Most people seem to fall on two very extreme ends of the allegations that Michigan football broke rules by conducting off-campus scouting of opponents and sign-stealing. It’s either a really big deal, or people don’t care at all.
In case you were wondering where SEC Network’s Paul Finebaum landed, he’s very firmly in the group of people who think it’s serious (because of course he is). As a guest Wednesday on ESPN’s Get Up, Finebaum said Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti needs to suspend Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh indefinitely.
If he doesn’t, Finebaum said, everything Michigan does from this point will be tainted, including a potential national championship.
"Everything that happens from here on with [Michigan] is going to be tainted. … If Michigan wins the national championship and Jim Harbaugh is given that trophy, I think the rest of the sports world is going to turn its nose in disgust."
—@finebaum pic.twitter.com/KAo0erSrtq
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) November 8, 2023
Now, this probably isn’t much of a surprise for anyone familiar with Finebaum’s long-running feud with Harbaugh. He has slammed Harbaugh in the past for snitching on Ohio State coach Ryan Day, for Michigan’s 2020 schedule, for losing to Wisconsin, or really just for existing.
So, with Michigan third in the College Football Playoff rankings at 9-0 and a title very much within the realm of possibility, it’s fitting Finebaum thinks of that as a bad look for college football.
“If Michigan wins the national championship and Jim Harbaugh is given that trophy, I think the rest of the sports world is going to turn its nose in disgust.”