The University of Michigan football coach has previously been accused of stealing signs
Tom Brady stands with the University of Michigan Wolverines.
On Friday, the NFL great, 46, responded to the Big Ten’s announcement that University of Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh had been suspended by tweeting just one word: “Bet.”
Brady shared his response on Xu, formerly of Twitter, as a quoted tweet of the same message from the Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy. Several other Michigan players also tweeted the word “bet” in response to the Big Ten’s decision to suspend Harbaugh, which followed a weeks-long NCAA investigation into sign theft.
The word “bet”, which is most often used as a term of agreement, was used in this case by the players (and even the president of the university Santa Ono) to defiantly express the players’ thoughts on the Big Ten’s decision, Sports Illustrated reported.
Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has been suspended from the final Big 10 Games
The Big Ten organization announced Friday that “The University of Michigan violated the Big Ten Rules of Sportsmanship by conducting an impermissible, personal scouting operation over multiple years that resulted in an unfair competitive advantage that compromised the integrity of the competition.”
The move means Harbaugh, 59, will miss the final three conference games of the season.
“The Big Ten Conference expects all contests involving a member institution to be conducted without compromising any fundamental element of sportsmanship,” the statement continued. “Such fundamental elements include integrity of competition, civility to all and respect, especially to opponents and officials.”
Now, as the Big Ten noted, the Wolverines must “compete without their head football coach for the remainder of the 2023 regular season, effective immediately.”
Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh will donate his bonuses to sports employees affected by the pandemic
Harbaugh, however, can still help his team in practice and prepare for games in other ways.
According to TMZ, the University of Michigan itself is asking a Washtenaw County court to help block the suspension with a temporary restraining order, which would ultimately delay the ban until a judge rules. Apparently it hasn’t been approved yet.
In a statement to PEOPLE on Saturday, a university spokesperson said Michigan “looks forward to presenting our case next week where we intend to show that the Big Ten did not act lawfully or fairly.”
“The commissioner created this situation by presenting his indefensible position at the end of the day on Veterans Day, when the court was closed,” they added.
Doug Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty
While Harbaugh previously said he was unable to share details about the case while it is under investigation, he said on Oct. 30 — for the first time since the NCAA investigation was made public — that he and the team were “refreshed.” He also previously said he would “cooperate fully” when the investigation is made public.
“A chance to spend time with the families after a pretty good week of practice last week, we got some things done. We’re in advanced mode,” he said last month. “To answer your question specifically, I model the one-track mind and see it throughout the program.”
Previously, Harbaugh said in an Oct. 19 response that he had “no knowledge or information about the University of Michigan football program illegally stealing signals, nor did I direct any staff member or others to participate in an off-campus scouting mission.”
Next up, Michigan will play Penn State at Beaver Stadium on Saturday.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education