Michigan football continues to experience a mass exodus after its National Championship-winning season. After losing head coach Jim Harbaugh to the NFL, another prominent member of the Wolverines' program has followed suit.
On Monday, it was officially announced that Michigan director of player personnel Tom Gamble is returning to the Jacksonville Jaguars front office, via ESPN's Adam Schefter. Gamble was Jacksonville's Senior Personnel Executive and Assistant GM back in 2021.
Where does this leave Michigan? New head coach Sherrone Moore's staff now adds finding Gamble's replacement to its extensive to-do list. With such massive turnover on all levels of the program, do the Wolverines have a realistic shot at defending their title this season?
Michigan football is losing one of the most established executives in the sport
Saying that Gamble has an extensive resume would be an understatement. The High Point University alum has an NFL track record spanning 30 years, spending time with the Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts, Carolina Panthers, Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers. He started as a scout for the Eagles in 1988 before gradually working his way up the ranks.
The High Point Hall-of-Famer (baseball) first connected with Harbaugh in 2011, working on his staff with the 49ers. He helped lead the team to the Super Bowl in 2012, where it lost to the Ravens. Gamble then worked as Philadelphia's vice president of player personnel before returning to San Francisco in 2015. After being promoted to Assistant GM the following year, he re-connected with Harbaugh in Michigan, serving as his senior advisor from 2017-19.
Given his long history with Harbaugh, it's no surprise that Gamble jumped ship with Moore now taking over. However, this does put the first-time head coach in a precarious position, as he could've used Gamble's wisdom to help navigate today's wild college football landscape. With NIL deals essentially turning the transfer portal and high-school recruiting trail into the wild west, it's harder than ever for a rookie head coach to navigate the waters.
However, Moore is no spring chicken himself. The 38-year-old has been around college football since he debuted as a JUCO player for Butler Community College in 2004. He then went on to play offensive guard for the Oklahoma Sooners before settling in as a graduate assistant at Louisville in 2009. Since then, he's steadily worked his way up the ranks, especially developing his chops on the offensive side of the ball.
So many losses of players and staff members may look overwhelming, but Moore and company should be able to handle it relatively smoothly. The Wolverines have the 16th-best incoming recruiting class in the nation, via 247 Sports' composite rankings. Although the program has experienced plenty of loss since its big win, there's plenty of talent coming to Ann Arbor to help mitigate said turnover.
With all the new faces in the building, Michigan's priority will be to build chemistry. Its annual Maize vs. Blue scrimmage on Saturday will end the spring practice period. After that, the squad will prepare for next season, which begins on August 31st against Fresno State. Time will tell if Moore and company will be able to take these departures on the chin and stay atop the newly expanded Big Ten.
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