Report: Big Ten coaches knew of sign-stealing scheme, Michigan assistant in focus

While public scrutiny has only been on Michigan football for the better part of a day after news broke on Thursday that the Wolverines may have violated NCAA rules in efforts to learn opponents’ signals, opponents have known far longer.

And the staffer at the center of it — Connor Stalions — was not an unknown, either. A new report from Yahoo! Sports outlined how several coaching staffs, including Ohio State ahead of the 2022 edition of The Game, were aware their signs might be known on the opposite sideline.

“‘He spearheads the operation. I once told (Stalions), ‘We know what kind of sh** you are doing and it’s f***** up,'” an anonymous Big Ten coach told Yahoo! Sports.

Stalions has scrubbed his social media accounts since the story broke on Thursday, at which point they were still active. ESPN first reported that Stalions, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, was at the center of the investigation and that investigators intend to search his computer.

And according to the Yahoo! Sports report, a number of Big Ten coaches were aware of the sign-stealing operation well before the Wolverines were under the specter of NCAA investigation.

“We were told to be careful because they had a guy who could pick plays,” a Big Ten head coach said to Yahoo! Sports. “It was too late in the week to change our signals, but another staff did tell us about (Stalions).”

This included the Ohio State staff ahead of a major rivalry matchup in 2022.

“We heard they had a guy pick plays pretty good and had all this information from not your typical ways of getting the signals,” an Ohio State staff member said. “We get into the game and it’s the second quarter. I see him across the field and he’s checking his 11×17 sheet.”

Sign stealing in and of itself is not prohibited. Where Michigan and Stalions allegedly ran afoul of the rules is by scouting opponents in person and/or using electronic equipment to record or capture signals. Different bylaws apply to govern in-person scouting versus the use of recording equipment.

And some coaches weren’t entirely upset at the proposition that another staff had deciphered their signals.

“If you don’t like it, stop it,” one staff member said to Yahoo! Sports.

Others held different opinions.

“Some things are so obvious you don’t do it. It doesn’t need to be written down,” said another person to Yahoo! Sports.