The University of Michigan’s regents are expected to discuss an investigation into the culture of its athletic department on Thursday, sources told ESPN. As part of the review, a decision on the future of athletic director Warde Manuel is anticipated in the coming days.
A university spokesman told ESPN on Sunday that the school had nothing to report and declined further comment.
Michigan commissioned the investigation in December following the firing of football coach Sherrone Moore for having an “inappropriate relationship with a staff member.”
After being fired earlier that month by Manuel, Moore drove to the home of staff member Paige Shiver and confronted her. He was arrested and later agreed to a plea deal for misdemeanor malicious use of a telecommunications device and misdemeanor trespassing.
The incident was the latest controversy for the high-profile athletic department, including numerous NCAA violation cases, an illegal in-person scouting scandal involving staff member Connor Stalions and federal charges against former offensive coordinator Matt Weiss for felony aggravated identity theft and unauthorized access to computers. Weiss has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to stand trial in September.
The long-anticipated report, from the Chicago law firm Jenner & Block, has cost over $11 million and is expected to be comprehensive.
Manuel, 58, a former Michigan football player who has held the job as the university’s athletic director since 2016, has never been cited for being involved in any of the scandals. During that time, the school has experienced tremendous competitive success, including national titles in men’s basketball (2026), football (2023) and men’s and women’s gymnastics (2025 and 2021, respectively).
Manuel’s contract runs through 2030, and it’s uncertain what the financials of any type of departure would look like. Manuel’s annual salary on his new deal, which was signed in December 2024, includes an annual compensation of nearly $2.4 million, which includes deferred compensation.
The incident that has put Manuel’s future in the crosshairs is the departure of Moore. Manuel promoted Moore after the exit of coach Jim Harbaugh to the NFL, and Michigan is still dealing with the legal fallout from Moore’s subsequent arrest.
What Manuel and other athletics officials knew of that “inappropriate relationship” and how they acted is expected to be part of the report.
Along with the legal issues, there also was the yearslong investigation into the illicit advanced scouting scheme orchestrated by Stalions. That led to a barrage of NCAA penalties against Michigan, including an unprecedented fine that is expected to be more than $30 million, four years of probation for Michigan and a 10-year show cause order for Harbaugh.
Manuel was at the center of the fight with the Big Ten over Harbaugh’s three-game suspension, which the conference issued in 2023 under the sportsmanship clause. Manuel called it “completely unethical” and “an assault on the rights” of everyone in the wake of the Big Ten suspension. Michigan abruptly reversed course on legal action and withdrew its lawsuit against the Big Ten five days later.
One of Manuel’s biggest wins as athletic director might have backfired on him.
He lured Florida Atlantic‘s Dusty May to Michigan as the men’s basketball coach in March 2024, a coaching cycle with several high-profile openings that included Ohio State. After May won the national title for the Wolverines this year, Manuel announced in the celebratory parade that he and May had agreed to a deal to keep him at Michigan “for many years to come.”
May and Michigan never consummated that deal, and he left to coach the Dallas Mavericks nearly two months after Manuel’s proclamation.
