The Big 10 recently suspended the University of Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh for the rest of the season due to a sign stealing scandal and Harbaugh may not step foot on another football field this season. 

Although sign stealing isn’t banned officially, scouting future opponents in person has been outlawed since 1994. 

The sign-stealing scandal has not only impacted scouting rules in college football but also communication rules between players and coaches.

So it begs the question: Is it time to allow one way communication to be installed in the quarterback’s helmet at the collegiate level?  

It’s not as simple as you may think, even though the NFL has been doing it for 25 plus years now. First, the cost and logistics may pose an issue to colleges. The NFL is one whole division with only 32 teams with owners who are billionaires. College football has three different divisions, Division I (261 teams), Division II (163 teams) and Division III (243 teams). 

I’m sure the cost won’t affect the bigger schools that much, but just imagine the smaller schools and how they will get that money for their football programs. According to the Chicago Tribune, radio play calling devices used in the NFL cost $25,000.

Additionally, the NFL enforces a hard cutoff of the microphone when the play clock is at 15 seconds which there is no way around. Colleges would have to get all the equipment to enforce those rules. With cost aside besides because most places can afford it without a worry the only real hump we would have to get over is enforcing the rule which takes some time but the sooner we get one way communication on the football field the better.