Michigan’s Latest Scandals Expose a Stunning Lack of Institutional Control

The NCAA has a term to describe how universities should oversee their athletic programs. That term, “institutional control,” usually pops up when we hear of a school whose athletic programs experience some kind of scandal.

The NCAA’s Division II website explains:

The term "institutional control" sounds ominous, perhaps because it is the core of the expression that is at the core of the worst of NCAA violations: "lack of institutional control."
But institutional control itself is a good and essential concept that links varsity athletics programs with higher education. Without it, any college athletics program is not much more than a bunch of kids playing games.

The University of Michigan is the latest example of a school that lacks institutional control. A series of scandals has rocked the Wolverines, particularly the football team. One of those scandals involved an assistant coach who faces charges of allegedly using the school’s computers to attempt to access personal and intimate photos of female student athletes across the country.

I’ve written multiple articles about the sign-stealing controversy that led to sanctions and multi-game suspensions for then-head coach Sherrone Moore and others, and Moore has become infamous for the extramarital affair and erratic behavior that led to his firing and arrest.

Now, the university is investigating its athletic program. ESPN reports:

The University of Michigan has commissioned a full investigation into the practices and culture of its athletic department, centering on how numerous scandals have both occurred and been handled in recent years, a source told ESPN.
The firing of football coach Sherrone Moore this week will be a particular focus.
The investigation will be handled by Jenner & Block, a Chicago-based law firm that has done business with the school in recent years, including conducting the investigation into whether Moore had an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

Moore had another one-game suspension that he was supposed to serve next season for deleting a text message thread between him and Connor Stalions, the football staffer at the center of the sign-stealing scandal. Obviously, more recent events outweighed the issues with staffers stealing opposing teams’ signals.

All of these controversies raise questions about the lack of institutional control at Michigan. ESPN reports:

The series of scandals have put a spotlight on athletic department as a whole, including on director Warde Manuel, an alum and former player for the Bo Schembechler-led Wolverines of the late 1980s. Manuel has been on the job since 2016.
A high-level meeting of university officials was held Thursday evening, sources told ESPN, leading to intense speculation about Manuel's future, but he remains on the job. The university would owe Manuel, 57, who signed a new five-year contract in December 2024, about $6.75 million if it dismissed him without cause.

"Together, we will move forward with integrity and excellence, and reaffirm our dedication to serving the public good," interim university president Domenico Grasso wrote to the University of Michigan community. Let's see how true that declaration rings.

Michigan’s scandals aren’t just about football — they’re about leadership failure.
From sign-stealing to firings, arrests, and now a full-blown outside investigation, the Wolverines’ athletic department is turning into a case study in what the NCAA calls a “lack of institutional control.”

While legacy media downplays the seriousness or treats each controversy as an isolated incident, PJ Media connects the dots and explains why this keeps happening — and why it matters far beyond Ann Arbor.

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