According to two university sources who spoke to ESPN, Michigan has received a notice of accusations from the NCAA involving suspected breaches committed by the football staff during the COVID-19 recruiting dead period.
Michigan also faces four Level II infractions, which are seen as less serious, while Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh faces a Level I violation for allegedly failing to cooperate with or misleading NCAA investigators about the alleged violations, according to sources. As part of a negotiated settlement for his involvement, Michigan in August self-imposed a one-game ban for offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore and a three-game suspension for head coach Jim Harbaugh to start the season.
The self-imposed penalties, enacted to soften the impact of NCAA punishment, came shortly after the NCAA’s infractions committee did not approve a negotiated resolution involving Harbaugh that would have resulted in a four-game suspension. The NCAA also in August took the unusual step of issuing a statement during an ongoing investigation about the severity of the alleged violations involving Michigan.
“The Michigan infractions case is related to impermissible on and off-campus recruiting during the COVID-19 dead period and impermissible coaching activities — not a cheeseburger,” Derrick Crawford, NCAA vice president of hearing operations, said in the statement, referring to the simplistic characterization of the violations in some media reports. “It is not uncommon for the [committee on infractions] to seek clarification on key facts prior to accepting. The COI may also reject an NR [negotiated resolution] if it determines that the agreement is not in the best interests of the Association or the penalties are not reasonable. If the involved parties cannot resolve a case through the negotiated resolution process, it may proceed to a hearing, but the committee believes cooperation is the best avenue to quickly resolve issues.”
In January, Michigan received a draft of the notice of allegations, which outlined the Level I violation involving Harbaugh and the Level II infractions, which included an off-field analyst allegedly being involved in on-field coaching activities. Sources told ESPN then that Harbaugh could face up to a six-game suspension.
Michigan faces a second NCAA investigation for the prohibited off-campus scouting and signal stealing allegedly led by former staff member Connor Stalions, who resigned Nov. 4. Although Michigan has not received a notice of allegations in that case, the Big Ten imposed a three-game suspension for Harbaugh under its sportsmanship policy, which the coach served for the final three regular-season games. Harbaugh could be charged as a repeat violator under head-coach responsibility, also a Level I charge.
After taking a break from coaching to watch the Big Ten championship game against Iowa on December 2, Harbaugh will rejoin the Michigan coaching staff on January 1 to see the team play Alabama in the CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential. The NCAA will have 60 days to provide a rebuttal after Michigan has 90 days to reply to the notice of accusations.
