Michigan Analyst At Crux Of Sign Stealing Controversy Is No Espionage Mastermind

What is amazing is that the huge, well-staffed college football monster brand name that is Michigan would let this flunky analyst, want-to-be secret agent man Connor Stalions operate the way he did.

ESPN reported the details of a paper trail on Monday that could lead one to believe Stalions, a football analyst since 2022 at Michigan, wanted to be caught. Either that, or he is incredibly inept.

Stalions, 28, is a retired Marine Corps captain who moonlighted as a volunteer Michigan football assistant from 2015-22 while in the service. He is at the crux of a new NCAA investigation into the Michigan program concerning scouting of future opponents so as to steal their signs - both NCAA violations. Michigan suspended Stalions on Friday just after news broke of the NCAA's investigation.

Considering that the NCAA is already investigating Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh for recruiting violations, the program is in danger of getting tagged with major violations and sanctions. Partly because of this adventurous, misguided former Marine.

Wolverines May Be In Major NCAA Trouble

His plan was to "employ Marine Corps philosophies and tactics into the sport of football regarding strategies in staffing, recruiting, scouting, intelligence, planning and more," he wrote in his LinkedIn bio. This would be done by "identifying the opponent's most likely course of action and most dangerous course of action" and "identifying and exploiting critical vulnerabilities and centers of gravity in the opponent scouting process."

Stalions, according to ESPN, has been buying tickets to various football games around the Big Ten featuring opponents Michigan would be playing or has played this season, but not in the most covert fashion, as his bio suggests.

He didn't use cash. But he did use his name.

And there is evidence, according to ESPN, he was purchasing tickets for others, which means this is not one rogue analyst with big dreams. This looks poorly organized, but organized still, which the NCAA will be all over.

And Harbaugh's various denials sound more hollow by the minute.

"I have no awareness of anyone on our staff having done that or having directed that action," Harbaugh said last week. Maybe, you need to be more aware.

"There's a target, yeah," Harbaugh said after his No. 2 Wolverines (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) beat Michigan State, 49-0, on Saturday. There also seemingly is an organized effort to cheat.

Michigan's Jim Harbaugh Reacts Weakly To Investigation

Typical self-absorbed response. You've heard these before from college coaches caught cheating or being investigated for that. "Everybody's trying to get us," is one. "It's a witch hunt," is another. Cue up former LSU basketball coach Will Wade.

Actually both of those comments and such common mindsets are true. But know this. If everybody is trying to get you, it is possibly you likely did something wrong or someone said you did. Hence, the investigation. And witch hunts didn't start until people thought there were witches around.

Harbaugh's program continues to offer plenty of reasons to hunt him. And this sign stealing fiasco smells like a lot of trouble for Harbaugh and not much longer of a stay in Ann Arbor.

"Everybody has pointed that out from the beginning of the season," Harbaugh said to continue his "target" thought.

Michigan's Jim Harbaugh is being targeted by the NCAA. (Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)

The "beginning of the season" reference relates not to a previous witch hunt, but more evidence of a shady program directed by Harbaugh. Or not directed, which is just as bad, because he is supposed to be in charge and know. There are NCAA rules about that which basically state he should know.

Harbaugh already took a self-imposed three-game suspension against three easy teams to start this season over illegal recruiting. He allegedly did not cooperate and was dishonest with the NCAA concerning recruiting violations accusations during the COVID-19 dead period in 2020. But Harbaugh tends to laugh at NCAA rules.

He shouldn't be laughing now.

The fact that Harbaugh let Connor Stalions be in his program brings up serious questions about his leadership. If he didn't know he was in the program, that is worse leadership. A leadership that should not last much longer.