The NCAA penalized the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines football team on Tuesday for impermissible contact between the program and non-coaches with student-athletes during the coronavirus pandemic.
The NCAA reached agreements with the university and five individuals who currently or previously worked for the football program regarding recruiting violations and coaching activities, the statement said. The NCAA said penalties for the five participants include three years' probation, fines, recruiting restrictions and a one-year “instruction order.”
“The negotiated resolution also included the school's agreement that the underlying violations represented a breach of responsibility on the part of the head coach and that the former head football coach had failed in his responsibility to cooperate with the investigation,” the NCAA said. said, likely referring to former head coach Jim Harbaugh. He is currently the head coach of the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers.
“Pending the committee's final decision, including potential violations and penalties against the former coach, the committee will not discuss further details of this incident to protect the integrity of the ongoing process,” the NCAA said in a statement. ” he said.
Representatives for Mr. Harbaugh could not immediately be reached Tuesday afternoon. Representatives from the university could not be reached for comment.
None of the five people who work or previously worked for the football program were named in the NCAA statement.
The NCAA said the violations occurred during the “death period” of the coronavirus pandemic, when contact with recruits and players was not allowed. Violations include “unauthorized tryouts, including teaching technical and tactical skills, and the number of countable coaches allowed when members other than the coaching staff engage in on-field and off-field coaching activities.” It included more than 100 programs.
Harbaugh, who coached the Wolverines for nine years, led the team to its first national championship since 1997, defeating the Washington Huskies 34-13 in January.
A few weeks later, he accepted a job with the Chargers. Harbaugh is a former quarterback who played at the University of Michigan, played in the NFL for the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens, and was the coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014.
Last season in Ann Arbor was the Wolverines' best record on the gridiron with a 15-0 record, but it wasn't without drama for the successful coach.
Harbaugh was suspended for half the regular season for two separate investigations.
The Big Ten Conference suspended him for the final three games of the regular season after he was caught in the middle of a sign-stealing scandal. The player has already played his first three games after accepting the university's decision to suspend him for making false statements to NCAA investigators investigating alleged recruiting violations during the coronavirus pandemic. He was absent.
