The University of Michigan will pay Athletic Director Warde Manuel $7.1 million to resign after an external investigation found he failed to act on wrongdoing inside his department — and taxpayers will foot the bill while students across the country drown in loan debt.
Manuel's exit package, detailed in a six-page settlement obtained through public-records requests, is a masterclass in how public universities reward failure. The embattled AD will receive a lump-sum payment of $7,143,346 within 21 days of his December 31 resignation, plus $108,000 in retirement contributions, $82,000 for his attorney fees, continued health care, and golf and ticket perks, according to the agreement signed July 17 by Manuel and university President Domenico Grasso.
The school even waived the 20-year service requirement for Manuel's retiree benefits — he's only been there 11 years — and voided a clause in his contract that would have required him to repay nearly $4 million for leaving early. That provision, the Detroit Free Press reported, simply "shall not apply." Manuel signed a five-year extension in December 2024 worth $1.9 million in base salary plus $350,000 in deferred compensation annually. So much for commitments.
The payout follows a $12 million investigation by private law firm Jenner & Block into the athletic department's culture. The probe concluded Manuel "failed to quickly and effectively act on allegations of wrongdoing by athletic department employees." The university has refused to release the complete findings.
And there was plenty of wrongdoing to ignore. Manuel fired football coach Sherrone Moore after claiming the school had "credible evidence" of an inappropriate relationship with staffer Paige Shiver. Moore was later arrested at Shiver's apartment and pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of misusing a telecommunications device and trespassing. The football program is currently on NCAA probation for two separate violations, with former coach Jim Harbaugh and staffer Connor Stalions facing show-cause penalties. Former assistant Matt Weiss faces federal felony computer-hacking charges. Manuel also clashed with former coaches Juwan Howard and Mel Pearson, and a vehicle registered to his wife turned up in an embarrassing police investigation involving a former basketball player, MLive reported.
The Board of Regents met July 16 in Traverse City and did not publicly discuss Manuel's future or the investigation. Grasso announced the departure three days later, praising Manuel's tenure. The school's own summary of the Jenner & Block report tried to have it both ways — heralding Manuel's "commitment to student-athletes" while documenting his failures to police his own department.
Manuel is bound by a non-compete clause barring him from working as an athletic director or senior advisor at any Big Ten school for two years. He acknowledged in the agreement he had 21 days to review it before signing.
A public university that spent $12 million investigating a single department's rot is now paying the man who presided over that rot more than $7 million to leave quietly — while the full investigation remains hidden from the public. The only people paying full price are the taxpayers and students.
