Michigan Wolverines Should Focus On Sportsmanship And Play By The Rule

Special advice for wolverines by coach Jim Harbaugh

I’ve been following the Michigan football drama for weeks and have withheld offering comment for a couple of reasons. First, I wanted to see how this sign-stealing situation played out and, in the spirit of full disclosure, I have done media training for Michigan’s football student athletes several times over the years and felt hesitant to jump in too early.

But this weekend was more than I could handle. So I’m weighing in to say I’ve had enough. Michigan’s vaunted football program, currently ranked No. 2 in the nation, needs to lay off the drama and engage in some serious self-reflection about the impact of cheating on their program, reputation and, above all, integrity.

As background, the football program in Ann Arbor has been accused of signal-stealing, and a Big Ten probe into the matter found enough evidence to ban Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh for several games. What is signal-stealing? All teams spend time reviewing video and television broadcasts of opponents’ games with the goal of evaluating how they play as well as deciphering their signals for use when the teams meet. This, by the rules of college football, is a legal activity and one around which entire departments are built at places like Michigan, Ohio State and Georgia.

What is not legal is signal stealing, which can be accomplished in two ways: by having a staff member attend future opponents’ games — usually in disguise, a la John le Carré — or eavesdropping on opponents using electronics. The rationale behind the ban on signal stealing is perfectly sensible: spying is expensive and confers a whopping advantage on bigger, wealthier programs. This is the reason the NCAA banned the practice years ago.

At the heart of the controversy stands the shadowy figure of one Connor Stalions, a football analyst with the Wolverines and a retired captain in the United States Marine Corps. He’s the operative who has been “made” by opposing football staffs who have seen him at their games — undercover and in disguise. But the one who has to take the heat at Michigan, again per established NCAA guidelines, is head coach Harbaugh, who has flatly denied having any knowledge of, or participation in, the signal stealing. He has not, for the record, denied that it occurred.

Sorry Coach, doesn’t matter. Rules, as they say, are rules. But Wolverine Nation is having none of it — the rules, that is. The players, coaches, fans and alums have agreed that it’s a “Michigan versus the world” world they now have to live in, so they have circled the wagons to outside voices and agreed to shower unconditional love on their team. In the past and in other contexts, I have lauded the us-against-the-world tactic as one of an effective leader’s best tools to rally and motivate his or her team. I wrote about this type of “chip” here a few weeks ago. The point is that in order to work, a chip can be real or largely manufactured; but the chip Michigan has concocted is self-delusory and just plain wrong-headed.

I hope that by the time they finish reading this article, written by one who has admired the program and its staff, Michigan’s apologists will have changed their minds.

The thing that really sticks in my craw is the constant refrain that, “Everyone does it, so why should we be the ones who get punished?” Really? That’s the best you can come up with—a first-grade excuse to which mom always replied, “Well, if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you do that, too?”

When I tried that one on my mom, her reply usually ended the discussion there and then. Right off the bat, there are two reasons I can put forward that should make Michigan sycophants take pause. First, as noted earlier, signal stealing is against the rules for a good reason: the practice creates a less even playing field that hurts competition, since many universities cannot afford an internal spy agency. Second, not following the rules confers a competitive advantage on the cheater. If it didn’t, why would Stalions and the Wolverine staff he worked with have gone to all the trouble.

So, Michigan broke the rule to gain an advantage. In this way, they are like the guy who drives in the breakdown lane during a heavy-traffic day to “beat the system.” He may be joined by some other cheaters, but that doesn’t make what they’re doing right.

I know a lot of Michigan people and like many of them. This behavior should offend you. Here’s what to do. If you are a player or coach, don’t blubber on about overcoming the adversity of which you, yourself, are the author. And if you’re a fan, stop pointing fingers at your loathed rival in Columbus, against whom you still enjoy a 60-51-6 advantage.

Put on your big-boy pants and play by the rules. Winning feels so much better that way.