Sherrone Moore's first year is starting to resemble Jim Harbaugh's worst
Back in July, when few foresaw Michigan football’s backslide, a reporter asked Sherrone Moore if he felt he deserved a grace period after inheriting a national championship program in the throes of transition.
Eighteen starters had just left. So did the entire defensive staff that had worked under Moore’s accomplished predecessor, Jim Harbaugh. The turbulence from the upheaval was exacerbated by the specter of two NCAA investigations that cast a pall over the Wolverines and clouded their future. But Moore seemed unfazed, projecting the bravado of someone who felt invincible after riding the wave of an undefeated season.
“There’s no honeymoon year,” he huffed. “I’ve been a competitor. I’ve wanted to win. And I’ve tried to win wherever I’ve been. There’s no time off. There’s no, 'oh, let’s take a step back.' That’s not our goal.”
Yet, that’s exactly what has happened. The unranked Wolverines are 5-4, having suffered more defeats in the past 65 days than they had in the previous three years combined. Their loss of status, from college football kings to Big Ten peasants, is reinforced by the fact that they are set to enter Bloomington this Saturday as massive underdogs to upstart Indiana – a team they beat by 45 points last season.
The Hoosiers’ remarkable turnaround, spearheaded by Curt Cignetti, has been the talk of the sport, offering an extreme example of what a leadership change can do for a program if the right coach is hired. Under Cignetti’s command, Indiana has surged into the top 10 following a 47-10 rout of Michigan State, the ninth opponent it has defeated by 14 or more points.
The oddsmakers have taken notice, installing the Hoosiers as two-touchdown favorites over Michigan, which provides a solemn reality check to a wilting program that has historically dominated Indiana. It also gave the Wolverines the latest sobering reminder that they are saddled with many of the same problems that afflicted them in 2020, when they went 2-4 amid a global pandemic and were hammered by … ahem … Indiana.
Lest everyone forget, that was an ugly, miserable season, and the 38-21 loss to the Hoosiers encapsulated Michigan’s total collapse. In that defeat – Michigan’s first against Indiana in 33 years – the offense malfunctioned, the defense crumbled and everything snowballed. Afterwards, Harbaugh rued that there was a massive disconnect that had developed, preventing his team from transferring its solid performance in practice to the games. A similar lament has been heard from players and coaches throughout this season, as the Wolverines have regressed in every major area.
“We’ve got to take it from State Street (where the team trains) and bring it to Main Street (where Michigan Stadium is located),” passing game coordinator Ron Bellamy said last month.
“We’re messing up small details that we’re good with all week in practice,” wideout Tyler Morris explained that same week.
“It’s the small things that can hurt you,” safety Makari Paige noted Monday.
Four years ago, former U-M receiver Giles Jackson made a similar observation about the Wolverines. That team’s downfall was precipitated by self-inflicted mistakes, costly penalties, long-term injuries to prominent players, poor usage of personnel, ill-conceived strategic decisions and shoddy quarterback play. Sound familiar?
Each of those bad ingredients have again combined to create a recipe for failure in 2024, which helps explain why Michigan currently has a losing record against Power Four teams for the first time since 2020. Back then, Moore remained in the background as a tight ends coach, avoiding the ire of fans frustrated with the wretched state of the program. But now the buck stops with him and his fledgling regime has come under intense scrutiny.
That crystallized Monday, when he faced a wave of negative questions that touched on many of the issues plaguing Michigan. Moore’s audience had just witnessed a 38-17 loss to No. 1 Oregon last Saturday that told the story of this disappointing season.
A defense without its top two cornerbacks, Will Johnson and Jyaire Hill, surrendered 470 yards. An offense that has been a persistent liability failed to score 20 points for the fourth time this season. Across all sectors, there were errors – from missed blocks, to blown assignments to careless infractions. The raft of mistakes raised questions about the coaching.
Why was defensive tackle Trey Pierce lined up over the snapper during a punt, a penalized gaffe that prolonged a second-half drive resulting in a field goal for the Ducks? Why did Moore risk a timeout on a doomed challenge of an incompletion when the replay review clearly indicated tight end Colston Loveland didn’t control the ball long enough for a catch to be counted? Why did offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell take Davis Warren, Michigan’s only functional passer, out of the game on a do-or-die fourth-and-5 play and then call a trick play to be executed by Semaj Morgan – a receiver who had never thrown a ball in live action?
Moore offered answers, but most rang hollow.
Over the course of a 14-minute press conference, he reverted to some version of this same line – “we’ve got to get better" – 12 different times.
One of those instances came after he was asked to explain Indiana’s great leap forward and Michigan’s massive dropoff. He credited Cignetti for “bringing in the right people” and doing an “unbelievable job with building the program how he has.”
During the offseason, Cignetti made an aggressive push in the transfer portal, acquiring 31 new players, including a hidden gem of a quarterback – Kurtis Rourke. Michigan, in contrast, stayed relatively pat – adding just two starters, a kicker and a bunch of reserves to buttress specific position groups. Moore’s plan was to preserve Harbaugh’s infrastructure, maintain the status quo and “keep rolling.” Instead, things have fallen apart on his watch.
“Obviously,” Moore conceded, “the record is not where we want it to be.”
“It’s definitely a surprise to us as a team,” Paige said.
But it perfectly captures the state of a program that is at its lowest point since 2020. It’s why if there ever were a honeymoon period for Moore, it is now most certainly over.
Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com. Follow him @RainerSabin.