The University of Michigan filed for a temporary restraining order in Washtenaw County’s 22nd Circuit Court on Friday night in an attempt to prevent the Big Ten from suspending Jim Harbaugh for the rest of the regular season.
According to court records, the case has been assigned to judge Timothy P. Connors, who is also a UM law school lecturer. The plaintiffs are Harbaugh and the university board of regents, while the defendants are Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti and the Big Ten Conference.
It’s unclear when the court will rule, but Michigan is hoping for speed. At noon Saturday in State College, the third-ranked Wolverines (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) take on No. 10 Penn State (8-1, 5-1). A judge would have to grant the interim restraining order before Harbaugh could coach in the crucial top-10 matchup.
Late Friday afternoon, Petitti and the Big Ten suspended Harbaugh for three games, citing a violation of the league’s sportsmanship policy “for conducting an impermissible, in-person scouting operation over multiple years, resulting in an unfair competitive advantage that compromised the integrity of the competition.”
The NCAA is investigating Michigan for alleged illegal in-person scouting, but the school has encouraged the Big Ten to follow due process and allow the NCAA to complete its investigation.
After the Big Ten Conference suspended Harbaugh on Friday, Michigan issued a statement saying, “Like all Big Ten Conference members, we are entitled to a fair, deliberate, and thoughtful process to determine the full set of facts before a judgement is delivered.”
