In the 2023 season, Central Michigan played Michigan State in their opening game on September 1st. There was much more to that game than the events that unfolded on the field. A picture went viral after Michigan’s sign-stealing controversy broke of a man sitting with a disgruntled look on his face, wearing CMU’s cap and t-shirt, watching the game from the sidelines. You can ask, what’s the harm in being a passionate CMU supporter, right, and where’s the news?

Except this man was none other than Connor Stallions, disguised allegedly as CMU’s staff, and cheering for his favorite team, CMU, from the sidelines, and taking notes diligently for his next fan page article. But what this ‘fan’ didn’t know was that the picture would start a hailstorm for his employer, Michigan University, where the man worked a 9-5 desk job. What about his boss, Sherrone Moore? Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer has a theory.

Two years have passed since the whole Michigan sign-stealing controversy broke, and Sherrone Moore got suspended for a game, while Jim Harbaugh got a three-game suspension. Connor Stallions, working as an analyst for the team, was alleged to have orchestrated several sign-stealing exploits, including Michigan State. Coincidentally, in 2023, when Michigan faced Michigan State, that too, on the road, the score read 49-0. But that’s just a happy coincidence, right? Well, if you ask former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer, it may not be a coincidence.

Meyer, the co-host of the ‘Triple Option’ podcast, discussed the penalties Sherrone Moore can face with co-host Rob Stone. Meyer speculated that if the allegations hold, Moore and Michigan could face level 1 penalties by the NCAA, which is considered the most severe breach of conduct. When asked by Stone if the sign stealing gave an advantage to Michigan, the former OSU natty winner head coach had a clear answer.

“Yeah, it’s a tremendous advantage; it changes the entire technique of your defensive front linebackers. And everybody knows a pass that’s a completely different story, and then there’s the whole right or left. If they know it’s a run to the right or run to the left, that’s where I understand the advantages are. For an offense, it’s all about the blitz. If they can signal to the offense and say a blitz is coming, you know, either from the boundary, or from the field, or from an internal, and that’s a hell of an advantage,” concluded Urban Meyer. Urban Meyer is right; the whole controversy hangs on one thing: If Michigan got an actual advantage in their season from Connor Stallions’ exploits.

As of now, Michigan has self-imposed a two-game suspension for Sherrone Moore, which will take effect against Central Michigan and Nebraska. However, Moore’s troubles are not limited to the sign-stealing scandal alone. The controversy also involves Moore’s 52 deleted text messages after the controversy broke, and add to that the ‘Burgergate’ scandal in which Moore’s name is again coming up. Things got more muddied up for Moore, and the NCAA may view Moore as a ‘repeat violator.’ Let’s say Moore gets a harsh punishment and Michigan also gets penalized if the allegations hold true, but what’s the guarantee that the things wouldn’t be repeated by another program?

That’s where the proposal of the new college football commission comes into play. But even that might remain just in the pipeline forever, as per Urban Meyer. “The new commission, I was led to believe that there’s subpoena power, and that’s a game changer… Subpoena power forces you to tell the truth, or there’s going to be some kind of criminal element… The number two thing is the unionization; everybody signs a document that says they will not litigate, and whatever the commission decides, you take it and you move on,” said Urban Meyer.

But according to Urban Meyer, the proposed commission and the two main changes might not come into effect. “My understanding is that’s not exactly what’s happening,” said Meyer about the dampening of the plans of the proposed CFB commission. Where all of this takes us is a world of college football where programs can get away with several controversies, and the wild west nature of the sport remains intact. As for Sherrone Moore’s future? It might not be too optimistic, despite the absence of a CFB commission.

Sherrone Moore’s college football career is in real jeopardy?

The NCAA recently began its hearings on the Michigan controversy on June 6th to determine the final penalties. The hearings are still going on, and the decision is expected to come by August or September this year. But even if in the final hearings, Moore gets a lenient punishment and penalties, according to Urban Meyer, if the allegations are proven, there would be no future for Sherrone Moore in CFB. At least in Division 1.

“If you lie, as a college football coach, to the NCAA, in my personal opinion, you’re finished. You’re done. That’s not making a text message; that’s not going to lunch with someone you’re not supposed to go to lunch with… when they get you and they say did you do this?” and they refuse to cooperate, or they lie, in my very strong opinion, you’re finished coaching in Division I college football,” said Meyer last month.

Right now, we do not know what can happen to Michigan and Sherrone Moore. It is possible that the NCAA cracks down hard on the program, or it may happen that the allegations finally lack substantial evidence. Whatever happens with the hearings, one thing is clear. We need the football commission with subpoena power now more than ever to regulate the programs and coaches.