J.J. McCarthy of Michigan football on sign-stealing: “(The players) did things the right way”
The junior quarterback for Michigan, who was named offensive MVP of the Rose Bowl Game after completing 17 of 27 passes for 216 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions, was asked how he would feel, in theory, if the Wolverines were to win a national championship only to have it later revoked, similar to USC’s 2005 triumph.
“From an outside perspective it would be very unfortunate just to not get recognized for all the hard work we put in and everything we accomplished over the last year,” McCarthy stated. But in the end, it won’t lessen our sense of pride and accomplishment for being a part of this football team since we know how much work we’ve put in.
“As players, we are aware that we acted appropriately. We have no control over what occurs in the absence of an external controversy or over what the NCAA wishes to do. We’ll be grateful for the things we can influence and the accomplishments we have made.”
During the first part of his 40-minute interview with reporters on Wednesday morning, head coach Jim Harbaugh addressed the media. Despite his best efforts to keep the team’s attention on Washington, their last task, he appeared more irritated by the same question than his teammates. “Getting ready for this game, one-track mind,” he stated. We just don’t really have enough room for you to exist in the world of rumors and conjecture right now, I suppose. Our work is completed elsewhere.”
Some have stated that if Michigan (14-0, 10-0 Big Ten) wins, the title “won’t come with an asterisk,” including renowned U-M critic Paul Finebaum. Supporters of other programs across the nation would disagree, though, given the Wolverines’ recent string of problems.
As a peace offering, U-M punished Harbaugh for three games internally as a compromise after he and the NCAA appeared to have worked out a four-game sentence through negotiation this winter. However, the sport’s governing body has not yet had a chance to weigh in.
But the real scandal that rocked college football didn’t emerge until mid-October, when rumors circulated that the NCAA was looking into the Wolverines for possible sign-stealing was public.
In the days and weeks that followed, information came to light regarding the former recruiting staff member Connor Stalions and his scheme to steal the signs of other teams by sending accomplices to games where U-M would play, having them record the sideline signals during play, and then comparing those recordings with the game film to decipher the signals.
Subsequently, footage emerged that also seemed to show someone resembling the Stalions on the CMU bench during the team’s season-opening match against Michigan State, dressed in coaching attire from Central Michigan.
Despite never being proven to be aware of the situation or directly implicated, league commissioner Tony Petitti found head coach Jim Harbaugh to be indirectly at fault for breaking the Big Ten’s sportsmanship policy. As a result, Harbaugh was suspended for the final three regular season games.
For the most part of the season since then, both coaches and players have avoided answering inquiries about the circumstances and have simply implied that they have done nothing wrong. Mason Graham, the defensive tackle, stated on Wednesday, “We’re right where we wanted to be.” “That’s all we’re worried about.”
In addition, they have freely acknowledged that, despite not giving a damn about what others think, they use the commotion as hate fuel to reinforce their “one-track mind.” McCarthy went into even more information about that, being as open as anyone in the program has been for the previous two months or more.
“I feel like it’s so unfortunate because there’s probably, I don’t want to say a crazy number, but probably a good number, 80% of teams in college football steal signs,” McCarthy stated. “It’s a football phenomenon that dates back many years. We actually had to adjust because, in 2020 or 2019, Ohio State was taking our signage in a lawful and legitimate manner. We had to catch up to them and create a level playing field.
“It just seems so bad to me because, although we work really hard and watch movies, we still look for those minor traits. You could argue that it’s all sign stealing, but there are other factors at play as well. A lot of work is hidden because of the public’s misconception of sign stealing. Take ten or fifteen minutes to focus on one clip and pay attention to the small details, such as a linebacker’s or d-end’s posture, whether the safety is off-level, and whether the corner to the field is pressed but the corner to the boundary is off.