Michigan’s sign-stealing scandal is getting stranger.
Multiple media outlets reported Tuesday that Central Michigan is currently investigating whether Michigan staff member Connor Stalions was present on the sidelines during the Sept. 1 season opener against Michigan State, a future Michigan opponent. A man resembling Stalions is seen wearing CMU gear while standing next to several of the team’s coaches. In photos from the FS1 broadcast he was wearing a bank ID.
“We are in the process of determining the facts surrounding it,” CMU athletic director Amy Folan said in a statement via ESPN.com. “As this process is ongoing, we have no further comment at this time.”
This is a new twist in an investigation that previously consisted of reports that Stalions had purchased tickets to games involving future Michigan opponents. For the first time, Stalions was placed on a sideline, opposite the sideline of an upcoming Michigan opponent.
There is no indication that Stalions recorded video of Michigan State’s sideline game. That would have been a bit too obvious.
So if he wasn’t recording, why was he there? (If he were there.) At best, he would have made mental notes about the things he saw on the other side of the field.
Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has denied any knowledge of the alleged sign-stealing. According to NCAA statutes, it doesn’t matter; He is responsible for everything that happens within the program.
The investigation has led to speculation that Harbaugh will leave Michigan for the NFL, where he coached the 49ers from 2011 to 2014. The NFL recently suggested in an article on the website it owns and operates that Harbaugh could be suspended from the NFL if he attempts to return to professional football.
Harbaugh interviewed with the Vikings in 2022 and with the Broncos in 2023.