The NCAA investigation into sign-stealing by Sherrone Moore and the Michigan Wolverines felt like it would never end. After months of waiting, the hammer finally dropped on Friday, Aug. 15, when the NCAA didn’t hold back in its reaction, claiming the NCAA has lost its bite and explaining exactly why that matters for college football.
How Did Sherrone Moore Escape Harsher NCAA Punishment?
In 2023, the Michigan football program was the center of a massive NCAA investigation. It was accused of running an illegal sign-stealing operation that rocked college football. Connor Stalions, a low-level staffer, became the face of the scandal as investigators accused him of coordinating an elaborate scheme to gather opponents’ play-calling signals through methods that violated NCAA rules.
When the NCAA finally delivered its verdict on Friday, Aug. 15, penalties were handed down. However, many observers, including analyst Pate, believe the punishment didn’t match the severity of the violations.
According to Pate, the NCAA has fundamentally changed from the enforcement powerhouse it once was. The organization, he argues, has become too compromised by financial interests to deliver the harsh penalties that major programs like Michigan would have faced in previous decades.
The reason comes down to money and power. University presidents control the NCAA, and those leaders have massive financial stakes in protecting their schools’ images and revenue streams. Crushing penalties could devastate TV ratings, hurt postseason interest, and jeopardize the billion-dollar media deals that networks like Fox, CBS, ESPN and NBC have signed with college athletics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4Mgo1EPEpc
“The NCAA is just the enforcement branch of the governing body of college athletics. The governing body of athletics is what? It’s the university presidents… So, the NCAA is this nameless, faceless, like blue circular logo with four letters, meant to do the bidding for university presidents,” Pate said.
“You cannot sign the check, have that media partner pay you billions of dollars, and then, in return, allow your enforcement mechanism that you control to damage the viewership viability of one of your assets.”
What Penalties Did the NCAA Hand Down?
The sanctions package included over $20 million in financial penalties against the Wolverines and a three-game suspension for head coach Moore. Moore had already served two games of that suspension during the 2024 season when Michigan imposed its punishment.
Now he’ll miss one additional game, the 2025 season opener, to complete his three-game ban. The NCAA also slapped him with a two-year show-cause order, meaning the organization will maintain extra oversight on hiring decisions or role changes during that period. Despite the sanctions, Moore can continue his current coaching responsibilities without interruption.
The financial damage extends well beyond Moore’s penalties. Michigan faces a $50,000 fine, a 10% reduction to the football program’s budget, a 10% cut in scholarships for the 2025-26 academic year, and the loss of postseason revenue for 2025 and 2026. During probation, the school will also deal with a 25% reduction in official visits and a 14-week ban on recruiting communication.
Stalions, the former staffer who orchestrated the in-person scouting and signal-recording operation, received the harshest individual punishment with an eight-year show-cause order. Former head coach Jim Harbaugh, who guided Michigan to the 2023 national championship before departing for the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers, faces a 10-year show-cause order in 2028 when his four-year sanction expires. Both men are banned from NCAA athletics during their respective sanction periods.
What Did Michigan Actually Do Wrong?
While the NCAA doesn’t explicitly prohibit sign-stealing as a practice, it does ban in-person scouting of future opponents and using electronic devices to record signals. Michigan was accused of violating both of these rules systematically.
According to the NCAA’s findings, Moore broke multiple rules while serving under Harbaugh and allegedly attempted to cover his tracks by deleting text messages exchanged with Stalions. Eventually, those deleted conversations were recovered and turned over to investigators, providing crucial evidence in the case.
Stalions refused to cooperate with the NCAA investigation. Still, they later made stunning public claims that he had cracked the signal systems of nearly every opponent across seven games spanning two seasons. His admission provided investigators with additional confirmation of the scheme’s scope and effectiveness.
RELATED: What Was NCAA’s Main Reason Behind No Postseason Ban for Michigan?
Despite the mountain of evidence, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti recently informed the NCAA that Michigan shouldn’t face any additional penalties beyond those already announced, suggesting the conference considers the matter resolved.
The Wolverines will open the 2025 season on Aug. 30 at home against New Mexico State, followed by a road trip to Oklahoma on Sept. 6, where Moore once played offensive line during his college career.