"After the last ball had been snapped and the last kick had been kicked, the 49ers' head coach strode swiftly across the field to shake hands with his counterpart.

There was no incident this time. No exuberant back slapping, or ridiculous scuffling. Jim Harbaugh and Giants head coach Tom Coughlin shook hands briefly, spoke for a moment, and Harbaugh walked off the field at Candlestick Park on Sunday as quickly as he could.

Just like that, a brilliant season for a rookie head coach had come to an end, with an overtime loss in the NFC Championship. Just like that, Harbaugh's magic carpet ride came floating back to earth. "