Chargers hire former Bolt great Nick Hardwick as assistant offensive line coach

The Chargers continue an impressive staff hiring spree with a familiar, and very welcome, face

Rich Eisen is a Michigan alumni, and has given some great insights into what Chargers fans could expect to come with the Jim Harbaugh hire. One quote that stood out amongst the rest was a nugget from his podcast:

“And this is something that, Charger fans, get ready, because he’s gonna have a sense of tradition and reach out to people from the Chargers past and try to build it as part of the present.”

Jim Harbaugh is a traditionalist. His Michigan teams were numbered based on their chronological order in Michigan’s history, giving his players a sense of identity along a timeline dating them back to 1879, while also giving them a direct reminder that there were iterations of this roster before them and there will be iterations after.

This likely won’t translate directly over to how he operates with the Chargers – it’s unclear if he’ll number his teams in Los Angeles as he did in Ann Arbor. But tradition will be woven into the fabric of this team in a variety of ways. Jim Harbaugh will aim to erase the verb “Chargering” by bringing in staff members and guest speakers from the days that a matchup against the Chargers was dreaded.

The first such move happened today, as Nick Hardwick has been hired to the staff as an assistant offensive line coach. Hardwick was the Chargers’ stud center for eleven seasons, earning Pro Bowl honors only once but maintaining an extremely reliable and cerebral presence on the offense line until health concerns forced him to retire after the 2014 season.

Since his departure, the Chargers have wholly failed at replacing Nick through the draft. The only two playoff appearances post-Hardwick occurred when the Chargers signed free agent Pro Bowl centers that managed to stay healthy, but both Mike Pouncey and Corey Linsley struggled with availability due to a variety of injuries, and the offenses fell apart when either had to be replaced in the lineup.

Nick was openly critical of the Chargers move to the Los Angeles. After trying to lead stadium efforts in San Diego, he expressed that he felt he was used by the ownership and didn’t wish to follow them to Los Angeles. He eventually changed course, and rejoined the Los Angeles Chargers radio staff in 2017. With Jim Harbaugh hired and now Nick Hardwick on staff, it should be interesting to see if the Spanos family makes any attempts to further their appeal in San Diego, and mend some of the bridges torched in their hasty departure.

Hardwick has expressed coaching interest before, and given his contagious energy and high-level understanding of the game, it wouldn’t be a shock to see him quickly ascend the coaching ladder. He’s an absolute boon for this coaching staff, and should be a welcome addition for any fan to see.