Michigan court filings seek to block Jim Harbaugh suspension - ESPN
Attorneys representing the University of Michigan and football coach Jim Harbaugh filed a breach of contract complaint Friday night, asking a judge in Michigan to prevent the Big Ten from imposing a suspension on Harbaugh this weekend.
Along with the initial complaint, Michigan and Harbaugh filed an additional motion asking for an emergency temporary restraining order. They argued that keeping Harbaugh away from the No. 3-ranked Wolverines for Saturday's top-10 game against Penn State would cause irreparable harm to the coach, the players and the university.
The two documents — each more than 20 pages long — were filed hours after Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti announced that the conference was suspending Harbaugh for the final three games of Michigan's regular season due to the football program violating the league's sportsmanship policy.
Michigan's attorneys wrote that the Big Ten did not provide Harbaugh or the school the due process protections outlined in its own rules. They said the disruption to a season in which the team could contend for a national championship is «threatening the loss of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for dozens of student athletes and irreversible harm to the University's and Harbaugh's reputation.»
«This shoot first, ask questions later approach to sanctions is a flagrant breach of fundamental fairness,» they wrote.
Judge Carol Kuhnke of Washtenaw County Trial Court will make a ruling on the restraining order, according to a source. To grant a temporary restraining order, Kuhnke must determine that Harbaugh and Michigan have a reasonable chance of proving that the Big Ten is breaking its own rules and that the two parties would suffer «irreparable harm» without an immediate response from