Hall of Fame former Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops blasts Michigan's potential cheating

Bob Stoops copped to the gamesmanship.

Oklahoma's coach had the signals of his former offensive coordinator.

And his former offensive coordinator, known for his brash, unorthodox, swashbuckling manner, absolutely did not.

But the Stoops-Mike Leach dynamic never crossed the line, and Stoops drew a harsh distinction in the age-old practice of sideline scouting versus the alleged misdeeds at Michigan, where Connor Stalions has been suspended with pay and the NCAA, Big Ten and University all are conducting investigations into the matter. 

"If it's true, oh, absolutely [it is a big deal]. That's ridiculous," Stoops said in an appearance on the Morning Animals radio show. "Everyone (saying), 'Oh, it happens all the time!' No, it doesn't. I've never heard of that. In all my years of football and every team I've ever been on, sure, do we look across the field and if you can see it, that's your job to do. You know what i'm saying, if I'm able to just in my plain eye look over there and know what they're doing, I should be doing that. 

"But to video people and to send people to scout and marry up a signal with the play ... No, no, no. That's terrible. It goes against everything we're about. That's wrong, if it happened."

Stoops then recounted his series with Leach, who had served as Stoops's offensive coordinator during his debut season as Oklahoma's head coach in 1999 and then became Oklahoma's adversary as head coach at Texas Tech. 

"I'm not saying it did (happen with Michigan), but I've never heard of that. I've never been around anybody who's done it," said Stoops, a national title-winning, College Football Hall of Famer. "Now, look, I looked across and I knew Mike Leach's signals and he was bold enough not to change them. We would call out what they were running. You know, he was like, 'Well, they still can't stop it.' We did plenty, but that's different.

"You can see anything without filming and going to scout, but that's a different deal. You do that, that's as wrong as it gets."

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh has disavowed any knowledge of Stalions's alleged operations and vowed, via statement, to be fully cooperative in the investigations.

However, reportedly a dozen Big Ten members have pointed the finger at Stalions and the Wolverines for a ticket-buying, in-person illicit scouting program.

Additionally, as FootballScoop first noted Tuesday on its eponymous podcast, Stalions had purchased tickets at various programs around the country to allegedly set up scouting operations for potential Michigan opponents in the College Football Playoff.