INSIDE THE FORT, Part II: Details on potential Michigan Level 1 violations, NIL rumblings, more
As previously reported, the NCAA is preparing a notice of allegations for Michigan over an alleged sign stealing scheme led by former staffer Connor Stalions. Here are some more details …
First things first — some have run with an idea that punishment will be included with the notice of allegations. That’s not how this works. As noted in yesterday’s article, IF the NCAA pursues a postseason ban, for example (and yes, that option has been brought up), it’s not going to happen anytime soon. Michigan first gets an opportunity to respond to the allegations, and it would be a “long time” before it got resolved.
But no, U-M does not expect any future teams to be postseason ineligible, and as noted would fight hard against it. Many believe there is a lot of conjecture and not much substance to the allegations. The last time that happened, during last season, linebackers coach Chris Partridge was fired and a Michigan booster “Uncle T.” was at least temporarily disassociated from the program while maintaining he did nothing wrong.
That led to Michigan backing out of a hearing over Jim Harbaugh’s suspension, one in which he wanted to plead his case in front of a judge and be reinstated for the end of the season. Now, Partridge is considering suing for wrongful dismissal, per one local writer, and there appears to be nothing in the NOA about “Uncle T.” Furthermore, the booster conjecture reportedly came from what one walk-on said he thought he’d heard about who Uncle T. actually was, so if he is eventually listed, we expect him and his lawyer to fight it.
What we do know for certain — the bulk of the report is about Stalions’ involvement, and the NCAA’s draft includes Level 1 one violations including “his involvement in and arrangement for off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents during the 2021, 2022, and 2023 football seasons (Level 1 – NCAA Manual Constitution 2.4 (2021-22); Bylaws 10.01.1 and 11.6.1 (2021-22 through 2023-24); and Constitution 1-C (2022-23 and 2023-24); and Constitution 1-C (2022-23 and 2023-24).”
Bylaw 10.01.1 reads, “10.01.1 Honesty and Sportsmanship. Individuals employed by (or associated with) a member institution to administer, conduct or coach intercollegiate athletics and all participating student-athletes shall act with honesty and sportsmanship at all times so that intercollegiate athletics as a whole, their institutions and they, as individuals, shall represent the honor and dignity of fair play and the generally recognized high standards associated with wholesome competitive sports.
11.6.1 reads, “11.6.1 Off-Campus, In-Person Scouting Prohibition. Off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents (in the same season) is prohibited, except as provided in Bylaws 11.6.1.1 and 11.6.1.2. (Adopted: 1/11/94 effective 8/1/94, Revised: 1/14/97 effective 8/1/97, 1/19/13 effective 8/1/13, 1/15/14)
Others involve “not cooperating” during and after employment,” though one source said Stalions was never even contacted.
None of this is catching some at Michigan by surprise, other than the aggressiveness in which the NCAA appears to be pursuing it given the punishment it has already handed down to Jim Harbaugh — and the fact that almost all the people involved are no longer with the program. But again, U-M is prepared to push back, and nobody we’ve spoken with believes this ends in any kind of future ban or anything close, noting “it will take years to resolve.”
The hope (expectation?) is that it will be resolved much more quickly. While U-M is expecting to receive the actual NOA “soon,” it could depend on what happens with Stalions’ camp. They only received notice Friday, and it stands to reason they’ll want time to respond, maybe ask for an extension. We’ll see how it plays out.
Michigan and NIL
Michigan is approaching its goal of NIL for current players heading toward the season, adding another chunk at the recent Champions Circle golf outing. They were allocated “about $12.5 million and are closing in on $12 million at this point, per sources — not in Ohio State range, for example, but much more than last year’s estimated $4 million (not including what players made on their own) for that elite roster.
More encouraging — it appears they have accomplished (or are about to) a starting “baseline” for each scholarship player, and it’s pretty substantial. That’s something some had hoped to have in place a few years ago, but … it’s progress.
It still needs to improve — one of U-M’s top players negotiated through an agent “around $800,000” when another school offered $1.2 million — wanting to return with his teammates. It’s hard to imagine everyone will leave that kind of money on the table. But Champions Circle in particular has done an outstanding job closing the gap despite obstacles it’s faced.
Michigan offensive lineman prepped for huge year
We spoke with a Northwestern source at Big Ten Media Days last week who told us Josh Priebe “would likely have been an All-American last year had he played at Michigan” — he was that good, but obviously, the bigger schools get the visibility. They predict he’ll have that kind of season in 2024,
“He’s one of the smartest football players we’ve ever had,” one Wildcats representative said. “And this is Northwestern. I’m happy for him, though — he’s going to be great at Michigan.”
More football notes
Finally, from our Clayton Sayfie …
Some tidbits we’ve picked up as Michigan begins fall camp this week:
• Sophomore defensive lineman Enow Etta switched from EDGE to tackle at the beginning of spring ball. He was listed at 6-foot-5, 295 pounds then, but he’s supposedly gotten much bigger this summer. He “should see some serious opportunities.”
• Head coach Sherrone Moore mentioned five wide receivers as the “top guys” at the position: junior Tyler Morris, sophomore Fredrick Moore, sophomore Kendrick Bell, junior Amorion Walker and sophomore Semaj Morgan. However, a source who spoke to those close to the program last week said the outside ‘X’ battle is “wide open” heading in.
• The coaches “love” junior defensive back Zeke Berry. That lines up with how Moore and position coach LaMar Morgan have talked about him this offseason.
• A few more quotes: “Special teams are deep” … “coaching staff seems on point, not going to stray from winning ways” … “running back room is loaded.”
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Last week, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said the Big Ten should get four teams in the College Football Playoff “every year, because this is the best league.” There’s now a clear-cut top two with the Big Ten and SEC, and three or four playoff spots for Michigan’s conference are expected yearly.
With the 12-team College Football Playoff, expectations have to be adjusted. The definition of “success” for a season will not be the same as it was. There will be more national champions who didn’t win their conference, teams penalized for losing their conference championship game, etc.
Michigan can get in with two or three losses during the course of its challenging schedule, and still make some noise as a national title contender. Coming off the national championship last season and with so many new parts to the program, that could be seen as successful.
The rival to the south, Ohio State, though, has boxed itself into a corner, with a desperate group of boosters spending over $20 million to build its 2024 roster. Michigan will go down to Columbus and play with no fear Nov. 30, while the Buckeyes — who’ve lost three straight to the Maize and Blue — have to win … even more than they already believe they must and that it’s their birthright. Head coach Ryan Day is 40-0 against Big Ten teams not named Michigan, but the three losses carry a lot of weight.
“I’ve done a bunch of shows in Ohio, talking about Ohio State,” college football expert Phil Steele told TheWolverine.com. “And Ryan Day has gotta beat Michigan this year, right? If he doesn’t beat Michigan, Ryan Day is gone. You can’t lose to Michigan four straight years … unless he wins a national title, which is a possibility.
“Could you imagine Ryan Day losing to Michigan, not making the Big Ten title game and then coming back but actually winning the national title? That would save his job.
“Lose to Michigan and not win the national title, he’s gone. It does make it interesting.”
Penn State was picked ahead of Michigan in the Big Ten media poll, checking in at No. 3 behind Ohio State and Oregon. The Nittany Lions may not be the better team, but with the expanded Big Ten and unbalanced schedules, it may not matter. They avoid both U-M and Oregon in the regular season.
“I think the 12-team playoff, and the fact that now a team like Penn State, which can never get through that Ohio State, Michigan thing that they have going above them, they can actually make the playoff this year and make some noise,” Steele said. So, it’s going to be fun to watch.”
All the while, Michigan is sitting in its “perch” and will be “ready to strike” come Aug. 31, Moore said last week. His players are hungry, and he insisted there will be no “honeymoon year.”
“That’s why I have so much confidence in our team, because I know how hungry some of the guys are that were waiting last year,” sophomore wide receiver Semaj Morgan told us. “Most guys that are on our team this year that are probably going to play were sitting behind somebody last year. It’s like a hunger factor for our whole team.
“And I feel like that’s something that our coaches do a good job with — they never let us be happy with what we did. We can celebrate, we can be happy about our accomplishments, but at the end of the day we know there’s still more to work for.”
That work began in January, and it’ll ramp up Wednesday, when fall camp begins. It’s almost time to defend a national title, and as junior tight end Colston Loveland said, “two is better than one.”
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