ASU Football: Graham denies Leach’s cheating claims

On Tuesday, Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Todd Graham denied accusations of his program running a sign-stealing operation as asserted by Washington State head coach Mike Leach on Monday.

Leach said the Sun Devils have “a whole command center that’s designed around that stuff,” according to The Seattle Times. “I’ve heard a lot of rumors about microphones to pick up extra sound, perhaps what the quarterback is saying, close up cameras, and stuff like that. It’s totally illegal.”

Graham retorted, saying everything his program does is completely legal.

“Make this perfectly clear: We do everything exactly by the rules. Period,” he said.

Last season, the Sun Devils were accused of signal stealing by both Utah and Oregon, with the Ducks even going out of their way to shield their sideline with large sheets during their 61-55 triple-overtime win over ASU. Graham said following the game that the Sun Devils do steal signals, but noted other opponents do to, and it’s not done illegally via recording or videotaping.

We’ll have to wait until Saturday to see whether or not the Cougars attempt to go the extra mile to protect their offensive signals. Defensively, Washington State already does, having players switch signals up to six times a game in order to prevent offenses from catching on.