The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1511544
26 THE WOLVERINE ❱ DECEMBER 2023 BY CHRIS BALAS H alfway through the Big Ten season, nothing seemed ca- pable of stopping the 2023 Michigan team from ful- filling its destiny and winning a third straight Big Ten title. The Wolverines entered the season as a favorite, were dominating the competition and play- ing great football into October, setting records along the way. But the week before their game with Michigan State Oct. 21, word broke that the Wolverines were under investigation for having an analyst violate NCAA rules on advanced scouting of opponents. Spe- cifically, U-M analyst Connor Stalions, an official employee since 2022, was alleg- edly running an illegal in-person scout- ing and sign-stealing operation. He was suspended by Michigan with pay Oct. 20. Reports surfaced that Stalions "pur- chased tickets in his own name for more than 30 games over the last three years at 11 different Big Ten schools," and that the NCAA was investigating an opera- tion that included "both video evidence of electronics prohibited by the NCAA to steal signs and a significant paper trail." He reportedly forwarded the tickets he bought to at least three different people in different areas of the country, and it even- tually led to allegations that he was doing U-M head coach Jim Harbaugh has been resolute in the face of an NCAA investigation and Big Ten suspension, stating unequivocally that he did not have any knowl- edge of illegally stealing signals nor did he direct any staff member or others to participate in an off-campus scouting assignment. PHOTO BY PER KJELDSEN UNDER A UNDER A MICROSCOPE MICROSCOPE Allegations Of Illegal Off-Campus Scouting Operation Allegations Of Illegal Off-Campus Scouting Operation Threaten To Hinder Michigan Football's 'Happy Mission' Threaten To Hinder Michigan Football's 'Happy Mission'