The Cost of Controversy , Paige Shiver’s Salary Raise and the Shadows It Cast

Unless a pay increase is at the core of an ongoing debate, it rarely makes the news. That’s exactly what happened when Paige Shiver took on the position of executive assistant to Sherrone Moore, the now-former head coach of Michigan football, and her yearly salary increased by about 55 percent, from $58,025 to $90,000.

The timing immediately attracted public attention, even if the number isn’t remarkable for a person working in a Power Five athletic department. Just a few weeks before Moore’s legal issues became widely publicized, the promotion was officially announced in the middle of November. All at once, a routine administrative development was being analyzed as if it were a political scandal. The inquiries included everything the rise would imply, not simply the raise itself.

(Paige Shiver Salary Overview)

It’s simple for those who aren’t as familiar with sports operations to misjudge the demands of a position like Shiver’s. In addition to handling calendar invites and paperwork, executive assistants at this level serve as air traffic controllers for the high-stakes, chaotic environment that is college football. Press appearances, recruit visits, compliance team coordination—every choice, every phone call, becomes a part of a bigger machine. Her increased pay wasn’t shocking in that regard; in fact, it was probably long overdue.

However, the story became more compelling when it was revealed that Moore had reportedly broken into a woman’s apartment in early December. Although Shiver’s name was never formally verified in court documents, some media outlets conjectured that the flat belonged to her. Nevertheless, the internet took over the conversation after her identity—whether by coincidence or association—entered it.

Before long, social media users and message boards started making connections between things that no official record existed. the increase. The promotion. The apartment. The charges. On its own, each item was simple. When combined, they produced a disturbing image that conflated public speech with privacy.

Moore, who was once thought of as a rising coaching star, was soon accused with two misdemeanors and one felony, including domestic stalking and third-degree home invasion. Prosecutors said he had a long-term relationship with the accused victim that terminated a few days prior to the break-in, according to NBC News. The information presented in court was unsettling: Moore had allegedly threatened self-harm, entered the house without permission, and left more questions than answers.

Shiver, however, said nothing. She didn’t do any interviews or make any public remarks. Prior to the affair, her promotion and pay increase were administrative footnotes, but they made national media headlines and were conversation points on sports radio. The pattern of women becoming involuntary participants in public theater when they are near male-led controversies is remarkably similar.

Amazingly, that wasn’t even the first time Shiver had encountered negative publicity. The Chicago Bears, a team where her father has been a longtime scout, released a piece on her experience with Pompe Disease years ago when she was still a college student. Muscles are weakened by the uncommon and progressive disease, particularly in the skeletal and respiratory systems. She once wrote, “Every day is a battle… when I am in pain, I am really in pain.”

That letter is probably still in the minds of those who read it. It is scathingly honest, not out of sympathy. There was only a young woman describing how she overcomes everyday obstacles to continue moving forward; there was no dramatic arc. Given the emotional and physical burden she endured in silence, her choice to pursue a career in football operations was neither straightforward nor traditional.

Shiver demonstrated the ability to negotiate intricate systems, both biological and institutional, by the time she joined the University of Michigan staff in 2022. Coordination abilities and a solid grasp of NCAA regulations were essential for her position as Assistant Recruiting & Operations Coordinator. Additionally, it put her in the complex web of a nationally recognized football team with high standards that go far beyond the field.

Michigan football had already entered a difficult phase during the fiscal year that resulted in her promotion. The department was plagued for a long time by coaching changes, NCAA investigations, and media rumors. In light of this, Shiver’s hiring as executive assistant may have seemed standard. However, Moore’s close closeness to him and the intensely personal nature of the accusations against him produced a narrative storm that few administrative staff members ever encounter.

I briefly stopped at the junction of these facts—the apartment, the illness, the raise, and the silence—and pondered how frequently women are forced into discussions they never agreed to in male-dominated settings.

There is currently no proof in the public domain that Shiver went above and above the call of duty. And that’s the idea. Her raise wasn’t hidden; anyone who was prepared to look could see it in the payroll records. The way those figures were interpreted after scandal entered the picture was what altered.

Moore had left by the beginning of 2025, and Michigan was in the midst of yet another period of off-field turmoil. Shiver, meantime, went about her task in silence. Nothing to say. Not a spotlight. Only the methodical handling of the duties she had acquired, long before her name was even publicized in the media.