Opinion: Jim Harbaugh, Michigan Deserve College Football’s Death Penalty

It is hard to explain the cheating scandal that has Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines at its core.

Without having personally seen the proof, I’m going to assume what a number of reliable reporters at large national media have reported is accurate. I believe that coach Harbaugh and the University of Michigan should receive the harshest punishment in college football history because of the irreversible harm that their alleged cheating scandal has caused to both college football and the university.

Is it unlawful to steal signs? No. Is it reasonable to say that the majority of teams are attempting to obtain a competitive edge, and that includes attempting to figure out what play their rival may be hinting at from the sidelines? Of course. Is there an intense level of competition in big college football, maybe more so than in the past? Without a doubt. Do some teams, like Michigan’s bitterest opponents in Columbus, hold themselves to a level of performance that is nearly impossible to consistently meet? Indeed, and that increases the pressure to succeed at any costs.

All of stuff is irrelevant. The ends do not, in morality, justify the means.

It is unethical to cheat. Either you follow the rules or you don’t. There’s no middle ground.

Whether you think a particular regulation is silly or out of date is irrelevant. The fact that the requirement for electronic signal recording and in-person scouting was implemented as a cost-cutting measure is inconsequential. Over the past week, I’ve heard and read every kind of justification imaginable.

Is it against the law to steal signs? No. Is it fair to argue that most teams are trying to gain a competitive advantage, and part of that effort involves trying to deduce what play their opponent might be teasing from the sidelines? Of course. Is the huge college football competition fierce, perhaps even more so than in the past? Without a question. Do some teams, like as the most hated rivals of Michigan in Columbus, have standards for themselves that are almost hard to meet? Yes, and that makes the drive to succeed at all costs much greater.

In my opinion, Michigan shouldn’t be permitted to compete for the remainder of the season considering the scope and complexity of this issue. Would that sound harsh? Regretfully, decisions have repercussions.

The worst potential transgression a programme could do, in my opinion, is changing the integrity of the game. I think this needs to be made very clear. I don’t really care if the University of Michigan, the Big Ten, the NCAA, or the College Football Playoff committee imposes that penalty.

In any case, I don’t believe the NCAA will take such drastic AND quick action. The Michigan football team has too much potential for financial gain, and the ensuing legal disputes would probably not be worth the hassle.

The board of trustees and president of the University of Michigan, Dr. Santa Ono, must make it clear that they disapprove of the actions taken and that Jim Harbaugh’s contract must be terminated. Anything less than that is not going to do.

Here, Harbaugh had two options: either he was aware that they were cheating, or he was unaware of it. and I can’t seem to decide which is worse.

If he was aware that they were cheating, he permanently damaged the game’s integrity and tarnished his reputation, even if it wasn’t his idea and he never instructed anyone to do it. How is what he did any different from what Pete Rose did in baseball, assuming what is being said is accurate? It takes time to get over being called a cheater.