The University of Michigan’s athletic director, Warde Manuel, has had the program’s previous controversies haunt him recently, as his future came under serious doubt. The Board of Regents’ July 16 meeting was meant to confirm or dispel the rumors, but nothing was said. A recent statement from the university has cleared up doubts about Manuel’s future.

According to On3, Michigan AD Warde Manuel is set to step down at the end of the calendar year. The decision follows the Board’s review of a law firm’s report on the athletic department’s culture. However, the University has also given its departing AD an additional responsibility. As per Amanda Christovich of Front Office Sports, Manuel has been appointed as a special advisor to the president. He will be tasked to help implement “recommendations to improve the athletic department he oversaw.”

“I have the deepest respect for Warde and his countless contributions to Michigan, and have asked him to stay on,” Michigan president Domenico Grasso said.

The University of Michigan commissioned Jenner & Block LLP to investigate the scandal involving former head coach Sherrone Moore and former female staffer Paige Shiver. After several months of investigation and review, the university released a statement outlining the conclusions, recommendations, and the future steps it will take based on the findings of the investigation.

“The culture review found that Warde Manuel demonstrated important leadership strengths, particularly his commitment to student-athletes. At the same time, it identified failures to quickly and effectively act on allegations of wrongdoing by Athletic Department employees,” the University of Michigan’s Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs wrote in the statement.

The University of Michigan has faced a few scandals in recent years. These various scandals have involved different people in the athletic department: two former head coaches, two former assistant coaches, and a former female staffer. At the center of all of these events is the program’s athletic director, Manuel Warde. Despite not being alleged to be directly involved in any of these scandals, they occurred over the course of his 10-year tenure.

The athletic department enjoyed some success during Manuel’s 10-year tenure, only that the controversies were just as much. They won four national championships, with the football team securing three consecutive Big Ten titles, and the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship. Across 29 sports varsity teams, the athletic department had a 78.2% win percentage, with 90 conference titles, and 26 individual NCAA titles. But in the face of repeated scandals, these wins look like nothing, and Manuel now has to exit the program as a result.

Warde Manuel’s new role 

Following the law firm’s investigation of the inappropriate relationship between former head coach Sherrone Moore and Paige Shiver, Manuel fired Moore. But there were other happenings before the program spent $12 million on the law firm.

Manuel had previously investigated the relationship between Moore and Shiver internally. The investigation was thorough, as he went through their school-issued cellphone and email accounts without seeing anything incriminating. His decision to retain Moore was because there was no discovery during the internal investigation that was worth a sack, based on some the The Associated Press  reports from people familiar with the situation.

The report from the law firm highlights the failure from Manuel to act on wrong doing effectively, while the lawsuit from former linebackers coach Chris Partridge alleged that he was aware of everything that went wrong but chose to turn a blind eye instead. According to the former Michigan assistant coach, “Manuel and other leaders allegedly knew about Moore’s relationship with a staff member “for years without taking action to protect the employee.” All of these allegations, coupled with the results of the investigation, are the main reasons why Manuel’s tenure in Ann Arbor will be ending as the year ends.