Wednesday brought news that rocked the University of Michigan and the world of college football as the school’s head football coach, Sherrone Moore was “terminated, with cause, effective immediately.”
“Following a University investigation, credible evidence was found that [Moore] engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member,” the school said in a statement.
It seems Moore’s troubles are only beginning, as he has also been booked at Washtenaw County jail, where he is currently in custody, on suspicion of assault.
At this time, there are certainly more questions than answers surrounding this precarious situation in Ann Arbor. However, in a CFB season that has already featured notable coaching turnover at various marquee institutions, an intriguing question must now be asked: who will be the next head football coach for Michigan?
The next “Michigan Man”
For now, Biff Poggi will lead U-M as the interim head coach for the upcoming bowl season (more on that below). Poggi rejoined the school in 2025 after a three-year HC stint at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. But in terms of Michigan’s next full-time head ball coach, Kalshi’s traders are focusing on a swath of high-profile names.
Presently, Kalshi’s market indicates Alabama’s head coach Kalen DeBoer is the most likely candidate to take over at Michigan, and is trading at 24 cents. However, don’t expect DeBoer to be interviewing for the U-M job any time soon, since Alabama was selected as part of the College Football Playoff field, earning the No. 9 seed.
Just behind DeBoer, Kalshi’s traders think Jedd Fisch (University of Washington) has the second-highest chance at 23%. From there, Clark Lea (Vanderbilt) has a 13% likelihood to assume the role. Kenny Dillingham (Arizona State) is another candidate with considerable steam, and is trading at 12 cents.
For an in-house hire, current Michigan defensive coordinator Jesse Minter is viewed as a viable option to succeed Moore. Kalshi gives Minter a 10% chance to land the head coaching job. Another name to surface is Super Bowl XXXVII champion Jon Gruden (5%), who has been publicly lobbying for a return to coaching.
Bowl showdown
As mentioned above, Michigan has its sights set on an upcoming Bowl game in Orlando (Dec. 31). There, they will face a strong team from the University of Texas. Naturally, Texas boasts a football history as proud as Michigan’s, and supporters of both schools will be all in for this postseason bid.
As noted, Coach Poggi, a former offensive lineman at the University of Pittsburgh, will lead U-M into battle on New Year’s Eve. He was an associate coach in Ann Arbor from 2021-2022, and he resumed that position over the most recent offseason.
Kalshi’s market for the approaching contest at Camping World Stadium has much more faith in Texas, as they currently boast a 72% chance of winning. That is quite understandable given the present circumstances in Washtenaw County. Upon news of Moore’s firing and detainment yesterday, U-M’s chances here plummeted from 37% to a new low of 28%. Currently, they are trading at 32 cents.
Moore’s fate
What’s next for Sherrone Moore is anyone’s guess at this point, but legal proceedings appear to be on the horizon. Michigan, on the heels of a 9-3 season, reiterated that Moore’s dismissal was not performance based. However, his final game with the maize and blue was a 27-9 loss at Michigan Stadium to archrival Ohio State.
Within Kalshi’s market for CFB coaches to be fired this season, Moore was trading at 21 cents prior to being let go. In 2025, Michigan fell short of its lofty standards, and losing to OSU seemed to drive that point home. Still, U-M had one of the nation’s top defenses this year. They were especially dominant against the run, holding opponents to only 101.7 rushing yards per game: 13th in FBS.
Of course, Moore was on staff for U-M’s most recent national title run under HC Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh’s own stint was also mired in controversy, which led to Moore serving as interim head coach on several occasions in 2023.
The takeaway:
Kalshi markets now forecast:
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