Michigan State considered not playing Michigan after Big Ten revealed 'credible evidence' of sign-stealing

The fallout from an investigation into whether Michigan football illegally stole signs from other teams nearly included the loss of the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry game, according to a report from The Athletic.

The Athletic reported that Big Ten officials informed Michigan State there was “credible evidence” of Michigan successfully stealing signs called by opposing teams’ coaches. Upon learning this, Michigan State “initially warned the Big Ten it might consider not playing Saturday’s game out of concern for health and safety for its players.”

But the program confirmed on Thursday that it will play the game as scheduled.

The two teams are set to meet at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, with a national broadcast set for NBC.

News of the alleged sign-stealing first surfaced on Thursday, when Yahoo! Sports published a piece outlining the allegations. Shortly after the Big Ten Conference and Michigan both released statements on the news.

“Late Wednesday afternoon, the Big Ten Conference and University of Michigan were notified by the NCAA that the NCAA was investigating allegations of sign stealing by the University of Michigan football program. The Big Ten Conference has notified Michigan State University and future opponents. The Big Ten Conference considers the integrity of competition to be of utmost importance and will continue to monitor the investigation. The Conference will have no further comment at this time,” the Big Ten statement read.

Meanwhile, Michigan also released a statement:

“The university has been notified by the NCAA, along with the Big Ten, that the NCAA is investigating allegations of play signal stealing by Michigan football. The university is fully cooperating with the Big Ten and NCAA. The investigation is ongoing and will not impact Saturday’s game. At the University of Michigan, we are committed to the highest ethical and integrity standards for all members of our community.”