As the calendar flips over from Christmas and moves towards the end of 2025, the Michigan Wolverines have hired former Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham to replace head coach to replace Sherrone Moore.
As we had reported in recent weeks, Kyle Whittingham became a favorite to land in Ann Arbor, and on Friday morning, multiple reports said that Whittingham has emerged as the focus of Michigan’s coaching search.
And by Friday afternoon, Adam Schefter was the first to report that Whittingham was confirmed as the next head coach of the Wolverines, agreeing to a five-year contract at 66 years old, on a deal that would take him to 71.
Whittingham stepped aside as the Utah head coach earlier this month, giving way to his replacement-in-waiting Morgan Scalley to take over. But at the time, it was clear this was not exclusively Whittingham’s decision, as he, and those around him, were not calling it a flat-out retirement. Scalley joined the staff in 2007 and has served as DC for the past 10 seasons.
Utah finished the season 10-2 and third in the Big 12, with those two losses against Texas Tech (34-10) and in-state rival BYU (24-21). In 21 seasons, Whittingham went 177-88 at Utah (9-9 in the Big 12).
Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer was expected to be a target for Michigan, but when the Crimson Tide beat Oklahoma in the first round of the CFP, the timeline to realistically hire DeBoer fell through. The Crimson Tide next play Jan. 1 in the Rose Bowl against Indiana. The NCAA transfer portal opens Jan. 2, which makes the timeline difficult.
Meantime, Michigan is playing Texas on Dec. 31 in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl led by interim coach Biff Poggi.
