Michigan's punishment for the Connor Stalions saga has arrived nearly two years after the scandal first broke. Former head coach Jim Harbaugh was given a 10-year show-cause penalty, Stalions received an eight-year show-cause penalty and current Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore was sanctioned for two years. Additionally, Michigan received fines that will add up to millions of dollars.
If you need a refresher on how the reaction to the in-person advance scouting scheme unfolded, we've got you covered. Here's how everything transpired, starting with the 2023 college football season.
September 2023
We didn’t know it at the time, but Stalions was on the sideline at Michigan State’s game vs. Central Michigan.
Stalions was spotted with CMU gear on and with a sideline pass from the visiting school. His alleged presence became known in October, as CMU started an investigation to determine how Stalions ended up on the sideline.
Just a few weeks ago, CMU said it was working toward a resolution with the NCAA regarding Stalions’ presence. The NCAA’s database notes that CMU was served with a notice of allegations in June, though the school denies it received one.
CMU head coach Jim McElwain retired after the 2024 season; he’s a former Michigan assistant and reportedly a subject of the NOA. Jake Kostner, also a former Michigan assistant, was the team’s QBs coach in 2023. He resigned in September of 2024 for reasons that have not been publicly disclosed.
The NCAA addressed Stalions' appearance on the sideline in its infractions report against Michigan.
"On one occasion in 2023, Stalions personally engaged in-person scouting when he stood on Central Michigan University's sideline wearing a bench pass and disguised in Central Michigan-issued coaching gear during the institution’s contest against Michigan State. According to interview statements by a former football staff member, Stalions attended that game in part to decipher Michigan State’s signals, but also to help a Central Michigan staff member with play calling."
October 2023
The NCAA informed the Big Ten on Oct. 18 that it had “highly credible evidence of a wide-ranging, multi-year in-person off-campus scouting scheme orchestrated by a non-coaching staff member of the University’s football program.” Remember, sign-stealing is perfectly acceptable and not against the rules. In-person advance scouting, however, is not.
The next day, Yahoo Sports reported on the existence of that investigation. Then-Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh responded with a statement saying that he did “not have any knowledge or information regarding the University of Michigan football program illegally stealing signs, nor have I directed any staff member or others to participate in an off-campus scouting assignment.”
Stalions was suspended with pay on Oct. 20. Four days after that, Yahoo Sports reported that Stalions had been purchasing tickets to games featuring teams that Michigan could have faced in the College Football Playoff.
November 2023
The Big Ten presented Michigan with what it said was “uncontroverted evidence” of the in-person scouting scheme on Nov. 2. That evidence showed how Stalions “participated in and coordinated a vast off-campus, in-person advance scouting scheme.” According to the conference, Stalions and others “video recorded signs used by future University opponents while attending the opponents’ games in person.”
Stalions found himself out of a job on Nov. 3. On Nov. 4, the Big Ten formally informed Michigan that the school had violated the conference’s sportsmanship policy.
The conference then used that policy as the grounds to suspend Harbaugh for three games on Nov. 10. The Big Ten said the “existence of the impermissible scheme is proven” and that Harbaugh would be allowed to be with the team during the week but had to miss the team’s games vs. Penn State, Maryland and Ohio State.
Michigan and Harbaugh eventually accepted the Big Ten's ruling as the conference's investigation was closed following the Penn State game. The Wolverines went 3-0 in those games under interim coach Sherrone Moore.
December 2023
Harbaugh was able to return for the Big Ten title game where the Wolverines beat Iowa 26-0 to cap a 13-0 season. The win gave the Wolverines the top seed in the final four-team College Football Playoff.
That same month, Michigan received a notice of allegations from the NCAA regarding the recruiting violation investigation.
January 2024
Michigan beat Alabama in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff and took down Washington 34-13 to finish the season 15-0. Harbaugh ultimately missed six of Michigan’s 15 games during the season. He was suspended for the first three games of the year as part of Michigan’s self-imposed punishments for recruiting violations.
The final weeks of the season had made it clear that Harbaugh was not long for college football. Rumors of his potential return to the NFL started swirling and Harbaugh left Michigan for the Los Angeles Chargers just over two weeks after the Wolverines beat the Huskies.
August 2024
Friday’s penalties are on top of the ones handed down to Harbaugh just over a year ago. Harbaugh got suspended for a year and was given a four-year show-cause penalty for recruiting violations and the way he did not cooperate with the NCAA.
The penalties were significant … if Harbaugh was still a college coach. Instead, his suspension is already over and he has three years left on the original show-cause penalty.
May 2025
News broke that current Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore would serve a self-imposed two-game suspension in Weeks 3 and 4 of the 2025 season for his role in the Stalions scandal.
Moore allegedly deleted text messages relating to the scouting scheme and the suspension would be for games against Central Michigan and Nebraska. By not suspending Moore for Week 1 and Week 2, the coach will be on the sideline for the Wolverines' game at Oklahoma in Week 2.
August 2025
In addition to Moore's two-game self-imposed suspension, the NCAA tacked on a third game that will be served during the first game of the 2026 season (likely Aug. 29 in Frankfurt, Germany vs. Western Michigan).
Michigan was fined $50,000 along with 10% of the budget of its football program. Additionally, the school got fined its postseason revenue sharing money for the 2025 and 2026 seasons — the College Football Playoff can be lucrative — and the team was also fined the cost of 10% of its football scholarships for this season.
A show-cause order does not necessarily ban an individual from being hired by a school. But in this case, it may be difficult for Harbaugh or Stalions to return to the college ranks anytime soon. Any school that hires either individual would have to explain to the NCAA why the hire was being made and the governing body has to approve the hire.
Given the penalties issued Friday, it's unlikely the NCAA would be willing to let Harbaugh or Stalions return anytime soon. However, it's hard to see either man coming back to college football at the moment anyway. Harbaugh is entering his second season with the Chargers after a playoff appearance in 2024 and Stalions is coaching high school football in the state of Michigan.
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