EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh dodged a question Thursday about recent NCAA sanctions against him, which included a four-year hearing order and a virtual ban on him from participating in college sports until August 2028.

“I’ll stop engaging with comments here,” Harbaugh said. “But my only hope is that college sports will one day be about what’s best for the young men and women who participate in it. That’s really all I have to say about it.”

The NCAA said Harbaugh “engaged in unethical conduct, failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance and violated his duties as a head coach.” The organization also said Harbaugh denied involvement in the violations, despite the “overwhelming” evidence of them in the records.

The “show cause order” means any school that wants to hire Harbaugh must appear before the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions to explain why it wants to do so. The NCAA’s order for Harbaugh went into effect Wednesday and is in effect until Aug. 6, 2028.

“During the show-cause order, Harbaugh would be barred from all athletic activities at all NCAA schools that employ him, including team travel, practices, video study, recruiting and team meetings,” the NCAA said. “In addition, if Harbaugh were hired during the show-cause order, he would be suspended for 100 percent of the first season of employment. The results of those contests during Harbaugh’s suspension would not count toward his coaching career.”

The recruiting case is separate from the NCAA’s investigation into improper scouting and allegations of sign-stealing that rocked Michigan’s 2023 championship season and led to a three-game suspension of Harbaugh by the Big Ten. In a prepared statement regarding that investigation, Harbaugh said he was “not aware” of any wrongdoing by Michigan and was not apologizing for anything.