Michigan signed new special teams coach week of Sherrone Moore's firing
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Michigan football’s new special teams coordinator, who was hired by former head coach Sherrone Moore, officially inked his contract with the program on Saturday, Dec. 6.
It was the last major move Moore made as U-M’s coach – two days after Coombs was officially part of the staff, Moore was out of the job after he was fired for an inappropriate relationship with a staffer and subsequently arrested just outside Ann Arbor hours later. He was eventually charged with felony home invasion, stalking and breaking and entering.
Moore spent two nights at the Washtenaw County Jail before he got out on bond for $25,000 on Friday, Dec. 12, but only after agreeing to wear a GPS tether among other stipulations.
Coombs, a former long time Ohio State staff member, also made a name for himself at Cincinnati and before that coaching high school at Cincinnati’s Colerain High School, his alma mater, where he led the program for 16 years. Coombs went 161-34 at Colerain with 10 state playoff appearances and won a state title in 2004.
The Free Press obtained a copy of his Memorandum of Understanding through a Freedom of Information Act request, which shows Coombs will receive a base salary of $600,000 for the next two seasons, which began on Monday, Dec. 8. The deal runs through January 2028.
“Coach Kerry Coombs is a proven, exceptional football coach, and we’re thrilled to welcome him to our program,” Moore said in a statement the day it was announced. “Kerry’s leadership of our special teams will be invaluable. His expertise in teaching and mentoring has consistently shaped both outstanding athletes and remarkable young men — including some of the nation’s top special teams players and cornerbacks.”
Coombs was brought in almost immediately after Moore fired his predecessor, J.B. Brown, who coached special teams for two years. Coombs has since been in Ann Arbor and is expected to coach the unit during the Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31 (3 p.m., ABC) against Texas under interim coach Biff Poggi.
It’s not clear if Coombs will remain on staff (the same goes for the rest of the assistant coaches and coordinators) when the Wolverines hire a new head coach. That’s something the program hopes to get done before the transfer portal opens on Jan. 2, 2026.
The MOU is not binding, instead the “offer is contingent upon the successful completion of the University’s pre-employment requirements, as well as the execution of a full employment agreement within 90 days of signing this MOU, to be mutually agreed upon and negotiated in good faith,” read the letter, sent from deputy athletic director Doug Gnodtke.
Coombs was named the 2017 Rivals.com National Recruiter of the Year, and pegged three times as Big Ten Recruiter of the Year.
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan signed new special teams coach week of Sherrone Moore’s firing
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