Michigan seeks for a new football coach following Jim Harbaugh’s decision to leave the Wolverines after nine seasons for the Los Angeles Chargers job. Michigan offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore, who led the Wolverines to a win over Ohio State last season in Harbaugh’s absence, is among the frontrunners on the program’s list of candidates, according to CBS Sports reporter Dennis Dodd.
Dodd reported Wednesday the Wolverines intend to “cast a wide net” to fill the vacancy left by Harbaugh, who won several Big Ten titles and a national championship during his tenure.
As noted by 247Sports reporter Chris Hummer, hiring Moore would undoubtedly minimize the potential number of transfer portal departures bound to happen following Harbaugh’s move. Michigan players, including members of the 2024 signing class, are eligible to leave during the 30-day window with the head-coaching change. How many choose to do so remains to be seen.
Moore will be a head coach in college football very soon. Sam Webb of The Michigan Insider told 247Sports Sunday that maintaining “the Michigan way” is top priority and there is an easy choice to make, if needed.
“The next best option (if Harbaugh signs an NFL contract) for preserving the culture is hiring Harbaugh’s no. 1 assistant, and that’s Sherrone Moore,” Webb said. “Sherrone has been at Michigan six years, and in that time worked his way up from tight ends coach, to offensive line coach, to coordinator. He coached a unit that won the Joe Moore award two years in a row. He was the guy under fire at the end of the season, and not just as a stand in.
“He had to make battlefield decisions on the road against Penn State when his offense couldn’t block the Nittany Lions’ pass rush, and he changed the game plan on the fly in a winning way. Then, two weeks later, he made aggressive, game-winning decisions against Ohio State.”
Tenacity and grit. That’s exactly what Kansas State showed last season under Chris Klieman, whose Wildcats beat three ranked teams, including previously unbeaten TCU in the Big 12 Championship Game. Three of Klieman’s four losses came to Missouri (who won 11 games), Big 12 runner-up Oklahoma State and conference champion Texas. He knows how to win, beat a nine-win NC State team in Orlando and gobbled up Pop-Tarts in the aftermath to finish off a nine-win season in 2023.
