Big Ten Suspends Harbaugh Through OSU, Michigan to Seek Restraining Order
They waited until 3:50 PM (ESPN got a 30-minute advance), on the court holiday, on the Friday before the thus-far biggest game of the season. But the Big Ten is indeed going through with its plan to suspend Harbaugh, at least from the sideline, through the Ohio State game.
Sources: The Big Ten is expected discipline Michigan for the in the in-person scouting and ongoing sign stealing investigation and will prohibit Jim Harbaugh from being on the sideline until the conclusion of the regular season. He will be allowed to coach during the week.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 10, 2023
The Big Ten's servers are getting slammed right now but former student president Michael Proppe posted Tony Petitti's response to Twitter.
Here’s the letter in all its stupid incoherent glory (sorry for some reason having trouble linking) (1/5) pic.twitter.com/FCs0MmEfr8
— Michael Proppe (@mikeproppe) November 10, 2023
The letter includes some surprisingly recursive arguments:
- It is unsafe for the players: "if you know what play your opponent is running, then you also know where your opponents' players will be on the field."
- Signs are permanent: "Numerous coaches have informed me that signs and signals cannot be quickly or easily changed, and I find those statements credible."
- It's okay if they have your signs though: "The Conference has not received any information that any other members schools engaged in impermissible advance in-person scouting."
- Who needs evidence? "We impose this disciplinary action even though the Conference has not yet received any information indicating that Head Football Coach Harbaugh was aware of the impermissible nature of the sign-stealing scheme.
The "will be allowed to coach during the week" rider is interesting. Ohio State used this method to sorta-suspend Urban Meyer for enabling his staffer's spousal abuse in 2018, and Michigan did the same earlier this year for Harbaugh enabling his staffers' meal expense abuse. It's possible the Big Ten hoped Michigan would see this for a fig leaf and accept the punishment.
They will not:
Statement from the University of Michigan: pic.twitter.com/QcYzBZkXPn
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) November 10, 2023
Michigan will file a temporary restraining order in the next few hours, and almost certainly has a judge lined up to take it. The petty timing of this action might be enough on its own to win the injunction. Harbaugh is currently traveling to Penn State.
November 10th, 2023 at 4:58 PM ^
I worry that the TRO will not succeed but would love to be wrong.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:15 PM ^
Is your worry based on legal precedent or BPONE?
November 10th, 2023 at 5:53 PM ^
This from a lawyer who has no expertise in this area, so take it for what it is worth. In order to obtain a temporary restraining order, the petitioner (in this case, Michigan) will have to show both a reasonable likelihood of prevailing on the merits and that there will be irreparable harm if the TRO isn't granted. While I tend to view the world through maize-and-blue glasses, I think Michigan wins on both counts: The suspension is a clear violation of the Big Ten rules (which the court can consider a binding contract on all parties), and the loss of the head coach can reasonably be construed as resulting in irreparable harm.
November 10th, 2023 at 4:58 PM ^
Win it all and then leave.
November 10th, 2023 at 4:58 PM ^
As a traditionalist, all I can say is fuck the Big Ten.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:14 PM ^
So Petitti is an old TV executive with no Big Ten background or experience in intercollegiate athletics. Could his allegiance be with the TV networks? They all want to ditch the historical conferences and create super leagues for better rating$. Michigan has historically been against the BCS, going away from the PAC 12 vs Big Ten Rose Bowl, and most certainly would have been against the dissolution of the Big Ten if the networks suggested cutting the dead weight. Was this all orchestrated to blow the Big Ten up? I think the end of college sports as we know it and love it is officially over. NIL dug the hole and this puts the nail in the coffin. It will go to a 100% professional model going forward.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:01 PM ^
This situation is now fully absurd.
I think Stalions was violating at the least the spirit of the in-person scouting prohibition. I take Harbaugh at his word that he or his staff was unaware of the situation.
The mishmash of justification for the penalty meted out by the conference today seems like a load of malarkey. To penalize Harbaugh personally while at the same time impugning Michigan as an institution is ridiculous.
The conference is not following a reasonable protocol for investigation and process.
I also have a hard time believing that Manuel and Ono would risk their personal and professional reputations on this matter, as well as the reputation of the athletic department and the University if they thought that Harbaugh was running dishonest program.
Fight this.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:01 PM ^
He actually used the logic from the most embarrassing athletic department in history?
November 10th, 2023 at 5:01 PM ^
Tony Pettiti has just enshrined himself as a Business School case study on the failure of leadership.
The Big Ten Championship game will be fun when we blow the doors off (likely Iowa) and walk off the field while leaving Pettiti stranded on the podium.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:02 PM ^
It’s spelled Petite
November 10th, 2023 at 5:19 PM ^
It's spelled Petty-petey-titty
November 10th, 2023 at 7:16 PM ^
petit
November 10th, 2023 at 5:01 PM ^
Small and dumb man syndrome is no way to go through life.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:02 PM ^
Hopefully Petiti packed his office up before having his secretary release this letter.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:02 PM ^
This is an incredibly cheap stunt from a legal perspective. The conference picked a Friday afternoon, on a court holiday, before a big game to announce this. Why? Because it will be very difficult to get a judge for an emergency TRO this afternoon in either the Eastern District of Michigan or the Northern District of Illinois. I really hope the University was ready for this stunt and had a complaint and a motion for a TRO ready to go to get to a judge today. I am unhappy about this Stalions guy, but I am really embarrassed by the BIG10’s conduct here. Its lawyers have really resorted to cheap stuff.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:02 PM ^
If having an opposing team's signs is dangerous to their players, why is in-game sign "stealing" allowed? Wouldn't that also be dangerous to an opposing team?
November 10th, 2023 at 5:20 PM ^
Clearly if the signs were only provided by other teams' professional coaching staffs, then it is ok and completely safe. It is intellectually dishonest and I hope the lawsuit ends up seeing damages in the hundreds of millions.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:21 PM ^
Yes, it would. As would teams’ sharing a common opponent’s signals. Pre-game “stealing” is also permitted if otherwise taken from permitted recording, tv and the like.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:03 PM ^
They did it. They actually effing did it.
This is so beyond petty and childish; I never thought they would go through with it, let alone while they’re in the effing air flying to penn state…
I’m done. Dump this ass conference. Go to the championship game, but just for the players; they deserve their glory.
But after they kick Iowa’s face in, tell them to walk right out to the bus while Jim smashes that garbage trophy on the ground.
F this.
November 10th, 2023 at 6:12 PM ^
The players will have earned a celebration. Just do it in a way that clearly tells the B1G and Pettiti to go fuck themselves. Celebrate on the field, tell tv that you're available for interviews on the field..., just refuse to go on the podium. Send someone up there to take the trophy and just grab it and leave the stage.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:04 PM ^
- Who needs evidence? "We impose this disciplinary action even though the Conference has not yet received any information indicating that Head Football Coach Harbaugh was aware of the impermissible nature of the sign-stealing scheme.
#BIGLogic.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:28 PM ^
So outrageous! Let’s paraphrase: “we impose this action even though we have no credible evidence that Harbaugh knew or should have known of this activity or that there is anything substantively wrong with it or out of line with what any of the other teams in our conference do.”
November 10th, 2023 at 5:29 PM ^
So outrageous! Let’s paraphrase: “we impose this action even though we have no credible evidence that Harbaugh knew or should have known of this activity or that there is anything substantively wrong with it or out of line with what any of the other teams in our conference do.”
November 10th, 2023 at 5:30 PM ^
So outrageous! Let’s paraphrase: “we impose this action even though we have no credible evidence that Harbaugh knew or should have known of this activity or that there is anything substantively wrong with it or out of line with what any of the other teams in our conference do.”
November 10th, 2023 at 6:29 PM ^
Under that logic*, Petitti should suspend himself for not promoting a culture of compliance regarding an anachronistic 30 year old bylaw that no one remembered.
*AKA Animal House theory of jurisprudence. Petitti has just indicted the entire United States of America!
November 10th, 2023 at 5:05 PM ^
The Big Ten commissioner can only impose a 2 game suspension unilaterally. Does this mean that he got 70% of the Big Ten university presidents to approve a 3 game suspension?
I'm not a big drama guy, but that kind of hostile take down of Michigan is deeply troubling and puts Michigan in an unsustainable situation. This will not be the end of it.
Michigan needs to look at viable alternatives to membership in the Big Ten.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:12 PM ^
Yes, and he did. Sad day.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:17 PM ^
This will never be the end of it then.
We will need to leave. This abusive relationship is unsustainable.
November 10th, 2023 at 6:28 PM ^
Discussed in another thread, but think it is a committee of 4 (not all the schools presidents) that give him this authority.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:24 PM ^
If true, this is the lede. It belongs at the very center of every further conversation about the viability of UM's continued membership in the B1G.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:52 PM ^
I wasn’t on the find a new conference train until now.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:07 PM ^
MGoLegal Question… Can UM sue the conference for damages - to reputation and earning potential (bonuses for winning) - if they can prove this action was negligent in some way?
November 10th, 2023 at 6:22 PM ^
Not a lawyer, but the question is not whether you can sue, the question is how likely would you be to win. And what might the recovered damages look like.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:08 PM ^
With this last minute suspension, the Big-10 want Michigan to lose these last 3 games and then be disqualified for a bowl so that our season ends on Nov 25th.
November 10th, 2023 at 6:26 PM ^
They'd have to take separate action for a bowl ban as M would be bowl eligible at 9-3. Also, thought bowl money was at least partially shared amongst conference members. So ever AD in the B1G loses if M doesn't go bowling.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:08 PM ^
Not just the B1G servers. I went to load MGoBlog and got the dreaded “site experiencing problems. Try again later” page. I immediately knew the b1g went through with the suspension without having to see anything else.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:51 PM ^
Same.
I'm still in stunned disbelief. Raging mad.
Please grant that fucking injunction, Your Honor... whoever you may be.
This is such complete bullshit. I can't believe someone in charge of an institution like the B1G can be so short sighted, unfair, and petty. This cannot stand.
It is so wrong, on so many levels. I don't know where to begin.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:09 PM ^
How good is ACC hockey?
November 10th, 2023 at 5:15 PM ^
yeah ACC is a good option. screw the Big Ten they clearly have it out for us.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:32 PM ^
time to rejoin the CCHA?
Maybe Hockey East would take us. Could change the Victors lyrics just for hockey - Champions of the East
November 10th, 2023 at 5:32 PM ^
time to rejoin the CCHA?
Maybe Hockey East would take us. Could change the Victors lyrics just for hockey - Champions of the East
November 10th, 2023 at 5:14 PM ^
Point the First: Fuck the Big Ten. I will root against the 13 other schools in any and all non-conference games going forwards.
Point the Second: If they really wanted to disadvantage us tomorrow, they should've suspended James Franklin for the PSU/UM game
November 10th, 2023 at 5:16 PM ^
In the immortal words of my own mother, “Doesn’t this just jar your mother’s preserves!”
A rule the NCAA has already said provides little or no competitive advantage now underpins the integrity of the sport?
Petitti does not know how to deal with a group of petulant two year-olds or Big Ten coaches and AD’s (which appear in this case to be one and the same).
November 10th, 2023 at 5:16 PM ^
Two things:
1) If William & Connelly can get in front of a judge in time (B1G does this on Veteran's day, a federal holiday. True cowardice), Harbaugh will get his TRO. It's just a matter of if W&C can find a judge tonight.
2) Whether Harbaugh is on the sideline or not tomorrow, can you imagine how PISSED OFF the coaches and players will be? They are going to be rabid to smash PSU. This could be the worst thing that could happen for PSU tomorrow.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:23 PM ^
Now they should really fear for the health and safety of the players. There is going to be some big time hitting tomorrow.
November 10th, 2023 at 5:17 PM ^
Pettiti is an all time conference commissioner moron. He’s fracturing one of the two premier college conferences in the land over nothing. Those statements from him are insane.
I don’t really want to leave the Big Ten, but Michigan needs to make it abundantly clear to about 11 or 12 other schools that its on the table if this isnt brought in control
November 10th, 2023 at 5:37 PM ^
Is Pettiti an SEC guy? He must be because he just single-handedly imploded the only other conference in the country that can compete with the SEC right now. There is no other explanation for being such an imbecile.
November 10th, 2023 at 6:13 PM ^
He's a TV exec with obviously no leadership experience whatsoever. Dude is way out over his ski's.
November 10th, 2023 at 7:37 PM ^
Fuck the BIG, besides only having to play 1 or 2 games to get to CFP, the matchups don’t matter and the “rivalries” are toxic
November 10th, 2023 at 5:17 PM ^
There will never be fairness in this because they hate Jim Harbaugh so much. They're punishing the university now but reserve their rights to levy additional punishment.
Watch, they'll impose a penalty specifically on Harbaugh once the NCAA investigation is complete. They'll suspend Harbaugh for an entire season. And honestly, there's nothing we can do about it then. All of our arguments are about due process. Once we've had due process, they're going to hammer Harbaugh.
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