Four years later the NCAA has finally handed punishment to former University of Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh. While he is now in the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers, should he return to the collegiate level, he would be subject to the penalties. These penalties are not part of the ongoing investigation into sign-stealing.
The NCAA revealed the suspensions for recruiting dead period violations during the COVID-19 recruiting period when coaches were to have no face-to-face contact with prospects. While that was only a Level II violation, his false statements were a Level I violation.
Per the press release from the NCAA, Harbaugh is subject to a four-year show-cause and a one-year suspension.
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.
During the show-cause order, Harbaugh would be barred from all athletically related activities, including team travel, practice, video study, recruiting and team meetings, at any NCAA school that employed him. Additionally, if hired during the show-cause order, Harbaugh would be suspended for 100 percent of the first season of employment. The results of those contests during Harbaugh’s suspension would not count toward his career coaching record.
It remains to be seen if Harbaugh will return to the college football landscape in the future, if he does then a team hiring him would have to wait a full year for Harbaugh to begin work.