Sharon Moore’s creepy Instagram messages revealed by women she was stalking

Questions about Sharon Moore’s judgment and mental state lingered long before the arrest of the Michigan head football coach after she allegedly broke into the home of a women’s football staff member and grabbed a butter knife and a pair of scissors and threatened to kill herself.

The Athletic’s investigation, published Monday, uncovered several red flags — including exchanges with women on Instagram beginning in 2020 and as late as last month — that preceded the arrest and firing, which the school said was an “improper relationship with a staff member.”

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The Athletic spoke with five women who said they had strange or uncomfortable exchanges with Moore on social media. Those interactions were brought up to university officials in the fall of 2024 — the start of his first year as head coach — two people briefed on the matter told The Athletic. According to the report, the behavior did not appear to be criminal and school personnel were not known to be involved, but it may have hinted at deeper issues.

“It was not sexual harassment,” an official told The Athletic. “It was justified, ‘Are you stupid?’ kind of stuff.”

Moore, who is a married father of three, allegedly reached out to the women via Instagram by direct messaging or “liking” a story they posted. According to one woman, Moore asked if he could fly to Michigan to meet her. She asked about the expectations associated with the request and would he “stay in a hotel?”

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“I guess we’ll have to see! I’d say yes but you’ll also have a driver haha,” Moore reportedly wrote.

“We go after that detail,” he wrote.

In his most recent interactions with women on Instagram, Moore approached a woman shortly before the Purdue beat on Nov. 1. According to The Athletic , the woman, who has no ties to the Michigan program, said she responded with a hello emoji waving her hand.

Here’s the latest on former Michigan coach Sharon Moore

Shortly after the victory, Moore approached the woman again, who at first couldn’t believe it was Moore, and then congratulated her. Two days later, he reportedly put a fire emoji in a story that showed him on the stairs at a gym.

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These interactions may have served as warning signals. More concerns were raised about Moore’s mental state, according to the report, as he would cry during staff meetings and lash out at other coaches, program sources told The Athletic. In another incident, Moore was seen listening in on closed-door meetings inside the Michigan football facility.

Ultimately, it was an alleged affair with an employee that prompted her downfall. According to the report, an anonymous tip to the university’s human resources department first led to an investigation and then hired the law firm Jenner & Block to conduct an outside investigation into Moore and the relationship.

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After his arrest, Moore told police that the relationship had existed for about two years, dating to his assistant. According to The Athletic, a program source recalled seeing Moore’s car at the staff apartment complex late at night.

Moore and staff were also featured at a Michigan lacrosse game in the spring of 2024. According to The Athletic, Moore became enraged after a member of the Michigan staff warned him about the video of the two at the game and the appearance of impropriety.