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Sherrone Moore has big shoes to fill for Michigan football. But he has been there, done that.
- Story by
- Sherrone Moore has big shoes to fill for Michigan football. But he has been there, done that.
Sherrone Moore cried. He spit profanity. He expressed his devotion to his boss. Two-and-a-half months ago, this was how the world was introduced to Michigan football 's new coach.
Moore's postgame interview following a dramatic road victory over Penn State went viral. It was 40 seconds of raw emotion , a spontaneous release of pure adrenaline by a 37-year-old offensive coordinator forced to step in at the 11th hour and replace the program's famous — and suspended — front man, Jim Harbaugh.
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"Pressure busts pipes," he said.
Or in this case, tear ducts. Moore had lost his composure in the moment, and he seemed embarrassed, even apologetic, afterwards. But Warde Manuel didn't hold Moore's heaving outburst against him. What mattered most to Michigan 's athletic director was Moore's performance under unusual circumstances. The Wolverines prevailed against a strong opponent and Moore led them to victory by making a bold in-game adjustment that featured 32 straight runs to finish the game.
"Didn't flinch," Manuel said. "Aced the audition."
So, there was Moore inside the Junge Family Champions Center on Saturday, standing again before a camera and behind a microphone, telling the world how it felt to replace Harbaugh. But this time it was different. Harbaugh wasn't coming back. After nine years at his alma mater, he had just bolted to take the head job with the Los Angeles Chargers and chase his Super Bowl dream .
Michigan Wolverines head football coach Sherrone Moore addresses the basketball crowd during a timeout against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024.
Roughly 48 hours after he left, Moore officially became the program's new leader when he agreed to a five-year deal with an annual payout of $6 million. His colleagues congratulated him on social media. So did his players. Moore felt a rush of excitement and he struggled to fall asleep that night.
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But by the time he met the media Saturday, he had exhaled. In this tranquil setting, he was calm, cool, collected and confident. Wearing a spiffy suit-shirt-tie combo stitched with maize and blue threads, he looked like a man in charge. He acted like one, too.
"I prepared my entire coaching career for this moment, for this opportunity" Moore said. "I can't think of a better place to do it than the University of Michigan."
Moore has been on campus for the past six years, where his career took flight. He began as a tight ends coach, then took over the offensive line as a co-coordinator and eventually became the team's sole play-caller during the recent run to a national title .
Once upon a time, Harbaugh enticed him to come to Ann Arbor from Central Michigan. The two hit it off immediately. In Moore's interview, Harbaugh asked him to show some of his teaching methods. Moore peeled off his jacket and simulated a run-blocking maneuver. Harbaugh shot up from his chair and joined the demonstration, asking Moore to go right at him. This was Moore's first real glimpse at Harbaugh, a larger-than-life figure who leaves his successor with enormous shoes to fill.
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MORE FROM SABIN: Life after Jim Harbaugh? It's hard to picture Michigan football without him
Harbaugh's Wolverines won 40 of their last 43 games, three consecutive Big Ten titles and the sport's greatest prize this past season. Moore was not only along for the thrilling ride; he helped keep Harbaugh's powerful steam engine on track. When the program became ensnared in two NCAA investigations and Harbaugh was suspended twice for six games, Moore was the acting coach in four of them. During the final stretch of the season, as the specter of a cheating scandal threatened to derail the Wolverines, he guided them to wins over Penn State , Maryland and Ohio State — outfoxing coaches with bigger names and more experience.
Harbaugh wasn't surprised. He saw Moore as a rising star in his profession who had what it takes to run the show.
Sherrone Moore speaks in front of family, friends and University of Michigan faculty members during a press conference inside the Junge Family Champions Center in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024.
"I trust him," Harbaugh said. "Like a brother."
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Manuel started to believe in Moore, too. His body of work on those four Saturdays impressed him. Moore looked like a guy who could lead Michigan into the future. So, when Harbaugh left, Manuel went straight to Schembechler Hall. He didn't interview any external candidates. He just spoke to Moore. Manuel wanted to hear how he would tackle the job. Most of all, he was eager to learn how Moore would be different from Harbaugh.
"You're not Jim," Manuel told Moore.
The conversation went on for a couple of hours and Manuel came away satisfied.
But Moore's big plans may not come to light for quite some time. What will his staff look like? How will he handle recruiting? Will he still call plays? Who is his next quarterback now that J.J. McCarthy declared for the draft ?
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His answers were vague and the details remained shrouded in ambiguity — obscured, no doubt, by the long shadow cast by Harbaugh. Over the next few months, Moore will wrestle with the question of whether it's wise to change the program's DNA in order cultivate a new identity that is all his own. So far, he seems reluctant to do so. As he closed his opening remarks he chose to recite a famous Harbaugh line by telling his audience that Michigan will continue to "attack every day with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind."
Later, he added, "If it's not broken, we don't fix it. We want the players to be as comfortable as possible moving forward."
For the time being, it may look and feel the same around Schembechler Hall. But the circumstances Michigan encounters will be far, far different. The Wolverines are entering a deeper, mightier Big Ten with four new teams. They face a loaded schedule with big tests against Texas , USC, Oregon, Ohio State and national runner-up Washington . The depth chart Moore inherits is pockmarked with holes. Ten starters on offense and seven more on defense have left the fold.
The talent drain transpired as the Buckeyes went on an acquisition spree, snagging transfers left and right to regain the upper hand in the rivalry after three straight losses to the Wolverines. The challenges ahead seem incredibly daunting, and Moore is charged with keeping the train moving in the right direction — just as he was 2½ months ago, in Happy Valley, where 90 minutes before kickoff he found out he was coaching the Wolverines.
Sherrone Moore, head coach of the University of Michigan, stands next to Warde Manuel, Michigan’s Director of Athletics, during a press conference inside the Junge Family Champions Center in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024.
Moore felt the burden of leading Harbaugh's program that day and in the weeks to come. But after accepting the task and then helping Michigan conquer its foes, he showed Manuel why he was a worthy successor.
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"I realized this could be our next head coach," Manuel said.
So, when Manuel made the offer Friday, the athletic director looked Moore dead in the eye.
"He didn't flinch," Manuel said.
The athletic director smiled. He knew right then and there Moore was ready to take over for Harbaugh — this time for good.
Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com . Follow him @RainerSabin .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football's Sherrone Moore has big shoes to fill - again
