Sunday, August 04, 2024

And the net is drawn in a bit?

Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore, the former offensive coordinator, was apparently in on the arrangement with Connor Stallions to procure opposing teams' offensive signals, indicating that it is almost certain that the defensive coordinators must have been in on the scheme, as well as former coach Jim Harbaugh.  

Was it effective?  Well, the Wolverines went from a 68% win percentage (perhaps a touch above 70% if the abyssmal 2020 season is neglected) to a 92.5% win percentage in those years, building a defensive juggernaut that persisted despite....a change in defensive coordinators in 2022.  So yes, it was effective, gaining them wins against Ohio State and others that they probably would not otherwise have obtained, and recruits that they would not otherwise have gotten.  

I don't know that it's worthy of the 1987 Southern Methodist two season ban, but I do think it's worthy of the penalty Michigan received for their recruiting violations for the "Fab Five"; a vacation of all wins those seasons.  

And really, it's long past time to allow quarterbacks to have a radio in their helmet to receive signals so this sort of thing is no longer possible.  

One final note is that it's appalling that Connor Stallions is a Naval Academy grad, and apparently his memory of the honor code--We will not lie, cheat, or steal, nor tolerate those among us who do.-- has gotten a little bit rusty.  Naval Academy leadership might want to take note and ask if something is going seriously wrong with their students' ethics.

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