Having left the high-stress job as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin has stepped into a calmer lifestyle. He is spending time with his family, which he had barely any time to do in the past 19 years. He seems to have gotten more involved with his daughter, Harlyn “Harley” Tomlin, and her career. In mid-January, he attended Harley’s University of Georgia gymnastics meet at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia. In his recent post, he congratulated Harley on a major achievement with her Georgia gymnastics team.
“Proud Dad,” wrote Mike Tomlin on his Instagram Story, after sharing Georgia Gymnastics’ post, and congratulating his daughter and her team.
On April 4, 2026, the Georgia Gymnastics secured their trip to Fort Worth, Texas. Throughout the season, they have been excellent, picking up wins over LSU, Alabama, Missouri, and other top colleges. Harlyn has been one of the standout athletes on the GymDogs team. She has been exceptional on the floor lineups and the beam.
The latest announcement has made Tomlin happy and a proud father. After losing seven consecutive playoff games and walking out of the franchise that he has been a part of for 19 years, his daughter’s win surely makes him feel lively once again. It was a tough year for him, but now he has something to look forward to.
Despite not often talking about his family, Tomlin has always been active on Instagram when it comes to showing how proud he is of his three children – sons Mayce and Dino, and daughter Harlyn – whom he shares with his wife, Kiya. He celebrates every little win of theirs, which includes Harlyn’s graduation.
She made her Gymdogs’ debut last year in January, earning 9.850 on beam. It was an impressive number for the four-star recruit from Pittsburgh. This year, she earned her first All-SEC honours and is eyeing the NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships.
Like her father, she is focused and consistent. Now, she is waiting to make it to the finishing line. But it won’t be easy. Besides the GymDogs, LSU, Stanford, and Florida have also advanced to Texas. The semifinals will take place on April 16 at Dickies Arena with Session I from 4:30 p.m. ET, followed by Session II at 9 p.m. ET.
While the former Steelers’ head coach is proud of her daughter, he may not feel the same when it comes to a former linebacker that he coached in Pittsburgh.
Former NFL linebacker blames Mike Tomlin for breaking the rhythm
“When I was with the Steelers, we were 12-4 my first two seasons,” said Stevenson Sylvester via Aaron Becker of Steelers Now. “Then my third year, we took a dip. We let go of some veterans. It wasn’t as good as the years before.”
Sylvester pointed to Tomlin as the root of the cause. He was overstepping into the jobs of the other coaches.
“The difference was Mike Tomlin would try to do everybody else’s job,” Sylvester said. “He would try to do the defensive coordinator’s job, the linebacker coach’s job, and it wouldn’t leave time for those guys to do their job. That created dysfunction.”
The Steelers drafted him in 2010. He played four seasons and then left for the Buffalo Bills. The LB is talking about the 2012 season when the Steelers finished with an 8-8 record. That season, the Steelers missed the playoffs, and just barely saved Tomlin’s “no-losing” season streak. They were 7-8, and winning over the Cleveland Browns in the last game helped them make it 8-8.
The following season, too, it was the same. They lost the last three consecutive games and finished 8-8. While Sylvester did not mince his words, it is not the first time a former Steelers player has spoken against the former HC. Former Super Bowl winner James Harrison has been very critical of Tomlin. He even called him out for not having a coaching tree. While Tomlin seems to be surrounded by lots of criticism, he is paying no heed to them, as he hasn’t commented on any of these criticisms. Rather, he is more interested in his daughter’s gymnastics.
