Sherrone Moore addresses Crisler Center crowd after taking over as Michigan coach

It’s been quite the 24 hours for Sherrone Moore. Friday night, Michigan announced him as the next head football coach to replace Jim Harbaugh, and he had his introductory press conference Saturday morning.

Later in the day, Moore and some of the Michigan players stood at half court while the Wolverines basketball team took on Iowa, and he addressed the fans for the first time as head coach.

Moore and Donovan Edwards took the microphone to fire up the crowd at the under-12 minute media timeout. He started out by thanking people who helped pave the way for him to take over the program, and he wrapped up with a message to get the fans out to The Big House in 2024.

“I want to thank the man, first of all, Coach Harbaugh. We love you,” Moore said. “President [Santa] Ono, appreciate you, thank you, love you. Warde Manuel and the Regents. We wouldn’t be in this position without these guys, the players. They’re the reason why you’re here, why we continue to stay and keep this thing rolling. And thank you, fans, for all the support, making the Big House the loudest place in the country to play. To continue that this year, we’ve got eight games. We need that thing packed, loud as you can be, so we can SMASH everybody, every game.”

Of course, Sherrone Moore didn’t need much of an introduction to the Michigan faithful on Saturday. He made quite the first impression while serving as acting head coach for four games this season, amassing a 4-0 record — including a victory over Ohio State to wrap up the regular season.

As rumors swirled about Harbaugh possibly returning to the NFL, Moore’s name came up right away as a likely replacement. Michigan acted quickly to make that happen, announcing his hire just two days after Harbaugh left for the Los Angeles Chargers.

“I have been preparing my entire coaching career for this opportunity and I can’t think of a better place to be head coach than at the University of Michigan,” Moore said in a statement. “We will do everything each day as a TEAM to continue the legacy of championship football that has been played at Michigan for the past 144 years. Our standards will not change.

“We will be a smart, tough, dependable, relentless, and enthusiastic championship-level team that loves football and plays with passion for the game, the winged helmet and each other. We will also continue to achieve excellence off the field, in the classroom and in our communities. I am excited to start working in this new role with our players, coaches and staff.”