow Jim Harbaugh to Los Angeles and take the same position with the Chargers, per various reports.
Herbert, 44, joined U-M in 2018 after five years at Arkansas and spent the last six years in Ann Arbor. That included the 2023 season, when he not only helped propel Michigan to its first undefeated season and national title in more than a quarter century, but added associate head coach to his title.
U-M announced later Monday that Justin Tress, who had been on Herbert's staff the last six seasons and was the associate director in 2023, will take over Herbert's position.
Herbert, who was widely credited by players and staffers alike as the lightning rod who helped forge the team's "one track mind" as distractions swirled around the program the entire season, trained 95 NFL draft selections, that includes 12 first-round picks as well as three Heisman Trophy finalists.
In February, Herbert signed a five-year contract that will pay him $1 million per season, which was obtained by USA TODAY and the Free Press via a records request. Herbert, who made $700,000 in 2022, will receive $600,000 as his base pay (the same as 2022) with a $400,000 signing bonus.
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He was just the second $1 million strength coach in the country.
According to the same contract, Herbert is required to pay a $1 million buyout to the university within 30 days; it is not clear if the Chargers will cover that. Harbaugh had to pay a $1.5 million buyout.
Sherrone Moore was introduced as U-M’s 21st head coach Saturday morning and said his top priority as he tried to hit the ground running was about rounding out his staff and keeping as many people as he could in place.
"I have talked to him,” Moore said of Herbert. “I'm going to try to get that done as fast as possible. So getting to work. Been getting to work, got to work last night, get to work today and throughout the day, and as we go on the recruiting trail, (staff decisions) will be a top priority top priorities. So we'll get done as fast as possible."
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Herbert is the second key piece of Michigan’s coaching staff who Harbaugh has poached in the past 48 hours. Earlier in the weekend, news also broke that Harbaugh had agreed with defensive coordinator Jesse Minter to takeover the same position on L.A.
The Chargers have not made the hire official, but when it is announced, since Minter made it through the second year of his contract, his buyout will be for $800,000, for. a total of $3.3 million coming back U-M's way in payment for Harbaugh, Herbert and Minter.
Had Minter taken over as a head coach in the NCAA, he would not have had to pay a buyout, per his MOU.
Even though both losses are critical, earlier this year Harbaugh said he had “never made a better hire” than when he signed Herbert.
“He is the X-factor in our football program,” Harbaugh said. “He is the center of player development. He is phenomenal; more than anybody in our entire program. It’s with every player, it’s with every position group.
“His impact on every single player, every single coach — including myself — we say he’s the best.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football's Ben Herbert follows Harbaugh to Chargers
