This week, Sherrone Moore isn't concerned about records or point spreads. He's concerned about preparing for war in Columbus.
Moore held his weekly press conference on Monday. As he stood behind a podium and fielded questions – most of which were about the Buckeyes – the first-year head coach said his team believes it can beat Ohio State as three-touchdown underdogs.
“Yeah, I think they do (believe). I think this game is all bets are off,” he said. “The guys are prepared mentally and physically to go attack. We’ve had great preparation up to this point. Then we gotta get on the field and do it. I feel like we can, but it’s our job to go prepare to do it.”
Moore addressed several other topics on Monday, including his experience coaching in last year's Ohio State-Michigan game, his thoughts on the Buckeyes' defense and wide receiver room, the status of injured Michigan tight end Colston Loveland and cornerback Will Johnson, and more.
Here is a complete recap of Moore's press conference:
On his experience in last year’s Ohio State game
“It was a lot of collaborative effort with Jesse (Minter) and all of those guys – I obviously had to make decisions throughout the game like timeouts and all of those things. But really, the rivalry piece is the rivalry piece. It’s intense. It’s fun. It’s what you want to do. The strategy last year was to call it pretty aggressive, and that’s what we did. We’ll continue internally to have those decisions as a group.”
On whether his performance coaching that game impacted him becoming head coach
“I wasn’t trying to become the head coach at Michigan based on that game. I was just trying to help our team win that game and make the best decisions for us at that time.”
“They're as good as any defense in the country. I feel like they’re a complete defense. They’ve got great skill, got great talent and do a great job with the scheme. (The scheme) is something we’re familiar with, we’ve studied, we’ve watched. They’re a really good team. We have to execute at a high level to go win.”– sherrone moore On what stands out about Ohio State’s defense
On preparing his team for the environment at Ohio Stadium
“We’ll have those conversations internally as a group for how we’ll do that, but obviously (we’ll have) crowd noise in practice and doing those things. I think our guys love those environments. We’ll definitely increase the crowd noise, and when you put it in the indoor, it gets pretty loud. We’ll definitely have to weather the elements, create some noise and distractions outside, too, to make sure we understand what the weather is gonna be like.”
On the “emotional tax” that comes with this rivalry
“I don’t know about an emotional tax. It’s fun. It’s everything you want it to be. When you grow up as a kid, whether you wanted to be a coach or whether you wanted to be a player, this is what you wanted to do. You want to be in these types of games. It’s awesome to be a part of. It’s a lot of work. It’s something you think about all year. It’s an exciting time for us to be in.”
On his confidence entering Saturday
“I think the biggest piece of this game is the rushing battle. I think you’ve seen that every year. The team that wins the rushing battle wins the game. They’re gonna be focusing on the same thing, so that’s gotta be an emphasis for us to do.”
“None of that matters in this game. It doesn’t matter the records, it doesn’t matter anything. The spread, that doesn’t matter. It’s all about the game. We have to go execute. We got to go handle what we have to handle to go win.”– sherrone more On Michigan being an underdog against Ohio State
On Michigan’s defensive line vs. Ohio State’s offensive line
“We have to do our jobs up front. Our guys played really well last game. I thought they played with great technique, great fundamentals, great eyes and great discipline. They’ve got to do that in this game and do it at an even higher level. They’ll be prepared. The guys have been in since the game broke, watching film and doing those things as they are every week. Really excited about that matchup.”
On whether Colston Loveland and Will Johnson will be available on Saturday
“We’ll see. I think Colston is trending in a good direction. We’ll get a better feel the next couple of days and the same thing with Will, so we’ll see.”
On the message he’ll have for the team before Saturday
“I think every team is different. Every team is different, and every message is different. I’ve been on the loss side and been on the win side. The thing that’s similar for the wins is the preparation. That’s really what it’s gonna come down to – how we prepare mentally, physically and emotionally for the game. There’s gonna be ups and downs and adversity in the game. We gotta make sure we’re ready for that, players and coaches.”
On who “indoctrinated” him into the rivalry
“Everybody. When you walk in the building – obviously, Jim (Harbaugh), being around him – but really being at Michigan, being here for seven years, it’s something you can’t forget. As soon as you walk into the building, you see the pictures, you see everything and you understand the importance of The Game and what it means. As soon as you put on the maize and blue, that’s the first thing you hear about, it’s that game. The fans, the people, coaches here, the coaches of the past, they make sure you understand what it’s all about.”
“We’re not gonna forget about what’s happened, but I think we’re gonna use it as motivation for this game. This game means a lot. Every year, it means that much. Each team could be 0-11 or 11-0, the records go out the window in this game. You really just care about winning the game. That’s what our guys are focused on. We’re doing everything we can to go win.”– Sherrone more On whether a win over Ohio State could make them forget about its five losses
On whether Michigan is “playing its best ball” right now
“It feels like it. You gotta go prepare, though. You can’t rest on the laurels of the last game and be satisfied. You still gotta stay hungry, and that’s what we gotta go do.”
On Michigan’s preparation for a “charged environment” at Ohio State
“You put them in these environments, whether it's practice or different things, and you try to cause uncomfortability with noise or movement or whatever you can do to put guys in situations. But our guys are excited and ready for it, so it’s more of calming them down than bringing them up because if you can’t get excited for this game, you probably don’t have a pulse. There’s not much you gotta say to get them hyped for this one.”
On whether he’s talked to Jim Harbaugh this week
“I haven’t talked to him in a couple of days. I might send him a text tonight and wish him luck (against the Baltimore Ravens and his brother, John). But on gameday, I try to let him be. I know he’s pretty locked in.”
“Yeah, I think they do. I think this game is all bets are off. The guys are prepared mentally and physically to go attack. We’ve had great preparation up to this point. Then we gotta get on the field and do it. I feel like we can, but it’s our job to go prepare to do it.”– Sherrone more On whether Michigan's players believe they can beat Ohio State
On what makes The Game different from other games
“You can feel it. You can feel the energy. It’s not something you can really describe. It’s just different. It’s a different energy. It’s a different moment. We all understand what it’s about and what it feels like to be in the game. Even the new guys – (running back) Jordan Marshall came up to me and hit me on the butt and said, ‘Coach, it’s that time.’ And I said, ‘Yes, it is.’ Those guys know. (Jordan is) a guy from Ohio, but even the guys from down south understand what this game is about, so obviously, we are preparing as we have and like we did last week, but they all understand the moment.”
On the environment at Ohio Stadium
“It’s a hostile environment. It will be as hostile as it’s ever been there this weekend. I think our guys embrace it. We’re gonna embrace the noise, embrace the crowd and go prepare like we can.”
On Michigan’s passing game vs. Ohio State
“I think every year we go in that game, and people say we can’t throw it, and all of a sudden there are throws. Then, all of a sudden, we can throw it and can’t run it. Really, what we’re gonna do is prepare and not worry about anything else. Put the best gameplans together and go try to win.”
“Last year they were really good, too. People make all these references like it’s different – I mean, last year, they had Marvin Harrison (Jr.), and now they have Jeremiah Smith. The defense is mostly the same guys except for Caleb Downs. The quarterback is different. He’s playing really, really well and really efficient. And then they have another running back in there. … They’re still a talented team. It’s not like they’ve lost talent or they weren’t as talented last year. They have that. They’re just playing really good together.”– Sherrone Moore On the differences between Ohio State in 2023 and 2024
On whether he’ll lean on Tony Alford more this week than others
“He’s gonna add the value that he’s continued to have. Obviously, he knows the building and he's been in there. Obviously, we’ll have conversations about that. Everybody is gonna do their job to the best of their ability to help us win.”
On Ohio State’s wide receivers
“As good of a wide receiver crew as you’ll see in the country, probably. We saw a great one with Texas and Oregon, and this one is probably as good or better. Jeremiah Smith is as advertised — he’s big, he’s strong, he’s fast, he can make all the tough catches. We’ve got to do a great job disrupting him. And then you got Emeka Egbuka, you got Carnell Tate, you got Brandon Inniss. They got a lot of threats out there. We’ve got to do a great job making it uncomfortable for the quarterback to distribute it to them. … They’re gonna make plays. They always do. They will, but we gotta limit those plays.”
