In a letter to Tony Petitti obtained by ESPN's Adam Rittenberg, Michigan president Santa Ono urged the Big Ten commissioner to respect “due process” and the NCAA investigation into the Wolverines' football program as Petitti explores potential discipline of Michigan for its alleged sign-stealing operation.
Ono emailed Petitti on Thursday, before their Friday meeting in Ann Arbor, where Petitti attended the Big Ten field hockey tournament. Petitti and Ono discussed the allegations against Michigan, as well as the information Petitti has obtained from the NCAA and various coaches and athletic directors within the Big Ten.
Here is the complete email from Ono to Petitti:
Dear Tony,
I look forward to our meeting and am writing now to share some of my deeply held beliefs, which I hope can inform our conversation and guide what we do next.