Eric Boggs
According to reporting by Dan Murphy and Pete Thamel from ESPN, new Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore is one of seven members from the 2023 football program accused of violating NCAA rules. This information comes from a draft of the NCAA’s notice of allegations obtained by ESPN.
The draft, which may change, indicates Moore could face a show-cause penalty and possibly a suspension for allegedly deleting a thread of 52 text messages with former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions in October 2023. This incident coincided with media reports that Stalions was leading an effort to capture the playcalling signals of future opponents. The messages were later recovered via “device imaging,” and Moore “subsequently produced them to enforcement staff.” Moore is accused of committing a Level 2 violation. Moore, who became the Wolverines’ head coach in January after serving as their offensive coordinator, is considered a potential “repeat violator” by the NCAA due to his previous resolution in August 2023 to claims of contacting recruits during a COVID-19 recruiting dead period.
These new allegations against Moore are part of the long-anticipated notice of allegations related to Stalions’ off-campus scouting operation.
Former Michigan staff members Jim Harbaugh, Chris Partridge, Denard Robinson, and Stalions are also accused of committing Level 1 violations, the most serious category in the NCAA’s enforcement process. The school faces a Level 1 violation charge due to its “pattern of noncompliance within the football program” and efforts to hinder the NCAA’s investigation. Former coaches Jesse Minter and Steve Clinkscale are accused of recruiting violations unrelated to Stalions.
Neither Michigan nor the NCAA responded to requests for comment by ESPN.
Harbaugh, who left Michigan to coach the Los Angeles Chargers after leading the Wolverines to a national title in January, is accused of not cooperating by denying the NCAA’s request to view relevant messages and phone records from his personal cellphone. The draft states Harbaugh could face a “show-cause” restriction if he returns to college sports.
The Big Ten suspended Harbaugh for the final three games of the 2023 regular season as punishment for Michigan violating the conference’s sportsmanship policy related to Stalions’ impermissible scouting operation. The draft does not provide evidence that Harbaugh was involved in or aware of Stalions’ operation but states Harbaugh failed to evaluate “red flags.”
Stalions resigned in early November following public reports of his scheme to purchase tickets to games nationwide and direct a network of individuals to video the sidelines to decode playcalling signals. The NCAA’s draft states investigators used ticket information, film, photographs, and interviews to determine Stalions impermissibly scouted at least 13 future Michigan opponents on at least 58 occasions between 2021 and 2023. He directed others to scout some opponents multiple times, including one team scouted seven times in 2022.
Investigators allege multiple team interns and at least one full-time team employee knew about and participated in the scheme, believing it was not against the rules.
The draft also states that Stalions was on the sideline at Michigan State’s season opener against Central Michigan in 2023, wearing a bench pass, Central Michigan coaching gear, and a disguise. This conduct “seriously undermined or threatened the integrity of the NCAA collegiate model.” It is unclear how Stalions obtained a bench pass for the Chippewas’ sideline.
Attempts to reach Stalions for comment were unsuccessful, however, it appears Stalions had no problems making contact with Netflix.
The NCAA’s draft states Stalions failed to cooperate with the investigation, removing hard drives from Michigan football offices and giving a football player a sheet with playcalling signals of a future opponent. Stalions asked the player to bring the sheet to a team intern’s house until he could retrieve it. Stalions also refused to let the school review his phone. He is expected to be interviewed for an upcoming Netflix documentary about the scheme.
Partridge, a former defensive assistant fired by Michigan last November, is accused of pressuring a player to lie to NCAA investigators to protect the coaching staff during the probe into Stalions’ scheme. Partridge also faces several Level 2 rule violations unrelated to Stalions, including holding on-campus training sessions with at least four prospects in 2023.
Partridge, Clinkscale, and Robinson are accused of providing impermissible benefits to recruits in 2023, such as paying for a meal and providing team gear. Clinkscale is also accused of helping a recruit get verified on Instagram and writing a $100 check to a golf charity outing run by a recruit’s father. Partridge and Minter are accused of Level 2 violations for texting a high school sophomore recruit.
Clinkscale and Minter are now assistants on Harbaugh’s staff in Los Angeles, while Partridge is an assistant coach for the Seattle Seahawks. Robinson was fired from his support staff position in May following a drunken driving arrest.
