ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The new Michigan football staff has the defending national champions starting to cook on the recruiting trail.
Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines were effectively forced to start from scratch this offseason when Jim Harbaugh and several other coaches left for the NFL.
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Kirk Campbell, Ron Bellamy, and Grant Newsome earned promotions from last year’s staff, but the rest of the group that helped lead Michigan to three-straight Big Ten championships and a 40-3 record since 2020 moved on for various reasons.
- Head coach Jim Harbaugh left for the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter left for the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Co-defensive coordinator Steve Clinkscale left for the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Strength coach Ben Herbert left for the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Defensive line coach Mike Elston left for the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Running backs coach Mike Hart left for unspecified reasons.
- Safeties coach Jay Harbaugh left for the Seattle Seahawks.
- Linebackers coach Chris Partridge was dismissed late in the 2023 season.
Harbaugh’s departure didn’t become official until late January, and the domino effect that followed took several more weeks.
Then, Greg Scruggs, Moore’s initial defensive line hire, resigned in March after a drunken driving arrest.
So the full coaching staff didn’t really come together until he was replaced at the end of March. Here’s the full timeline:
- Jan. 26: Sherrone Moore named head coach.
- Jan. 29: Justin Tress named strength coach.
- Feb. 2: Kirk Campbell promoted to offensive coordinator (was the quarterbacks coach).
- Feb. 2: Grant Newsome promoted to offensive line coach (was the tight ends coach).
- Feb. 2: J.B. Brown promoted to special teams coordinator (was a special teams analyst).
- Feb. 10: Steve Casula named tight ends coach.
- Feb. 15: Ron Bellamy retained as wide receivers coach and promoted to pass game coordinator.
- March 8: Wink Martindale named defensive coordinator.
- March 8: LaMar Morgan named defensive backs coach.
- March 8: Brian Jean-Mary named linebackers coach.
- March 13: Tony Alford named running backs coach.
- March 29: Lou Esposito named defensive line coach.
Meanwhile, many were poking fun at the Wolverines for their inability to parlay on-field success into recruiting momentum. There’s no denying Harbaugh’s yearly dalliance with the pros made it hard to capitalize on the recruiting trail.
Here are the only players who were committed to Michigan’s 2025 class when Moore finalized his staff (with 247 Sports Composite rankings):
- Four-star quarterback Carter Smith (No. 159).
- Four-star defensive lineman Bobby Kanka (No. 390 overall).
- Four-star tight end Eli Owens (No. 414).
Only two additional players joined in April and May: four-star defensive lineman Nathaniel Marshall (No. 46) and four-star offensive tackle Avery Gach (No. 249).
But in the past month, Michigan’s class has added 10 new commitments and shot up to No. 11 in the nation. If you go by average player rating, Michigan’s class is eighth-best.
Suddenly, the group is right on par with the classes that contributed to Michigan’s national championship: 22nd in 2018, eighth in 2019, 10th in 2020, 13th in 2021, ninth in 2022, 17th in 2023, and 16th in 2024.
Here’s a look at the commits who have committed to Michigan since one month ago:
- June 10: Four-star defensive lineman Jaylen Williams (No. 225).
- June 14: Four-star safety Kainoa Winston (No. 91).
- June 15: Four-star running back Jasper Parker (No. 302).
- June 23: Three-star offensive lineman Kaden Strayhorn (No. 445).
- June 23: Four-star running back Donovan Johnson (No. 318).
- June 24: Three-star linebacker Chase Taylor (No. 597).
- June 24: Four-star wide receiver Jacob Washington (No. 261).
- June 29: Four-star edge rusher Julius Holly (No. 300).
- July 8: Four-star safety Ivan Taylor (No. 54).
- July 8: Four-star tight end Andrew Olesh (No. 118).
Monday was the high point of this streak. Moore didn’t just pluck the second-highest-rated player in Michigan’s class from rival Notre Dame, he also beat the likes of Alabama and the in-state Nittany Lions for a top-five tight end.
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It’s going to be difficult for Moore to live up to the standard set by Harbaugh, who took over a program in shambles and brought it to the mountaintop. But Moore already proved he can win big games on the sideline (he went 4-0 as head coach in 2023, including wins at Penn State and over Ohio State), and now he’s showing he can assemble a staff and recruit, as well.
Nobody knows for sure if Moore will succeed at Michigan, but he’s off to a very strong start.
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