University of Michigan head football coach Sherrone Moore was arrested Wednesday, hours after the school issued a statement announcing he’d been fired for what was termed an "inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”
Details of exactly what crimes Moore, 39, is accused of committing remain vague at this time. According to The Athletic, cops in Pittsfield Charter Township, Mich., were summoned to the home of a “female Michigan football staffer” yesterday afternoon. The Pittsfield police issued a statement last night to ESPN and others, saying the officers were “investigating an alleged assault” at that address. Moore, who was not named in the statement, was subsequently arrested by police in the nearby town of Saline. The Athletic story says the arrest was part of the same assault investigation, and Moore was handed over to Pittsfield law enforcement.
Defector’s request to the Pittsfield Township Police Department for incident reports from Moore’s arrest was denied. A Pittsfield police staffer told Defector earlier today that nothing beyond last night’s statement will be issued. The officer declined to say if Moore is still in detention as of this morning, referring this reporter to Vinelink, a national online database of incarcerated individuals. A Vinelink search showed Moore remains in custody of the Washtenaw Corrections Division.
The rationale behind Moore’s firing by the school is slightly more clear. A statement from Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel yesterday afternoon held that the school terminated his employment after an investigation of the coach found “credible evidence” he’d been in an apparently romantic relationship with a staff member.
“This conduct constitutes a clear violation of University policy,” said Manuel, “and U-M maintains zero tolerance for such behavior.”
Moore officially posted an 18-8 record in his two-plus seasons as head coach, which began when Jim Harbaugh left Michigan for the NFL amid a cheating scandal. Moore was given a three-game suspension last summer for his role in a robust sign-stealing scheme concocted by the Wolverines coaching staff that surfaced in 2023. He sat out two of those games this season and was due to finish the sentence in the first game of the 2026 season.
Michigan is scheduled to face Texas in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Eve. Before Moore’s arrest, the school announced that former Wolverines assistant Biff Poggi will be brought back as head coach for that game. The often-sleeveless Poggi played the same role during Moore's suspension.
