Some of the details of Petitti’s letter were initially reported by ESPN.
In a notice pertaining to its investigation into sign-stealing, the NCAA claimed last year that current coach Sherrone Moore had broken the rules while working as an assistant to former coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh was suspended for three games in exchange for the NCAA ceasing its own investigation into the allegations after the two were found guilty.
Harbaugh departed to take charge of the Los Angeles Chargers following the team’s 2023 national championship victory.
Moore was also charged with erasing text communications with Connor Stalions, a sign-stealer, prior to their recovery and submission to the NCAA. Moore has stated that he has cooperated with the NCAA’s inquiry and would do so going forward.
Accusations that Michigan employed a thorough in-person scouting and sign-stealing program run by Stalions, a former low-level worker, sparked the NCAA investigation early in the 2023 season. He quit after the school suspended him. In seven games over two seasons, Stalions, who did not take part in the NCAA inquiry, recently claimed to be familiar with nearly every signal used by opponents.
Moore might receive a two-game suspension from Michigan in the upcoming season. The NCAA will determine whether Moore’s self-imposed penalty is sufficient to answer claims that he did not assist with an inquiry.
The average time for the governing body to reach a final decision in contentious matters is three months.
The season begins for the Wolverines on August 30 at home against New Mexico State then on September 6 against Oklahoma, where Moore played offensive guard.
Three weeks after the NCAA started looking into the claims, Harbaugh was suspended by the Big Ten. The two parties barely avoided a court hearing when Michigan requested an injunction and temporary restraining order hours later.
Harbaugh has consistently denied any connection to the Stalions’ alleged plot.
While the NCAA does not have any laws prohibiting sign theft, it does forbid colleges from sending scouts to future opponents’ games and from utilizing electronic devices to capture the signals of other teams.
Video security footage of persons in such seats with cell phones pointing toward the field and records of ticket purchases made under the Stalions name were found at several Big Ten colleges.
Prior to the NCAA’s investigation being finished, Big Ten coaches and athletic administrators asked Petitti to discipline Harbaugh.
Michigan argued that the commissioner had overreached himself and violated the conference’s bylaws when the Big Ten did penalize Harbaugh.
Shortly before Michigan’s game against Penn State began, and they won 24–15 without Harbaugh on the field, athletic director Warde Manuel issued a harsh statement.
Manuel then stated that dismissing someone from their position before the NCAA process has concluded through a full NCAA investigative process is not justified by dislike of a person or another university, belief that they knew without proof, or a claim that someone should have known without an investigation.
Following a negotiated settlement in a recruitment dispute, the NCAA previously placed Michigan on three years of probation, fined the school, imposed recruiting restrictions, and barred Harbaugh from coaching collegiate football for four years.
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