Shane Gillis reveals Marcus Freeman nearly appeared on 'Saturday Night Live' before Sherrone Moore firing

In early December, Shane Gillis nearly helped Marcus Freeman appear on “Saturday Night Live.” He had conversations with Lorne Michaels about making it happen, but a shakeup in the college football world meant the show had to cancel.

Gillis told Bussin’ With The Boys that Freeman nearly appeared in “Weekend Update” during the Dec. 13, 2025 episode. That show was three days after Sherrone Moore’s firing at Michigan and, later his detainment amid an investigation into an alleged assault.

The situation became the talk of college football as Michigan fired Moore for cause as a result of an improper relationship with a staff member. But it also meant Freeman could no longer appear on “SNL.”

“I tried to get him on ‘SNL’ this year. … It was close,” Gillis said. “We were close to getting it done. I was talking to Lorne about it, and we were close. We were going to have him on ‘Weekend Update.’ Then, something happened at the Michigan program that became the biggest story in college football and not Notre Dame. So we couldn’t do it. For real. It was that week.”

Prior to Moore’s firing, Marcus Freeman Notre Dame made headlines after it missed out on the College Football Playoff. The Fighting Irish were in the Top 25 since the rankings began to come out, but fell out during the final reveal show. From there, the program chose not to play in a bowl game, meaning the season was over.

But just three days after the final CFP rankings show, Michigan announced Moore’s firing. The school made the announcement Dec. 10 after an investigation found evidence of an improper relationship with a staff member, which violated both the terms of Moore’s contract and university policy.

After that news came out, Moore was later detained and arrested that same day. He was charged with third-degree home invasion, and misdemeanor stalking, and breaking and entering during a Dec. 12 arraignment. Washtensaw County prosecutors alleged Moore entered the home of the female staffer through an unlocked door and threatened to harm himself during a confrontation with the young woman, reportedly telling her “my blood is on your hands” while holding butter knives and kitchen scissors.

Last month, Moore was sentenced to 18 months probation as a result of the incident. He will not face any jail time.