Kalen DeBoer reacts to Michigan punishment in sign-stealing scandal: ‘It is what it is’

The Michigan sign-stealing scandal has come to its conclusion, with the NCAA issuing penalties against the program ahead of the season. Those are penalties stemming from the advanced scouting that took place within the program and was made public in 2023. That’s the same season Michigan beat Alabama in the College Football Playoff before beating Washington, then-coached by Kalen DeBoer, to win the national championship.

Now the head coach at Alabama, DeBoer was asked about the penalties that the NCAA has handed down against Michigan. However, he didn’t have a ton to add on top of that.

“I don’t know anything about it,” Kalen DeBoer said. “I honestly don’t. I don’t know what they got. I didn’t read it. I haven’t even heard about it. You can tell me and I can respond, I guess.”

The NCAA made an effort to punish the school and the coaches involved, but not to punish future players. That meant going away from scholarship reductions or postseason bans, which have often been common in the past.

In the end, Michigan got hit with a massive fine. That’s a $50,000 fine, plus 10 percent of the football budget, a fine equivalent of losing postseason revenue for two seasons, and a fine equivalent to a 10 percent loss in scholarships. On top of that, the school received probation, a 25 percent reduction in official visits for the 2025-26 season, and a 14-week prohibition on recruiting communications during their probationary period of four years. Several coaches also received show-cause penalties, and Sherrone Moore was given an additional one-game suspension on top of the self-imposed two -game suspension.

“I don’t know how, in comparison to other issues that we’ve had over the years, how that relates,” DeBoer said. “But it is what it is. I don’t have too much of a response, I guess.”

The scandal broke during the regular season in 2023. At the time, head coach Jim Harbaugh was suspended for the final three games of the season. He’d later return for the postseason run, but at that point, Michigan would not have been scouting opponents in advance.

In response to the punishments from the NCAA, Michigan announced that it is going to appeal its punishment from the NCAA. The severity of the fines is the main reason for that appeal. They’re set to potentially eclipse $30 million, which beats the previous record high of $8 million, which was levied against Tennessee.