William McMichael, the coach at Detroit’s Mumford High School, insisted that he was not seeking publicity when he offered a position to Connor Stalions, the staffer at the center of Michigan’s sign-stealing scandal and the central character in an upcoming Netflix documentary.
Despite his intentions, Mumford made national headlines after news broke that Stalions would be on the coaching staff. McMichael received a lot of attention and reporters showed up at practice to get a glimpse of the coach described as “the most hated man in college football.”
Before joining Mumford, Stalions was under consideration for the defensive coordinator job at Berkley High School, a winless program outside Detroit. The controversy surrounding this move provided insight into the ongoing fallout from the sign-stealing scandal.
Since October, the NCAA has been investigating allegations against Stalions related to collecting video footage of opposing teams’ signals and appearing incognito on the sideline during a game. Michigan has faced consequences with firings and allegations against head coach Sherrone Moore and linebackers coach Chris Partridge.
Netflix is set to release a documentary called “Sign Stealer” on Tuesday, telling the story directly from Stalions himself, who has mostly remained silent on the issue.
In February, Berkley’s football coach, Casey Humes, attempted to hire Stalions as a defensive coordinator. Despite considerable support from team parents and some administrators, the district ultimately overruled the decision due to concerns about negative attention.
The back-and-forth emails between Stalions and district officials revealed a heated debate about his hiring status. Many misunderstandings and miscommunications led to Stalions believing he had been hired when, in fact, he had not been approved for the position.
Stalions’ attempts to clarify his status resulted in further disagreements with the school district. Despite his desire to be involved with the team, ultimately, the district refused to allow him to work in a paid capacity.
Stalions decided to stay on as a volunteer until the NCAA investigation was complete and he was cleared of any wrongdoing. The entire ordeal caused significant turmoil and confusion within the Berkley School District.
After the failed attempt at Berkley, Stalions found a new opportunity at Mumford High School, where he will be coaching as a volunteer defensive coordinator starting in May or early June.
Despite Stalions’ controversial history, McMichael felt confident that adding him to the staff was a good move for the team. Stalions is set to coach his first game on August 29, shortly after the Netflix documentary premieres.
The Athletic’s Katie Strang contributed to this report.
(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; photo: Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch / USA Today)