NCAA joins CMU investigation of sideline staffer
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Adam Rittenberg, ESPN Senior Writer
The NCAA has joined Central Michigan in investigating a man resembling former Michigan staff member Connor Stalions who appeared on the Chippewas’ sideline in team-issued gear for their Sept. 1 season opener at Michigan State.
Athletic director Amy Folan, in a statement to ESPN, confirmed that Central Michigan “continues its review of the matter in cooperation with the NCAA.”
Folan announced this past Tuesday that Central Michigan would investigate the man after receiving photos of him one day earlier. Stalions, at the center of the NCAA’s investigation into Michigan for off-campus scouting and signal stealing, resigned from his position Friday after initially being suspended with pay pending the outcome of the investigation.
The man in the images wore the same attire as Central Michigan’s coaches and other sideline personnel, as well as sunglasses for the night game at Spartan Stadium. Stalions appeared on the Michigan sideline Sept. 2 for the Wolverines’ opener against East Carolina.
Chippewas coach Jim McElwain said last week that Stalions’ name did not appear on any list of credentials for the Michigan State game. According to NCAA rules, the “team area” during games includes a maximum of 50 non-squad members “directly involved in the game.” Those not in full uniform wear special credentials assigned to the team area that are numbered 1 through 50. NCAA rules prohibit any other credentials in the team area.
“We obviously are aware of a picture floating around with the sign-stealer guy,” McElwain said Tuesday. “Our people are doing everything they can to get to the bottom of it. We were totally unaware of it. I certainly don’t condone it in any way, shape or form. I do know that his name was on none of the passes that were [given] out. Now we just keep tracing it back and tracing it back and try to figure it out.”
The NCAA’s involvement likely will extend the timeline for the investigative process and any potential discipline. Its findings could be included in a larger notice of allegations for Michigan, which has yet to be sent.
Anil Jain, a distinguished professor in the Michigan State Department of Computer Science and Engineering and a nationally recognized facial recognition expert, believes it’s “highly likely” that the images of the man wearing sunglasses and a hat on the Central Michigan sideline and of Stalions on the Michigan sideline are the same person.
At ESPN’s request, Jain and Steven Grosz, a doctoral student, used state-of-the-art commercial face recognition system to compare the two photographs. The system compared the images based on several facial characteristics — Jain said they are trade secrets — to provide a similarity score in the range of zero to 1. The higher the similarity score, the more likely the two faces being compared are the same person.
Jain said the system produced a similarity score of 0.6 when comparing the two photographs. To validate that score, Jain and Grosz compared Stalions’ photo to a database of more than 4,500 photos of white males.
“The reason why it’s 0.6 is because there’s a disguise,” Jain told ESPN. “If I take an identical photo, it would be 1. Even changes in the pose, illumination, expression, sunglasses, the match will never be perfect. Based on this analysis, the two images are of the same person with high confidence.”
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach contributed to this report.
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Mark Schlabach
Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and is expected to make a full recovery after doctors detected the disease in its early stages, the school announced Friday.
Freeze, 55, will continue coaching the Tigers while receiving treatment, Auburn officials said in a statement.
“Recently, Coach Freeze was diagnosed with an early form of prostate cancer,” the statement said. “Thankfully, it was detected early and his doctors have advised that it is very treatable and curable. He will continue his normal coaching duties and responsibilities, and with forthcoming proper treatment, is expected to make a full recovery.
“Coach Freeze is incredibly appreciative of our medical professionals and has asked that we use his experience as a reminder of the importance of prioritizing and scheduling annual health screenings.”
The Tigers are scheduled to start spring practice March 25.
Freeze’s teams went 11-14 (5-11 SEC) in his first two seasons, including a 5-7 campaign in 2024. With the additions of transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma), wide receivers Eric Singleton Jr. (Georgia Tech) and Horatio Fields (Wake Forest), offensive tackle Xavier Chaplin (Virginia Tech), and others, the Tigers are expected to be much improved this coming season.
At Liberty, Freeze coached from a hospital bed set up in the coaches’ box during the Flames’ 24-0 loss to Syracuse in his debut on Aug. 31, 2019. Freeze was recovering from surgery for a herniated disk in his back and a staph infection.
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Adam Rittenberg
Bowling Green coach Scot Loeffler is leaving the school after six seasons to become quarterbacks coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Loeffler, 50, went 27-41 at Bowling Green but led the Falcons to bowl appearances in each of the past three seasons, posting a 16-10 record in MAC play during the span.
He will replace Doug Nussmeier, who left the Eagles with Kellen Moore to become the New Orleans Saints‘ offensive coordinator. Loeffler will work under new Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, who had been the team’s passing game coordinator and associate head coach.
“Scot has been dedicated to not only BGSU Football, but to all our student-athletes and BGSU Athletics, as well as our Falcon Marching Band and spirit programs,” university president Rodney Rogers said in a statement. “He cares deeply about player development and student success, and we wish him all the best as he continues his coaching career in the NFL with the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles.”
Loeffler returns to the NFL for the first time since 2008, when he coached quarterbacks for the Detroit Lions. A former Michigan quarterback, Loeffler coached QBs at his alma mater from 2002 to 2007 and also with Central Michigan and Florida. He first became an offensive coordinator with Temple in 2011 and made coordinator stops with Auburn, Virginia Tech and Boston College before landing his first head-coaching opportunity at Bowling Green.
The coaching change means Bowling Green players now have a 30-day window to enter the NCAA transfer portal. The Falcons had already lost three All-MAC performers to the portal in December in running back Terion Stewart (Virginia Tech), offensive tackle Alex Wollschlaeger (Kentucky) and linebacker Joseph Sipp Jr. (Kansas). Bowling Green also is losing record-setting tight end Harold Fannin Jr. to the NFL draft.
Athletic director Derek van der Merwe will lead the search for Loeffler’s replacement. In a statement, Van der Merwe praised Loeffler for building “a very successful program in a challenging climate in collegiate sports.
“I am looking forward to this process of finding the next great leader for our program who embraces what it means to be a Falcon,” Van der Merwe added.
ESPN’s Max Olson contributed to this report.
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