"I don't know that you can prepare for something like this," Michigan football coach Biff Poggi told reporters in Orlando, Florida, on Monday.
Interim coach Biff Poggi spoke in Orlando, Florida, on Monday, Dec. 15 – the first public comments from any Michigan football staffer since former head coach Sherrone Moore was fired and arrested last week.
Poggi has been put in charge of leading Michigan into the Citrus Bowl against Texas on Dec. 31 (3 p.m., ABC) and told media that the past five days have been something nobody quite knows how to handle.
"Unique and complicated," Poggi said in a video posted by the Orlando Sentinel's Matt Murschel. "Multiple levels of complexity that our young people are dealing with, our university is dealing with our athletic director Warde Manuel is dealing with – and our team, our coaches and our kids.
"I don't know that you can prepare for something like this. I'll just say, complicated."
Moore was fired Wednesday, Dec. 10, after "credible evidence" surfaced that he had an "inappropriate relationship" with a staff member. Hours later, he was in the Washtenaw County Jail, after, court records allege, Moore went to the staffer's house, broke in and grabbed butter knives and scissors from the kitchen drawer, then threatening to kill himself.
Moore was taken to a local hospital for evaluation before he was transported to jail by Pittsford Township Police. On Friday, he was arraigned on one felony and two misdemeanor charges.
Michigan has been trying to hold practices as usual – the team held its latest on Monday – but the game against Texas is not likely at front of mind in the same way it was when the matchup was announced on Nov. 30.
As the days have passed, Poggi has used the time to speak to everybody on the team and hear them out.
"Met individually with all the players multiple times," Poggi said. "And with the parents, zoomed with the parents multiple times. The message has been listening. I want to listen to them, I want to understand what the kids are feeling and what their parents are feeling."
It's unclear what's next for the team.
An outside law firm, Jenner & Block, is now in the process of investigating the athletic department, which has had multiple scandals in recent years.
Now, the athletic department is trying to hire a new coach, all while Poggi tries to hold the current team together and prepare for a game that would give the group its 10th win of the year.
"There's been a wide range of emotions as you can imagine," Poggi said. "We're kind of going through those steps, they're not over yet and I don't expect them to be for a while quite frankly. But our main message is, the mandate that Warde Manuel gave me as the athletic director when he asked me to be interim coach, was to love and take care of the kids.
"So that's what I'm doing, spending all my time loving the kids."
Poggi served as interim coach this season in Weeks 3 and 4 while Moore was suspended for his role in the sign-stealing scandal that rocked U-M in 2023. U-M won both games – against Central Michigan and Nebraska – under the former Charlotte coach.
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football interim coach speaks on Sherrone Moore fallout
Category: General Sports
