Michigan football became one of the last teams to join the coaching carousel this cycle after firing Sherrone Moore with cause due to an inappropriate relationship. With many of the top names already off the board, there are questions about who the Wolverines will reach out to in their search.
On Sunday, two names have popped up in a report from the AP. He said that the firm that Michigan hired to search for the next coach has already reached out to two very popular candidates, Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz and Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham.
Drinkwitz has appeared on plenty of hotboards this cycle, but signed a lucrative deal to stay at Missouri. At the end of November, he agreed to a new six-year contract with an average annual compensation of $10.75 million. It will run through the 2031 season.
With Michigan not being forced to pay a buy-out in the firing of Moore, the Wolverines could potentially have the money to make it happen, though.
“The firm hired by Michigan to search for a football coach to replace Sherrone Moore has contacted representatives for Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham and Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz, according to a person familiar with the situation.”https://t.co/OlGDdcXmRZ
— Trevor Woods (@WoodsFootball) December 14, 2025
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Drinkwitz coached one season as the head man at App State in 2019, going 12-1 (8-1 Sun Belt). He was promptly hired at Missouri, but was forced to begin his tenure with a 10-game SEC slate due to COVID-19. He finished 5-5 that season, but lost to Jeremy Pruitt’s Tennessee team that finished 3-7.
In 2021, he posted a 6-7 record with a loss in the Armed Forces Bowl. As a member of the SEC East, he hosted Josh Heupel’s first Tennessee team, but lost 62-24. In 2022, his team finished 6-7 again, losing in the Gasparilla Bowl. That year, his team lost 66-24 in Neyland Stadium to the Vols.
2023 saw him take a significant step. His team finished 11-2 with a win in the Cotton Bowl. He got his revenge on Heupel and the Vols, though, defeating a 9-4 Tennessee team at home and awkwardly telling Heupel ‘We’re standing on business, Josh’ before quickly retreating from the handshake.
In 2024, his team went 10-3 with a Music City Bowl victory. This year, Missouri finished 8-4 (4-4 SEC) with just a trip to play Virginia in the Gator Bowl all that is left.
