In an offseason filled with coaching turnover for the Michigan football team, new coach Sherrone Moore will have to fill one more spot.
On Friday, Angelique Chengelis of The Detroit News reported that coach Mike Hart will not return to the Wolverines for the upcoming season. Hart spent the last three seasons as running backs coach and the last two as run-game coordinator, leading Michigan’s run game to become one of the best in the nation.
In Hart’s first season in 2021, he guided running back Hassan Haskins to a stellar season. Haskins rushed for 20 touchdowns — including five in the Wolverines’ first win over rival Ohio State in a decade — breaking a Michigan record. Haskins also rushed for 1,327 yards and earned a first team All-Big Ten selection.
In 2022 and 2023, Blake Corum blossomed under Hart’s tutelage. In 2023, Corum broke the touchdown record that Haskins set with 27 while rushing for 1,245 yards, and set a new program record for career touchdowns with 58. He even passed Hart on the touchdown leaderboards along the way.
Beyond helping the Wolverines’ run game reach new heights, Hart also made some history of his own. Hart became the first Black head coach in Michigan football history when he put on the headset for the second half of the Wolverines’ game against UNLV — soon to be followed by Moore, now the first full-time Black head coach.
And with just 10 days until spring practices begin, Moore now has one more hole that he has to scramble to fill. Not only did Hart produce tangible results on the field, but his players also spoke incredibly highly of him. Replacing him will not be easy, exacerbated by the short time frame to do so.
But all offseason long, Moore has had to find replacements for high-caliber coaches. Hart’s departure just makes one more.
