“Everyone is watching this,” one Mountain West defensive coordinator told The Athletic. “A slap on the wrist and everyone will be doing it.”
One Big Ten coach told The Athletic that immediate postseason ban as the only reasonable response in this situation.
“If you’re doing it — which they did — and you’re caught — which they were — and it’s explicitly against the rules — which it is — and everyone believes that to some degree it’s a competitive advantage, then they shouldn’t be able to play in the Big Ten title game,” he said. “The Big Ten owes 13 other programs the competitive balance and owes it to them to protect the sanctity of the conference. If that many programs have confirmed that he bought tickets specifically under his name, they can’t play in the Big Ten title game. There’s no gray area. It’s explicitly against the rules.”
The key word in this whole thing is "he" -- as in the guy who bought the tickets. If "he" is Harbaugh, then you have a case. If "he" is Stalions, then you probably don't.