the position after Jason Garrett?

What is your vision for the Ravens and are you bothered that you were offered the position after Jason Garrett? (HARBAUGH) "First of all, As far as this football team, when you grow up as a coach's kid and your dad coaches for Bo Schembechler and you come up through the years [with that], you can't have a better job. I mean, Rich Leach stuffed me in a locker one time and Donny Dufek taped me to a goal post, Steve. So, who's got it better than that? We thought you didn't have a childhood if you didn't grow up like that. But, when you grow up in that environment, part of your life values, the thing you learn is that there are three important things [to] putting together a football team – three important things: No. 1, the team; No. 2, the second most important thing, is the team; and the third most important thing is the team. We'll stick with that through and through, beginning to end. That's what it's all about."

What do you want to tell the people of Baltimore about your ability to be a good head coach? (HARBAUGH) "There are a lot of ways to prepare to be anything. There are a lot of ways to prepare to be a head coach. I'm proud of the path I took. I don't think you control your path. I think you start working for a guy and a coach puts you in a position and says, ‘I need you to coach this,' and you coach it. Then, the next year he says, ‘I need you to coach that,' and you coach that. And, if it's special teams, you coach that. You just do the best job you can and do what you have to do and you work as hard as you can and that prepares you. And, that path is laid out for you a little bit and you don't try to determine what path it's going to be. So, hey, you work with guys, you have fun out there on the football field, you pay attention to detail, you do the best job you can every day and then good things happen. And, that's what we're going to be all about."

What will you say when you first address the players and how will you establish your tone as a leader? (HARBAUGH) "We've got a book, in the Andy Reid tradition, we've got a book about this thick and there are a number of meetings that are all laid out in there. I'm sure we'll take a look at that meeting outline and figure out what we're going to say. I think, more than anything, before we get to that point, we're going to have a chance to talk to these players individually. There are a lot of guys in town working out here right now. I saw some of the guys through the interview process in the weight room and in the training room doing those things to get ready for next year. So, we'll get a chance to talk to those guys one-on-one in town. We'll get a chance to get on the phone with guys as soon as we can. If we have to go see some guys, we'll do it. We'll start building those relationships, communicating with those players and start just getting ideas. [We'll] find out what they believe, see where they see the thing going, let them know who we are, what we're about. And then, when it comes time for that first meeting, we'll know what to say."

What did the search committee ask that surprised you and what was the toughest question? (HARBAUGH) "I'm not giving away any secrets. There were lots of surprises. You try to prepare a little bit. We were coming off our season and you're doing the things you do to do your job in Philadelphia, or wherever you are. I think you hope that 24 years, or however long you've been coaching, prepares you for that opportunity. But, people give you advice and they give you these lists of questions, and I'd say about, maybe, 10 percent of those questions that I had were the ones they asked. I'd say, Steve, you had the toughest questions, truthfully. That's what made it challenging; that's what made it fun. Those two interviews went by like that. One was five hours and the other was 7½ hours, and you looked around and it was like, ‘Wow, we've got more to talk about.' So, that's how it went."

How do you feel about Rex Ryan possibly returning to the Ravens as defensive coordinator? (HARBAUGH) "First of all with the staff, there are a lot of good football coaches inside this building right now, and there are a lot of really good football coaches outside this building who want to coach for the Baltimore Ravens. This is a great organization and this is a good football team in place right now today. People want to be here. We're going to take our time. We're going to talk to all those guys. We're going to see what the best fit is for our players, what the best fit is with one another, try to build strengths to other people's weaknesses and build a real chemistry on our staff. I don't think we're in a hurry to do that. As far as Rex, I've known Rex since 1987. Rex was coaching defense at Eastern Kentucky, and I was coaching defense at Morehead State. The only reason they beat us was because their players were better. Rex was a great coach back then. You could see it from Day One that he was going to be a great coach. Then we had a chance to work together at the University of Cincinnati in 1996. He was the defensive coordinator and he was running the same stuff he's running now, and I guarantee you people in our league couldn't defend against it either. We're going to get a chance to talk to him. He's a great coach, a good person. I know he's got some opportunities out there right now, too. I can't wait to see where Rex is going to go."

Can you identify the nervousness you feel about being a head coach for the first time in the NFL? (HARBAUGH) "I don't think it can be any worse than standing there on the sideline of the Super Bowl for the opening kickoff and watching your guys run down the field and all those blinking lights go off, wondering what's going to happen for the next 60 minutes. That's a good preparation. We've been fortunate enough to be in those situations before. Now, when the time comes and you're standing there as a head coach for the first time, we'll see what that's like. You're not going to know until you get there, but it's been a pretty good preparation, I think, the last 10 years."