Michigan Football Sign Stealing Controversy Has New Updates

The No. 2 Michigan Wolverines are having a fantastic season, but there are a lot of distractions involved. Unquestionably, the on-field performance has been outstanding, but allegations of sign-stealing have produced an off-field soap opera that ends with a fresh cliffhanger every day. The Wolverines are still very much in the running for a third straight Big Ten title and a spot in the College Football Playoffs.

Michigan Football Sign Stealing Controversy Has New Updates

The main focus of the inquiry is staff member Connor Stalions, who is accused of purchasing tickets for over 30 games (many of which are Big Ten) and using “illegal technology” to pilfer signs. In the interim, while the NCAA conducts its inquiry, Stalions has been placed on paid suspension. Coach Jim Harbaugh, who has already been entangled with the NCAA, is an obvious focal point here as well, but he has denied knowledge of the operation.

It looks like Michigan is about to collapse, and a Big Ten program has rejected another accusation.

An article published on Sunday by Sports Illustrated contained a grave and incriminating accusation against Michigan ball boys.

The following is stated in the report:

Before their game against Michigan, Wolverines ball boys on their sideline were listening to play calls and relaying information to the Michigan sideline, such as holding the football up in one hand to indicate an expected pass and in the other hand to indicate a run, according to multiple sources from a Big Ten school that SI spoke with. (Sources at the school that was warned said they experienced nothing in the game to implicate the Michigan ball boys.)

Purdue and Michigan meet on Saturday. Jim Harbaugh (2) will have his regularly scheduled press conference on Monday. It should draw a sizable crowd. Sources claim that up until now, the head coach of the Wolverines has not been directly connected to the Stallion’s strategy, and many program insiders adamantly maintain that Harbaugh was kept in the dark.

It’s quite likely that Harbaugh would attempt to avoid making any comments during the news conference on Monday, citing NCAA regulations requiring confidentiality while an investigation is still underway. It’s okay. However, it seems fitting that President Santa Ono or athletic director Warde Manuel take the podium on Monday to discuss this.

There are undoubtedly more B1G programs that perform the same. There were enough alerts sent to TCU that one would have assumed there was a bat signal alerting teams of Michigan’s purported wrongdoing.

TCU made the decision to implement its own plan, retaining the original signals but replacing them with ineffective false signals. It was successful because in the previous year’s CFP, the Horned Frogs defeated the Wolverines.

A new charge that might be much more damaging than sign theft is currently facing Michigan.

 

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