Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel has said he felt “betrayed” by the Sherrone Moore scandal — after an investigation found that the school’s former football coach had engaged in an improper relationship with his ex-assistant, Paige Shiver.
Moore was fired by the school over the affair, and faced prison time after storming into Shiver’s home and allegedly threatening to kill himself following his dismissal — he was instead given 18 months probation earlier this month.
In a new interview with The Detroit News, Manuel was asked about Moore’s affair — and explained how the episode was “personal” for him.
“I felt betrayed. It’s the best word that I can use,” he said. “I felt hurt for all the staff and the student-athletes and the university, because it’s something that I had talked about, as it related to the expectations of our employees in athletics and for the university.
“…I had known Sherrone since he got here [2018 when he was hired as an assistant coach], believed in him as a leader, believed that my staff is doing things the right way, and I felt hurt, and I felt betrayed by it,” he continued. “It was personal, but it was also, I want to emphasize, for so many people that were affected by it.
“And it’s hard as a leader to have to enforce discipline on people that you care about and that you believe in, but it has to be done. There are a lot of people who claim to be callous, who say, ‘Oh, you should have fired him when the rumor was there.’ But you can’t just fire people on rumors with no evidence. So when the evidence was presented, it was a sense of betrayal and hurt for everybody who was going to be involved with a decision. Players, coaches, their families. Everybody.”
Following his firing from Michgan, Moore faced up to five years in prison on home invasion and stalking charges. He pleaded down to the lesser crimes of malicious use of a telecommunications device and trespassing, ultimately avoiding prison time and also being ordered not to contact Shiver.
Asked about Moore’s sentencing, Manuel said: “I want Sherrone to get through this and to move forward for him and his family, and so I don’t have a reaction to the sentencing itself, more of a reaction to him as a person.
“I want him and everyone who’s affected to be able to get through it, to move forward, and to learn from it and to be better. That’s the way I think about it. I don’t judge any of the outcomes or the things that he’s going through.”
Michigan replaced Moore with Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham on December 26.
“I’m really happy he’s here,” Manuel said of the new coach. “He’s been a great addition to the family, and I look forward to watching him do great things with the program.
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