Michigan Wolverines interim head coach Biff Poggi spoke to the media on Monday, breaking down what changes he would make if he’s eventually named the permanent head coach and saying the entire program will be “re-evaluated.”
“First of all, everything that happens in this building has to be re-evaluated, quite frankly, because it is not upstanding,” Poggi told the media. “Everybody in the building has to be evaluated from our strength and conditioning, nutrition, medical, everything, because it has been
five years of a malfunctioning organization. If I am named head coach, which again I don’t know if I am, there will be a massive self-examination of what happens in this building, and you can expect a lot of changes.”
Poggi appeared to be a long-shot candidate to be offered the full-time head coaching position just days ago, as Michigan reportedly targeted Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer and Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham. However, things change quickly in coaching searches and now Poggi seems to be a realistic option, receiving support from current and former Michigan players.
There’s no guarantee that Poggi will be offered the full-time position, but he did formally interview last week and has had “multiple conversations” about the job with athletic director Warde Manuel. Poggi told the media exactly how he envisions the team operating under his leadership and why fixing the program is something that’s really important to him.
“You need CEO skills because you have a multi-billion dollar corporation, and you need to have somebody that knows how to run them, keep them straight, and doesn’t put the brand of the business in jeopardy,” Poggi said. “This program means a lot to me and it’s one of the things I want to fix before I smoke myself to death with cigars. I want to fix this program.”
Poggi also went on to explain what changes he’s already made since taking over as the interim head coach following Sherrone Moore’s scandalous departure on Dec. 10. Just within the last 10 days, Poggi placed an emphasis on having more urgency and a positive mindset – getting back to playing with joy, practicing with increased tempo and staying united.
“We’ve changed basically everything. Meetings were much shorter. Practices are shorter, but much more up-tempo,” Poggi explained. “I think they’re actually having fun playing football again. I’m really proud of them and the coaches that stayed. It’s been a team effort. There’s no manual for this but I’m very pleased with where we are and what’s been going on.”
Despite not having much head coaching experience at the college level, Poggi represents Michigan culture as much as anybody on the coaching staff and he has leadership qualities that could make him a positive influence on the program. If he ends up being named the newest head coach, it’s clear that Poggi is ready to make significant changes on and off the field.
