The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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JANUARY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 59 ❱ VOICES FROM THE PAST BY ANTHONY BROOME M ichigan found itself in a football coaching search saga in mid-De- cember with the dismissal with cause of Sherrone Moore, stemming from an inappropriate relationship with a staffer that threw the program and athletic department into chaos and questions about the future. Former U-M players Ryan Van Bergen (2007-11) and Jake Butt (2013-16) each went through coaching changes during their time in Ann Arbor, which came with their share of plot twists. The Moore saga rocked the alumni and fan base, and Van Bergen, whose time on campus overlapped with the transi- tion from Lloyd Carr to Rich Rodriguez in 2007 and then the switch from Rodri- guez to Brady Hoke in 2011, says he was blindsided by the developments. " The first feeling was shock, I think, with everybody," Van Bergen said. "How can this be true and is it true? After re- freshing Twitter and texting people that may know more than I do, it was con- firmed. It went from bad to worse and from worse to horrible. "You're talking with former teammates, and you're thinking about what the guys are going through in the locker room. You get four to five years if you're lucky, and then something like this happens. "The reputation of your program is quickly pulled into question, and you're questioning your decision to attend the university. You're questioning your de- cision of whether or not you're going to finish out and stay. How are you going to approach the next day, week, etc." Butt, a Big Ten Network analyst who also hosts "The Blueprint" podcast with quarterback alum Devin Gardner, weighed in on the process that the play- ers go through when there is a change. He experienced it in the transition from Brady Hoke to Jim Harbaugh in 2014. "Even if you anticipate it, it's still just chaos and craziness," Butt said. "Even if you expected and anticipated it, it still hits and it's still unexpected. You form a lot of relationships, especially at the col- lege level, because of recruiting. And it's not just your head coach. It's your posi- tion coach who likely has a relationship with you and your family, your parents. And all of a sudden, they're looking for a job; their life has been uprooted. "You're going to have teammates who enter the transfer portal. You just know that big sweeping change is coming down the line. But then the flip side is you get through that period of uncer- tainty and you get a hire that inspires and energizes the team, the community and the university. "When Jim Harbaugh got hired, I knew right away as a tight end that my life has a chance to change. He's won everywhere he's been. Immediately your mind goes to, 'Hey, we're going to compete for championships.' "All that uncertainty is expected. It'll happen no matter what. But then, when you get the hire right, the conversation changes and it goes back to 'What can we get out of this?'" The emotional toll of Michigan's situ- ation, especially with the rumors and now confirmations of Moore's social life, is also something that is part of this current transition. "I just feel sad," Van Bergen said. "Per- sonally, I feel sad for those guys in the locker room because they were recruited by Sherrone Moore in their houses. He came to their games, met their parents, met their brothers, met their sisters and made promises to their moms and dads saying, 'Your son's going to be good with me. I'm going to make sure he develops into the right type of man.' And he prob- Ryan Van Bergen's time in the U-M football program overlapped with the coach transition from Lloyd Carr to Rich Rodriguez in 2007 and then the switch from Rodriguez to Brady Hoke in 2011. PHOTO COURTESY BLUE LION FITNESS CHAOS AND CRAZINESS Football Alums Ryan Van Bergen And Jake Butt Weigh In On Going Through A Coaching Transition As A Player