What Netflix’s 'Sign Stealer' says about Central Michigan
CMU's Redshirt Freshman quarterback Bert Emanual Jr. runs with the ball while Michigan State's sixth-year Senior linebacker Aaron Brule follows behind, Friday, Sept. 1, in Spartan Stadium.
The scandal that grabbed the attention of college football fans around the nation last year continues to develop, as Netflix released its new documentary, "Untold: Sign Stealer" on Tuesday.
The documentary explores the sign stealing scandal at the University of Michigan, where Connor Stalions, who previously worked as an off-field analyst for the Wolverines, was accused of going to opponents' games and stealing their signs.
Stalions bought tickets to 30 games at 11 different Big Ten universities over the past three seasons, according to an ESPN report.
Since then, Michigan has been investigated by the Big Ten and the NCAA on the issue.
Central Michigan football was thrown into the scandal after the Chippewas’ 2023 season opener against Michigan State on Sept. 1, 2023. A man who allegedly looked like Stalions was seen on CMU’s sidelines in Central Michigan gear and sunglasses, with a field pass around his neck.
At the time of the photo's release, head coach Jim McElwain said that CMU was completely “unaware” of how this person got on the sidelines.
“I do know that his name was on none of the passes that were let out,” McElwain said in a press conference on Oct. 31, 2023. “There's no place in football for that.”
In the documentary, Stalions doesn’t confirm or deny whether he was at the game. When shown the picture of the person on the sidelines, Stalions laughed and would later go on to say, “I don’t even think this guy looks like me.”
However, Barstool Sports Owner Dave Portnoy said in the film that Stalions told him he was on the sidelines of the game.
Later in the documentary, Stalions was asked during an investigation interview with the NCAA if he was at the MSU versus CMU matchup. In that testimony, he said he did not recall if he attended that specific game.
Another mention of the Chippewas in the documentary was the connections members of the coaching staff had to Michigan’s football program. McElwain previously coached at the University of Michigan as a wide receiver’s coach in 2018 before taking the head coaching role with CMU.
When asked for comment, the CMU Athletic department declined specific questions. However, they released a statement regarding the matter.
“We are aware of inferences made in the new Netflix documentary regarding former University of Michigan football staff member Connor Stalions accessing the CMU sidelines during our opening game last September,” the statement said.
“For the past 10 months, CMU has fully cooperated with the NCAA’s ongoing investigation, and we will continue to cooperate with the NCAA as it works to complete its investigation. NCAA bylaws expressly prohibit CMU from publicly commenting on the details of the case at this time.”
The documentary release came just two days before the Chippewas open the season on Thursday against Central Connecticut State University.
This is an ongoing story that we will update when more information is made available.
