Central Michigan sought assistance from former Michigan football staffer Connor Stalions to help the Chippewas’ coaching staff in the 2023 season opener against Michigan State, according to reports from CBS News Detroit.
Central Michigan received a Notice of Allegations from the NCAA in June detailing the nearly two-year-old incident in which a man believed to be Stalions appeared on the Chippewas’ sideline. A man resembling Stalions was seen wearing Central Michigan apparel and sunglasses with a recording device on the Chippewas’ sideline.
The NCAA began investigating the matter in October 2023, shortly after the photos surfaced online and drew national attention.
Two sources at Central Michigan told CBS News Detroit that a member of the school’s coaching staff “initiated contact with Stalions and then-head coach Jim McElwain was likely aware of and approved of the arrangement to secure Stalions a sideline credential and outfit him in CMU-issued gear.”
One of the sources also confirmed to CBS News Detroit that Stalions’ presence on the sideline was to specifically assist the Chippewas in their game against the Spartans.
McElwain, who resigned following the 2024 season, claimed he had no knowledge of the identity of the man on the Chippewas’ sideline.
“We … were totally unaware of it,” McElwain told reporters. “I certainly don’t condone it in any way, shape, or form, and I do know that his name was on none of the [sideline] passes that were let out.”
Stalions, the focal point behind Michigan’s sign-stealing saga, resigned from his position as a team analyst in Ann Arbor during the 2023 season amid the NCAA’s investigation. Stalions served as an analyst with the Wolverines for three seasons under former head coach Jim Harbaugh. He was suspended with pay on Oct. 20, 2023, one day after the NCAA began its investigation into allegations Michigan was engaged in impermissible scouting of opponents.
Harbaugh denied knowing or participating in the alleged sign-stealing scheme. He previously received a four-year show-cause penalty in August 2024 for his role in the Wolverines’ recruiting violations case unrelated to the Stalions situation.
Sign-stealing is not a violation of NCAA rules, but “off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents (in the same season) is prohibited,” per NCAA bylaw 11.6.1. During his time at Michigan, Stalions reportedly purchased tickets for dozens of Big Ten games which exceeded $35,000, and he allegedly paid third parties to attend and film opponents’ sidelines to help his role of picking up opponents’ signs.
The NCAA revealed its sanctions against the Wolverines last week following its lengthy investigation into the sign-stealing saga. Harbaugh, now coach of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers, received a show-cause for 10 years. The NCAA imposed a significant fine on Michigan, reportedly exceeding $20 million, stemming from the loss of postseason football revenue over the next two seasons and docked coach Sherrone Moore with a two-year show-cause along with a three-game suspension.
As a program, Michigan is on four years probation, endures a 25% reduction in football official visits during the 2025-26 season and is on a 14-week prohibition on recruiting communications in the football program during the probation period.
According to a Division I Committee on Infractions, Michigan’s football program committed multiple violations over three seasons in question, including an off-campus, in-person scouting scheme and impermissible recruiting inducements and communications.