After the Big Ten issued a notice of an investigation into the league’s sportsmanship policy earlier this week, the University of Michigan issued its formal response and the 10-page response was a forceful defense of Michigan’s right to due process as well as a pushback on any potential punishment that would be handed down by commissioner Tony Petitti.
The letter is Michigan’s response to the Big Ten’s notification of potential discipline of Harbaugh’s undefeated second-ranked team, which is among the favorites to win the national championship.
The letter, drafted and signed by Wolverines athletic director Warde Manuel, was shared via Dan Wetzel.
Manuel attempts to lay out why “any disciplinary action in this matter at this time is procedurally improper, premature, and unwarranted” while the NCAA investigation into illegal scouting practices remains ongoing.
Michigan pointed out that Petitti “lacks authority” to punish Harbaugh under the current sportsmanship policy.
“The Sportsmanship Policy authorizes the Commissioner to impose disciplinary action on only two specifically delineated categories of respondents: First, the Commissioner may ‘hold individually accountable’ a person associated with an institution ‘if that person is found to have committed an offensive action.’ Agreement 10.1.1. Second, the Commissioner may ‘hold accountable’ an institution that is ‘responsible for’ the person who committed an offensive action,” Michigan wrote.
“That’s it. Coach Harbaugh fits neither category. He is not an ‘institution’ as defined by the Hardbook, and there is no reasonable view of either the language of Agreement 10 or the known facts that suggest that Coach Harbaugh himself ‘committed an offensive action.’ The Commissioner therefore lacks any authority under the Sportsmanship Policy to impose disciplinary action upon Coach Harbaugh.”
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NCAA stories via Google! Follow Us
Manuel writes that no member of the coaching staff, including Connor Stalions has been interviewed.
Stalions, the University of Michigan football recruiting analyst who’s been at the center of the NCAA’s investigation into the Wolverines’ alleged impermissible sign-stealing tactics, resigned from his position in the program.
It has been widely reported that Stalions has purchased tickets to over 30 games at 12 separate stadiums within the Big Ten Conference and sent individuals there to record the sidelines of future Michigan opponents in an effort to steal their play-call signals.
The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach has previously stated Stalions has refused to cooperate with the ongoing investigation so that would be the reason why the NCAA hasn’t interviewed him.
