Why did Jim Harbaugh decide to leave the Wolverines team today?” There are a number of reasons behind his decision.View additional…

Michigan football has received a notice of allegations from the NCAA related to the investigation into illicit recruiting and coaching during the COVID-19 dead period, a school spokesperson confirmed to ESPN. The program faces four Level II violations, along with a Level I allegation against coach Jim Harbaugh for misleading investigators.

Michigan first received a draft of the NCAA notice in January, and the program agreed to several Level II allegations, including texting during the dead period, analysts performing on-field coaching and coaches watching workouts via Zoom during the COVID-19 shutdown. The university, however, continues to push back on the Level I violation that Harbaugh lied to investigators regarding the incidents.

Harbaugh served a self-imposed suspension for three games at the beginning of the season in order to try and get ahead of the NCAA’s punishment. The program previously agreed to a four-game negotiated settlement at the beginning of the year, but it was later rejected by the NCAA Committee on Infractions. The NCAA could ultimately choose to accept the three-game suspension as sufficient punishment but will go through the judicial process first.

Michigan has 90 days to respond to the notice of allegations, while the NCAA will have 60 additional days for a rebuttal. The timeline means that Michigan can wait until well after the College Football Playoff to finally address the

allegations. There may also be an appeals process that could stretch well into the summer.