Michigan's Director of Athletics, Warde Manuel, has heard reports that his job is in danger. He is not staying quiet about them.

Manuel spoke to The Michigan Insider radio show on Tuesday, firing back at the wave of reports suggesting he is on his way out at Michigan.

"I think I've been fired by social media three times in my 10 years here," Manuel said. "I just move through it. To me, it's nonsense. It affects my staff and my family."

That makes it clear how Manuel views the reporting. He does not consider them credible, and he is frustrated by what these stories do to the people around him. Whether he is right or wrong, the fact that he felt the need to address it publicly shows how serious things have gotten.

His tone on Tuesday was notably different from Monday, when Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger first reached him on July 13.

"The president and I have had several great conversations over the past couple of days. There are no plans for me not to continue to be the athletic director for the near future," per Ross Dellenger on X.

By Tuesday morning, that certainty had shifted. Manuel admitted to The Michigan Insider that he does not know what his future holds.

"I don't know what the future holds," Manuel said on The Michigan Insider podcast. "People are stuck on the word 'near future.' That's because I don't know what's going to happen."

That is a big thing to admit from someone who, 24 hours earlier, seemed fine with staying. Something shifted between Monday and Tuesday, and Manuel stopped hiding it.

All of this is happening against the backdrop of an independent investigation into Michigan's athletic department that was commissioned in December 2025.

Chicago-based law firm Jenner and Block was brought in after Sherrone Moore was fired for an inappropriate relationship with a staff member and arrested the same day it happened.

Moore's victim, Paige Shiver, said she endured years of manipulation and exploitation and that the university failed to protect her. Those claims raised serious questions about what the athletic department knew and when.

Michigan's Board of Regents is scheduled to meet on Thursday to receive the findings of that investigation. What happens at that meeting will determine Manuel's fate.

Warde Manuel presided over two national championships, but also oversaw multiple major scandals

Manuel has been Michigan's athletic director since 2016. He oversaw the 2023 football national championship under Jim Harbaugh and the 2026 men's basketball title under Dusty May, per Fox 2 Detroit.

Both coaches left after winning it all. Harbaugh went to the Los Angeles Chargers, and May left for the Dallas Mavericks

Manuel's tenure had already been through enough: the Stallions' sign-stealing mess. Matt Weiss's federal hacking charges. Harbaugh's NCAA suspension. The Moore firing. And now a full department-wide investigation on top of all of it.

Michigan owes Manuel 36 months of pay as severance unless they work out a settlement first. That number will absolutely be part of the conversation when the board sits down on Thursday.

What do you think about the latest developments surrounding Warde Manuel's future at Michigan? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Farheen Fathima

Edited by

Zaid Quraishi