[
](http://www.indianacarey.com)
INDIANAPOLIS – Putting all the friendly banter of crowd noise aside, John Harbaugh and Chuck Pagano have great respect for each other.
It was Harbaugh who hired Pagano as his defensive backs coach when the Ravens head coach took the position back in 2008.
When Harbaugh began assembling his first NFL coaching staff, he wanted Pagano on his side.
"I'd known Chuck from a distance. We were both college coaches about the same age coming up and I always admired him," Harbaugh recalls.
"(Pagano) was always doing really well. I always thought the world of him, and then to get to see him every single day in person as a coach, I could see why he was so highly thought of. He was just a great benefit. A lot of our success is owed to what he did here."
On a conference call earlier this week with the Indianapolis media, Harbaugh was put on the spot with what he most admired about Pagano.
The two spent four seasons together in Baltimore with Harbaugh elevating Pagano to defensive coordinator in 2011.
"First of all, I think the way (Pagano) relates to players is something that jumps out at you right away. I tried to watch that and learn from that," Harbaugh says.
"Then also football, just talking football, we're both defensive guys in a way. In the secondary, we both played defensive back. I just listen to him, his coaching points, the way he teaches, the way he studied tape, and all that you learn football (wise)."
Back in 2012, there was Harbaugh showing his team Pagano's post game speech following the Miami game.
The two's bond clearly extends past the gridiron and outside of 60 minutes on Sunday afternoon, it will continue for the successful head coaches.
"The first thing is just the friendship and what he's meant to me and my family," Harbaugh says of what he values in Pagano.
"What I learned from him as a coach and as a person. Just what a good friend he was. In the toughest times, that's when you know who's in your corner, and Chuck was always there through the tough times, always. That's just the kind of man he his."
