STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 01: Fans of the Penn State Nittany Lions react after losing to the Ohio Bobcats at Beaver Stadium on September 1, 2012 in State College, Pennsylvania. The Bobcats won 24-14. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Jim Harbaugh, the head coach of Michigan, may not coach the Wolverines against Penn State on Saturday at Beaver Stadium since he has been suspended by the Big Ten for the duration of the regular season.
Less than twenty-four hours before Michigan travels to Penn State for a top-10 contest that will be crucial to the Big Ten title race, the Big Ten announced their decision on Friday.
Michigan was accused by the Big Ten of violating the conference’s sportsmanship rules by “conducting an impermissible, in-person scouting operation over multiple years, resulting in an unfair competitive advantage that compromised the integrity of competition.”
Harbaugh “shall not be present at the game venue” the rest of the regular season, although he is allowed to attend practices.
Conference Agreement 10.01, which says in part, “The Big Ten Conference expects all contests involving a member institution to be conducted without compromise to any fundamental element of sportsmanship,”
was referenced by the conference in a news release announcing the decision. These fundamental components include respect for opponents and officials in particular, decency toward all, and the integrity of the sport.
On the way to State College, Michigan was informed of the Big Ten’s decision. The Big Ten statement simply stated that Michigan will have to “compete without its Head Football Coach” for the balance of the regular season, without mentioning Harbaugh by name.
The press announcement mentioned nothing about a possible Big Ten title game or postseason, and it only mentioned Harbaugh’s suspension as the only sanction.
