Michigan Scandal

Coming in the third spot in both the AP Poll and the College Football Playoff Rankings, the Michigan Wolverines are under some heat in a sign-stealing scandal. The scandal potentially dates back to three seasons ago and is currently under investigation. 

Recap

The scandal involves a former Michigan staff member, Connor Stalions, who stole signs from other teams. Stalions reportedly bought tickets to other team’s games that Michigan was going to play or potentially play in the future and sent people to record the sidelines. Video footage also surfaced from a Central Michigan game in which Stalions appears to be seen on the sideline in Central Michigan attire. In text messages sent by Stalions, he stated that he would watch TV copies of games, decipher signals, and relay them to the offensive coordinator. That is legal, but other ways Stalions stole signs such as recording the sidelines are not legal. Stalions also has a 500+ page manifesto about how he will run the Michigan program in the future. Stalions has since resigned from Michigan. 

Pending the outcome of the investigation, the Big 10 has suspended Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh for the remainder of three games of the regular season. Harbaugh was suspended at the beginning of the season for recruiting violations and will now miss three more games. However, Harbaugh can still be in attendance for practice, film sessions, and other team gatherings. Harbaugh declines knowing anything about the sign-stealing scandal. 

Week 13

Michigan is 11-0 on the season and plays their biggest game of the season this Saturday against their rival, #2 Ohio State. The winner will take the Big 10 East and play in the conference championship against Iowa. 

Free Harbaugh?

We have seen a lot of support for Harbaugh from Michigan. The football team went to a Michigan hockey game and the crowd was cheering “Free Harbaugh.” Michigan football players also wore “Free Harbaugh” shirts pregame against Maryland. 

My Opinion

I have gone back and forth on what I think about the Harbaugh situation. As a head coach, you should know about everything going on with your team. I would like to think that people who were on the Michigan staff knew about Stalions and it would get back to Harbaugh. However, you are innocent until proven guilty so I don’t think he should have been suspended until it is confirmed whether or not he knew about the scandal. The Big 10 will look really silly if it comes out that Harbaugh was not involved nor knew about the sign-stealing. Stalions doing all of this is so crazy and funny at the same time. Going to this extent to take over Michigan coaching one day is wack, but seeing him on the Central Michigan sideline is hilarious. 

I know many people question whether or not this scandal should affect Michigan making the playoffs this season. What happens if Michigan wins the national championship and then months later the NCAA finishes their investigation and decides to hand out punishments to the school. Do you vacate their title or hand out punishments for the following season? I feel like if there is a decision after the season then the punishment needs to be dealt for the 2024-25 season. 

The Solution

A simple solution would be the helmet communication system between the coaches and the quarterback like the NFL, but college does not allow that because smaller schools may not have the money for it. The NCAA needs to step up. You make billions of dollars, you can afford this for schools that can’t.