The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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JANUARY 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 19 demeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $500 fine. Moore was arraigned Dec. 12 and is scheduled to appear in person in a hear- ing on Jan. 22, 2026. He was ordered to wear a GPS tracker and can't leave the state without permission. He was also ordered to have absolutely no contact with the victim and to refrain from the use of alcohol, marijuana or any other drugs and continue mental health treat- ment. Per the prosecutor, the victim and Moore had a relationship "for a number of years," but she broke it off Dec. 8 before disclosing the relationship to Michigan. That's when he allegedly went to the vic- tim's residence and threatened to harm himself, saying, "I am going to kill my- self and make you watch," and "my blood is on your hands" after grabbing several butter knives and a pair of scissors. He was reportedly unarmed when he entered, and he left when she said she was calling the police. Michigan interim president Domenico Grasso, meanwhile, released a letter to the U-M community indicating the investi- gation wasn't over. "When the findings of a university investigation into Coach Moore's behavior were presented on Wednesday, we immediately terminated his employment," he wrote. "There is ab- solutely no tolerance for this conduct at the University of Michigan. None. I have been in close communication with the Board of Regents, and we are united in committing to doing what is right. "This breach of trust by Coach Moore is painful for many in our community, first and foremost, the individuals directly in- volved in this situation. Yet our swift and decisive action reflects the university's staunch commitment to a campus culture of respect, integrity and accountability. All of the facts here must be known, so the university's investigation will continue." MICHIGAN HIRES LAW FIRM TO INVESTIGATE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT Per several reports, U-M has hired a law firm to begin an investigation into the way the athletics department has handled several incidents like this over the years. From two Jim Harbaugh suspensions, one over impermissible contact with re- cruits and another over an illegal scouting operation run by former staffer Connor Stalions, to now, the department has been in the news frequently and not positively. The latest U-M investigation will be conducted by the law firm Jenner & Block, per reports, and will include looking into Moore's relationship with the victim. A broader investigation will include the way Moore's firing was handled. NBC Sports even reported that Moore was dealing with mental health issues, yet no one else was present when Manuel fired Moore. Through it all, Poggi — who coached Michigan to wins over Central Michigan and Nebraska this year in Moore's ab- sence — has worked to keep the roster and recruits on board. "Pulling together, staying together. WE ARE TOGETHER! Go Blue," he tweeted. ❏ Sherrone Moore Out — What They're Saying Andy Staples, On3 — "Given everything that's happened, I would imagine that the people in charge at Michigan — and I mean the people that are above athletic director Warde Manuel — need to do a pretty thorough investigation of who in the athletic department knew, what and when, and determine what the best course of action is going to be. "These rumors have been out there for a long time. We first heard about them in August. People in Ann Arbor had heard about them long before that. Clearly, it was pretty common knowledge that there were these rumors out there. "There's not much you can do, acting upon them if you're a player on the team. But if you're the Michigan athletic department, that's something you should act upon. So, I am very curious to hear the answers and the timeline of what was investigated and when. Why did they decide Wednesday that he was fired?" Rich Eisen, The Rich Eisen Show: "If there was an investigation going on, could they have wrapped it up before everybody else signed everywhere, including two Big Ten spots for teams that are coming for Michigan when they do play one another, including, you bet, Michigan State? … "The timing here couldn't be worse, and I'm saying this with a heavy heart and completely conflicted, because when it all comes down to it, me sitting here wondering about the timing about the football program, when there are people staring into the abyss about how their lives have been completely upended by the choices that have been made by others, com- pletely out of their control — and that includes a wife, apparently, and three daughters, ap- parently, and whatever's going on between the temples of Sherrone Moore. Lives shattered. "It makes it feel like I'm being a small person, wondering about what about a football program." Doug Karsch, 97.1 The Ticket, Michigan Play-by-Play Voice: "The athletic director, Warde Manuel, and his staff … the university needs to take a look and see, OK, how thorough was this investigation? How seriously did they take it? Did they do their due diligence, because if they didn't, then yeah, I don't want that person leading the search. They need to clean house if indeed they find that is the case. "If they did their jobs, did what they're supposed to do to the letter of the law and fol- lowed university policy, then that's a different thing. Now, you may make that decision anyway, and that's up to people to decide and the university to decide. "For a place with a lot of smart people — the University of Michigan has a lot of smart, well- educated people — there have been some terrible decisions made that have accumulated." Pat Forde, Sports Illustrated: "The 39-year-old Moore was given the keys to the maize- and-blue Cadillac for two reasons: he was on Jim Harbaugh's staff, and he did a good job keeping a championship operation on track in 2023 while the head coach was suspended during the Stalions advanced scouting scandal. Riding Harbaugh's coattails gave him a shot at a job a lot of people weren't sure he was ready to handle. But he was heading into a third season, with a rising star quarterback, and he just nuked his opportunity. … "If the Harbaugh postscript ends with Moore's firing, it's a wildly checkered era at the school. Much to celebrate, much to be embarrassed about, and often those two things were intertwined. This much is certain: The Michigan Men leading the football program the last five years stirred up enough dirt to muddy that haughty term. The modern Wolverines have been every bit as much about investigations, suspensions and scandals as championships."