Michigan Football: Bob Shoop won’t wow in recruiting, but is a good hire

Michigan football filled one of its two assistant coaching vacancies Thursday by adding former Mississippi State DC Bob Shoop to the staff.

The wheels turn quickly in the offseason and Michigan football fans found that out once again this week. On Wednesday, the Wolverines had suddenly lost assistant coach Anthony Campanile to the NFL, only to add to the staff Thursday by hiring Bob Shoop.

Shoop’s name has been on the radar with the Wolverines since the departure of Chris Partridge to Ole Miss to be the co-DC there. Shoop, who was the defensive coordinator at Penn State in 2016, was the defensive coordinator with Mississippi State before Mike Leach took over.

Shoop also had a connection with Don Brown. He was his secondary coach back in 2006 with UMass and it seems like he could take on that role again with Michigan football. What his role will be isn’t clear, but his hire has been confirmed by numerous outlets including 247 sports.

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It would make sense for Shoop to take on the safeties coaching position left vacant by Partridge. He has a ton of experience in both the SEC and the Big Ten and his coaching acumen could be a huge positive for a coaching staff still searching for answers against really good teams.

The only downside to his hire is that it’s not going to make waves on the recruiting trail. According to 247 sports, he was 119th in the assistant coach recruiting rankings in 2019 and was outside the top-400 in the 2020 class.

Yet, that’s not necessarily a bad thing and we all know that recruiting for Michigan football is a little different than Mississippi State. Ed Warriner didn’t come to the Wolverines with the reputation of being a strong recruiter and that’s become a strength, along with his player development.

To me, that’s the key with Shoop, who is much more experienced than even Partridge. Shoop will know how to develop players and he may have some fresh approaches that can help Brown adapt, especially considering the two have a previous relationship.

The bottom line is that not every hire has to be all about recruiting. Michigan just isn’t going to win every recruiting battle, so finding a guy that can help a three or four-star take the next step is just as important.

Shoop could help be that guy and his experience could be vital down the road. He led the Bulldogs to the SEC’s best scoring defense in 2018, so that’s certainly worth something and whatever his title, Michigan should be a better defensive team because of him next season.