Positives outweigh negatives for Stanford QB Andrew Luck

Years ago, the very successful basketball coach at the University of Vermont, Tom Brennan, explained why he didn't leap at a bigger job with his alma mater, the University of Georgia, by quoting a life lesson someone had once given to him: "Don't ever mess with happy."

A corollary to that advice played out in the Stanford football ranks Thursday, along with more than a dash of "money isn't everything." Andrew Luck's decision to remain at the school, when he could have been the NFL's No. 1 draft pick in a few months, was only surprising when measured against cynical pragmatism. Everything about his demeanor and body language suggests that he is having a blast with the Cardinal, so why rush out the door?

The termination of Jim Harbaugh's flirtation with the Dolphins came as a bit more of a shock, because the huge salary figures floated in the media seemed certain to appeal to his ambition and ego. But ambition and ego aren't exactly the same as greed; they're more like fraternal twins. We can't know what ended the negotiations, but the ardent wooing of Miami owner Stephen Ross carried hazard signs along with all the dollars.

We also don't know where Harbaugh will land after all of this - the Farm, the still-salivating 49ers, Denver? - although Luck's decision must have delivered CPR to Stanford's faint hopes of retaining its coach. By not falling into Miami's arms, the coach showed admirable restraint.

Teams with newer owners tend to jump on private planes to lay out bundles of cash because they want to make a glamour hire. It's as much about them and their marketing schemes as it is about the caliber of the coach they are pursuing. No doubt, Ross respected Harbaugh and enjoyed the possibility of hiring a fellow Michigan alum.

But the Dolphins also seemed to be responding to national hype, without careful planning. When Ross flew out to meet with Harbaugh, they still had a head coach under contract. They still do. The Rooney Rule requiring an interview with a minority candidate wasn't satisfied, or apparently even considered. These details may seem minor to an aggressive billionaire, but sloppy is sloppy.

As reports of Harbaugh's price soared, the list of college coaches who had leapt to the pros and failed began circulating as cautionary tales: Nick Saban, Butch Davis, Dennis Erickson, Steve Spurrier. Somehow, an equally pertinent list stayed under the radar. Coaches who were recruited with monstrous pay packages and failed: Spurrier in Washington, Steve Mariucci in Detroit, and on this year's evidence alone, Pete Carroll in Seattle and Mike Shanahan in Washington.

Could Ross have some Dan Snyder in him? If all Harbaugh cared about was money, that wouldn't matter. But a team's showboating, especially with its wallet, often acts as a poor substitute for substance, and a coach who really wants to win will not fall for the charade.

Reports set Harbaugh's salary prospects with the Dolphins as high as Bill Belichick's deal and perhaps higher. There's no hope or hype inflating Belichick's contract; it's all tied to performance. When the Patriots hired him 11 years ago, their determined pursuit didn't make much sense outwardly. He had failed horribly as the Browns' head coach and spent most of the rest of his NFL career as Bill Parcells' deputy. He was severely charisma-challenged.

Owner Bob Kraft had an instinct about Belichick, based on the coach's years as a Pats assistant under Parcells. Kraft wasn't trying to make a statement or hire someone who would draw attention away from the Red Sox. He just wanted to win.

Harbaugh might never be in that class of coach. His years as an NFL quarterback and his big personality will preclude him from being the jewel dug up by a savvy owner. But the frenzy generated by the undisciplined Dolphins threatened to cast him as a flavor of the month and an antidote to the Miami Heat's celebrity troika.

Harbaugh might never have Brennan's perspective on life, but he obviously knew that Miami wouldn't make him happy. The courtship ended several hours after his young quarterback at Stanford made a wise, confident choice. Others have lost millions by choosing to stay in school, but Luck knew the cautionary tales when he made his decision. He had his own goals and priorities.

Right now, it's hard to say which of these two is the master and which is the student.

E-mail Gwen Knapp at gknapp@sfchronicle.com.

This article appeared on page B - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle