Per Balas, Michigan, media gathering evidence on PIs
Article not paywalled
"Several sources at Michigan and in the media tell TheWolverine.com they are gathering evidence on two private investigators they believe are behind the investigation into U-M’s alleged illegal on-site scouting. The same sources also believe the two are responsible for the media leaks that have kept the story in the news for weeks"
Didn't see this on the board. Haven't posted in many years. Please be gentle
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:27 PM ^
Harbaugh is probably already doing three-minute dead hangs in preparation for crushing Day’s manicured girl hands into fine powder.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:39 PM ^
Assuming Michigan is fortunate enough to win, its going to go one of a few ways:
1) Harbaugh will offer a "What's your excuse now, Coach?"
2) Harbaugh will invite Stallions onto the field post-game, walk up to Day, and pull a Danny Hope / Rich Rod 2009 confrontation and say "Hey Coach Day, I want you to meet someone! This is the young man who's life and career you ruined!"
3) Harbaugh goes full Michael Corleone, kisses Day at midfield and yells "I know it was you, Day, and you broke my heart!"
----
In all seriousness, regardless of how it plays out it'll probably be less drama than we think, but given that emotions will be running high from kickoff to the final zeroes, it wouldn't shock me if there was some kind of issue at the post-game handshake.
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:00 PM ^
Re: #3. I literally told my co worker the same thing
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:43 PM ^
Or, Harbaugh sends Stalions out to shake Day’s hand … but disguised as Harbaugh. :)
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:18 PM ^
love this
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:42 PM ^
It's hard to shake hands with Ryan Day when there are 20,000+ on the field, with most of those people wanting to punch him in the mouth.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:22 PM ^
I'm really hoping that Michigan will be playing Ace of Base's "The Sign" on a perpetual loop during the entire game against OSU for an absolutely epic troll all while defenestrating the Buckeyes on the field.
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:07 PM ^
50/50, alternating with 5 Man Electrical Band’s…
signs, signs, everywhere is signs… do this, do that, can’t you read the signs…
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:36 PM ^
Prince... Sign of The Times
"Oh yeah....!"
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:26 PM ^
This is why they have OSU ranked number 1. They want Michigan to win, back door OSU into the playoffs again and have them rematch
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:35 PM ^
This could be the biggest UM-OSU game of most of our lifetimes. There are others that, as you said, have had as high of on-field stakes, but with everything happening off the field, I don't think anything else compares. Not even 2006.
Day needs to win this to justify that the last two years were a supposed fluke. That they only lost because Michigan stole their signs. That the last two years were a blip on the radar and he can return OSU to another run of two decades of dominance. He needs this because if he loses, there will be calls for his head, and he knows it.
Harbaugh needs to win this for the exact opposite reasons. To prove that sign stealing had nothing to do with the results. To shut down the narrative that Michigan only ever got anything the last two years because of sign stealing. Harbaugh essentially needs this to justify the existence of his program in general. He knows that if he loses, neither he nor his team will ever hear the end of how they only ever amounted to anything by cheating. It will be the main and only storyline for months, and it'll be something they get reminded of for years.
Both coaches need this, and they need it in the worst possible way. That sixty minutes could define their legacy for the rest of their professional lives. I do not envy the pressure that they or the players must feel.
All I can say is:
1) Thank god we are entering a year where I believe we have a clear advantage at QB.
2) These "defining games" in this rivalry are almost always in Columbus. Thank the good lord its in Ann Arbor this year.
November 3rd, 2023 at 5:35 PM ^
As far as I'm concerned, last year being a fluke shouldn't even be an issue. I can't believe ohio fans even try to bring up that we won because of cheating. It's already been noted that they knew it was going on last season. If they knew, why not just reverse your signs up? Have us chasing our tails all game?
Either they did reverse the signs and still got beat with us being thrown off. Pretty embarrassing.
Or, they were stupid enough to keep the same signs. Subjectively, more embarrassing.
Either way, they got embarrassed.
November 3rd, 2023 at 5:40 PM ^
Harbaugh and the team can win 100-0. That won't stop the media, the NCAA, OSU, etc. from continuing to pull their shit. There's even more nasty crap coming down on Michigan.
He knows that if he loses, neither he nor his team will ever hear the end of how they only ever amounted to anything by cheating. It will be the main and only storyline for months, and it'll be something they get reminded of for years.
ROFLMAO. Seriously, dude? In the big picture it will change nothing. Those suffering from Logic Deficit Disorder (LDD), the media that at best only asks how bad those mean ole Wolverines might be, and those who pull "evidence" out of thin air will continue regardless.
To borrow from Batman in The Dark Knight Rises: "They know. They just don't care."
November 3rd, 2023 at 10:07 PM ^
I hope the weather is something out of a nightmare
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:59 PM ^
I hear you, but for now I love Ryan Day with all my heart and soul and hope he stays OSU's coach for many years.
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:49 PM ^
go for two after every touchdown and when asked why tell them because he couldn't go for three.
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:21 PM ^
The one thing that I don't get about this whole fiasco is the timing. It seems like the best time to leak this story would have been right after The Game. If M wins then Day and that whole fanbase could have used it as an excuse.
November 3rd, 2023 at 6:31 PM ^
I really hope WHEN Michigan wins, Harbaugh runs right by Day after the game without even acknowledging him as a human being.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:35 PM ^
Makes complete sense. Day can't beat us so he goes running to his little brothers to do his dirty work for him.
Because of course he would.
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:50 PM ^
If this thing can be linked to OSU before they play, it’s going to add such an intriguing subtext to a game that didn’t need one. It’s going to make them, and Day especially, look like the weakest pussies ever, after they’ve already made Michigan look bad. Both sides will have even more to play for, and then it will all be settled on the field. If they both come in undefeated, it’s going to be one of the most eagerly anticipated non-championship sporting events ever.
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:23 PM ^
I hope Harbaugh's lack of respect comes out in The Game. Absolutely run the score up and go for 2 when up comfortably. Fuck Ryan Day.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:14 PM ^
Lol ok balas. We still listening to him?
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:16 PM ^
On the big stuff. He’s usually not wrong. The little stuff to fill in the cracks are sometimes murky.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:17 PM ^
He seems like he has been solid on signgate.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:26 PM ^
Did he say anything like this recently: "I mean am I wrong? I know I’ve been negative, but everything I’ve said is more than likely to happen with the way everything is shaping up to be."?
If not, I'm good with reviewing what he puts out there
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:34 PM ^
Head back to 11w bro.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:37 PM ^
shut up Meg
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:53 PM ^
That one made me laugh. Good stuff.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:55 PM ^
Meg is offended by this; don't compare poor pathetic Meg to this level of self-loathing...
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:39 PM ^
There has been additional discussion around these talking points so it's not like Balas is out on a limb.
Yes, take all of this with a grain of salt, but FFS there were prominent Buckeyes figures talking about Matt Weiss hacking into OSU's practice videos based on far less info. I do think that knowing the source of this investigation does matter for the broader narrative and who's peddling it, and at this point 95% of the investigation is in the court of public opinion so might as well get it all out.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:05 PM ^
I think if Michigan's computers were illegally hacked that's also kind of important. This is the first time someone who isn't message board theorizing has put that out there as something that's actually on Michigan's radar.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:14 PM ^
Exactly, and the article kind of downplays this by insinuating the NCAA wouldn't care that the information was illegally obtained off of a computer. I know they will still consider the evidence but at the same time there should absolutely be a penalty for whomever paid to have this done (Day).
November 3rd, 2023 at 4:37 PM ^
I have no clue what kind of punishment would result, but I'm pretty sure the NCAA bylaws say that you must comply with all "federal and state laws and regulations." So it might be possible to argue that breaking the law in any way is in fact a NCAA violation.
Hopefully some experts weigh in and correct me.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:24 PM ^
I mean no disrespect to sports journalists but starting from that WaPo article to now I don't have a strong sense they understand what constitutes legal vs. illegal access of shared drives. If they actually hacked in that's huge but we'll see.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:40 PM ^
It is not Chris Balas spitballing:
In addition, other sources at Michigan allege some of the evidence — specifically, a spreadsheet provided to the Washington Post with analyst Connor Stalions’ travel plans and budget for his operation in which he allegedly paid people to video opposing teams’ signs — was obtained by gaining access to his computer illegally.
Now you may say his source is full of shit--maybe. But my point was (and is), unless the source is his imaginary best friend, someone at MICHIGAN believes this.
November 3rd, 2023 at 9:06 PM ^
I’m calling BS on you, with 1000 of your prior posts mischaracterizing facts and law NOW you’re a believer?! GTFO with this flip flop that would make slick Willy embarrassed.
November 3rd, 2023 at 5:11 PM ^
Do you understand what constitutes legal vs. illegal?
A journalist has been sentenced to 24 months in prison in the US for knowingly handing his work login details to hackers. https://www.theregister.com/2016/04/13/journalist_keys_gets_24_months/
IP Cloaking Violates Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, Judge Rules: https://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/08/ip-cloaking-cfaa/
"Andrew “Weev” Auernheimer was convicted of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act ("CFAA") in New Jersey federal court and sentenced to 41 months in federal prison in March of 2013 for revealing to media outlets that AT&T had configured its servers to allow the harvesting of iPad owners’ unsecured email addresses." (aka he accessed publicly available information over the internet which required no authentication whatsoever): https://www.eff.org/cases/us-v-auernheimer
etc.
The courts have not been consistent in applying the law, because it's a crappy law. Hardly anyone can say with certainty that they know how it will be enforced in a given case. Recent guidance from the DOJ and a 2021 SCOTUS ruling have dialed back a number of the broader interpretations of CFAA language but suffice to say, there is a lot that can be criminal which we may take for granted.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:42 PM ^
Who's "we"? You're a concern troll so I suppose you might not listen to him.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:48 PM ^
Who is,"WE?"
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:36 PM ^
Why is we?
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:54 PM ^
Maybe sit this one out, and by "this one," I mean this one and every one that follows.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:15 PM ^
Well well well. How the turns tables…
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:15 PM ^
Good. If people want transparency, give them transparency.
November 3rd, 2023 at 2:30 PM ^
Would be great if, when all is said and done, Stallions spills the beans on all of the other assistants doing this with the other teams that he is working with. They better be sanctimonious while they can.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:15 PM ^
You almost can't even make this stuff up.
Last few weeks we've been getting punched in the nuts continuously... finally a bit of a counter punch here.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:58 PM ^
Even if this doesnt end up coming to fruition, its good to have at least some counterpunch out there. We’ve just been eating every conspiracy theory twitter can come up with for a week
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:29 PM ^
So this is basically Doolittle bombing Tokyo
November 3rd, 2023 at 3:52 PM ^
Maybe.
But it could morph into . . . .
Operation Vengeance
Where our decoding of enemy signals led to the 339th Fighter Squadron's P-38's (the P-38 being designed by Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, BSE, MS, Aeronautical Eng., Michigan) shooting down Admiral Yamamoto (initiator of the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor) on his approach to Bougainville.
November 3rd, 2023 at 1:16 PM ^
Feels like the beginning of the comeback. Let's Go Blue!