ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Former Michigan linebackers coach Chris Partridge sued the university, the board of trustees and the athletic director on Wednesday, saying he fired him in 2023 while the NCAA investigates allegations of on-field scouting and sign-stealing.
Partridge’s lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Michigan, said his “termination was wholly unreasonable and without legal justification” and said the school violated his Fourteenth Amendment due process rights.
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“The University of Michigan unjustly terminated Partridge’s employment and disseminated false and damaging information about his professional conduct, tarnishing Partridge’s hard-won reputation and causing irreparable harm to his professional and personal well-being,” the lawsuit states.
Michigan State did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press requesting comment. The Big Ten declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Partridge was fired from Michigan in November 2023 while the NCAA was investigating allegations that former university staffer Connor Stallion bought tickets to scout school opponents and send people to games and record the team’s play signals. The NCAA bans in-person scouting. Stallings resigned earlier that month.
In 2025, the NCAA Committee on Infractions determined that Stallion had orchestrated an elaborate scouting program for years. It also uncovered admissions violations and fined schools millions of dollars. Partridge was largely cleared of any wrongdoing.
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But soon after Partridge was fired, rumors began to swirl about the reason for his dismissal. He said on social media at the time that he knew nothing about any Scouting programs and was fired for failing to follow the school’s instructions to avoid discussing the investigation with “anyone associated with the program.”
“Additionally, at no time did I destroy any evidence related to the ongoing investigation,” he posted online.
Partridge then served as the outside linebackers coach for the Seattle Seahawks, helping them win the Super Bowl last month.
The lawsuit alleges that Partridge was told by the university that he was fired for telling a player he should “get a lawyer,” even though he was instructed not to communicate with athletes during the investigation.
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Partridge confirmed he did say that to a player. But, he said in the lawsuit, football staff were never told to stop communicating with players, which would have brought the football program to a “sharp halt.”
“Partridge was a scapegoat who was wrongfully fired simply because he told a player that he had the right to counsel,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit also alleges that the school tarnished his reputation, including that some athletic department employees and at least one board member told a sports reporter that Partridge was fired for “destroying evidence.” The information was subsequently reported by multiple news organizations, including the Associated Press, citing a report from Yahoo Sports that said Partridge “allegedly attempted to cover up evidence.”
Partridge was fired before the Wolverines became national football champions. One day after he was fired, the school and the Big Ten agreed that then-head coach Jim Harbaugh would serve the final two games of his three-game suspension in exchange for the league ending its investigation into sign-stealing allegations.
The lawsuit seeks damages to be determined at trial and to clear Partridge’s name and reputation.
