By now, you’ve heard or read the basic details of the situation at Michigan, where second-year football coach Sherrone Moore was fired for cause on Wednesday, after details emerged about what was termed an “inappropriate relationship” with a staffer – and where Moore ended the night in police custody, after a reported incident at the home of said staffer following his dismissal.
“For cause” means Michigan doesn’t owe Moore any money – which is the least of their problems up there.
Moore was hired in 2024 on a five-year, $27.5 million deal after the abrupt departure of Michigan alum Jim Harbaugh for the NFL – Harbaugh seemed to be running from the law, the NCAA law, anyway, amid the fallout from the sign-stealing scandal, which also ensnared Moore.
Moore led the Wolverines to a 9-3 record in 2025, and was in front of the media earlier this week talking up Michigan’s upcoming bowl game – Michigan faces Texas (9-3) in the Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
But now it’s emerging that the shock firing wasn’t so much a shock behind the scenes – that Michigan officials had first confronted Moore back in the summer about the reported inappropriate relationship, which both he and the staffer at first denied, though she reportedly came clean on Wednesday; we don’t know why, at this writing.
It is now being reported that Moore had been acting out of the ordinary toward his assistants in recent weeks; perhaps he felt the dragnet closing in.
In any case, he’s gone, the Harbaugh era, which included six double-digit-win seasons, a cumulative 104-33 record over 11 seasons, three Top 3 national finishes and the 2023 national title, is officially, and finally, over.
The coaching merry-go-round begins anew, with Michigan being the kind of high-profile job that could attract coaching candidates who already have top-level jobs.
In the meantime, what about Michigan players and incoming recruits?
With a coaching change, there’s sure to be some turnover – which is how I bring this story back to Virginia, because Michigan has, in recent years, done a better job recruiting Virginia high schools than either Virginia or Virginia Tech.
The Wolverines roster has four Virginia high school alums – defensive backs Shamari Earls (Thomas Dale/Richmond) and Brandyn Hillman (Churchland/Portsmouth), tight end Jalen Hoffman (Lake Braddock/Burke) and offensive lineman Evan Link (Gonzaga/Burke).
Earls was a four-star in the Class of 2025; Hillman was a four-star in the Class of 2023; Link was a three-star in the Class of 2023; Hoffman was a preferred walk-on in 2023.
The 2026 Michigan class had four Virginia kids – five-star tailback Savion Hiter (Louisa), four-star wideout Travis Johnson (Oscar Smith/Chesapeake), four-star cornerback Andre Clark Jr. (Hermitage/Richmond), and three-star linebacker Markel Dabney (Huguenot/Richmond), plus three kids from DC (five-star edge rusher Carter Meadows, three-star edge rusher Tariq Boney, three-star offensive lineman Adrian Hamilton).
Let’s just assume that everybody in college football will be making contact with the likes of Hiter, Johnson and Clark from the 2026 class, and Earls and Hillman are going to be hit up early and often as well, no doubt.
If Tyler Jones, the GM at Virginia, hasn’t already touched base with reps for those guys, I mean, that’s the job.
I’d be shocked if they haven’t put together a more-than-competitive NIL package for Hiter, in particular.
If I’m a Michigan kid, I’m waiting to see who they are able to bring in. The Michigan people assume the job is so plum that it could attract Kalen DeBoer from Alabama, but, I dunno there.
Michigan was only paying Moore $5.5 million a year, which ain’t gonna do it.
If they don’t end up with a big name like a Kalen DeBoer or a Brian Kelly, and it’s another in-house candidate like a Sherrone Moore or a Brady Hoke, you could see a mass exodus.
I’m sure the Virginia folks are ready to pounce.
Support AFP
Share
Chris Graham
