Michigan football ‘in great hands’ under Sherrone Moore, Jim Harbaugh says
The Jim Harbaugh era in Los Angeles began on Thursday afternoon as the recently hired head coach spoke with the media at his introductory press conference.
During his hour-long media appearance, Harbaugh fielded a few questions about his departure from Michigan. He confirmed Ben Herbert will join him in southern California but said the organization is still working through the process of hiring coordinators — roles U-M’s Jesse Minter and Jay Harbaugh are expected to fill. Jim Harbaugh also spoke on the current state of the Michigan football program and more.
Here is what Harbaugh said about Michigan:
On why he left Michigan for the NFL after the 2023 college football season:
“Love of Michigan but love of the NFL. … I’ve only got so many sands left in the hour glass, and I want another shot. I want another shot to be simply known as world champions. Lombardi Trophy. That’s my mission and I’m grateful to have this opportunity and already attacking.”
On the state of Michigan football following his departure:
“Sherrone is the right man for the job. Nobody else would be — I mean, that’s the guy. And they got it right. Top-rated, top-five team. I still think of it as one: Chargers and the Michigan Wolverines, like one team. In a great place. In a great place. Much like when players leave the university to go on to the pros, there’s a passing of the baton that takes place. You see J.J. leave, but then I see Jayden Denegal, Alex Orji — the next day, they’re on that field, they’re throwing with receivers. And there’s an excitement there. I’ve been involved in that as a player when the quarterback ahead of me left or graduated. It’s the same for coaches.
“Been talking to Sherrone. The guy is on fire right now. He’s working, recruiting. And coaches like Jesse Minter — he’s a tremendous coach. We’re going through a process right now. Ben Herbert — I can confirm that he’s gonna be a Charger. The passing of the baton was there to Justin Tress. Hugged it out right there in the blue ‘M,’ right in the middle of the weight room. In great hands. Always gonna be a loyal Wolverine.”
On if Michigan could have done anything to retain him:
“Michigan was great, like I said. Have a great love for Michigan and great love for the NFL and this opportunity and challenge is what I wanted.”
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Sherrone Moore hopes to have Michigan football coaching staff finalized ‘by next week or so’
Among other topics, Sherrone Moore indicated that he plans to have a staff for Michigan football’s 2024 season in place by next week.
Friday evening, the Michigan football team names Sherrone Moore its head coach, passing the torch from Jim Harbaugh to his longtime assistant in the same month the two won a Rose Bowl and a national title.
But after Harbaugh took his 2023 strength and conditioning coach, defense coordinator and special teams coordinator, Moore has had his work cut out for him when it comes to replacing key staff members.
Moore spoke about that Thursday, when appearing on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” for his first media appearance since his inaugural press conference. Among other topics, Moore indicated that he plans to have a staff in place by next week.
“We’ve got a few names and people in the boat to do that,” Moore said, speaking specifically to the defensive coordinator vacancy left by Jesse Minter. “And we’ve got a great staff, we’ve got great people here on the staff that we’re trying to keep, we’re going to try to retain. So the staff is starting to shape out, bit by bit every day, and I think by next week or so we’ll have that in place.”
Moore also spoke publicly for the first time since strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert left, also for the Chargers. Moore has spent years working alongside Herbert, but also Herbert’s replacement, Justin Tress.
“(Herbert)’s been there since I’ve been there, for six years. So he’s definitely put his footprint and his hand prints on the program,” Moore said. “It’s going to be a loss, but we think the guy that we elevated, Justin Tress, he’s going to do an unbelievable job. He’s been side-by-side with Herb this whole time. He’s had stints here, he had a stint at Alabama, so he’s seen really top-notch strength coaches in his time, so we’re really excited about Justin Tress and the opportunity for him to lead the strength program.”
Below, see everything Moore said in the interview.
On when he realized he could be Michigan’s next head coach
Really during that three-game stretch, my main focus was just trying to prepare myself, prepare my players to get ready to win those games. I wasn’t really thinking about the future, was really just thinking about what we needed to do to win those games.
There wasn’t really a (specific) time that I thought I could be the head coach at Michigan. That’s always the goal in most coaches’ minds to be the head coach, so there wasn’t really one moment. But I could tell you after winning that last one, it was pretty special, and something I dreamed about, being the head coach at Michigan.
On how he’ll make Michigan his own program
The biggest thing people want to know is how I’m gonna run the program compared to coach. I’m gonna run it my way. We’re still going to be tough, we’re still going to be smart, we’re gonna be dependable, we’re gonna be relentless in everything we do. Continue the enthusiasm. The energy for me is a big piece of it. I want to be someone the kids can rely on, that I can be a vessel for, to be very open with them.
My philosophy in coaching is that I coach hard and love harder, so they’re gonna feel that. So the program and how we’ve done it, how we’ve built it is gonna be the same. There’s gonna be bits and pieces that are me. I’m gonna be me, I can’t be coach. Don’t wanna be coach, coach is his own person and I love him. Got mad love for him and always will have respect for him and learned so much from him, but I’m going to run the program my way.
On what he wants to keep from Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan
The toughness, the blue-collar mentality, how hard we work on the field and off the field, the academic standard. Everything we do we’re going to present ourselves in a high-class manner, the exact same way. As far as the football team, you want to keep that as similar as possible — the results speak for themselves. So we want to continue to play at that high level with that physicality, with that toughness and do everything in that manner.
But things on a day-to-day basis might be a little different, and as we go, we’ll figure out what those things are.
On coaches leaving the college game due to NIL
I’ve learned about the NIL era throughout my time here and try to be involved in listening and knowing what’s going on, but the official sit-downs haven’t really happened yet. I got the job and then had to get on the road.
So I’d say for a first-time head coach, I’d tell people the first couple days in comparison, it’s third-and-12 on the minus-4 yard line with zero pressure, you’ve got to figure out what to do in the ball. (Now) it’s becoming third-and-four, third-and-five, a little more manageable, and I think every single day you try to get ahead of the chains. That’s what I’m going to try to do every single day.
As far as the NIL piece, it’s something that’s there. It’s something you’ve got to address. It’s something you have to attack. You’ve got to have a plan. The plan that I think we should have in place, we’re going to start to implement, and hopefully that’ll keep us where we need to be in college football.
On how he grew as a play-caller and if he’ll remain a play-caller
As a play-caller, I’ve gone back and forth on the play-calling piece. We’ll appoint an OC here soon and we’ll talk about that. But developing as a play-caller, that’s taken a long time. It hasn’t just been this year, I got to sit alongside some really good play-callers. Shawn Watson at Louisville when we had Teddy Bridgewater. Being around Kevin Wilson when he was at Oklahoma with Sam Bradford as a player. Being around Morris Watts when he was at Central, somebody that’s been in the game a long time. And then Josh Gattis here, Pep Hamilton here, coach Harbaugh. It’s allowed me to develop my own style, and we have a phenomenal staff, so it’s not just me; I’m just the one that pushes the ‘go’ button on game day.
But we develop a great plan, and it’s really about our players and what they can do. We’ve got really smart players so they can do a lot and make it look like a lot or not be a lot. I think our kids just believe in the plan and attack our plan going full throttle.
On the rest of the coaching staff
Yeah, we haven’t replaced the d-coordinator yet. We’ve got a few names and people in the boat to do that. And we’ve got a great staff, we’ve got great people here on the staff that we’re trying to keep, we’re going to try to retain. So the staff is starting to shape out, bit by bit every day, and I think by next wee or so we’ll have that in place.
On finding players he can coach hard and will fit in Michigan’s culture
There’s a whole bunch of things. That’s a great question, because obviously you can’t see that on film, you can’t see that even in one conversation. It’s building a deep relationship with the kid, with the coaches, with their families, how they’ve been raised, how did their parents raise them, how do their parents talk to them — there’s a whole bunch of different factors. There’s not really one, it’s hard to pinpoint it, I just think the relationship just has to really grow deep so you can figure out what type of kid he is. If he loves to be coached hard, if he wants to be coached hard and if he loves football. So we always tell guys, if you love football, you’ll love playing here.
On the term Michigan Man
For sure. We want people who want to be Michigan men. It’s a united front, a brotherhood of tough, blue-collar, hard-working (men), who do everything the right way in any way possible for the person next to them. It’s a brotherhood that’s really unbroken, and hopefully one day I can be that.
On the player turnover and his role coaching the offensive line moving forward
No, it’s really exciting. We knew that we were gonna have an influx of guys who leave the program, and we knew we were gonna have a chance to be really good this (past) year. You never know how good, but the players proved it. Very excited about the guys we have behind them. We think we have a really good group behind them ready to compete and ready to go try to do it again.
On the pressure of being Michigan’s coach fresh off a national title
I try really not to look at the future too much and what’s going to happen. I try to really focus on today, because you can’t really control (anything else). So try to worry about and stress about what’s gonna happen next year, or next game, it’s not going to put us in a great position — the program, me — to be in a good position where we need to be. So just focusing on today and that’s really it.
On how he got into coaching
So I started — I was from Derby (Kansas), went to Derby High School in Kansas. Went to junior college at Butler County, shout out BUCCO, then went to Oklahoma. And really, right after Oklahoma, I knew I wanted to get into coaching, I knew I wanted to coach, and I jumped in.
I became a graduate assistant the next year at the University of Louisville, and ended up there for five years. My first year was with Steve Kragthorpe, then the next four were with Charlie Strong, including two as a tight ends coach, then went from there.
You can accomplish anything if you put your mind to it apparently.
On Ben Herbert leaving for the Chargers
Any time when you lose somebody who’s been with you … I mean he’s been there since I’ve been there, for six years. So he’s definitely put his footprint and his hand prints on the program. It’s going to be a loss, but we think the guy that we elevated, Justin Tress, he’s going to do an unbelievable job.
He’s been side-by-side with Herb this whole time. He’s had stints here, he had a stint at Alabama, so he’s seen really top-notch strength coaches in his time, so we’re really excited about Justin Tress and the opportunity for him to lead the strength program. Those guys are awesome. That whole group he has, they all wear black, they all travel together. If you see one of them, you see all five of them. So we’re excited about the future with those guys.
On finding blue-collar, smart players
I don’t know if there’s a plethora, but there’s enough. There’s enough out there that will do it, and we’re gonna go find them.
