Jim Harbaugh has the chance to step up and teach us all a lesson while suspended

Michigan football cheated, according to the NCAA.

I didn’t write Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh cheated — there is no evidence he knew about Connor Stalions’ alleged sign-stealing scheme.

But Michigan cheated — or at the very least, Michigan has not refuted it and the NCAA calls it “uncontroverted” — and that is why Harbaugh must sit out the final two games of the regular season.

Because he’s the face of the program.

Because he’s the leader of the program.

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And this is a program penalty for violating the Big Ten's sportsmanship policy.

Now, hopefully, Harbaugh can turn this into a life lesson for his players.

Instead of talking about “speaking truth to power,” he can use this situation to speak truth to his players, teaching them a lesson about accountability and true leadership.

Hopefully, Harbaugh will tell his players: "Listen, I love your support. I appreciate it but put away those “Free Harbaugh” T-shirts. No more “Michigan vs. Everybody” sweatshirts. Don’t wear them in pregame warmups, and not on the plane. This shouldn’t be about me. Sometimes, a leader must take responsibility for what those under them do. Focus on the team. Focus on the mission. Focus on beating Maryland. Then, focus on beating Ohio State and winning a national title.”

Because when I see those shirts, I don’t see a helpless victim.

I am reminded that Harbaugh is serving his second three-game suspension in one year.

Do you remember what the first one was?

It was school-imposed, for allegedly failing to cooperate with NCAA investigators over minor recruiting violations.

And this whole situation is just crazy when you think about it: Michigan is having a magical season and could win 12 games for just the fourth time in program history — that's covering 144 seasons — but Harbaugh will have coached in only half of them.

NCAA: 'Knew and could prove' scheme

How we got to this stage is messy and muddy, full of heated emotions and future consequences.

On Oct. 18, something extraordinary happened. The NCAA called Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and told him it had gathered evidence about a sign-stealing scheme at Michigan. This wasn’t low-level NCAA staff. This reportedly came from NCAA president Charlie Baker: “It was also extraordinary that the NCAA President arranged for and participated in the call, underscoring not only the severity of the allegations but the immediate impacts,” the Big Ten wrote in its notice of allegation to Michigan.

Over the next few weeks, the NCAA shared more evidence with the Big Ten, including a “master spreadsheet” that Stalions allegedly used in the scheme.

The NCAA uncovered so much evidence that it got to the point where the NCAA was saying it “knew and could prove” the scheme, dropping words such as “uncontroverted” to describe the scheme.

Michigan, by the way, has never attempted to deny any of this. (For those who keep sending me emails saying there is no evidence, well, just read the notice of allegations.)

“The University’s November 8 response does not deny that the impermissible scheme occurred,” the Big Ten wrote. “Instead, it offers only procedural and technical arguments designed to delay accountability.”

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Michigan backs down

After the Big Ten suspended Harbaugh for three games last week, Michigan pushed back with all its might.

Everybody — school president Santa Ono, trustees, players, students, alumni, and fans — seemed united in the fight.

They screamed loud and clear: This is unfair!

Michigan claimed it was a rush to judgment and attempted to get an injunction stopping the suspension; the case was scheduled to go to court in Washtenaw County Circuit Court on Friday.

But on Thursday afternoon, Harbaugh, the university and the Big Ten announced that they all agreed the punishment would stand.

“The Conference agreed to close its investigation, and the University and Coach Harbaugh agreed to accept the three-game suspension,” Michigan said in a statement. “Coach Harbaugh, with the University's support, decided to accept this sanction to return the focus to our student-athletes and their performance on the field.  The Conference has confirmed that it is not aware of any information suggesting Coach Harbaugh’s involvement in the allegations.”

So, Harbaugh will miss Saturday’s game at Maryland as well as the humongous Nov. 25 game against rival (and No. 3 in the coaches poll and No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings) Ohio State in Ann Arbor.

You can argue that this opens up a massive Pandora’s Box — and you wouldn’t be wrong.

But you have to acknowledge something else: Petitti got what he wanted.

He was bashed by many saying he handled this poorly. But think about it from his perspective: The NCAA came to him in an extraordinary move. They laid out evidence. He decided something must be done now and he acted.

It might have been messy and the whole thing became incredibly controversial, just from all the screaming from all sides, but in the end — right or wrong — he got what he wanted. He was able to punish Michigan in-season, instead of waiting for the winter.

Could that action get complicated in the future? Heck, yes. This sets a precedent with potential ramifications we don't even know about.

Harbaugh will still be able to coach the team during the week, which is not insignificant. I have argued the team has been prepared to handle this situation because of his earlier suspension, in which offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore, defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, special teams coach Jay Harbaugh and running backs coach Mike Hart took turns leading the Wolverines. Moore (who is also the offensive line coach) will again be the acting head coach; he already has a win over Penn State (and Bowling Green).

But there's one more thing to consider.

There was something else significant in that Big Ten letter: “The NCAA indicated that it was continuing its investigation to determine, among other things, who else knew about and/or was involved in the scheme.”

And that shouldn’t be forgotten or dismissed.

Even though the Big Ten is ending its investigation, the NCAA’s investigation is continuing.

Was this the act of a lone wolf — as many U-M fans insist — or did other coaches on staff know? We don’t know right now, and depending on what else is uncovered, the NCAA could bring down more punishment in the future. (The NCAA also closed the loophole of suspended coaches being allowed to work during the week, beginning next season.)

So while the immediate question has been answered — Harbaugh will miss the next two games — that doesn't mean this is over.

Contact Jeff Seidel at jseidel@freepress.com or follow him @seideljeff.

Find everything you need to know about the Michigan football sign-stealing scandal with our weekly Wolverines insider podcast, "Hail Yes," found wherever podcasts are available (Apple, Spotify) and on-demand at freep.com/podcasts.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football needs to learn a lesson from Jim Harbaugh suspension