Ex-assistant to fired Michigan coach speaks out

Paige Shiver, a former executive assistant with the University of Michigan football team, said she felt that former head coach Sherrone Moore manipulated her during their nearly four-year relationship she characterized as an “open secret” within the athletics department.

Speaking out for the first time since Moore was arrested last December for trespassing, Shiver, 32, told ABC News that what started out as a consensual relationship became one in which she felt trapped over time. She said Moore, 40, told her he was in a loveless marriage and would soon divorce his wife, and that every time she tried to end the relationship, he would threaten suicide or plead with her not to leave.

Moore “had complete control over me, over my emotions, over my career, and he knew that, and he used it against me,” she said. “Every time I tried to pull away, every time I tried to get out of even Michigan, he always had a way to pull me in and make me feel that I couldn’t leave him because he was so miserable without me.”

Moore was sentenced to 18 months of probation this month after being fired for the relationship. He had faced a up to six months of jail time after pleading no contest to trespassing and malicious use of a telecommunications device. A felony home invasion charge was dropped as part of a plea deal.

The charges are related to a Dec. 10 incident in which Moore entered Shiver’s apartment the same day he was fired, according to police, who said he blamed Shiver for his firing and threatened to kill himself with butter knives. Shiver said she feared for her life and asked him repeatedly to leave.

“He’s six four and he comes in with his hood up, looking down at me, saying I ruined his life and is crying,” she said. “He’s not listening to me. And it’s like he knew he had control over me. He knew he had power over me.”

According to text messages Shiver shared with ABC News, Moore texted “I hate you” and “My blood is on your hands” to Shiver after the incident.

When asked for a response to Shiver’s account, Ellen Michaels, Moore’s attorney, said that “Sherrone Moore has closed this chapter.”

In response to a request for comment about Shiver’s claims, the university provided a statement, reading: “The University of Michigan terminated Sherrone Moore promptly upon discovering his undisclosed workplace relationship with a direct report. His conduct violated university policy, and we expect more from our leaders. The University of Michigan is committed to ensuring a professional and respectful workplace for all members of its community.”

In December, university President Domenico Grasso said the school was investigating the situation involving Moore “to uncover any additional germane and material information and to assess whether there may be related misconduct by others.”

Shiver started as an intern in the program in October 2021 and said her romantic relationship started months later in January 2022. She was promoted to be Moore’s executive assistant when he was promoted to head coach in 2024.

She described Moore during this time as emotionally dependent on her, a relationship she said the department encouraged.

She said she was often told by senior coaches to console Moore “to calm him down” when he was upset, sometimes during game halftimes. She said she went along with it because she feared for her job security. “No one cared about my feelings. They wanted to use me to help him so that they could get through the season,” she said.

“He and other coaches had control over my career, especially him. I mean, he could fire me in a second,” she said. “People knew, but no one was doing anything about it.”

In May 2022, during her relationship with Moore, Shiver said she discovered she was pregnant. At the time, she said her doctors advised she have an abortion to avoid complications from Pompe Disease, a rare and progressive disorder she was diagnosed with years earlier. Moore, Shiver said, told her she “had to do what’s right” for her body. She had the abortion that July.

Last October Shiver says she denied the relationship during an interview with the university human resources department.

She told ABC News that she didn’t disclose the relationship because she didn’t trust the process that she felt had protected Moore for years.

“They knew the things that he was doing to me and no one did anything about it because they cared more about winning football games, not having another scandal, and trying to protect the head coach,” she said.

She waited until December to tell attorneys hired by the university about the relationship.

Shiver is no longer employed by the University of Michigan. She said that, besides her disappointment with the university, she was disappointed that Moore only received probation.

“I don’t think it reflects what he did to me,” she said. “He took no accountability.”