Dave Portnoy crowns Connor Stalions a hero and blasts Michigan haters in NCAA rant

Connor Stalions, the man at the center of the Michigan sign-stealing scandal, was given a hero's welcome in Ann Arbor on Saturday, with superfan Dave Portnoy giving him a crown.

Stalions was an analyst for the Wolverines until he resigned last year amid a storm of allegations that he had stolen signals from opponents, including a claim he posed as a Central Michigan staffer and stood on their sideline for a game.

Sign stealing is forbidden by the NCAA. Many teams in college football use visual signals to communicate offensive and defensive play calls, and an ability to decipher those signals would potentially give a team an unfair advantage.

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Michigan was found to have broken scouting rules by the Big Ten, with Jim Harbaugh receiving a three-game suspension in November. Stalions, a diehard Michigan fan, quit the program a month previously amid huge media scrutiny.

Ultimately, the scandal had no negative impact on the team. Instead, Harbaugh's players were galvanized and they won the National Championship in January. Stalions has since featured in a Netflix "Untold" documentary about the allegations, giving his side of the story.

Stalions was back in Ann Arbor on Saturday to join Barstool Sports' pregame show and he was given a huge reception by the crowd as he took his seat on the panel. The company's owner and founder Portnoy, who went to college at Michigan, presented Stalions with a crown.

"Go blue," Stalions told the crowd before Portnoy vented his anger over the situation. He said: "In all seriousness, I understand the NCAA and all of the rules.

"Michigan, if you watched the documentary – which I starred in as well by the way – we should be welcoming Connor back with open arms. Every school did what he is accused of.

"He is just smarter and more Michigan than anyone else, and they cry and they cry and they cry. But this guy, he should be welcomed back with open arms. He is a national champion and we love him."

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Portnoy subsequently met with Stalions' parents after the pregame show concluded, sharing warm embraces with his mother and father, who were taken aback by the support their son received from fans.

Since leaving Michigan, Stalions has moved into the high school ranks, becoming the defensive coordinator at Mumford High School in Detroit. Head coach William McMichael told ESPN: "He might be the most hated man in college football, but the coaches and kids at Mumford High School love him.

"He seemed like the perfect fit for us and what we wanted to do. The defense we've been running for a while mirrors Michigan's. It gives an edge to the guys who are looking to go to the next level because they're learning college lingo and how you go about being professional."