Michigan thinks it can steal a key Notre Dame football staffer

The Notre Dame football program has been having some serious success recruiting and as it turns out, people all over the country have been paying attention. That certainly seems to be why a new report has started circulating about new Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore trying to poach one of the Irish’s top recruiting staffers.

According to GBM Wolverine, Moore is going after Chad Bowden, who is currently the Notre Dame football director of recruiting. According to the report, Bowden will be named general manager of the Wolverines program.

The site points out that if Bowden were lured away from South Bend, it would take a boat load of money as well as a title bump to get the job done. Of course, if Bowden is officially offered this position, it would make sense for Marcus Freeman to simply match that offer.

Michigan thinks it can steal a key Notre Dame football staffer

While Bowden isn’t as high profile as someone like Mike Denbrock, his contributions to the Fighting Irish can’t be overstated. It’s been noticed by people around Notre Dame and the rest of the college football world that Freeman’s recruiting has ramped up in the last few years.

The 2024 class was among the best in the country and the 2025 class is right at the top of the rankings. Chad Bowden has been credited with playing a rather large part in the recent success on the recruiting trail.

There’s also the fact that it Bowden and Freeman are very, very good friends who came up through the coaching ranks together. Even if a move to Michigan was somehow a move up the ladder for the Irish recruiting director, it doesn’t feel like it would be big enough to leave his good friend behind.

It’s worth pointing out this isn’t the first time this winter a Notre Dame football staffer was rumored to be on the move. It doesn’t appear MIke Mickens is going anywhere and it would be shocking if Bowden jumped to the Wolverines.