Michigan football interim head coach says players feel 'very betrayed'

Biff Poggi spoke with the media for the first time since the firing of Sherrone Moore

Sep 20, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Michigan Wolverines acting head coach Biff Poggi watches during the fourth quarter against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

No. 18 Michigan football is preparing to take on the 13th-ranked Texas Longhorns in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31. Surely, the Wolverines wish they were prepping for the game under different circumstances after the firing of former head coach Sherrone Moore last week threw the entire program in disarray.

Nonetheless, the Wolverines are banding together to try to finish the season out strong despite being in limbo. Biff Poggi has been tasked as the man to lead Michigan as the interim coach as the program conducts a national search to replace Moore.

On Monday, Poggi spoke to the media in Orlando, Florida, where the Wolverines are preparing for the bowl game before taking on Texas at Camping World Stadium on New Year's Eve.

The media session was the first time Poggi has spoken publicly since Moore's firing.

Michigan associate head coach Biff Poggi arrives at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Saturday, October 24, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

A 'tumultuous time' where players feel 'very betrayed'

"I mean, it has been a tumultuous time," Poggi told reporters in Orlando. "A lot of anger—at first disbelief, then anger, then, really what we're in right now is the phase of—the kids right now, quite frankly feel very betrayed. And we're trying to work through that."

Poggi said he has met individually with all of the players on the team and has held several meetings with the parents of those players to make sure he is there for them and to answers any questions they may have.

"I've met individually with all the players multiple times," said Poggi. "And with the parents, I've Zoomed with the parents multiple times. The message has been listening, right? I want to listen to them. I want to understand what the kids are feeling and what their parents are feeling. So, a lot of listening. There's been a wide range of emotions, as you can imagine. We kind of are going through those steps. They are not over yet, and I don't expect them to be over for awhile, quite frankly. But our main message is—the mandate that Warde Manuel gave me as the athletic director when he asked me to be the interim coach, was to love and take care of the kids. And so, that's what I'm spending all of my time doing, is loving kids."

Michigan interim coach Biff Poggi spoke about fallout since Sherrone Moore's firing.

"It has been a tumultuous time," he said. "Disbelief, then anger, then really, what we're in right now is the kids, quite frankly, feel very betrayed, and we're trying to work through that." pic.twitter.com/w7Fg8n1exo

— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) December 16, 2025

Michigan will continue its search for a head coach while the team prepares for the Longhorns to cap off the 2025 season.

That game will kick off at 3 p.m. EST on Dec. 31.

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