Michigan takes the field against Penn State at noon on Saturday, but the school wasted no time in rebutting a suspension of head coach Jim Harbaugh with a filing on Friday night aimed at the Big Ten and its commissioner, Tony Petitti.
The university and head football coach Jim Harbaugh sued the conference and Petitti in a Washtenaw County (Mich.,) court after Harbaugh’s suspension was announced Friday afternoon. They foremost demand a temporary restraining order (TRO) that would immediately bar the conference from imposing its suspension of Harbaugh.
The court signaled on Saturday it wouldn’t issue a ruling and instead scheduled a hearing for Friday, Nov. 17, where attorneys for both sides will present oral arguments. Harbaugh didn’t arrive at Beaver Stadium with the team, according to the Detroit News, and Michigan offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore will serve as acting head coach. Moore did the same for Michigan’s game against Bowling Green while Harbaugh finished a school-imposed three-game suspension for NCAA rules infractions.
On Friday, the conference suspended Harbaugh for remaining games of the 2023 regular season, effective immediately, over an alleged violation of the conference’s sportsmanship policy. Although Harbaugh is not directly accused of wrongdoing, he is portrayed as blameworthy for an alleged in-person scouting and sign-stealing scheme orchestrated by ex-Wolverines football analyst Connor Stalions.
The TRO could be granted ex parte, meaning without the Big Ten and Petitti having an opportunity to fully respond or to appear in court. Ex parte relief can be granted when there is a substantial likelihood of imminent harm. Given that the conference waited until late afternoon on a Friday with a holiday (Veterans Day) to issue the suspension, and given that Michigan was set to play a road game in less than 24 hours, the “harm” of Harbaugh being removed from the game is imminent.
A TRO could be granted for a short period, such as only 24 hours. Even such a short-lived TRO would allow Harbaugh to coach his team at Penn State. The court could then consider the more lasting forms of demanded relief.
To that point, Michigan and Harbaugh also demand a show cause hearing in which the Big Ten would need to explain why the court should not issue a preliminary injunction (PI). A PI would last multiple weeks or months, and would preserve the status quo—Harbaugh as coach—until the court determines the merits of the case.
As of now, court records indicate the assigned judge is Timothy Connors. Connors, like other Michigan judges, is an elected official. He is also a lecturer at the University of Michigan Law School, a former Wolverines football player and Michigan alumnus.
However, given that the court is in a holiday weekend, the case is expected to be reassigned to the chief judge, Carol Kuhnke. She is also a graduate of the University of Michigan, and was previously a judge in an unrelated case in which Stalions was a defendant.
Whoever hears the case will assess if Michigan and Harbaugh can overcome some hurdles in the case. As a member, Michigan contractually assents to the far-reaching and unappealable decision-making authority of the commissioner. Usually member associations’ actions are judged by an arbitrary or capricious standard, which is extremely deferential to the defendant.
Michigan and Harbaugh argue the Big Ten violated its own rules by denying “basic due process protections” and was unduly pressured by rival schools who pushed the conference to act before the NCAA has completed its investigation.
Michigan and Harbaugh must also show they’d suffer an irreparable harm (meaning a harm that can’t later be remedied by money) unless the court grants injunctive relief. In their complaint they claim that the program and Harbaugh will suffer “significant, lasting, and unjustified reputational injury” especially since “Michigan prides itself on fairness and integrity.” A sanction would betray that image and cause a “reputational hit [that] wold have a negative impact on athletic recruitment” and harm its chances to “retain the players already on its team.”
As to Harbaugh, the complaint warns he’ll be stuck with Scarlett Letter of sorts.
“No more dramatic blow,” the complaint asserts, “could be given to his character and reputation that the permanent lifetime label of ‘missing in action’ because of a purported—but still unsubstantiated—cheating scandal.”
Harbaugh is represented by attorney Tom Mars, whose has successfully represented Justin Fields, Houston Nutt and Bret Bielema and who is a former member of the NCAA’s complex case unit.
As of early Saturday morning, no judge had acted on Michigan’s petition. Whether, on this holiday weekend, a judge rules before the Penn State game remains to be seen.
The clock is ticking.
(This story has been updated in the headline and in the third paragraph with details of Harbaugh’s status and the Nov. 17 hearing date.)