Nick Saban weighs in on Michigan sign-stealing scandal, if helmet radios are the answer

Among many new details being made public about Connor Stalions and the Michigan sign-stealing scandal was the fact that tickets had been purchased to the 2021 SEC Championship Game — between Georgia and Alabama — in Stalions name.

And a day after Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart said he didn’t think his eventual playoff game against the Wolverines was affected, Alabama head coach Nick Saban offered his stance. Speaking on the SEC coaches teleconference, Saban said he hasn’t really been aware of much that has gone on with the sign-stealing scandal.

“Well first of all I didn’t know anything about anybody coming to the SEC Championship Game or whatever. And I don’t have a lot of information or background on all the sign stealing stuff. I’m kind of focused on our team,” Saban said.

Saban, who has coached in both the NFL and college football extensively in his career, thinks going to a helmet radio would be a logical solution. It’s worked out without any notable issue in the NFL, he noted.

“I do think the helmet communicator is probably a real powerful thing for the game. Everybody should — you can’t steal signs or do any of this stuff if you have a helmet communicator and I think it’s, I think it would be a good thing. It’s worked out well in the NFL and I also think it’s good to have one guy on defense that you could tell that guy what the call is without having to go through all this signaling process,” Saban said.

And he recalled that there used to be a time in college football where advanced scouting was allowed — but that is a bygone era. As he put it, most folks are well aware that college football hasn’t allowed advanced scouting for some time.

“I know back in the old days when I was in the NFL, there was a time where you could send out scouts and scout a game, personnel, that type of thing. I don’t think it was geared toward sign stealing, but that was allowed. They changed that rule I think sometime back. We’ve never had that in college for a long, long time,” Saban said.

Brian Kelly and Saban were on the same page

Kelly, being his usual straight-up self, was blunt about how he feels about the current state of calling plays. Having stacks of signs with pictures, sheets to block prying eyes and all sorts of other rigamarole is, to him, silly.

“We have all these boards and signs and curtains and it’s actually quite silly. So, someone is going to have to explain to me why we haven’t gotten to that level,” Kelly said.

Kelly added that he’s been a proponent of adding helmet radio or electronic wristbands for signaling during league meetings, but it hasn’t gone anywhere.

“I think it’s absolutely silly that we don’t have them. I don’t know what the issue has been. I don’t know why we’ve been slow getting to it. I’ve been a proponent of it in our SEC meetings. Seems to have not gotten the traction, for some reason. I don’t know why, to be honest with you,” Kelly said.

Along with Kelly, basically every SEC coach got asked about their opinion on using a helmet radio or other form of technology to signal plays and to vary degrees agreed that it would make sense to adopt such measures.