The Michigan Wolverines football program received a $20 million fine for the infamous Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal, which saw a lack of a tough-on-crime conclusion on Friday.
The wording of their punishment is particularly manipulative. It stems from the loss of postseason football revenue over the next two seasons, but the Wolverines are not ineligible for the College Football Playoff or any other bowl games.
Money just won’t be paid out to the University of Michigan, which probably won’t affect operations much, given the school’s massive donor base that’s teeming with Silicon Valley ties.
Oracle CTO Larry Ellison probably has $20 million to cover this fine somewhere in a piggy bank, anyway.
The lack of any real discipline for the Wolverines or head coach Sherrone Moore is so reeking of big-money college football corruption – what, are you going to take away one of the six programs that make up most of the country’s revenue a season after their rival won it all, two seasons after they won it all, and after they spent eight figures to land the No. 1 quarterback in the cycle? Didn’t think so – that one Big Ten GM simply lol’d about it in jest.
“Good for them,” a Big Ten GM told CBSSports' Matt Zenitz via text, adding a “lol” to indicate sarcasm. “I guess the powers that be felt that was adequate punishment and losing that amount of money will make people think twice before breaking the rules.”
An unnamed Big Ten director of player personnel was at least moved by the dollar amount for the fine.
“They usually don't do anything because those guys never really come back to this level,” the DPP said.
Stalions won’t be back, but there are players in Ann Arbor who benefited from his cheating. Not just on the field, either. Winning a championship gets you paid by a happy group of boosters who’ll spend a little extra after a couple of celebratory glasses of champagne.
Michigan really got away with one.
Honestly, good for them.