Bruce Feldman predicts how Michigan sign-stealing scandal ends

The NCAA is on campus at Michigan this week, looking into accusations that the Wolverines have been illegally stealing signs from opponents the past few years.

The NCAA typically moves slowly with its cases, but there’s also not really a past example of a scandal that is similar to this one.

College football insider Bruce Feldman joined The Rich Eisen Show earlier this week and predicted how the rest of the season will go for Michigan and Jim Harbaugh.

“Michigan football is going to drive a lot of eyeballs, no matter what. I think it’s going to be really hard for the NCAA to get out in front of this,” Bruce Feldman said. “The only thing I can compare it to is like about a decade ago or a dozen years ago, Cam Newton took college football by storm when he came from junior college back to the SEC. He was the best college football player I’ve ever seen, and there was all kinds of drama about the NCAA was going to get them or whatever.”

Newton was accused of receiving money to play at Auburn and was suspended for a day, before being reinstated. He did not miss playing time as the NCAA ultimately determined Auburn and Newton didn’t commit violations.

“They won a national title, and it was almost all Cam Newton,” Feldman said. “They had one other big-time guy – Nick Fairley – who was a draft guy. And if I’m not mistaken, they still got all that, and he still got his Heisman.”

On the field, Michigan has been dominant this season. The Wolverines are currently 8-0, ranked No. 2 in the nation and their closest game is a 24-point win.

Feldman had Michigan as the favorite to win the national title prior to the investigation. He still believes it’s possible the Wolverines will win it all.

“People can believe how they feel about it. … If you asked me eight days ago, Michigan was the team I picked to win the national title,” Feldman said. “I think JJ McCarthy’s playing at a really high level. I’m sure they will do the ‘us against the world’ thing. … I think the question, again, is can the NCAA, like man, what does that look like? I don’t know.”

Feldman predicts that the NCAA won’t finish its investigation before the end of the season and that Jim Harbaugh will leave after this year.

“I could be wrong on this, and I probably will be, but it doesn’t seem like the NCAA ever moves this fast,” Feldman said. “So I think at some point Jim Harbaugh wins, Jim Harbaugh leaves. I don’t know if he goes to the Bears; I don’t know if he goes to the Chargers. I don’t know where he goes. But I don’t think he’s going to be there next year.”