How the Football World is Reacting to Michigan's Sign-Stealing Allegations

Sign-stealing is a hot topic among prominent people in and around college football.

The Big10 conference announced on October 19 that the conference and the University of Michigan were made aware of an NCAA investigation into alleged sign-stealing by the Wolverines. According to reports, the investigation centers around a Michigan staff member who attended opponents' games with the purpose of stealing signs. In-person scouting has been banned in college football since 1994.

Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh has denied knowledge of or involvement in sign-stealing. The investigation is ongoing.

Gauging how serious the accusations against Michigan depend on your vantage point. Here's how some well-known college football figures have reacted.

Georgia Coach Kirby Smart

Two-time defending National Champion Georgia played against Michigan in the 2021 College Football Playoff semifinal, which Georgia won 34-11. According to an ESPN report Tuesday, the Michigan staffer at the center of the probe, analytics assistant Connor Stalions, attended the SEC championship game that year.

UGA head coach Kirby Smart met with reporters on Tuesday and said he didn't seem to notice anything unusual about the game.

"I think everybody we play they say, 'They steal your signals.' We play somebody, and they say, 'They're great at stealing your signals.' But what they're referencing (at Michigan) is different than stealing them," Smart said. "They're talking about people to come and film on us. But we've tried to hide the signals, hold the calls, put signs up, do all that. But there's nothing I remember about the Michigan game that makes me think that."

Utah Coach Kyle Whittingham

Coaches try to protect against in-game sign-stealing. That's why fans will see staffers and backup quarterbacks holding signs with pictures and various other ways to disguise signals. Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham talked to reporters on Tuesday about the difference between what happens during games versus the allegations against Michigan.

"In my opinion — in-game, now I'm talking — if you're getting your signs stolen, that's your fault, because they're too simplistic and too easy," Whittingham told reporters. "In-game, I think that's kind of commonplace. People try to pick up on signs with each other. Where it gets dicey is if you do things outside of the game, and I think that is really what is frowned upon."

Colorado Coach Deion Sanders

Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders isn't one to shy away from a microphone or mask his opinions. He didn't seem fazed by the allegations against Michigan.

"I mean, everyone's trying to get an edge," Sanders told reporters during his Tuesday press conference. "I mean everyone's trying to get whatever it is they can. You could have someone's whole game plan, they can mail it to you, you still got to stop it. You still got to stop it."

Sanders once famously competed in an NFL game for the Atlanta Falcons and a playoff game for the Atlanta Braves on the same day. He noted a difference between sign stealing in the two sports.

"In football, it's not as pronounced as baseball. If I know a curveball is coming, I got you," Sanders said. "With football, I don't give a darn if you know a sweep is coming. You still got to stop it. Physically, it's a physical game, you got to stop it, so that's a little tough. I don't buy into a lot of this stuff that someone's stealing this, stealing that. I don't buy into a lot of that. You still got to play the game."

Fox Sports Analyst Brady Quinn

Brady Quinn is a former Notre Dame quarterback and won the 2006 Maxwell Award, which goes to the best all-around college football player as voted by a panel of experts. Quinn is currently an analyst for Fox Sports' college football coverage. He expressed caution to anyone thinking the alleged behavior only happens at Michigan.

"A lot of coaches that I've talked to don't want to talk about it or make public accusations for a reason," Quinn said on his radio show Tuesday. "And anyone that's out there that is saying this doesn't go on (anywhere else and it just happens at) Michigan, they're lying to you. Or they are ignorant to how the game of football is played today at least at the college level."

Nebraska Coach Matt Rhule

Is there a solution to the problem? Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said on Tuesday that the college game should use in-helmet devices for communication similar to the NFL.

"There's nothing wrong with teams over there looking over trying to steal our signs. There's nothing wrong with us trying to look at their signs. That's why you should have mics in the helmets, right?" Rhule said, whose team lost to Michigan 45-7 earlier this season. "Get rid of all the stupid signs on the sidelines and we could just play football the way it was meant to be. You go to a high school game, there is technology on the sideline. You go to an NFL game, there is technology on the sideline. You go to college, there is nothing."