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Former Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh learned his fate Wednesday.
The NCAA handed down a four-year show-cause order for Harbaugh after determining the coach had impermissible contact with recruits and players during the COVID-19 restricted period. The organization determined Harbaugh "engaged in unethical conduct, failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance and violated head coach responsibility obligations."
The ruling effectively means Harbaugh will not be able to coach at the college level for the next four years. He would be eligible for reinstatement in August 2028.
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Jim Harbaugh of the Michigan Wolverines speaks onstage during the national championship celebration at Crisler Center Jan. 13, 2024 in Ann Arbor, Mich. (Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)
Harbaugh coached the Wolverines to the College Football Playoff national championship in January. Just over two weeks later, he was named the next head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. Michigan was previously placed on probation for three years and fined.
The football program also faces recruiting limits, all of which were included in a negotiated resolution in the case. But Harbaugh did not fall in line with the agreement. Harbaugh disputed the allegations, which said he failed to cooperate with investigators, so his case was handled separately.
Jim Harbaugh of the Los Angeles Chargers at the podium before practice at Hoag Performance Center June 13, 2024, in Costa Mesa, Calif. (Ric Tapia/Getty Images)
"The panel noted that Harbaugh’s intentional disregard for NCAA legislation and unethical conduct amplified the severity of the case and prompted the panel to classify Harbaugh’s case as Level I-Aggravated, with penalties to include a four-year show-cause order. Subsumed in the show-cause order is a one-season suspension for Harbaugh," the NCAA said.
The recruiting case is separate from the NCAA’s investigation into impermissible in-person scouting and sign-stealing allegations that cast a shadow over Michigan's run to the national championship last season. The Big Ten Conference ultimately suspended Harbaugh for three games.
While Harbaugh is focused on the NFL, the penalty requires a university to suspend him for a full season upon hiring the coach. After that, Harbaugh would be still be barred from athletics-related activities, including team travel, practice, video study, recruiting and team meetings until the order expires.
Harbaugh’s attorney, Tom Mars, has said the coach was not invited to participate in the settlement process or aware that an agreement had been reached between the school and the NCAA.
Jim Harbaugh of the Michigan Wolverines walks off the field after a win over the Purdue Boilermakers in the Big Ten championship at Lucas Oil Stadium Dec. 3, 2022, in Indianapolis. (Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Sherrone Moore, who was named Michigan's head coach after Harbaugh left for the NFL, is facing his own allegations. Moore is suspected of violating NCAA rules related to the investigation into scouting and sign-stealing, sources told The Associated Press.
Moore has been accused of deleting text message exchanges with Connor Stalions, who is at the center of a probe into an off-campus, advance scouting operation, around the time the investigation was opened.
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Stalions, who has not cooperated with the NCAA in its investigation, will break his silence Aug. 27 on Netflix when the documentary "Sign Stealer" makes its debut on the streaming service.
"I do not apologize," Harbaugh said earlier this week when asked about the NCAA’s sign-stealing notice to the Wolverines. "I did not participate. I was not aware nor complicit in those said allegations."
The 48-page document from the NCAA on it's recruiting infractions decision can be read below:
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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