Where Is Connor Stalions Now? All About the Alleged Michigan Sign Stealer at the Center of Netflix’s LatestUntold

Mar. 15, 2025

Connor Stalions.Photo:Conner Stalions/Instagram

Conner Stalions/Instagram

The University of Michigan football team may have had an undefeated record during their 2023 season — buttheir National Championship windidn’t come without controversy.

According to the NCAA investigation, which senttheir official notice of allegationsto Michigan in August 2024, Stalions was allegedly running an “elaborate” sign-stealing operation that involved purchasing tickets to dozens of college football games, using a web of individuals to record opponents’ signs while attending the games and even donning disguises to access other teams' sidelines. Stalions resigned from his position at Michigan in November 2023 amidst the mounting accusations against him — but has neither admitted to nor denied his involvement in the alleged sign-stealing scheme.

But now, Stalions is telling his side of the story for the first time involume 4 of Netflix’s sports documentary seriesUntold. “If I’m the bad guy, then everyone in football is the bad guy,” Stalions says inthe trailerfor his episode, whichstarted streaming Aug. 27.

Here is everything to know about Connor Stalions and the alleged sign-stealing scheme at the University of Michigan.

Who is Connor Stalions?

Connor Stalions in ‘Untold: Sign Stealer’.Netflix

Netflix

Stalions is a Michigan native who had lifelong ambitions of coaching collegiate football. However, he began to seriously set his sights on a coaching career back in high school.

Stalions attended Lake Orion High School in Michigan, where he was on the National Honor Society as well as the power lifting, basketball and football teams, according to theDetroit Free Press— however, he quit the football team his junior year to coach an 8th grade football team with his father. That experience “confirmed his passion for coaching,” he told the blogSoldiers to Sidelinesin 2022.

“I had always wanted to coach but getting the opportunity to coach at a young age realigned my why,” Stalions said to the blog.

From there, he opted to attend the U.S. Naval Academy after discovering that many legendary coaches have connections either to the military or military academies. While a student at the Naval Academy, he volunteered with the Midshipmen football team, spending one year in the program’s video department and three years in recruiting, per theDetroit Free Press.

How did Connor Stalions end up at the University of Michigan?

Connor Stallions in ‘Untold: Sign Stealer’.Netflix

Stalions’ dream was not just to be a football coach; it was to be the head football coach at the University of Michigan — where both of his parents attended.

“I’ve grown up my entire life with a vision to coach football at Michigan,” he told Soldiers to Sidelines.

Stalions began to make that vision a reality in 2015, when he began working as a volunteer assistant coach at Michigan, according to ESPN. After he was stationed at Camp Pendleton, he would fly back and forth from San Diego to Michigan, renting out the rooms in his home on AirBnb while sleeping in his car to fund his travel.

“On top of my daily duties as a Logistics Officer leading [40-plus] at a time, I volunteered for the Michigan football staff, flying back [and] forth on my own dime, assisting the defensive staff,” Stalions wrote on his since-deleted LinkedIn page, per ESPN.

In May 2022, Stalions left the Marines and was hired at Michigan as an off-field analyst. Though it was an entry-level position, Stalions had his eyes on the top job — even creating what he dubbed the “Michigan Manifesto,” a 600-page Google document with a blueprint for the football team’s future that he updated daily, perSports Illustrated.

What is Connor Stalions accused of?

Ohio State Julian Fleming (4) in action, runs with the football vs Michigan at Ohio Stadium. Football analyst Connor Stalions and head coach Jim Harbaugh present in the background.David E. Klutho/Sports Illustrated/Getty

David E. Klutho/Sports Illustrated/Getty

In October 2023, the NCAA opened an investigation into the Michigan football program for allegedly violating rules that prohibit in-person scouting of future opponents,Yahoo Sportsfirst reported. Since 1994, the NCAA has not permitted “off-campus, in-person scouting of future opponents (in the same season.)" Within days, it was revealed that a low-level staffer was at the center of the inquiry: Connor Stalions.

The operation reportedly involved Stalions purchasing tickets near the 45-yard line with a clear view of the opposite sideline, and then forwarding the tickets to at least three individuals with instructions to video the sidelines, perESPN.

His actions are considered a Level I NCAA violation, the most serious category, and “seriously undermined or threatened the integrity of the NCAA collegiate model,” per ESPN.

What happened to Connor Stalions?

Donovan Edwards, Connor Stalions, and JJ McCarthy.Connor Stalions/Instagram

Connor Stalions/Instagram

In a statement released toThe Athleticat the time, Stalions said his decision to resign was, in part, to not be a distraction to the football team — which had an 8-0 record when he stepped down. Michigan went on towin the NCAA National Football Championshipthat year after an unbeaten, 15-0 season.

“I love the University of Michigan and its football program,” Stalions toldThe Athletic. “And I am extremely grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to work with the incredible student athletes, coach [Jim] Harbaugh and the other coaches that have been a part of the Michigan football family during my tenure. I do not want to be a distraction from what I hope to be a championship run for the team, and I will continue to cheer them on.”

As of August 2024, the NCAA had yet to assess penalties associated with Stalion’s case, according toThe Athletic. The official notice of allegations was sent to Michigan in late August — the same week Stalions' episode ofUntoldpremiered — and NCAA policy allows the university 90 days to respond. The association can then call a meeting of the Committee on Infractions which could lead to penalizations.

Who else was implicated in Michigan’s sign-stealing scandal?

Jim Harbaugh watches against Rutgers as analytics assistant Connor Stalions, right, looks on during an NCAA college football game on September 23, 2023.Paul Sancya, FILE/AP

Paul Sancya, FILE/AP

Though Stalions was the central figure in the sign-stealing controversy, he wasn’t the only Michigan staffer to come under fire.

Michigan linebackers coach Chris Partridge was fired from his position on Nov. 17, 2023, after allegedly interfering with the investigation into the sign-stealing scandal, per theDetroit Free Press.Yahoo Sportsreported that Partridge had allegedly destroyed evidence on a computer after news of the scandal broke — allegations that the assistant coach vehemently denied.

And new Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore is also caught up in Stalions’ scandal: he faces possible suspension for allegedly deleting a thread of 52 text messages with Stalions on the same day that news broke of the sign-stealing operation, according to ESPN.

Where is Connor Stalions now?

Stalions hasn’t completely disappeared from the world of college football since he found himself at the heart of its biggest controversy last year. He reportedly attendedthe Rose Bowl in January 2024, when Michigan defeated Alabama 27-20, and also celebrated Michigan’s national title win at a sports bar with fans, perSports Illustrated.

Stalions also attempted to capitalize off of his notoriety and began offering videos on Cameo for $70, according toSports Illustrated.

Most notably, however, Stalions told his side of the story in Netflix’s documentary seriesUntold. The episode, titledUntold: Sign Stealer, started streaming on Aug. 27 and dove into the college sign-stealing scandal, including insight from Stalions’ perspective.

source: people.com