Kyle Whittingham. Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Kyle Whittingham seems like slam dunk hire for Michigan

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Dec 26, 2025 5:27 PM ET

The University of Michigan has its new football coach, and it is hard to imagine the program emerging from a chaotic situation better than it is now. Michigan has reportedly hired former Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham to run its program, agreeing to a five-year contract with him on Friday.

Kyle Whittingham hire seems like fantastic hire for Michigan

There are a lot of things to like about this move for the Wolverines.

The most obvious is that Whittingham has a track record of success at Utah, helping keep the program as a nationally relevant team for the better part of two decades. The Utes were consistently ranked, consistently in bowl games and won at least 10 games eight different times during his tenure.

He is now going to one of the most prominent programs in the country, where attracting top-tier talent should not be an issue, especially if Michigan has the NIL funds to acquire players. It should. Especially given how serious the program is about winning and how competitive it is in what is now, arguably, the best conference in the country.

Update: Kyle Whittingham has agreed to a five-year deal to become Michigan’s next head coach, sources tell me and @DanWetzel. The deal is expected to be announced later today. https://t.co/wFb7a8PRRU
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 26, 2025

It is hard to imagine any program finding a better coach this late in the hiring cycle.

Whittingham retired from Utah shortly after the 2025 regular season. It should now be pretty obvious that retirement was never fully his goal, and that perhaps he knew a bigger opportunity was going to present itself. It certainly has now.

The other win for Michigan here is that Whittingham should bring a steady hand, consistency and a lack of chaos to a program that has had a tumultuous run over the past few years. From Jim Harbaugh's departure after the national championship, to the Connor Stalions sign-stealing scandal, to former coach Sherrone Moore being fired with cause a month ago due to an inappropriate relationship with a staffer, and then ending up in jail facing home invasion and stalking charges, the Michigan program has been a roller coaster of distractions and stories.

Whittingham not only offers a good football coach with a track record of success, but also a low-risk hire in terms of scandal and chaos. It is a reasonable, sensible and successful hire for a program that needs all of those things at this moment.

In his 22 seasons at Utah, Whittingham accumulated a 177-88 record. That includes an 11-6 record in bowl games.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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