Michigan’s latest legal mess is making the NCAA’s punishment of Michigan State look even harsher by comparison.
For a long stretch, Michigan fans loved pointing to the “wins forfeited” graphic tied to Michigan State, Penn State, and Ohio State as a way to needle rival fan bases. It was mostly a troll, but it also reflected a bigger truth: the sign-stealing scandal in Ann Arbor was always serious, and the NCAA’s response never felt like enough.
Michigan’s punishment ended up being a fine, a short suspension for then-head coach Sherrone Moore, a 10-year NCAA ban for Jim Harbaugh, an eight-year ban for Connor Stalions, and four years of probation that included lost official visits and limits on some recruiting communication. For a scandal this large in college athletics, that reads like a slap on the wrist.
Michigan State’s case landed very differently. The Spartans were hit with a $30,000 fine, a penalty equal to 1.5% of the football budget, limits on official visits, fewer recruiting days, several show-cause orders or bans for staffers, and 14 vacated wins across a three-season span.
That came from playing an ineligible player, and the school fully cooperated with the NCAA. Former AD Alan Haller negotiated the deal before leaving.
Now, a new wrongful termination lawsuit from former Michigan assistant Chris Partridge is putting even more pressure on the NCAA to respond harder to the Wolverines.
The suit alleges that athletic director Warde Manuel and then-school president Santa Ono both knew about the sign-stealing and told staffers not to bring any information to compliance or the NCAA. If that allegation holds, it means the program didn’t just cross a line - it actively tried to keep the whole thing quiet.
Partridge also alleged that Manuel knew about the affair between Paige Shiver and Sherrone Moore and did nothing about it. According to the lawsuit, Manuel was aware that Moore was involved in an affair with someone employed by the university and simply let it go.
Moore later was accused of stalking, harassing, and nearly harming himself after the affair became public. The situation could have gone much worse.
Taken together, the allegations add another ugly layer to a Michigan scandal that has already drawn a light NCAA response. And after the way Michigan State was hit for its own violations, the contrast is hard to ignore.
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