Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Michigan on Monday received a notice of inquiry from the NCAA saying the investigation of alleged time-limit violations by the football program will continue.

Current and former Wolverines players alleged in a Detroit Free Press report in August that Michigan coaches and staff members far exceeded time limits on practices and workouts. Head coach Rich Rodriguez denied the allegations at an emotional news conference.

"As I said at the onset of this review, we place the highest importance on the well-being of our student-athletes and the integrity of our program," Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman said in a prepared statement. "We continue to work with the NCAA to ensure that a thorough and objective investigation occurs."

Athletic director Bill Martin added in a statement: "We continue to cooperate with the NCAA on this matter, which is why we reached out to both the Big Ten and the NCAA as soon as we heard the allegations. We remain committed to following both the letter and the intent of the NCAA rules."

Here's what the NCAA's Web site says about notices of inquiry by the enforcement program:

The enforcement staff may initiate an investigation of a member institution's athletics program only when it has reasonable cause to believe that the institution may have violated NCAA rules. A determination is made regarding whether the possible violation(s) should be reviewed by correspondence with the involved institution (or its conference) or whether the enforcement staff should conduct its own in-person inquiries. When reasonably reliable information has been obtained indicating that an intentional violation has occurred, that a significant competitive or recruiting advantage may have been gained, or that false or misleading information may have been reported to the institution or to the enforcement staff, the enforcement staff will undertake a review of the information in order to determine its credibility. At that time, the involved NCAA member institution is informed of the enforcement staff's inquiry by a notice of inquiry to the institution's chief executive officer (CEO). The review of this information generally entails the use of an enforcement representative (investigator) to conduct in-person interviews.

The notice of inquiry shall advise the CEO that the enforcement staff will be undertaking an investigation and, whenever possible, shall indicate the nature of the potential violations (including the involved sport), the approximate time period in which the alleged violations occurred, the identities of the involved individuals, the approximate time frame for the investigation and an indication that other facts may be developed during the course of the investigation that may relate to additional violations. The enforcement staff does not publicly release the notice of inquiry. The member institution has the discretion to determine whether it wishes to release the notice of inquiry.

It's no surprise that the NCAA has taken a serious role in the investigation. The big question is how long the process will take. If an NCAA investigation doesn't conclude one year after the notice of inquiry, the enforcement staff reviews the case with the Committee on Infractions, which determines if further investigation is necessary.