HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Jim Harbaugh never played for Pete Carroll or coached under him.
However he has a strong sense their relationship would be quite different than it is now if he had those opportunities.
“I bet we would’ve been really good friends,” Harbaugh said. “I learned a lot from him, just watching him, but he’s always been on the other side.”
And now they are again when Harbaugh's Los Angeles Chargers visit Carroll's Las Vegas Raiders on Monday night, which also will be Carroll's 74th birthday.
It's their first meeting since Dec. 14, 2014, when Carroll's Seahawks defeated Harbaugh's 49ers 17-7 in Seattle.
Harbaugh then returned to his alma mater, coaching Michigan to the national championship in 2023 before coming back to the NFL. Carroll stayed in Seattle until the same year before leaving, taking a year off from coaching and then getting hired by Las Vegas.
Harbaugh shook his head “no” when asked if he texts with Carroll and noted he doesn't receive Christmas cards from him.
“Well, I’m surprised he would say that because he sends me a birthday card every year," Carroll said, jokingly.
Harbaugh was complimentary of Carroll while acknowledging they have butted heads over the years.
Carroll was in a jovial mood, speaking to reporters with tongue firmly planted in cheek regarding his history with Harbaugh.
“I have no fond memories,” Carroll said deadpanned. "I’m not going to go there. They’ve been great games, that’s all. There’s been a bunch of them.”
All the way back to the beginning of their rivalry.
Harbaugh became Stanford's coach in 2007, taking over a Cardinal program that went 1-11 the year before. Southern California, coached by Carroll, ruled the Pac-10 Conference at the time, the Trojans winning national championships in the 2003 and 2004 seasons and coming within a Vince Young-led Texas winning drive from doing so again in 2005.
Stanford was a 41-point underdog when it visited USC in 2007, but shocked the Trojans 24-23. Two years later, the Cardinal returned to the Coliseum and beat USC again, this time rolling to a 55-21 victory.
Not happy about a late 2-point conversion try by Stanford with the outcome long not in doubt, Carroll met Harbaugh in the middle of the field after the game and asked, “What's your deal?”
A coaching rivalry was born.
One that carried into the NFL when both were in the NFC West with Super Bowl-level teams. San Francisco or Seattle represented the NFC in the big game three consecutive seasons (2012-14).
“They both built great teams and had to go through one another to get to the Super Bowl,” Raiders quarterback Geno Smith said. “I watched those games. A lot of those games, they were very impressive games to watch.”
Carroll said at his introductory news conference in January that every day would be about competition, and he followed through on that. Harbaugh, now in his second season with the Chargers, has worked to establish a similar mindset.
“If you ask me why I do this, why most of us do it, at least speaking for myself, No. 1 on that list is competition," Harbaugh said. "I just love to compete. When you find others that are like that, too, then you have respect for them.
"It’s like looking in the mirror.”
Both coaches have both won big, and this game could be a pivotal early test for both.
The Chargers are trying to establish themselves as early contenders for the AFC West, and a victory over the Raiders would put them on that path after Los Angeles opened the season by defeating Kansas City 27-21. The Raiders opened their season with a 20-13 victory at New England, and a 2-0 start would serve notice that maybe Carroll will make Las Vegas a playoff contender in his first season.
“This is a division game and it’s the next game on our schedule and it’s a championship freaking game to me," Carroll said. "That’s the only way I’ve ever looked at these games. Is there some game that’s more important than another that you’re going to try harder because you’re playing somebody or somewhere? I don’t believe in that. We don’t talk like that.”
Even so, much of the attention figures to be on the coaches, and how they greet each other afterward will be closely watched.
Harbaugh said they've gotten along when football games haven't been in the way, and the mutual respect is clear.
“Just trying to win," Harbaugh said. "Just trying to beat him. It’s tough to do. Doing everything in our power to be tough to beat.”
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Los Angeles, Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Sao Paulo. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll, center, celebrates after his team defeated the New England Patriots in an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo says he’s healthy and wants to play even as the Milwaukee Bucks continue to say the two-time MVP is too injured to take the floor.
Antetokounmpo missed a 10th straight game on Friday night against the Boston Celtics due to what the team has described as a left knee hyperextension and bone bruise. Antetokounmpo hasn’t played since landing awkwardly during a March 15 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
“I’m healthy,” Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and The Athletic before Friday’s game. “I hate it when people force me to do things against my nature. I’m a player. I get paid to play.”
For the last couple of weeks, Antetokounmpo has participated in pregame warmups without showing any apparent signs of injury.
Antetokounmpo also noted that the Bucks should have known this about him since the 31-year-old has spent his entire 13-year career in Milwaukee.
Throughout that time, Antetokounmpo has had a reputation for rapid returns from injury, most notably when he hyperextended his knee during Milwaukee’s 2021 playoff run but missed two games before returning to lead the Bucks to their first title in half a century.
“You know who you’re dealing with,” Antetokounmpo told reporters. “So, for somebody to come and tell me to not play or to not compete, it’s like a slap in my face.”
Bucks coach Doc Rivers addressed Antetokounmpo's comments after the 133-101 loss to Boston.
“The tough part about all this is that I’m in the middle and I have nothing to do with it,” Rivers said. “Coaches don’t decide any of this. The problem with our league is the coaches are the ones sitting out front. And we have to sit here and answer this stuff. I think there are two sides to this, I will tell you that, but I don’t want to get too involved in it.”
The Bucks still had a remote chance of earning a 10th straight playoff berth at the time of that Indiana game, but they were officially eliminated from contention last week. There’s also the possibility of Antetokounmpo getting hurt again if he returns to action — he has missed a career-high 41 games this season and had two extended absences due to calf strains.
“I understand the circumstances — yes, we’re not going to be in the playoffs,” Antetokounmpo said. “For some people’s eyes, it’s not worth it for me to be out there. But for me, it’s something that goes against my nature.”
Rivers said he has a “great relationship” with Antetokounmpo and that he often talks to the superstar about what to work on and what to add to his game. Rivers added that he didn't like the “he-said, she-said” nature of this dispute and added that “this is a grown man's game, and it should be handled that way by everybody.”
“I just don’t like that this is so public," Rivers said. "This is where grown men get in a room and they talk it out. Whether they agree or disagree, that doesn’t matter. But this should not be public, and I don’t like that.”
Antetokounmpo also wanted the opportunity to play alongside his younger brother, Alex, who made his NBA debut Tuesday. There was a possibility of three Antetokounmpo brothers playing alongside each other in the same game, since Giannis’ older brother, Thanasis, also is on the Bucks.
“When my dad passed away, I pretty much raised (Alex),” Antetokounmpo said. “He’s able to be on the team and suit up and chase an opportunity to be great. You really think I don’t want to suit up and play with my brother? Anybody who thinks that is an idiot.”
Thanasis and Alex both played in the closing minutes Friday night, the first time the two brothers had played together in an NBA game.
Antetokounmpo’s desire to play — and the Bucks’ wishes to rest him — drew the attention of the National Basketball Players Association last month.
“The Player Participation Policy was designed by the league to hold teams accountable and ensure that when an All-Star like Giannis Antetokounmpo is healthy and ready to play, he is on the court,” the union said in a statement. “Unfortunately, anti-tanking policies are only as effective as their enforcement; fans, broadcast partners, and the integrity of the game itself will continue to suffer as long as ownership goes unchecked. We look forward to collaborating with the NBA on meaningful new proposals that will directly address and discourage tanking.”
This dispute between Antetokounmpo and the Bucks comes at a time when his future in Milwaukee is uncertain. Antetokounmpo’s name dominated league-wide discussions leading up to the trade deadline, though the Bucks ultimately kept him.
Antetokounmpo becomes eligible to sign a four-year contract extension worth up to $275 million in October. If he doesn’t sign the extension, Antetokounmpo could become a free agent after the 2026-27 season, or the Bucks could decide to trade him beforehand.
Now they find themselves at odds over how to handle the rest of this season.
“I don't think there's a bad person in this group - none of the guys that I'm talking about,” Rivers said. "They're all good people. But we've got to figure out how to put good people on the same page, and it stays inside. I've never been a fan of negotiating in the media. I don't think it's good for anybody.
Antetokounmpo had his own take on how this could be resolved.
“I don’t know where the relationship goes from there,” Antetokounmpo said. “We’ve got to go to couples therapy.”
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Injured Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo, center right, talks with an official, center left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Boston Celtics, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)
