ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Michigan coach Sherrone Moore is taking over college football's winningest program and all the scrutiny that comes with it.
Moore spoke with reporters on Tuesday for the first time since the NCAA alleged in a notice relating to its sign-stealing investigation that he violated rules as an assistant under Jim Harbaugh, according to three people briefed on the correspondence between the governing body and the school.
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Two people told The Associated Press that Moore has been accused of deleting text messages with Conor Stalions, the low-level recruiting staffer who coordinated an off-campus, advance-scouting operation. One of the people said the NCAA has recommended a less serious Level 2 violation for Moore, adding that the texts between Moore and Stalions were recovered and that the coach provided them to the NCAA.
All three people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the notice was confidential.
“I’ll just say this: I look forward to them being released,” Moore said, facing more than 30 journalists and more than 10 cameras, when asked about the text messages.
Stalions resigned last year during the Wolverines' national-championship winning season.
Moore said he has and will continue to cooperate with the NCAA's investigation, declining further comment when asked for more details.
The NCAA had already put Michigan on three years of probation along with a fine and recruiting limits after reaching a negotiated resolution in a recruiting case and banned Harbaugh from coaching college football for four years.
The Wolverines are ranked No. 9 in the preseason AP poll and start the season Aug. 31 at home against Fresno State.
Harbaugh, now the coach of the NFL's Los Angeles Chargers, was invited to be an honorary captain for season-opening game many months ago, Moore said, but declined the offer on Monday to help the Chargers prepare for the season.
“It was really to honor him for what he’s done for Michigan,” Moore said. “He came back for nine years and took us to where we are right now."
Michigan is defending a national championship for the first time since 1997 with a new coach, quarterback, offensive line and defensive coaching staff — and a challenging schedule.
The Wolverines will host No. 4 Texas and No. 23 Southern California in September and No. 3 Oregon in November before closing the season on the road against rival and second-ranked Ohio State.
“They still got to play us,” Moore said. “Our guys are excited about the schedule.”
Players also seem fired up to play for Moore, whom they describe as funny and approachable with an open-door policy that they take advantage of to snag some candy from a jar in his office while talking about life on and off the field.
“He's like my best friend,” defensive tackle Kenneth Grant said. “He's so easy to talk to.”
Even though Moore is the head coach following a six-year run as an assistant, the 38-year-old former Oklahoma offensive lineman plans to be just as approachable and affable as he has always been at Michigan.
“That's never going to change,” he said. “I want them to feel very welcome and be able to understand and know that I’m always there for them.”
Moore served a one-game suspension during the 2023 season related to recruiting infractions and filled in as head coach for four games last year when Harbaugh was punished by the school and the Big Ten.
“When you’re at the bottom, they don’t respect ya,” Moore said when asked about the culture of the program. “When you’re in the middle, they ignore ya. And when you’re at the top, they hate ya. So for us, we’re just going to keep rolling.”
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AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo contributed to this report.
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Follow Larry Lage at https://twitter.com/larrylage
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll