As the Stanford football community, we treat head coach Jim Harbaugh like our savior. He has become a national icon, and, hate him or love him, he has completely revolutionized and transformed the way this nerddom is viewed by the American public.

Naturally, his name has been associated with several marquee coaching vacancies on both the collegiate and professional levels. The University has tried to pony up enough for a sizable extension, but at just over $1.2 million a year, Harbaugh’s annual income is pennies compared to his associates at more esteemed programs.

His job has been difficult; taking a bottom-feeder from irrelevance to the top 10 while battling infamous academic standards and general apathy is no easy task. The student body has to be motivated with arbitrary “points” to come to conference games, and alums would rather invest in the linear accelerator than the offensive line.

At dinner the other night in Seattle, after Stanford dismantled Jake Locker and the Washington Huskies in arguably its best game of the season, the conversation turned to Harbaugh’s chances of staying on the Farm after this season. A buddy of mine put Jim’s chances of leaving after this season at 80 percent. Eighty.

All things considered, this might not be that outrageous of an estimate. We know that Harbaugh’s favorite players (and favorite humans), fullback Owen Marecic and quarterback Andrew Luck, are unlikely to be on next year’s squad. The loss of two of America’s best playmakers casts an undeniable shadow on next year’s season regardless of the impact of the new and returning talent. In addition, Harbaugh’s recent surge in national attention has thrust him into the top tier of coaching talents and thus, into the top tier of coaching candidacy at major programs.

We know he’s competitive. We know he has ties to Michigan, a program that would not hesitate to throw away incumbent coach Rich Rodriguez for a shot at Jim. And we know that, despite his public adoration, he’s not particularly high on the Palo Alto football environment.

With all that said, my question is this: Why would anyone in his position want to leave this school?

Let’s start with the basics. Harbaugh, as you’ve probably heard, left 11-1 San Diego to come to 1-11 Stanford. In three seasons, he took one of the worst teams in the nation, churned out eight wins and booked the Cardinal a bowl game for the first time since 2001. This season, at 7-1, Stanford now ranks among the nation’s elite and is a popular pick as the best one-loss team in the country.

Simply put, in a profession devoid of job security, Harbaugh is set for life. We could churn out four consecutive five-win seasons and Jim could replace practice with Pilates, and he would still have a job. Two straight losing seasons at Michigan puts you on the hottest of hot seats and, if fired, relegates you to coordinator positions for the rest of your career.

Harbaugh gets to live comfortably in one of the most desired areas in America, and his family has access to all that comes with the Stanford community. More importantly, he can maintain his privacy, something that is unheard of in a Michigan-type school that forces every ounce of a coach’s life into the public eye.

While I am undecided on whether I agree with the sums of money paid to athletes and coaches at every level, Harbaugh’s current salary is insulting. For a coach of his stature, he deserves, as far as the precedent goes, at least two to three million dollars a year. However, his current seven-figure deal isn’t chump change, and although Stanford may be hesitant to shell out the necessary cash, the program’s boosters, however absent they have been, should be willing to pick up the slack.

(As a tangent, in relation to the grossly expensive projects that are constantly happening around campus, $15 million to keep the best thing that has ever happened to Stanford football is a worthwhile investment. The University and its alums are making a laughable mistake by keeping Harbaugh’s salary where it is. I have friends at home in Florida who didn’t know Stanford had a football team until this year. I would hope that the bill payers recognize the benefit of a strong football program and react accordingly.)

Maybe I’m being cautiously optimistic. For all I know, Harbaugh and Luck have already made up their minds and have made reservations for the NFL. Maybe Michigan has already picked out Jim’s Ann Arbor estate and is waiting for Rodriguez’s inevitable loss to Ohio State to formally make the switch.

But I have hope. Eighty percent is too high. My gut feeling, as foolish as it may be, is that Harbaugh fends off the hordes of potential suitors and sticks with Stanford. Many variables need to fall into place for this to happen, but I believe they will.

The Cardinal is Jim Harbaugh’s baby. He has done a miraculous job of reviving one of the most pathetic and depressing programs in America. Stanford is finally developing a resemblance to a football community and he sees it. It’s not all about the money—if it was, he would have taken $20 million from the Oakland Raiders and called it a day.

But this isn’t Oakland. This is one of the greatest places on Earth.

Jim is here for the long haul.