Michigan and five current or former staff members of the football program have reached an agreement with the NCAA regarding recruiting violations and “coaching activities by non-coaching staff members that occurred within the football program, and the appropriate penalties for those violations.”
According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, Michigan will be on probation for three years, face a fine and restrictions on recruiting, and the punished coaches will receive a one-year show-cause order.
Sanctions:
– Three years probation for Michigan
– a fine and recruitment restrictions
– one-year show-cause orders for the coaches— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) April 16, 2024
One former Michigan coach — believed to be former head coach Jim Harbaugh — did not participate in the agreement and the NCAA infractions committee will hear that case separately.
“The agreed violations include impermissible in-person recruiting contacts during a COVID-19 dead period, impermissible tryouts, and the program exceeding the allowable number of countable coaches when non-coaching staff members are engaged in on- and off-field coaching activities (including providing technical and tactical skills to student-athletes),” the NCAA said in a statement. “The negotiated resolution also included the school’s agreement that the underlying violations demonstrated a breach of head coach responsibility and that the former football head coach be failed to fulfill his responsibility to participate in the study. The school also agreed that it failed to deter and detect impermissible recruiting contacts and failed to ensure that the football program adhered to the rules for non-coaching staff members.”
In a notice of allegations sent to Michigan in January, the NCAA alleged the Wolverines had impermissible encounters with two recruits during a COVID-19 dead period. Other violations – all considered Level II – include texting a recruit outside of a contact period, exceeding the NCAA’s limits for on-court coaches by having analysts instruct players during practice and coaches let you watch players train via Zoom.
“Today’s joint resolution affects the University of Michigan athletics department and several former and current employees,” Michigan athletics director Warde Manuel said in a statement. “We are pleased to reach a resolution on this issue so that our student-athletes and our football program can move forward. We have no additional information and cannot comment further on other aspects of the NCAA’s investigation.”
Harbaugh served a self-imposed three-game suspension at the start of the 2023 season for making false statements during this investigation, according to the NCAA.
This ruling is not related to the Michigan sign stealing investigation, which is still ongoing.
