Facing a sea of newly minted college graduates, John Harbaugh didn’t hide from a recent experience that could await many of them in their professional careers.
“There are going to be tough times,” the Giants head coach said Saturday while delivering the commencement speech at his alma mater, Miami University in Ohio. “You might get a call with some bad news. Maybe about your job. Maybe they will tell you they don’t want you anymore, and it’s time to move on. That happens. In those moments, I hope you will find resilience. And that you will be able to rejoice in all the good you still have and all the people who still care for you — that you will come to understand there is a great opportunity on the next horizon of your life.”
For Harbaugh, who was fired in January after 18 seasons as Ravens head coach, the next “great opportunity” came from the Giants. Several NFL teams immediately were eager to hire the Super Bowl champion and 14th-winningest coach in NFL history.
It was the first time Harbaugh was fired during a coaching career that began in 1984.
“You will learn from experience that life is best lived going forward, but it’s best understood looking back,” Harbaugh said. “Definitely, things aren’t always going to go the way you plan. In fact, sometimes, things will go way better. Sometimes things are going to go so good, you won’t even believe how well they are going. Sometimes the victories are just going to be raining down on you. Your cup is going to be overflowing.”
Harbaugh’s message to Miami-Ohio’s Class of 2026 focused on the power of caring and encouragement as a way to make a difference. He started the speech with his family’s signature rhetorical question, “Who has it better than us?”
Miami-Ohio president Gregory P. Crawford called on everyone in the crowd to be a Giants fan for the day and started a “Go Giants!” chant.
Harbaugh received an honorary doctorate on the same field where he once made tackles. Some of his own friends from the Class of 1984 were on hand to tailgate with him afterward.
“Toughness is a talent,” Harbaugh said. “Toughness is a decision. If you decide that you are willing to make the choice to be tough, know that the doubters, the discouragers, the detractors have no power over you when you make that choice. You cannot be defeated. I hope you’ve begun to learn from your experiences while it is true that we can’t control everything, you can control a whole lot. In truth, you can control almost everything. The only things we aren’t given to control in our life are the outcomes: Who wins and loses. Man, have I ever come to learn that in the National Football League.”
