While I’m sure there are a few other newsworthy items around the Big Ten on this lovely Friday, none are bigger than Michigan’s punishment finally being handed down by the NCAA after a nearly two-year-long investigation for sign-stealing/cheating/recruting violations and whatever else we want to call it. Now, I’ll preface this by saying I’m by no means a Michigan football fan. I’m a Notre Dame fan (I think I’ve mentioned that before). I do not like Michigan at all whatsoever. Having said that, I will try my best to keep this post as unbiased as humanly possible, but if some bias does leak into the post, well, sorry.
Let’s dive into it.
Big Ten Bullets (Well, Today It’s Michigan Bullets)
As I predicted yesterday, Michigan’s punishment consisted of essentially one large swat on the wrist. They were essentially fined $20 million in postseason revenue sharing, they’ll lose Sherrone Moore for a total of three games (two this year, one next year), they’ll have slightly fewer official visits to offer recruits, and they’ll be on probation. Jim Harbaugh was handed a 10-year show-cause order. A show-cause order essentially means that if a team wanted to hire Harbaugh, they’d have to explain to the NCAA how they’re putting him in an environment where things will be different this time around. But let’s face it, when he left for the Chargers, the college football door was pretty much closed for good. Connor Stallions received an eight-year show-cause order. And Denard Robinson was issued a three-year show-cause order.Full Michigan punishments here. pic.twitter.com/DPcGYiYM6A
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 15, 2025 I’ve spent the morning thinking about where I’m at here. Did Michigan cheat to help itself win football games? Yes. That’s pretty much been established. Should they have their wins and national title vacated? Meh. Even if you “take it away,” it’s still there, the games still happened and were played. I don’t think doing that really solves anything. They won the games. Maybe not in the most “fair and square” type of way, but they won. The issue for me is the lack of a postseason ban or scholarships lost. The NCAA claimed they didn’t want to punish current players for the sins of past coaches. Urban Meyer’s first Ohio State team went 12-0, but they had to sit out the postseason because a coach and players who were no longer with the program were being punished for selling memorabilia in exchange for tattoos. Akron (ok, I get it, they likely weren’t going to a bowl anyway) is banned from a bowl this year for academic issues surrounding past coaches and players. Now, on the other hand, just two years ago, the NCAA fined Tennessee $8 million essentially for getting caught paying players back when Jeremy Pruitt was head coach. They didn’t issue a postseason ban there either. So, now that the last two major infractions cases have been settled, it appears that postseason bans just might be a thing of the past. If this is how the NCAA is going to treat things going forward, then I understand. Well, unless you’re Akron, that is. But the Zips have also only been to three bowls in the last 20 years, so they’ve kind of banned themselves from the postseason (sorry to any Akron fans out there, for the joke and for having to root for Akron). I guess I’m not totally surprised by the wrist slap of a punishment. Sure, $20 million is the biggest fine by far handed out in NCAA history. But the Wolverines also just essentially had one donor worth like over $100 billion pay a recruit around $12 million over four years without thinking about it. So, sure, that’s a lot of money, but that’s also a drop in the bucket for college football boosters at programs like Michigan. I do believe there’s something to not punishing the kids there now for the sins of past contributors to the program. However, something about this punishment just seems very light for how open the NCAA was about the infractions and cover-ups that Michigan staffers committed throughout this whole thing. Like, USC lost 30 scholarships over two years because they bought Reggie Bush a house.Ultimately, Michigan did not get a postseason ban because the NCAA is trying not to punish active players for violations committed by former coaches anymore. Happened with Tennessee. Happened here with Michigan. pic.twitter.com/PAQ3omI7lN
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) August 15, 2025NEW: From the NCAA's report on Michigan:"… 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."
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) August 15, 2025 So, that’s that. Hopefully I handled that as down the middle as I possibly could, and if I didn’t, well, sorry. The punishments and fines are over. Now we can just focus on playing (or watching in our case) football, which I can’t wait for. Michigan opens its season two weeks from tomorrow in Ann Arbor against New Mexico, and then takes a trip to Norman, Oklahoma, for a blueblood showdown with the Sooners, which should be a fun matchup. If you’re looking for full coverage of the punishments and the NCAA’s press conference following the announcement, Chris Vannini of The Athletic and Nicole Auerbach of NBC Sports have done an outstanding job covering the whole thing all day. Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore watches a play behind quarterback Bryce Underwood (19) during the second half of the spring game at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, April 19, 2025.Hence then, the article about michigan gets wrist slapped what does that mean for the future and other big ten notre dame bullets was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Michigan Gets Wrist Slapped, What Does That Mean For The Future? And Other Big Ten (& Notre Dame) Bullets )
Also on site :
- Taking the North, DVOA Stock Watch, DJ the Trend Setter, Important Games Before SNF, and Other Bears Bullets
- EFL manager sacked just one year into mammoth five-and-a-half-year contract
- Chicago Bears Inactives: Darnell Wright, DJ Moore, and Nahshon Wright Are ACTIVE for Sunday Night Football