Pernell McPhee, Wolverine

Tag: coaching changes


26Feb 2025
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Pernell McPhee, Wolverine

Pernell McPhee (image via Baltimore Ravens)

Former NFL linebacker Pernell McPhee has been elevated from a defensive analyst to outside linebackers coach for Michigan. He joined Michigan’s staff in 2024.

McPhee played under Wink Martindale when Martindale was the defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens. The outside linebacker was a Raven from 2011-2014 and 2019-2021, with stints in between playing for Washington and Chicago.

McPhee graduated from Pahokee (FL) Pahokee, the home of former Michigan wide receiver Martavious Odoms and linebacker Brandin Hawthorne. He then attended Itawamba Community College and Mississippi State before getting drafted in the fifth round (#165 overall) in 2011. He made 260 tackles and 38 sacks during his eleven-year NFL career.

The coaching landscape has changed in college football. This off-season, the NCAA passed a rule allowing analysts and “off-the-field” staff to now become on-field coaches. Instead of being allowed eleven coaches – a number that was recently increased from ten – now programs can basically hire as many coaches as they can afford. Michigan recently lost defensive analyst LaTroy Lewis to the Toledo Rockets as he became their defensive line coach, so the promotion of McPhee seems connected to the loss of Lewis.

3Dec 2024
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Kirk Campbell, Ex-Wolverine

Kirk Campbell (image via WILX)

Head coach Sherrone Moore announced on Tuesday that he relieved offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Kirk Campbell from his duties. Campbell was in his first year as offensive coordinator after being co-offensive coordinator in 2023.

Hit the jump for more.

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14Mar 2024
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Mike Hart, Ex-Wolverine

Mike Hart (image via Yahoo! Sports)

This seems like old-ish news considering it happened a few days ago and Michigan has already found a replacement, but former star running back Mike Hart will not return as Michigan’s running backs coach in 2024. He had been with the program since 2021. Michigan has since replaced him with Ohio State running backs coach Tony Alford (more on that in another post).

Hart is Michigan’s all-time leading rusher after playing for the Wolverines from 2004-2007. After a brief NFL career, he then went on to coach for Eastern Michigan, Syracuse, and Indiana before returning to Ann Arbor from 2021-2023. While at Michigan, he won three Big Ten championships and a national championship. He also seemed to have a very positive effect on Michigan’s running backs, fostering the development of Hassan Haskins, Blake Corum, and Donovan Edwards, among others. Haskins (2021) and Corum (2022, 2023) each had 1,000-yard rushing seasons under his tutelage, and he nearly had a second 1,000-yard rusher in 2021 (Corum had 952 yards) and 2022 (Edwards had 991).

Hart had recently been on a “leave of absence” attending to a personal matter, but the writing seemed to be on the wall that he would not return to Michigan’s staff under new head coach Sherrone Moore. It appears Hart has – or at least had – hopes of being Michigan’s head coach someday, but he was passed up for offensive coordinator (by Moore), interim head coach in 2023 (Moore again), and eventually head coach (Moore once more). I’m not saying that had anything to do with Hart’s departure, but from Hart’s perspective, that probably caused some hurt feelings; and from Moore’s perspective, he may feel some concern about whether Hart can buy into the new regime.

On a personal level, I have never been a huge fan of Hart. While yes, I do recognize him as a Michigan great – and he was a lot of fun to watch as a pinball running back – his personality rubbed me the wrong way. I didn’t appreciate his “Little Brother” comments toward Michigan State near the end of his playing career. I didn’t appreciate when he said Jim Harbaugh wasn’t a Michigan Man back in the day when Harbaugh was challenging Michigan to raise its standards, even before Harbaugh was head coach. And I also participated in a coaching clinic where I was not impressed by Hart’s attitude and participation.

Overall, I think Hart is a very good developer of talent. I think he understands ball security, pass protection, mental and physical toughness, reading defenses, etc. But my belief is – and this is, let’s say, educated speculation – that Hart is not exactly the easiest guy to get along with behind closed doors. So when it comes to putting together a staff, I’m not too awfully surprised that Hart and the new coaching regime are going in separate directions.

25Feb 2024
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LaMar Morgan, Wolverine

LaMar Morgan

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore hired Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns defensive coordinator LaMar Morgan to be the defensive backs coach for the Wolverines. Morgan spent the past two seasons as the Ragin’ Cajuns defensive play caller. He replaces safeties coach Jay Harbaugh (Seattle Seahawks) and cornerbacks coach Steve Clinkscale (Los Angeles Chargers).

Morgan played at Louisiana, so to pull him away from his alma mater – for a “demotion” to a position coach role – is somewhat significant. He made 111 tackles, 4 interceptions, and 9 pass breakups through his career playing safety, which wrapped up in 2007. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Vanderbilt under James Franklin from 2013-2014 before spending two seasons as the defensive backs coach at FCS Western Carolina. For the 2016 and 2017 seasons, he was hired as the Louisiana-Monroe defensive backs coach. He then spent one season as the defensive backs coach at Houston before returning to Louisiana-Lafayette from 2019-2020 as defensive backs coach. He worked as the cornerbacks coach at Vanderbilt in 2021 before going back to ULL for the 2022-2023 seasons.

If the past is any indication, Morgan will not be at Michigan any longer than two seasons. Louisiana-Lafayette also went from #13 in yards per play allowed in 2021 – when Morgan was coaching corners at Vanderbilt – to #24 in 2022 and #47 in 2023. Those two seasons were the first two after then-rising star Billy Napier left to be the head coach at Florida, so there has been an overall dropoff in that program.

Morgan’s expertise as a play caller may be in question, but he did coach under Jesse Minter in 2021 when Minter was the defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt, so he should be able to slide in pretty smoothly as a helper for new defensive coordinator Wink Martindale. This past season his defense ranked #26 nationally in interceptions, and they ranked #14 in 2022.

Morgan is from Texas and has spent much of his career in the South, so it would make sense to have him recruit down there. Michigan doesn’t historically have a ton of success recruiting places like Louisiana or Texas, but they’re hotbeds of talent, so it makes sense to try. Interestingly, Michigan now has two Louisiana connections on staff with Morgan and wide receivers coach Ronald Bellamy; the former spent a ton of time coaching there, and Bellamy grew up there.

Michigan’s staff is now completed, though there remain some questions about running backs coach Mike Hart, who has been on a leave of absence recently:

  • HC: Sherrone Moore
  • OC/QB: Kirk Campbell
  • RB: Mike Hart
  • WR: Ronald Bellamy
  • TE: Steve Casula
  • OL: Grant Newsome
  • DC: Wink Martindale
  • DL: Greg Scruggs
  • LB: Brian Jean-Mary
  • DB: LaMar Morgan
  • STC: J.B. Brown