Over the course of three seasons, the Michigan football program committed violations involving an off-campus, in-person scouting scheme, impermissible recruiting inducements and communications, head coach responsibility rules, individuals' failures to cooperate and Michigan's failure to monitor, according to a decision released by a Division I Committee on Infractions panel. The scouting violations orchestrated by former football staff member Connor Stalions were corroborated by interview testimonies, ticket receipts and transfer data and other evidence. Those violations, along with former head football coach Jim Harbaugh's head coach responsibility violation and most of the failure to cooperate violations, are Level I. The recruiting violations, then-assistant football coach (and current head football coach) Sherrone Moore's failure to cooperate violation and Michigan's failure to monitor violation are Level II.
Two involved individuals — former assistant football coaches Jesse Minter and Steve Clinkscale — agreed to violations and penalties associated with their actions in agreements approved by the committee via the negotiated resolution process.
Off-campus, in-person scouting scheme
The majority of the violations in this case relate to Stalions' orchestration of an impermissible scouting scheme. During the 2021, 2022 and 2023 football seasons, Stalions directed and arranged for individuals to conduct off-campus, in-person scouting of Michigan's future regular-season opponents. In doing so, Stalions purchased game tickets and transferred them to those individuals, who included another staff member, interns and acquaintances of Stalions. The network of individuals was referred to as the "KGB." While in attendance, they filmed the signal callers on the future opponents' sidelines and then provided that film to Stalions. Using the footage they collected — which Stalions referred to as "dirty film" — Stalions then deciphered opponents' signals. Stalions and other individuals involved in the scheme acknowledged or corroborated this process. Additionally, on one occasion, Stalions personally attended a future opponent's contest. In total, 56 instances of off-campus, in-person scouting of 13 future regular- season opponents occurred across 52 contests. Stalions' conduct resulted in a collective Level I violation of the impermissible scouting rule that expressly prohibits off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents.
By his own admission, Stalions expended significant resources and effort to plan the scheme, spending nearly $35,000 on tickets in 2022 alone. Through the scheme, Stalions collected, deciphered and documented thousands of signals for use by other staff members. Record materials demonstrated that Stalions had access to prominent coaching staff members, who he stood next to during football games. Once information became public, Stalions also went to significant lengths to attempt to conceal his efforts. Those actions are accounted for by his failure to cooperate violations. The panel noted that "the true scope and scale of the scheme — including the competitive advantage it conferred—will never be known due to individuals' intentional destruction and withholding of materials and information." The panel went on to note that while the scope may never be known, the intent of the scheme was to gain a competitive advantage over competitors, stating, "Regardless of whether it was Stalions or someone acting on his behalf, their physical presence at the game essentially gave them front-row seats to a key element of opponents' offensive and defensive strategies."
Failure to cooperate
Throughout the investigation, Stalions, Harbaugh, Moore and former director of player personnel Denard Robinson each failed to meet the membership's expectations of cooperation. Their conduct ranged from destroying relevant materials to providing false and misleading information during interviews — including Stalions instructing an intern to "clear out" emails, photos, texts and videos related to the scouting scheme. The intern complied and then instructed a friend, who attended and recorded three games as part of the scheme, to do the same. During the hearing, Stalions stated that he did not recall telling them to delete any information.
Stalions also admitted during the hearing that he disposed of his phone in a pond. In a recorded phone call, Stalions said his film was also at the bottom of a pond. Additionally, throughout the investigation, Stalions violated confidentiality requirements, disclosing information related to the investigation to the public. The panel stated, "In short, Stalions' multiple and repeated failures to cooperate are some of the worst the COI has ever seen."
Additionally, following Oct. 19, 2023, media reports of Stalions' scheme, Moore deleted his entire 52-message text thread with Stalions off his personal phone. The following day, Moore deleted from his school-issued phone a single text that was part of a broader thread that referenced Stalions standing by Moore during a game. When questioned by the enforcement staff, Moore initially blamed the deleted messages on storage space, although he eventually admitted to deleting them as a reaction to the news.
Harbaugh failed to cooperate by refusing to provide necessary records or participating in an interview with the enforcement staff.
Impermissible recruiting
In addition to the scouting scheme, the investigation also uncovered recruiting violations in the football program, conducted by multiple football staff members and centered around four prospects. In the spring and summer of 2023, Clinkscale and Robinson provided limited inducements to a prospect and his family. Clinkscale provided additional inducements to two other prospects. From January to April 2023, Minter and former assistant coach Chris Partridge sent a total of nearly 100 text messages to a fourth prospect prior to the permissible recruiting date.
Robinson did not respond to the notice of allegations or attend the hearing.
Head coach responsibility
The scouting scheme and recruiting violations in the football program demonstrate that Harbaugh violated the principles of head coach responsibility. Harbaugh did not embrace or enforce a culture of compliance during his tenure, and his program had a contentious relationship with Michigan's compliance office, leading coaches and staff to disregard NCAA rules.
For the scouting violations that occurred during the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Harbaugh failed to demonstrate that he adequately promoted compliance or monitored his program. Harbaugh is also automatically responsible for the scouting and recruiting violations that occurred after Jan. 1, 2023.
Failure to monitor
Lastly, the underlying scouting and recruiting violations demonstrate that Michigan failed to monitor its football program. Based on interview testimonies, the education and monitoring efforts of the chief compliance officer and her staff were not welcomed by the football program. Instead, they were rebuked, dismissed and disregarded by Harbaugh and his staff. As a result, Michigan failed to create a culture of compliance in the football program. Additionally, and more specific to some of the conduct in this case, Michigan also failed to educate and monitor its football staff and interns.
Penalties
As a result of Michigan's most recent infractions case, three parties — Michigan, Harbaugh and Moore — fall within the legislated window to trigger repeat violator status. Michigan's repeat violator status, coupled with its Level I-Aggravated case classification, is sufficient grounds for a multiyear postseason ban. However, the panel determined that a postseason ban would unfairly penalize student-athletes for the actions of coaches and staff who are no longer associated with the Michigan football program. Thus, the panel determined a more appropriate penalty is an offsetting financial penalty instead of a two-year postseason ban.
Similarly, the NCAA membership has shifted from scholarship limits to roster spots. The NCAA membership has not yet determined whether roster reductions will replace scholarship reductions as a core penalty, and the panel did not want to prematurely make that decision on behalf of the membership. Instead, the panel adhered to the percentages contemplated for Level I-Aggravated scholarship reductions but converted the penalty to the financial equivalent of what would have been scholarship reductions.
The total financial penalties in this case will result in a multimillion-dollar fine.
The prescribed penalties for the parties who contested their violations in this case are as follows:
- Four years of probation.
- Financial penalties:
- $50,000 fine, plus 10% of the budget for the football program.
- A fine equivalent to the anticipated loss of all postseason competition revenue sharing associated with the 2025 and 2026 football seasons.
- A fine equivalent to the cost of 10% of the scholarships awarded in Michigan's football program for the 2025-26 academic year.
- A 25% reduction in football official visits during the 2025-26 season.
- A 14-week prohibition on recruiting communications in the football program during the probation period.
- Connor Stalions:
- An eight-year show-cause order, restricting him from all athletically related activities during the show-cause period.
- Jim Harbaugh:
- A 10-year show-cause order, restricting him from all athletically related activities during the show-cause period, which will begin on Aug. 7, 2028, at the conclusion of his four-year show-cause order from a previous case.
- Denard Robinson:
- A three-year show-cause order, restricting him from all athletically related activities during the show-cause period.
- Sherrone Moore:
- A two-year show-cause order, during which he is suspended from a total of three games. Michigan self-imposed a two-game suspension for Moore during the upcoming 2025-26 football season. The panel determined that a suspension for one additional game was appropriate. Therefore, Moore also will be suspended for the first game of the 2026-27 season. Apart from the three-game suspension, Moore is not prohibited from engaging in coaching or other athletically related activities during the show-cause period.
Members of the Committee on Infractions are drawn from the NCAA membership and members of the public. The members of the panel who reviewed this case are Norman Bay, chief hearing officer for the panel and attorney in private practice; Stephen Madva, attorney in private practice; Kay Norton, president emerita at Northern Colorado; Jill Redmond, deputy commissioner of the Missouri Valley Conference; Christian Spears, director of athletics at Marshall; and Maureen Weston, professor of law at Pepperdine.
