Former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh has been named in a shocking lawsuit that is rocking the football world. The suit accuses him of being connected to a massive hacking scandal, although he is not directly involved.
Harbaugh officially left the university on January 24, 2024, to become the head coach of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers. Just over a year and a half later, this critical lawsuit has placed him in serious controversy, potentially threatening his NFL coaching career.
Jim Harbaugh at Center of Explosive Lawsuit Tied to Michigan Hacking Allegations
The lawsuit, which, according to On3’s Friday, June 27 post, is centered around a former Michigan football assistant coach who allegedly hacked into the accounts of over 2,000 different college athletes, leading to his viewing of private, intimate photos.
NEW: Jim Harbaugh has been added to a lawsuit against Michigan and a former assistant coach who’s accused of hacking into the accounts of college athletes to look for intimate photos, @AP reports.
Attorneys claim Harbaugh knew the assistant was seen viewing private information… pic.twitter.com/APDJUsCOgl
— On3 (@On3sports) June 28, 2025
Former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh is not directly responsible, but according to On3, he “knew the assistant was seen viewing private information but still let him coach in a playoff game.”
According to a USA Today article from March, the Michigan assistant, Matt Weiss, was indicted on March 20 for “14 counts of unauthorized access to computers and 10 counts of aggravated identity theft, and faces a maximum of five years imprisonment on each count of unauthorized access to computers and two years on each count of aggravated identity theft.”
The alleged crimes occurred at more than 100 universities and spanned from 2015 to 2023. The lawsuit claims that Harbaugh and other Michigan officials knew that Weiss had been seen accessing private information on a university computer in December 2022, just days before Michigan played in the Fiesta Bowl.
The lawsuit also claims that a Michigan staff member alerted Harbaugh and school officials about Weiss accessing private data. Despite this, Weiss remained on the sidelines for the College Football Playoff on December 31.
The former Michigan coach was only sued for allegedly failing to act against Wess and for not implementing oversight that could have protected students from the hacking of their private videos.
The civil case has now expanded into a class-action lawsuit involving over 80 female athletes. The complaint accuses Michigan of violating Title IX, committing civil rights breaches, and failing to protect students’ rights to privacy.
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The Attorney’s Office took action right after the case was filed. They have confirmed that thousands of intimate images and videos were recovered from Weiss’s devices and online cloud storage.
Plaintiffs’ attorney argued, “Had Harbaugh implemented basic oversight of his staff, plaintiffs and the class would have been protected against predators such as Weiss.”
The lawsuit also added, “Instead, Weiss was a highly compensated asset that was promoted by and within the football program, from which position he was able to, and did, target female student athletes.”
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As of now, Harbaugh has not issued a formal public statement regarding his inclusion in the lawsuit. But he has already spoken about it earlier this year, saying that he was unaware of Weiss’s actions until after the College Football Playoff.
The case continues to move forward in federal court, with plaintiffs pushing for a jury trial and full accountability from Michigan’s officials. These look like the start of consequences — Michigan AD Wade Manuel and former university president Santa Ono were also named in the suit.
Current coach and Harbaugh successor Sherrone Moore is already dealing with the aftermath of the Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal. Now, this video privacy lawsuit is adding even more pressure.
