Sherrone Moore quick-hitters: Where Michigan coach wants to see improvement, an injury update, more

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan Wolverines football head coach Sherrone Moore met with the media Monday morning ahead of his team’s game against Arkansas State. Here are bullet points on the most notable things he said.

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Sherrone Moore quick-hitters

• Moore lamented Michigan’s lack of fundamentals in the 31-12 loss to Texas over the weekend, saying the tackling has to improve, all 11 players have to do their job and there has to be no finger-pointing. Defensively, he mentioned tackling and getting off blocks as issues.

• On what Moore believes needs to improve, he mentioned running the ball more and more efficiently on offense, and tackling and communication issues on defense.

• Moore said Michigan has “urgency” but not “panic” moving forward. It “stings” that the Wolverines lost for the first time since 2022 and first time at home since 2020, but Moore said they’re looking at it as an opportunity to get better this week heading into Arkansas State.

• Moore wants the identity of the offense to be playing with physicality and being strong at executing the details so it can score points. He mentioned again his desire for Michigan to run the ball more, but did say getting behind against Texas made it tough to stick with the rushing attack.

• On positives from the Texas loss, Moore said Michigan did have some efficient runs, the protection was good early and the defense finished the second half well.

• Three turnovers killed Michigan against Texas. Moore said it came down to details and mentioned that only one of the turnovers was senior quarterback Davis Warren‘s fault.

• A combination of things has led to Michigan’s run game not being as effective as Moore wants it. He said guys have to get into a rhythm.

• Moore left it open as to whether or not Michigan will look to make personnel changes on the offensive line. He said practice will be a factor, and the guys who “strain” the most will be on the field. He said practice will determine who the best players are.

• Communication, poor alignment and not getting set were issues Moore saw with the defense.

• The Michigan coach was asked if the Wolverines were “overconfident” with its personnel on offense, to which he replied, “No.” He said the team has to execute. He was asked a follow-up about offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell saying in the summer that the unit could be more “explosive” than last season. Moore said it’s hard to create explosive plays when his team goes 3-of-12 on third down like it did versus Texas.

• Moore mentioned keeping Michigan’s culture intact as part of the reason why the Wolverines didn’t add a quarterback through the transfer portal. He also cited a lot of change within the program (for one, he wasn’t even the head coach during the December portal period). He said his quarterbacks played well in spring ball. He also said that in games the players around the signal-caller have to make plays, as well. Moore added that, “I feel like we can win with our quarterbacks.”

• Michigan’s route running has to “be better” in terms of creating separation. Moore said the receivers haven’t been “detailed enough” and that they have to go “back to the basics.”

• Graduate quarterback Jack Tuttle was listed as questionable for the Texas game. Moore said he’s throwing more this week and should be ready for the next game.

• When asked about defenses keying on the run when junior quarterback Alex Orji is in the game, Moore said Michigan will have packages for him to mix it up and pass.

• Moore was asked if Orji could earn an entire series in games, to which he said it depends on how well the junior practices.

• Moore believes Michigan is “not far” from being on the same level of Texas. He said the Longhorns executed cleanly and again lamented turnovers and lack of third-down success.

• The Michigan coach said he’s confident that this was a “blip” on the radar, saying that players are “hurt” and “not smiling or laughing” but that it’s the coaching staff’s job to “uplift” them and make sure they move forward with resolve and determination.