When Sherrone Moore was fired for conducting a relationship with executive assistant Paige Shiver, at Michigan, the university commissioned Chicago-based law firm Jenner & Block to find out what athletic department officials knew about the affair before Shiver admitted to it—and when.
The university has not yet released any public findings. But certain details first reported by The Wall Street Journal and The Athletic and confirmed by Front Office Sports suggest there was widespread speculation within the department about the relationship for more than a year, and that athletic department leadership, including AD Warde Manuel, was aware of this speculation.
Ultimately, however, the university’s board has no plans to discuss the future of athletics personnel issues at its meeting Thursday, the source said. A university spokesperson echoed these comments.
The spokesperson also referred to a statement provided to FOS Tuesday saying: “Because this matter is the subject of pending litigation, the university will not comment further on issues related to that relationship.” As for the report itself, the spokesperson said the documents were private because they were “protected by attorney-client privilege.”
Shiver’s attorney, Andrew M. Stroth, told FOS that Michigan “should immediately release the findings and recommendations from the $12 million Jenner & Block investigative report. We have been unable to get information regarding this investigation, which is why we filed several FOIAs, and why last week, Ms. Shiver filed a FOIA lawsuit against the University of Michigan. We’re just demanding transparency and accountability.”
Jenner & Block did not immediately provide comment.
Jenner & Block conducted two separate, but related, investigations into Moore’s conduct and the athletic department’s handling of the situation. The findings raise questions about whether athletic department leadership failed to take proper action on the concerns reported to them.
The investigation found that multiple members of the athletic department, including players and staffers, voiced concerns to athletic department officials about the conduct of Moore and Shiver, the source told FOS. The details were first reported by The Athletic.
The investigation also turned up a letter that Manuel had written in a note in August 2024 that he had told Moore he could not travel with Shiver, the source confirmed. The detail was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
During an interview with Good Morning America in April, Shiver suggested that the Michigan athletics leadership knew about the affair. “He controlled everything that was going on in my life and they didn’t do anything about it,” she said.
Another source told FOS in December that the school had received a tip about the relationship and opened an investigation in November., but that there was no actionable evidence until Shiver herself admitted to the affair in December.
Over the past week, multiple reports surfaced suggesting Michigan would consider whether to part ways with Manuel. The university’s board of regents will convene for a previously scheduled meeting Thursday; there are no plans to have conversations about athletics personnel, according to the source. The university spokesperson had previously said the same to FOS; public meeting minutes also don’t show any conversations scheduled regarding Manuel’s future with the Wolverines.
Manuel said Tuesday during a local radio show that he expects to continue to be Michigan’s athletic director—though he has had conversations about his future.
