RIP Gary Moeller

Gary Moeller passed away at 81 yesterday. For the people who may not know who that is, he was a football coach. To be even more specific, he took over for Michigan after Bo Schembechler retired.

Moeller was the first Michigan coach I truly remember. Schembechler stepped down in 1989 and Moeller took over from 90-94. I think he would have lasted longer, but he got a DUI and Michigan has low tolerance for that type of thing. He was let go, replaced by Lloyd Carr, and the rest is history.

Gary Moeller was a very, very good coach. He accomplished quite a bit in his five seasons as the head man, and he climbed the ranks when he was an assistant under Schembechler. He vacillated between defensive and offensive coordinator from 1973-1989. In between that time he was a QB coach and helmed one of the better offenses in the Big 10 in the mid to late 80's. He also modernized Michigan's offense as much as he could when he was the OC. Then when Bo resigned, Moeller was the heir apparent. He stepped in and had immediate success. He won the Big 10 three times. He was coach of the conference twice. He won at least eight games every year. His lowest finish in the conference was tied for 4th. Michigan won four of the five bowl games they played in under Moeller. They won one of two Rose Bowls they played in. Moeller's record at Michigan was 44-13-3. He was 30-8-2 in the Big 10. He averaged nine wins a year. Moeller recruited and coached guys like Desmond Howard and Erick Anderson. Howard won the Heisman while Moeller was the head coach. Elvis Grback got a pro career based on Moeller's coaching acumen.

Even after the DUI it wasn't long before Moeller got another job. He was hired by the Bengals as their tight end coach in 1995. In 97 he took a job with the Detroit Lions that eventually turned out to be a head coaching job after Bobby Ross suddenly resigned. But he did not last too long when the new regime came along. He returned for a bit with the Jaguars as defensive coordinator but left after one year. He then coached the linebackers for the Bears before fully retiring in 2003.

All in all Moeller left the biggest impression at Michigan. He had a .758 winning percentage. He coached a Heisman winner. He kept the train rolling at Michigan. They didn't miss a step. He left the team in good hands when Carr took over. I feel like the whole DUI thing would have been brushed under a rug nowadays. It would have been dealt with internally and he would have stuck around longer. That being said, Moeller was a solid head coach. He wasn't brash or loud or annoying or a TV personality. He was a coach through and through. He stuck around the game so long because he knew the game so well. People respected him and he returned the favor by doing good to great things on a football field.

I was kind of stunned when RD texted me yesterday to tell me of Moeller’s passing. I had not forgotten, but had not thought about Gary Moeller in quite some time. It is kind of crazy when you think about my fandom for Michigan football. Gary Moeller will be missed. He meant a lot to the game and a whole lot more to Michigan. Rest In Peace Gary Moeller. You will be missed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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