Tag: coaching changes

Coaching Situation Update: January 3, 2021

I’m not big into trying to pretend to be a reporter, but like all fans, I’m curious about Michigan’s coaching situation. Here’s what I’ve gathered from various resources on each of the coaching jobs:

1. HEAD COACH: Jim Harbaugh
Harbaugh is rumored to be holding a staff meeting early this coming week to discuss an extension, as well as some staff additions. The rumor is that he will be extended through 2026.
Other options: Matt Campbell, Luke Fickell

2. OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR/WIDE RECEIVERS COACH: Josh Gattis?
I think Gattis is on thin ice due to the lack of development, questionable play calling, and general ineptitude. There are rumors floating about that Joe Moorhead (current OC at Oregon, former OC at Penn State, and former HC at Mississippi State) may sign on to coordinate Michigan’s offense. Gattis may be demoted to wide receivers coach or go somewhere else entirely.
Other options: ???

Hit the jump for more.

Goodbye, Don Brown

Head on over to touchthebanner.blogspot.com to discuss this post and others.

Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown has been dismissed by the program.

Michigan’s defensive finishes during Brown’s tenure:

• 2016: #1 (tied with Alabama) in total defense, #2 in yards/play, #2 in scoring
• 2017: #3 in total defense, #6 in yards/play, #13 in scoring
• 2018: #2 in total defense, #8 in yards/play, #16 (tied with Utah) in scoring
• 2019: #11 in total defense, #10 in yards/play, #25 in scoring
• 2020: #84 in total defense, #56 (tied with Troy) in yards/play, #96 in scoring

Hit the jump for more.

Addressing Michigan’s Coaching Situation

Following a 2-4 season and five straight losses to Ohio State – plus an embarrassing loss to Michigan State in 2020 – questions about Jim Harbaugh’s status as head coach have been non-stop. I have a hard time calling for coaches’ jobs, because as a (lower level) coach myself, I know some of the struggles with coaching.

Of course, college coaches have a different situation than high school coaches, because they have more power and more control over which coaches and players enter their program. But there are similarities in that your team’s success is subject to injuries, off-the-field behavior of young people, administrative limits, etc.

So here I would like to address which coaches I would prioritize bringing back, from highest priority to lowest:

Sherrone Moore (Tight Ends): Moore is Michigan’s top recruiter, especially in-state. According to 247 Sports, he’s the #6 recruiter in the country and #2 in the Big Ten (behind Ohio State’s Brian Hartline). I have not been extremely impressed with the performance of Michigan’s tight ends over the past couple seasons, but I think that’s more of an issue with the structure of the offense than the individual players. Regardless, tight end is a position where you can hide a mediocre X’s and O’s/technique coach if the guy coaching them can recruit his butt off. And Moore can. He’s listed as the primary recruiter for QB J.J. McCarthy, OT Giovanni El-Hadi, C Raheem Anderson II, TE Louis Hansen, LB Tyler McLaurin, and WR Andrel Anthony, and he’s the secondary recruiter for RB Donovan Edwards.

Hit the jump for more.

Jim Harbaugh’s Coaching Hires

Jim Harbaugh was hired at Michigan prior to the 2015 season. Here’s a look at how his coaching staff has filled out and progressed over the years.

Hit the jump for more.

Brian Jean-Mary, Wolverine

In news that contradicts what many thought, Michigan is hiring Brian Jean-Mary to replace Anthony Campanile as linebackers coach (not MGoBlog guess Tank Wright, which I used to write my post yesterday).

Jean-Mary is a Florida native from Apopka (hello, Jeremy Gallon!) who played at Appalachian State. He has spent much of his career working with noted defensive guru Charlie Strong at Louisville, Texas, and South Florida. He was assistant head coach at Louisville, recruiting coordinator at Texas, and defensive coordinator at South Florida, so this is a guy with significant leadership experience.

He is also known as a solid recruiter. At Texas he recruited blue-chip prospects like 5-star player Malik Jefferson and top-100 prospects like Erick Fowler and Anthony Wheeler.

A lot of people were concerned about whether Michigan would find an ace recruiter to replace New Jersey native Chris Partridge. Michigan will have a tougher time having its pick of the litter from the states of Florida and Texas like it did in New Jersey, but there’s also more talent in Florida and Texas. It will be interesting to see how much Michigan’s recruiting strategy changes with Jean-Mary pulling some strings and using his connections.