ANN ARBOR >> In the ever-changing college football landscape, a head coach’s job also continues to evolve because of NIL and, soon enough, revenue sharing.

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore said recently on a local television interview with WXYZ’s Brad Galli, that 50% of his workday involves NIL. Michigan is coming off a bye and the 5-5 Wolverines face Northwestern on Saturday in the final home game of the season, but a good portion of his Monday weekly news conference focused on where he and the program are with NIL.

Moore explained that most of the time he spends on NIL is more focused on roster management, which is where general manager Sean Magee is significantly involved.

“More so than the NIL, how we’re doing it, who we’re recruiting, so more recruiting than anything else,” Moore said of his daily tasks. “And it’s texting kids. It’s talking to parents. Talking to the brother, the sister, the kid, the teacher, the high school coach, and continue to build those relationships. So the guys, when they get here, I know everything about them, and they know everything about me. And then, when I try to push them to that level that we’re successful, they know I’m doing it out of love and care and in their best interest. That’s really what most of my days are, are filled with.”

With the early signing period coming up in two weeks, Michigan’s 2025 class currently is ranked 14th by 247Sports Composite. There has been considerable attention the last few weeks on Michigan, clearly willing to promise enormous money, trying to land No. 1 recruit Bryce Underwood, the five-star quarterback from Belleville who has been committed to LSU since Jan. 6.

Donor support is part of Michigan’s recruiting sales pitches, especially this pursuit of Underwood.

“It’s part of football now, right?” Moore said. “NIL is part of recruiting, so it’s been a huge piece of it. We’re just continuing to strive to get the best players that fit us and the best players we can, and we’re getting the support we need to do that.”

Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel appeared on the in-house Conqu’ring Heroes podcast on Oct. 15, and openly pushed for donor support for the athletic department and NIL.

“I would encourage our fans who are interested in supporting our student-athletes, in supporting Michigan athletics and our programs to go in and support,” Manuel said last month. “Times have changed. We need to get beyond the fact that we are uncomfortable with giving money to our student-athletes and paying them. That day is past, it’s well past, and it’s time for us to support our student-athletes.”

Former Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said in 2022 that the program’s approach to recruiting was focused on being transformational not transactional. Moore said that hasn’t changed, but acknowledged the transactional aspect is definitely emphasized without sacrificing the transformational importance.

“Because that’s just a part of college football and recruiting now,” Moore said. “You still have to have the attitude that you want to come to Michigan to be transformed into something bigger than just yourself. It’s that the support you get from the boosters isn’t just always financial. It’s putting guys in position, whether it’s internships or different things, to make sure you have a goal you want to do.

“Football is not here forever. What can we do to help you accomplish that goal? That support is a big piece of it, too.”

Moore said he’s not really involved in discussing money with recruits. His participation is mostly in terms of building a relationship with the players.

“It’s a conversation, and it’s not really like, ‘How much can you get for me?’” Moore said Monday about how early do recruits bring up money. “It’s just part of the conversations now in college football. We really rely on that not being the conversation with me. I really talk about the football aspect, what we can do, what the university can do, what our alumni can do, the education you’re going to get, because football is going to end and you’re going to have a great education. Most of our recruits here, they really value that.”Big numbers bandied about for certain players could be an issue in locker room cohesiveness, but senior edge T.J. Guy said Monday that players are always happy for the success of their teammates.

“We don’t count pockets or anything like that. I don’t think it’s anything like that going on,” Guy said. “If a guy is getting a lot of things going for him, we always happy that that’s happening for him.”

Moore said the goal is to spread the wealth among the players.

“We want everybody to eat when it comes to that, and they’ll all earn their keep,” Moore said. “They all get what they deserve. We got a great system in place, and … I leave it at.”