From the moment the Michigan sign-stealing investigation began to bubble in October, UM opponents began to be asked about how they would be making sure their information was secure from potentially prying, maize and blue eyes. Ohio State coach Ryan Day admitted that the Buckeyes had changed their signs the year before as rumors in coaching backchannels made it clear that the Wolverines were at the very least, adept at stealing signs during games. TCU ran dummy signals in last year’s Fiesta Bowl to try to conceal its plays, and Michigan State had a backup quarterback personally run the plays in from the sideline. So it should be no surprise that Michigan’s next opponent, Alabama, is doing what it takes to keep information under wraps.
“I think they said Michigan was stealing signs the first eight weeks,” Crimson Tide receiver Isaiah Bond said. “So we’re just watching film with the team, because we’re not allowed to watch film on our own. We don’t want any stuff like that happening again.”
Alabama switched the way its players can watch film about a week ago as a precaution in the run-up to the Michigan game. Normally, players are free to watch practice and game film on their opponent on their own personal tablets through Catapult, a software that also allows teams to track how much film a player is watching. This week, things are a little different.
