Jim Harbaugh hasn't coached a game at Michigan, but he's already brought plenty of attention to the program since taking the job in January, and now it seems he's broken some NCAA rules in the process.
Don't worry, Michigan fans (and sorry, Ohio State fans!), none of the violations is serious.
MLive.com reported Monday that Michigan self-reported four secondary NCAA violations that have occurred in the four months Jim Harbaugh has been on the job, and let me tell you, the details of each incident are boring.
Go ahead, try to read these without falling asleep. I dare you.
• In March safeties coach Mike Zordich spoke about the recruitment of Wayne Lyons, a graduate transfer from Stanford, with reporters. NCAA rules dictate that coach may not discuss a recruit until that player is signed. Lyons still has not officially joined the program.
• In March Jim Harbaugh sent a signed Michigan helmet and jersey to a former high school classmate to help raise money to benefit suicide prevention and awareness. What Harbaugh didn't know is that the money raised was used to set up a scholarship fund in the name of a student who had committed suicide. Per NCAA rules, coaches and programs may not personally donate items to help high school scholarship funds.
• Again in March Harbaugh and other Michigan coaches allowed an unnamed recruit to sit in a premium seating area during a Michigan hockey game. It was not one of the seating areas that recruits are allowed to sit in.
• The fourth violation involved "electronic correspondence/recruiting materials" that were sent to a recruit by a couple of Michigan staffers. Per NCAA rules coaches and staffers can send such materials to potential recruits, but they must remain private.
So, obviously, Michigan is a renegade program that should receive the death penalty.
Or, failing that, nothing at all should happen besides a "don't do that again."
