Tony Petitti addresses relationship with Warde Manuel, Michigan after Jim Harbaugh suspension

As Tony Petitti went through his first few months as Big Ten commissioner, he had a major decision to make in November. That’s when he suspended Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh under the league’s sportsmanship policy – eliciting a strong response from the university.

Michigan was at the center of a sign-stealing investigation by the NCAA, centered on former analyst Connor Stalions, and Petitti had the authority to punish Harbaugh under the sportsmanship policy. Ultimately, he was suspended for the rest of the regular season.

Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel was among the most vocal after Harbaugh’s suspension, calling out the Big Ten’s handling of the situation in a statement after the announcement. In the time since, though, Petitti told ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg he and Manuel put it all behind them. It’s safe to say, his relationship with the Wolverines remains strong as he wraps up Year 1.

“People sometimes misconstrue, these are never personal things, this is not personal,” said Petitti, who passes the one-year mark in May. “This is about doing what’s right for the conference, what’s right for our institutions. It doesn’t mean everybody’s going to agree with decisions that come from the league office, but that’s the job.

“At the end of the day, it’s about doing what you think is right in the process. That’s what we did, and there’s reaction to that, and we just worked our way through it.”

Michigan’s response to Harbaugh’s suspension looked like it was also going to include a legal fight. The university indicated it wanted a temporary restraining order to get him back on the sidelines, but UM ultimately opted to accept the suspension as Harbaugh missed the rest of the regular season.

All the while, there were questions about the relationship between Michigan and Tony Petitti going forward. That ramped up at the Big Ten Championship when he handed the trophy to Zak Zinter instead of Harbaugh, although that happened because the coach wanted Zinter to receive the trophy after his season-ending injury.

However, all seems well between the commissioner’s office and UM. In fact, Petitti told Rittenberg Manuel is “one of the leaders in our room,” and the two sat next to each other at a dinner prior to the national semifinal against Alabama.

Of course, Manuel is also taking on some additional responsibilities as the new chairman of the College Football Playoff selection committee, succeeding Boo Corrigan. That means he and Petitti will likely be working closer as the CFP enters a new era with the 12-team format coming in 2024.