Where are you seeing this?
Deleting as no longer relevant. At the time of the OP there were zero headlines and no source included (even Twitter) in the OP.
Sad news indeed.
Re: "loved his offenses" - often overlooked that he was the DC of some of Bo's best defenses (including, that '85 unit). Arguably the man was the best assistant coach in the history of college football.
I just loved that he was an aggressive play caller. At a time when "3 yards and a cloud of dust" was the BIG theme he would take chances. Obviously "the catch" comes to mind.
Posted down below already. Doh.
He also called the 4th down pass from Demetrius Brown to John Kolesar to beat Bama in the '88 Hall of Fame Bowl.
So Fred Jackson but better?
Seriously though, RIP. Really good college coach and arguably the best Lions coach of my lifetime. He rocked that black Lions leather jacket like no other 😎
Underrated comment. I forgot he was a DC under Bo. His offenses as a head coach were really special. It takes an incredible football mind to be equally great at coaching both sides of the ball. I second the statement "best assistant coach in the history of college football".
Clayton Sayfie on Twitter: "Very, very sad. RIP to the former Michigan head coach." / Twitter
My bad. Here is the tweet from Clayton Sayfie.
I don’t know who Clayton Sayfie (don’t read the Wolverine, clearly, after a quick google search of who he is), but I do know who Todd Anson is. And this is not something he would tweet if it wasn’t fact. Sad day indeed. I often wonder the trajectory of Michigan football if not for that one unfortunate night of his.
RIP Gary Moeller! Learning of the loss of a Michigan great. Thinking of the Moeller family & sending heartfelt condolences.
— Todd J. Anson (@TJA4Michigan) July 11, 2022
We here at the M Zone are sad to report former @UMichFootball and @Lions coach, Gary Moeller, has passed away today. Our condolences to the Moeller family.
— The M Zone on The Ticket (@MZoneWTKA) July 11, 2022
RIP. The '91 season was the one that got me hooked on Michigan football forever. He had some fun offenses and a couple dominations of OSU
Oh no - very sad indeed. RIP coach.
In addition to the Michigan years, not too many people will remember that he came in and rescued the 2000 Lions after Bobby Ross quit mid-season.
They were a Bears 59 yard field goal (as time expired) against the Bears away from making the playoffs that year.
That was the last competitive Lions team until the Suh / Stafford years a decade later.
At 4-3, he is the winningest Lions coach since the 60s.
He also had the unique distinction of being the Michigan Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator and Defensive Coordinator in his career. Has anyone else done that?
Winningest? No other coach has won more than 4 games in their tenure for the Lions since the 60s?
I don't follow the Lions closely but seems possible :)
He meant highest winning percentage.
We also have him to thank for bringing Lloyd Carr into the Michigan fold; and I mean that as a good thing.
Somehow I recall he went 5-4. I did see in person, his Lions beat the Giants at the Meadowlands.
I remember that half-season fondly. We looked like a competent team for the first time after Barry left. That Bears game shouldn't have come down to that FG. Herman Moore dropped a sure TD pass that changed the outcome of that game completely.
Best coach in Lions history and of course he had the shortest tenure.
Coach Mo didn't have much time to establish himself in Detroit, however, Buddy Parker was the best coach in Lions' history.
Parker is the last Lions coach to actually be hired again as a head coach after coaching the Lions.
I have to correct. It was a 54-yard FG by Staee graduate Paul Edinger, whose career long to that point was 47 yards.
That loss not only knocked the Lions out of playoff contention, it triggered the Millen era. Such a consequential loss!
I remember exactly where I was when that kick went through. On such moments does a franchise's history turn.
I remember too well that kick sailing through the uprights. We were sitting first row in that end zone. Still stings a little when I reflect back. Also one of the coldest pre-game tailgates in my memory. Temps were in the teens with strong winds. Rest In Peace Coach Moeller.
If he could have just handled his booze and not accosted the waitress we might have had more then just 97.
Apologies-this comes off mean but not intended. I m leaving it as atonement for my shame. I am unaware of what he was going through and look back at the episode with regret as IMO he could have built a great legacy if...
The guy was going through some stuff and I'm sure no one regretted that episode more than him. There are bigger things than football.
Boo you. That said, I think Moeller was a great coach and the program was worse off without him. Lloyd was pretty great and won a national championship, but I think Moeller had a higher ceiling.
Given that we’ve won exactly one national title since the 1940s, we shouldn’t turn up our noses at Carr for getting it done “only in 1997.”
I heard it was totally out of character for him, and something set him off drinking, namely, his wife and Les Miles.
Bo was livid they fired him when Bo was out of the country. Bad timing for Bo...
This is a shitty comment.
And by today's coaching standards, a blip on the radar.
Not to mention Moeller did have some extenuating circumstances.
Yes what he did was certainly a mistake. But the fact is he was railroaded out of town by the media, and the weak U-M administration at the time caved into the pressure. Bo was out of town on vacation and not reachable. Otherwise, he could have intervened and helped to save Moeller's job. GM deserved much better. At least a 2nd chance after a stellar record prior to that.
What? That's ridiculous. How do you keep a coach who's just had those charges filed against him? They had to fire him. I didn't want him fired at first either. But I remember reading an article at the time about his conversation with the athletic director a few days on, when he was actually fired. The AD's point was that he couldn't possibly recruit at the highest level when other schools would have his criminal conduct to use against him- that certainly a fair number of parents wouldn't want their children playing for someone who'd had this happen. There's no reasonable way to argue against that, because it's true. He had to go. He was a good guy, and a good coach who lost 4 games a little too often. I loved his offenses. But that had to be his end at UM.
It’s a shame his achievements weren’t celebrated more during his life, rather than in his passing. A further shame that one evening of poor behavior negatively colored his Michigan career.
You can build a thousand bridges, etc.
This must be new bad news. None of the Detroit or Ann Arbor papers are posting this. If true, RIP coach MO! Also, RIP Carter Payne, a former Michigan soccer player who was killed in a hit an run accident in GA.
RIP Coach Mo.....
WBB coach at Slippery Rock died of a heart attack yesterday, he was only 50
the dreaded double post
Aww man. Love me some Coach Mo. My years at UM and his years as head coach were exactly the same.
Coach Moeller helmed the football program during my matriculation years as well. Saw some great moments during those years. Rest in peace Coach Moeller.
One of my first memories as a 1st year undergrad in 1990 when Mo took over was on the gameday walk seeing someone with a t-shirt that said "No Mo Bo So Go Mo". Mixed results as UM coach with some great Ws and some head-scratching Ls but glad to have seen him coach.
Let’s not forget his “undefeated” 9-0-3 season in 1992. That was a bizarre year.
He had great results as a Michigan coach and should’ve continued to be the Michigan coach except for his outburst that was rumored to be due to asst coach Miles boinking a close relative.
He was the head coach for five years. He won three big 10 titles, two coach of the year awards, and four bowl games. Set a record for consecutive conference game wins that stood for 15 years.
He opened up the offense after Bo. Made the play call for Desmond’s famous ND catch. I could go on.
44-13-3 and 3 conference champions in 5 seasons. Gary will be missed.
Great, great guy.
I got to know him pretty good when I was recruiting N. Ohio for Bob Chemeil 92-94. Total class act who treated everyone with dignity and respect. Was responsible for a lot of the Ohio kids we pulled in the late 80's & early 90's - OSU did NOT scare him in the least.
Godspeed coach. You'll be missed.
And his job on Michigan Replay, was something of greatness. Neither Bo nor Lloyd were as good on tv as Mo.
The offensive game he called in the '93 Rose Bowl against Washington was magical. It also showed that he learned from his mistakes from the prior year Rose Bowl. RIP Coach Moeller. May his memory forever be a blessing for his family and friends.
I worked at Dairy Queen in a small town where he had a summer lake house...I served him once in 1994, he waited in line like a regular schmo and when he came to my register I said "hey coach, what are you doing in our little town?" He was very nice and told me briefly about his lake house, I gave him ice cream and he left. He was very polite and almost seemed shy. This was while he was still Michigan's coach. That really is all there is to the "cool story".
RIP COACH
Which lake ?
Strawberry Lake - Hamburg Township