As he prepares to enter his second season as the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, Jim Harbaugh has been added to the lawsuit against Michigan and Matt Weiss
14:11 ET, 28 Jun 2025Updated 14:12 ET, 28 Jun 2025
Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh has been added to the lawsuit against Michigan and Matt Weiss(Image: Getty Images)
Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh has been added to the hacking lawsuit against Michigan and a former assistant coach.
Last offseason, Harbaugh departed Michigan to return to the NFL as he signed a five-year contract to take over the Chargers. He hit the ground running with Justin Herbert under center, leading the AFC West franchise to a playoff appearance in his first year in charge.
Harbaugh masterminded Michigan to the national championship in his final season in charge of the program. His tenure with the Wolverines was shrouded in various controversies, the latest of which is the hacking lawsuit.
READ MORE: Scottie Scheffler shows true colors after Justin Thomas’ comments about himREAD MORE: Tiger Woods’ son Charlie’s ‘I’m broke’ claim as true net worth clear after trust fund revelation
On Friday, Harbaugh was added to the lawsuit against Michigan and former assistant coach Matt Weiss. Weiss has been accused of hacking into the computer accounts of college athletes across the United States to look for intimate photos.
The allegations claim Harbaugh, who was Michigan’s head coach at the time, was aware that Weiss was viewing private information on a computer around Dec. 21, 2022, yet still allowed him to continue working as co-offensive coordinator in a national playoff game against TCU on Dec. 31.
Weiss was fired a few weeks later, in January 2023, amid an investigation into his computer use. Harbaugh, Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel, and other high-profile officials were added to the lawsuit in a Detroit federal court.
“The university’s delay in taking meaningful protective action until after a high-stakes game sends a clear message: Student welfare was secondary,” Parker Stinar, who is the lead lawyer in a class-action lawsuit arising from a criminal investigation into Weiss, said.
Follow us on X for the best and latest in sports news
Matt Weiss was Michigan offensive coordinator before he was dismissed(Image: Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Weiss has been charged with identity theft and unauthorized computer access from 2015 to 2023. The allegations claim Weiss had access to the social media, email, and cloud storage accounts of more than 2,000 college athletes and over 1,300 students or alumni from schools across the U.S.
These accounts were used to find private images, primarily of women. Weiss has pleaded not guilty.
“Had Harbaugh implemented basic oversight of his staff, plaintiffs and the class would have been protected against predators such as Weiss,” the refreshed lawsuit stated.
“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.”
After charges were filed earlier this year, Harbaugh spoke to reporters and labeled the allegations “shocking.” He claimed he didn’t know anything about Weiss’ issues until after the 51-45 loss to TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.
In March, at the NFL annual meetings, Harbaugh claimed he was “shocked, completely shocked, disturbed” regarding the Weiss situation. Weiss worked for Harbaugh’s brother, John, at the Baltimore Ravens before joining the Michigan coaching staff in 2021.