From the sounds of it, Michigan and the NCAA won’t have a resolution in regards to the investigation into the football program and its alleged illegal scouting and sign stealing scheme any time soon.
Yahoo Sports reported Tuesday that it obtained part of a 137-page document sent from U-M officials to the NCAA which paints the picture that the university has no intention to enter into a negotiated resolution.
The report states that U-M not only defends former head coach Jim Harbaugh, current head coach Sherrone Moore and other staff members, but also notably Connor Stalions, the recruiting assistant who orchestrated the allegedly illegal plot and later resigned. In the reported document, Michigan argues the system in place had “minimal relevance to competition” and was not fully proven upon investigation.
It continues, in part, that the notice of allegations the university received prior to the start of the 2024 season holds “numerous factually unsupported infractions, exaggerates aggravating factors and ignores mitigating facts,” according to the report.
U-M received the NOA about three weeks after the NCAA sent a draft NOA that laid out potential violations and punishments for the Michigan staffers, including first-year head coach Sherrone Moore. ESPN in early August obtained the draft NOA, which said Moore, who immediately took over after Jim Harbaugh left for the NFL, could face a suspension and show-cause penalty. Moore allegedly deleted 52 text messages with Stalions, a Level II NCAA violation, the same day he was reported to be the ringleader of the sign-stealing operation.
In total, Michigan was alleged to have 11 violations, six of which were deemed Level I or the most serious of infractions, yet the document sent from Ann Arbor deems most do not have “merit or credible evidence” to support.
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Throughout the saga, many rumors have floated around about who alerted authorities to U-M’s supposed improprieties. According to the recent document, the tipster came from inside the program.
Per Yahoo’s report, “Michigan believes the confidential leaker was used by the NCAA to produce at least some of the charges in the notice of allegations, something in which it expresses ‘concern.'”
Separately, Yahoo reports that former star Michigan running back and assistant coach Mike Hart was one of at least two members who “raised concerns” over the alleged sign-stealing campaign. Hart reportedly told former defensive coordinator Jesse Minter about a phone call he received from a Rutgers staff member in 2023 about Michigan’s sign-stealing “going further” than most do.
The next steps are a hearing before the Division I Committee on Infractions, which can both conduct hearings as well as impose penalties. According to Yahoo, however, U-M will request “a pre-hearing conference” to get into further detail about the whistleblower and their participation in the allegations against the program.
One of the most serious allegations in the report − Moore deleting the texts − was also addressed. Moore said he wasn’t trying “to hide anything” rather he was “extremely angry” that a single person would jeopardize the program and the kids.
U-M points to a number of the since recovered messages to be irrelevant in nature in its response, including discussion about a birthday for a recruit.
However, Yahoo’s story continues to state “several of the messages were related to sign stealing.”
Included in the reported messages, one from August 2022 that references “a juicy report for you on CSU,” another from that October about Michigan State’s blitz tendencies and a third in November suggesting to Moore that U-M change its signals prior to playing Ohio State in Columbus, which Moore reportedly responded he will “think about it.”
In addition, Stalions also reportedly sent Moore a text in April of 2023 about a planned visit from Central Michigan assistant Jake Kostner to Michigan’s facility. That’s notable because Kostner resigned from Central Michigan last summer when the university started to be investigated for how Connor Stalions allegedly attended a CMU game vs. Michigan State at Spartan Stadium and was on the Chippewa’s sideline in a disguise.
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Harbaugh, Stalions, former recruiting staffer and star quarterback Denard Robinson, and former linebackers coach Chris Partridge are accused of Level I NCAA violations, while ex-defensive coaches Jesse Minter and Steve Clinkscale were named for recruiting violations unrelated to the Stalions case. The NOA said there was no evidence Harbaugh knew about sign stealing, but was accused of once again not cooperating with the NCAA and denying requests to look through his messages and phone records.
Harbaugh was separately suspended for one year and hit with a four-year show-cause order by the NCAA after he was found to have demonstrated both “unethical conduct” and a failure to promote “an atmosphere of compliance” as it pertains to an investigation into impermissible recruiting during a COVID-19 dead period in 2021.
“Today’s announcement mirrors the resolution we negotiated with the NCAA enforcement staff that was subsequently accepted by the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions in April 2024,” athletic director Warde Manuel said in a statement at the time. “We have accepted the sanctions and have already served many of the penalties outlined in the findings. Our staff has worked to improve processes and we are focused on the future and our commitment to integrity and compliance.”
Tony Garcia is the Michigan Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan defends Connor Stalions, Sherrone Moore vs NCAA: report
