Getty Image / David Berding
Shocking new details have come to light after midnight on the East Coast Friday regarding the investigation into the Michigan Wolverines football team stealing signs. And, according to a report by Pete Thamel of ESPN, the NCAA has targeted a specific individual inside the football program as the focus of their investigation.
Here’s more, courtesy of Thamel.
Connor Stalions, a football analyst with the Wolverines and a retired captain in the United States Marine Corps, is a person of interest in the investigation into whether No. 2-ranked Michigan violated an NCAA rule by scouting future opponents in person at games, sources said. The NCAA prohibited such scouting in 1994.
Sources said the NCAA enforcement staff’s level of interest in Stalions is so significant it sought access to his computer as part of its investigation. Sources indicated that the process is underway, although it’s uncertain what investigators will find.
He continued to say…
Around Michigan’s football building, Stalions is known to technically work in the recruiting department under director of recruiting Albert Karschnia. But a source said it was known in the building that he spent much of his time deciphering opponents’ signals, often watching television copies of opponents’ games. On his Instagram page, there are photos of him on the sideline next to two of Michigan’s former defensive play callers, Don Brown and Mike Macdonald.
“He had one role,” said a source with knowledge of Michigan’s staff.
It’s important to note that merely stealing signs via watching film provided by opponents or on television broadcasts is not a violation of NCAA rules. However, if Michigan was sending people to opponent’s games to film or write down signs, that is very illegal.
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Not only is it illegal, but it would be an incredible betrayal of trust in the coaching community. I don’t want to understate this point. Other universities will be very, very, upset about this if it is indeed the truth.
Michigan is currently under investigation due to head coach Jim Harbaugh allegedly lying to NCAA investigators about alleged recruiting violations during restricted periods. Harbaugh served a university-imposed three-game suspension stemming from those allegations to start the season.
Stalion started working for the Wolverines as a volunteer in 2015 and became a full-time analyst in 2022. All of his social medias had been wiped from the internet as of the wee hours Friday morning.
After back-to-back Big Ten titles and playoff appearances, Michigan finds themselves ranked 2nd in the country at 7-0. Their three toughest games on their schedule, Penn State, Maryland, and Ohio State, remain. They take on rival Michigan State on the road this weekend.
I’m sure there will be much more fallout from this story as Friday unfolds.