Untold: Sign Stealer Review: Exploring the Shadows of College Football's Sign-Stealing Scandal

Untold: Sign Stealer was released as part of Netflix’s Untold series on August 27, 2024. The episode, which has a runtime of 1 hour and 24 minutes, delves into the ‘sign-stealing’ scandal involving the Big Ten college football team Michigan Wolverines, and Connor Stalions, a former employee of the team.

Connor Stalions is the focus of this documentary. It is his first public interview on a saga that came to light back in 2023. The episode synopsis says:

“In this sports documentary, Connor Stalions addresses the allegations surrounding the Michigan football sign-stealing scandal for the first time.”

In Untold: Sign Stealer, Connor Stalions explains how 'sign stealing' is a common practice in the world of college football.

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Conor Stalions’s perspective forms the crux of Netflix’s Untold: Sign Stealer

While Stalions has claimed that sign-stealing is utterly common, it still infringes multiple NCAA rules. This is why the former Wolverines employee was forced to resign in response to the scandal. It is believed that Connor Stalions's extreme methods as a Michigan Wolverines football team employee brought him to the spotlight.

Connor Stalions was known to have attended more than 35 games, with most involving Michigan’s rivals. He made use of a variety of electronic devices and handwritten notes to observe and decipher the meaning behind various coach signals, which were reportedly used to give the Michigan Wolverines football team an advantage.

However, Stalions has maintained his innocence and claimed that he has merely exploited existing rules. In what proves to be a dedicated appeal to viewers, Stalions attempted to prove his innocence and stated that his work came under the legitimate umbrella of opponent research.

Regardless, NCAA rules state that while broadcast and film analysis is a part of opponent research, in-person scouting is not allowed, which seems to be the major reason why Stalions is held guilty. The documentary also addresses various allegations, including the claim that Stalions would regularly disguise himself to attend games to spy on various rivals.

While Stalions may have acted in his team’s interest, he could have broken various existing rules, which happens to be the major reason why he has been subjected to such criticism.

Since the Wolverines won the 2023 National Championship, it further questioned Stalions’ role in helping the coaching staff. While no direct evidence linking the head coach Jim Harbaugh to Stalion’s actions has been revealed, linebackers coach Chris Partridge was fired in relation to the scandal.

It is interesting to note that even after Stalions left the team, the Wolverines continued their winning streak, hence mitigating the allegations of winning via unfair sign-stealing information inputs.

The documentary not only delves into the extent of Stalions’ actions but also attempts to prove his innocence by explaining that he did not directly infringe the rules. The documentary may convince some football fans of Stalions’ innocence.

The conclusion of the ongoing investigation will decide whether Connor Stalions deserves the negative attention he has received of late.

Untold: Sign Stealer is now available to view on Netflix.