Updated Dec. 11, 2025, 3:34 p.m. ET
The past 24 hours have brought a wild sequence of events for Michigan football. And more news just keeps trickling out about what happened.
Head coach Sherrone Moore was fired on Wednesday, Dec. 10, with the University of Michigan saying it found evidence that Moore had an inappropriate relationship with a staffer.
Late Wednesday evening, it was reported that Saline Police had detained Moore earlier in the day. He was transferred to Pittsfield Township and, eventually, the Washtenaw County Jail, where he was being held for an assault investigation. As of Thursday afternoon, he was still in the jail, waiting to be arraigned, likely Friday.
Moore coached the Wolverines full-time from 2024-25, leading Michigan to a 17-8 record over those two seasons, with four games coached as an interim in 2023 and a two-game suspension in 2025. The Wolverines went 9-3 in the 2025 regular season and are set to play the Texas Longhorns in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31.
Here’s what we know about the events unfolding around Moore’s firing.
Report: Michigan knew Sherrone Moore was dealing with mental health issues before Wednesday
Despite that, according to Auerbach’s report, Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel fired him alone without a human resources representative or any security in the room.
Later that evening, Moore was detained by Saline Police and eventually arrested and booked at the Washtenaw County Jail for an assault investigation. As of Thursday night, he was still in the jail, waiting to potentially be arraigned.
No charges expected for Sherrone Moore today
Sherrone Moore is not expected to be arraigned today.
Moore remains in jail but it is unclear when he may appear in court in connection to a possible criminal assault investigation.
In a statement issued Thursday, Dec. 11, Washtenaw County court officials said they have not received documents pertaining to any possible case involving Moore.
“The Court is aware of a pending investigation regarding Sherrone Moore and has received many inquiries,” the statement reads.
“At this time, no paperwork has been filed with the court regarding this matter. If/once the required documents are received, they will be promptly entered into our case management system.”
—Dave Boucher
U-M students heard rumors long before firing
University of Michigan student Aiden Wolfson said he was taking a study break from finals when he saw the breaking news on his Instagram feed.
Wolfson, 19, said he first thought Moore was fired for his performance, but put the pieces together after reading further reports.
“Initially I thought, wow, we’re too late to fire our coach. If we’re going to fire him for performance, we should have done this a couple of weeks ago,” he said Thursday. “And then I read what he actually did, and it all made sense.”
One U-M business student said he heard rumors about a potential scandal brewing in the football program after Michigan’s 31-13 loss to USC on Oct. 11, but that he initially brushed them off as not credible.
“[The rumors] were after losses, so you would feel like it’s probably some people just venting some anger,” he said. “So I didn’t really give it too much thought, and the I saw [the reports] happen.”
—Christian Romo
What Michigan football recruits are saying on social media
Michigan football signees have been mostly quiet amid the Sherrone Moore saga the past 24 hours.
Markel Dabney, a three-star athlete from Huguenot High School in Richmond, Virginia, who pledged to join the Wolverines back in June and signed last week, threw his support behind Biff Poggi, Michigan’s interim head coach, via a post on X.
Adrian Hamilton, a three-star offensive line signee, from Upper Marlboro, Maryland, also reposted the the post on X.
Here’s more.
—Jalen Williams
Sherrone Moore detained in alleged assault investigation
The Pittsfield Township Police Department said in a statement Wednesday that officers responded to a call on the 3000 block of Ann Arbor-Saline Road for an alleged assault investigation, without naming Moore.
Police did not share much information, but said “a suspect in this case was taken into custody,” while also adding the incident didn’t appear to be random.
—Tony Garcia
Biff Poggi named interim Michigan football coach
As noted in Michigan’s official statement on Moore’s firing, assistant head coach Biff Poggi was named interim coach.
This isn’t Poggi’s first time as interim coach with Michigan, as he led the Wolverines in wins over Central Michigan and Nebraska earlier this season while Moore was serving a suspension in relation to the Connor Stalions sign-stealing saga. The former Maryland high school coach spent two years as Charlotte coach in North Carolina, going 6-16 over parts of two seasons.
—Tony Garcia
Statement released by University of Michigan
Approximately 20 minutes after news of Moore’s firing broke, Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel released a statement that confirmed Moore had been fired with cause:
“U-M head football coach Sherrone Moore has been terminated, with cause, effective immediately. Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that Coach Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. This conduct constitutes a clear violation of University policy, and U-M maintains zero tolerance for such behavior.
Biff Poggi has been appointed head football coach in an interim capacity, effective immediately.”
—Christian Romo
Sherrone Moore fired
ESPN reporters Pete Thamel, Dan Wetzel and Adam Schefter initially broke the news of Moore’s firing on Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 4:37 p.m. ET. The news spread quickly on social media, leading to much speculation about his firing.
—Tony Garcia
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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.
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
