The Michigan Wolverines’ Alleged Cheating Scandal

“If You're Not Cheating, You're Not Trying”: The Story of University of Michigan, the 2024 College Football National Champions’, Alleged Cheating Scandal 

In January, Michigan won the 2024 National Championship and solidified their undefeated season, however; the road to success was nothing short of bumpy for the Wolverines. To commence the eventful season, John Harbaugh, the coach of Michigan, served an initial three game suspension for violating NCAA recruiting policies. Right out of the gate, Michigan faced unwanted adversity, yet, despite the loss of their coach, the team managed to come out unscathed and began its season 3-0. From there, the winning never stopped for Michigan football and the team thrived off of the new attention, making known that JJ McCarthy, Blake Corum, and the offensive-line were powerhouses who were not fazed by the cheating scandals.

Michigan cruised past its competition for the first half of the season, but unfortunately the latter part of the year came with some expected trouble as the team was set to play number ten ranked Penn State, a game that would test Michigan’s ability to play on the biggest stage. With the Big-Ten game set to be played that week, once again John Harbaugh and his players faced some unexpected turbulence. John Harbaugh was under investigation for the second time in 2023, this time for illicitly stealing signs.

Although the NCAA allows coaches to analyze other teams’ signs and acknowledges that stealing signs are part of the game, the line was crossed by Michigan football. In the 1990’s, the NCAA established a policy that prohibited the in-person scouting of competition and the use of technology to film opponents’ signals. This rule now gave schools that didn’t have the financial means or funding to gather a scouting report an equal playing field. The NCAA made it clear that coaches were restricted from attending opponents’ games with the intent of filming the other team’s sidelines.

The story of this second scandal starts with a previously unknown man, Connor Stalions. In 2022, Michigan football hired Stalions to be one of many recruiting analysts in the program. At the relatively young age of 27, Stalions joined the Wolverine’s staff. In November of 2023, allegations against Stalions surfaced, as he supposedly bought tickets to future opponents’ games and illegally filmed their signs. Within two short weeks of the investigation, the University of Michigan, now completely in the public eye, suspended Connor Stalions and contemplated repercussions for the football program. Stalions eventually withdrew from his position and publicly defended the team, saying that Jim Harbaugh, the coaching staff, and the University had nothing to do with his antics. However, this statement wasn't good enough for Tony Petitti, the commissioner of the Big-Ten, and Petitti ordered another three game suspension for Harbaugh, consequently setting a fire in the eyes of Michigan players and fans.

With the college football playoffs and big rivalry games ahead, no scandal or accusation could tear down the men in blue and gold. After taking down number two seeded Ohio State in what is known as “The Game,” Michigan advanced to the Big-Ten championship against 16 seed Iowa, the Rose Bowl against the four seeded University of Alabama, and lastly completing its undefeated season against the University of Washington with a blowout win in the CFB National Championship. Michigan achieved the unthinkable, winning the regular season and the college football playoffs without a coach for six out of its 15 games.

As the college season concluded, and now that the NFL playoffs are officially over, Jim Harbaugh announced his departure from his alma mater after nine years of being the coach, so that he could move into a bigger and better position. He will now be returning to the NFL field as the Los Angeles Chargers head coach, an opportunity that would not have been possible without his success at Michigan. With Harbaugh ending his time as a Wolverine, a new chapter begins for the University of Michigan. Eventually, this season's cheating scandals will be forgotten, but the national championship banner will wave high in the Big House forever. 

Ryan Wolff