Josh Pate offers analysis on Michigan’s hiring of Kyle Whittingham after turbulent coaching search
By David Wasson
Published:
The Michigan football program was left reeling after the firing and subsequent arrest of former coach Sherrone Moore on Dec. 10. But the Wolverines began digging themselves out of that hole over the weekend with the hire of former Utah coach Kyle Whittingham.
A 21-year head coaching veteran at Utah, Whittingham won 177 games with the Utes before departing the program following a 10-2 season and 32 years total with the program. He then was hired Dec. 26 by Michigan, signing a 5-year deal worth an average of $8.2 million per season.
ESPN college football analyst Josh Pate appeared Monday morning on Get Up to talk about how good a fit Whittingham will be in Ann Arbor.
“They upgrade Day 1 with this,” Pate said. “It felt like Michigan had to kind of jump out of the plane without the chute. It wasn’t working, and they pulled the cord and it didn’t work, and there was an updraft at the last minute and they just landed on the ground.
“No one knows anything about Kyle Whittingham’s personal life other than he drives a motorcycle for work. That is fantastic news for Michigan. You got probably pound-for-pound the best coach in the Big 12 who, for his own unique set of circumstances, was sort of shoved out the door well before he was ready to go at Utah. Culture, football piece, it all fits there. This is an awesome outcome for what was at times a curvy, windy road of a coaching search.”
Michigan has a tough schedule in 2026 that includes Oklahoma, Indiana, Penn State, Ohio State and Oregon.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. He also hosts Gulfshore Sports with David Wasson, weekdays from 3-5 pm across Southwest Florida and on FoxSportsFM.com. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
