5 names on Michigan football’s head coaching hot board 2.0

It's the start of a new week and Michigan's coaching search is well underway to find a replacement for Sherrone Moore. The Wolverines fired Moore last Wednesday and there are all kinds of names being thrown out as possible candidates Michigan could land.

Last week, I came out with seven names Michigan should call to replace Moore. On Monday, I'm going to narrow that list down to realistic candidates that the Wolverines could fill their head coach vacancy with.

Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham

ASU coach Kenny Dillingham — Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

According to a recent report, Michigan's hiring firm has made contact with two coaches, and one of them is Kenny Dillingham.

Dillingham, age 35, was the offensive coordinator at Memphis, Auburn, Florida State, and Oregon before he became the head coach at ASU back in 2023. After a three-win season with the Sun Devils in Year 1, he took ASU to the College Football Playoff in 2024 and won eight games this season.

Dillingham has been known for his explosive offenses and ability to develop quarterbacks. While there will be more notable names that Michigan could target, Dillingham is definitely an interesting name, and one that the Wolverines could look at.

On Saturday, he met with the media, and credited his time with the Sun Devils, but never entirely ruled out going to Michigan. While he said he enjoys being with ASU, Dillingham never said 'I won't be going to Michigan'.

Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz

The other name mentioned in the above report is Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz.

Drinkwitz, age 42, has been the head coach of Missouri since 2020. He came to the Tigers after a solid year with App. State back in 2019. Drinkwitz won the SEC Coach of the Year Award back in 2023.

The Tigers had a rough start after Drinkwitz came to Missouri. Drinkwitz coached Missouri to a combined 17-19 record in his first three seasons. But since, Missouri has gone 11-2, 10-3, and 8-4 since.

Drinkwitz signed a six-year extension with the Tigers just weeks ago, worth $64.5 million. If Michigan feels like he is their man, the Wolverines would have to buy Drinkwitz out.

Drinkwitz has poked fun at Michigan -- stemming from the Connor Stalions' sign-stealing saga -- and there could be some rift there between the Wolverines and Drinkwitz. But with success at Missouri, he would likely be able to do more at Michigan.

Washington coach Jedd Fisch

The Washington coach is heavily linked to Michigan with former ties to the University. He coached under Jim Harbaugh for two seasons at Michigan and has never denied interest in the Wolverines.

Former Michigan TE Jake Butt has advocated for Fisch at Michigan and his recent comments following the Huskies' win over Boise State didn't leave anything off the table.

"I'm fully focused on our team," Fisch said after the win. "I think our team worked really hard this whole week and we all gave everything we had, and we played at a very high level because of that. That's all I would say on that."

While coaching at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh, Fisch knows the program quite well. Fisch coached at Michigan from 2015-16. He coached the QBs and was the passing game coordinator while under Harbaugh. Fisch moved to UCLA to become its offensive coordinator before moving to the NFL for three seasons.

Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer

The Kalen DeBoer smoke isn't clearing -- at least of now -- following his statement on Sunday saying he wasn't interested in talking to other schools about their job openings (Re. Michigan).

But if Michigan is interested in DeBoer and thinks he is the best man for the job, the Wolverines aren't going to back down. Michigan will make DeBoer say no over the phone, but that's if the Wolverines really want him.

There are multiple candidates out there and if Alabama beats Oklahoma on Friday, the process would just keep going. However, a loss to the Sooners could change everything in this process.

Michigan interim coach Biff Poggi

Michigan coach Biff Poggi — Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

One that I don't think will end up happening, but his name needs to be included: interim head coach Biff Poggi. There is a real campaign for Poggi to remain as the permanent head coach in Ann Arbor. Players, some parents, and signees want Poggi to remain in Ann Arbor, and a guaranteed way of that happening is to make him the head coach.

Will he get an interview? Probably. But anything more than that feels like it won't happen. However, if Michigan strikes out on its candidates, the Poggi smoke might keep building.

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