Who will replace Sherrone Moore? 4 candidates for next Michigan coach
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Michigan football is now on the search for a new head coach.
Sherrone Moore’s tenure came to a messy end on Wednesday, Dec. 10, when the Wolverines fired him for cause after a Michigan investigation allegedly found “credible evidence” that “Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”
Things went from bad to worse when he was detained by police, arrested and booked in Washtenaw County Jail for an alleged assault investigation.
All of that has left Michigan in search for a new coach to lead its program.
This is the second time in three years U-M will now need to find a new head coach late into the cycle as former coach Jim Harbaugh left the program for the NFL to coach the Los Angeles Chargers in January 2024. Moore was named as his replacement less than a week later.
So, who could be next man up? Here are some names to keep an eye on:
Jedd Fisch, Washington
Fisch, 49, has done well in two head coaching stints at Arizona and now at Washington.
Fisch took over an Arizona team that went winless in 2020 (0-5) and after a 1-11 Year 1, improved to 5-7 in Year 2. By his third year, he was rolling and led the Wildcats to a 10-3 campaign (7-2 Pac-12) which included a season-ending 38-24 Alamo Bowl win over Oklahoma to help Arizona finish No. 11 in the AP poll, the best finish since 1998.
In two years at Washington, he’s gone 14-11 overall, which included an 8-4 campaign this season after he had to rebuild a roster that had been gutted following U-W’s national title appearance in 2023 when Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama.
Most notably, Fisch has U-M ties, serving as quarterbacks coach, wide receiver coach and passing game coordinator in 2015.
Kalen DeBoer, Alabama
Speaking of DeBoer, currently Alabama’s head man, this would be perceived as a home run hire.
DeBoer has won everywhere he’s been, starting at NAIA Sioux Falls where he won three national championships (2006, 2008, 2009). He has some ties to southeastern Michigan, spending three years as Eastern Michigan’s offensive coordinator (2014-16) and became a name to watch in the Big Ten, when he was Indiana’s OC and quarterbacks coach in 2019. From there, he got his first DIvision I head coaching job at Fresno State. After a shortened 2020 season, DeBoer went 10-3 with the Bulldogs in 2021 and finished with a bowl win over UTEP.
From there, he took over Washington and led the Huskies to their best season in program history in 2023, his second year, going 14-0 and winning the Pac-12 before falling to Michigan in the national championship game, 34-13. A few weeks later, he left for Alabama.
The Tide went 9-4 in Year 1 under DeBoer (including a 19-13 ReliaQuest Bowl loss to Michigan) before a 10-3 record and SEC Championship game appearance in 2025. Alabama has reached the College Football Playoff and is scheduled to play Oklahoma on Friday, Dec. 19.
Jesse Minter, Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator
Jesse Minter has been an elite defensive coordinator for years – could he excel as a head coach, too?
Minter was a Broyles Award finalist as the nation’s top assistant coach in 2022 and then orchestrated the nation’s top defense in 2023 (247.0 yards per game) during his two seasons in Ann Arbor. He was at Vanderbilt prior to that and has ties to the Harbaughs having worked on staff with John Harbaugh (Jim’s brother) with the Baltimore Ravens from 2017-20, the last of which he served as defensive backs coach.
The biggest hold up?
Minter was given a one-year show-cause order by the NCAA after an investigation into impermissible recruiting. That means “any employing institution must restrict him from any athletically-related position.”
It’s not a full-on suspension, but it’s certainly a hurdle.
He’s proven as a coach on the field calling defense, but it’s unclear if U-M would be willing to hire Minter or would want to cut ties entirely from a staff that had previous issues with NCAA compliance.
Curt Cignetti, Indiana
This is the Hail Mary, but it’s worth a shot.
The sell? Of Curt Cignetti can turn Indiana football, which just recently had the most losses of any Division I team in America, into a powerhouse in two years, what would he be able to do at U-M? The Hoosiers are the No. 1 overall seed in the College Football Playoff and now the Big Ten champions after defeating Ohio State 13-10 in the league title game on Saturday, Dec. 6.
As he said, he’s a winner – “Google me” – and anybody who laughed at that at the time is eating their words now.
Cignetti did just sign a contract extension with the Hoosiers to stay in Bloomington through 2033 at $11.6 million annually, so it could be hard financially to pry him away from that (not to mention, he has the No. 1 team, so does he even want to leave?) but it would be malpractice to not at least pick up the phone and give him a call.
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 football coaching candidates to replace fired Sherrone Moore
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