Why Sherrone Moore nearly broke his iPad watching Michigan win over Nebraska

Michigan Wolverines football head coach Sherrone Moore was sidelined the last two games — wins over Central Michigan (63-3) and Nebraska (30-27) as part of a school-imposed suspension.

The 39-year-old watched both victories at home, and was grading his team by writing notes in real time. He didn’t necessarily enjoy the eight days away from the program, but he took a positive mindset.

“It was the longest eight days, I would say, of my lifetime,” Moore said on the ‘Inside Michigan Football’ radio show. “I was thinking about the players, thinking about the staff, thinking about what we can do better. Really thought about a lot of things, and I talked to people and stressed about it.

“That Sunday after the CMU game was probably the worst day, knowing that the week was ahead. I came across this reel on one of the social media channels, and it was talking about choosing your difficult. And really thought about the, yeah, you can choose the difficult of sitting here and complaining, or you can try to get better. So, I thought of different ways when I come back for us to get better as a team, and am already starting to implement them.

“It was awesome. It was good to think about that and do that, but it was not a fun week. It was great to watch the game and root for the boys and understand what was going on, but the whole week was something I don’t want to have to go through again. But anything for the team.”

Moore went into detail on what he did while he was away from the Michigan program.

“A lot of film watching,” Moore said. “A lot of old film watching. A lot of self-scout, self-evaluation of what we can do [better]. Watched a lot of other teams, which was cool to see it from the outside perspective, because you see things and confirm things that you already think. Hopefully, we can implement those and get better as a football team.”

Michigan’s 30-27 win over Nebraska in Lincoln was an exciting victory, the Wolverines coming away victorious with interim head coach Biff Poggi at the helm. There were several big plays on both sides of the ball, including 3 long touchdown runs — 75 yards from junior running back Justice Haynes, 54 yards from sophomore running back Jordan Marshall and 37 yards from freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood.

Marshall’s 54-yarder put Michigan up 27-17 with 6:12 remaining in the third quarter. It was the longest run of Marshall’s career — and Moore cheered him on and celebrated accordingly.

“I threw my iPad pen up to the ceiling and almost broke my iPad,” Moore said. “So, I took notes of every play. I graded every play. I pretty much knew what was going on when the plays were going — offense and defense and special teams.

“Watching him run and break that run to the right, as soon as he broke to the second level, I was like, ‘Please don’t try to juke anybody. Just try to run as fast as you can.’ I remember [Michigan running backs] Coach [Tony] Alford in training camp talking about attack a half a man and try to make people miss — and he just ran straight downhill, and he was out. And it was awesome to see. So happy for him, and so happy for the players.”

JORDAN MARSHALL IS GONE 💨💨@UMichFootball opens up a 10-point lead! pic.twitter.com/DtSnO2Kw2J

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) September 20, 2025

Haynes, meanwhile, is off to an incredible start. He’s one of two rushers in the nation with 4 50-plus yard runs, showing his breakaway ability week after week. The Alabama transfer currently ranks tied third nationally with 537 rushing yards, doing so on 66 carries with 6 touchdowns.

“I think he just set a record for the first running back ever to have over 100 yards in his first four games, so he’s just a special player,” the Michigan coach noted. “We talked about this in the staff meeting the other day. I said, ‘He’s never been caught.’ Spring ball, he had long runs, and we’re like, ‘Is he that fast?’ No one catches him. And then he does it in training camp — no one catches him. Usually those practice habits end up in the game.

“But the kid is an amazing human being, a great young man, a great student. He’s already graduated. And he’s a tremendous football player, and he just keeps getting better and better.”

Moore discussed the Michigan players that he felt played the best in the victory over Nebraska, and Haynes was near the top of the list, rushing 17 times for 149 yards and a score.

“On offense, the O-line and Justice Haynes, those guys played outstanding, played phenomenal, played championship-winning football,” he said. “So did Bryce; Bryce did, too. Got to take care of the football. But overall, those were the guys.

“On defense, it’s a bevy of guys. [Freshman cornerback] Jayden Sanders, [graduate defensive tackle] Rayshaun [Benny], [senior linebacker] Ernest [Hausmann], [senior linebacker] Jaishawn [Barham], [junior defensive tackle] Trey Pierce, [junior safety] Brandyn Hillman. All of those guys, that collective defensive unit. [Senior linebacker] Jimmy Rolder, he’s a hammerhead. That unit, it’s so deep and there are so many guys in there, it’s fun to watch.”