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Kyle Whittingham will return to the Utah sideline in 2025.
The Utes’ head coach channeled his inner Air Jordan for Sunday’s announcement, putting out a release through the school’s official Twitter account that mimicked the famous “I’m back” fax Michael Jordan released in 1995 upon his return to the NBA.
“We are back in 2025,” the release read.
Rather than the “-30-” sign-off that is traditionally used by journalists to signal the end of a particular copy, Whittingham’s release ends with “-21-” to reference what will be his 21st season with the program.
𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚍𝚒𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎📰
We are looking forward to 2025‼️#GoUtes | @UtahCoachWhitt pic.twitter.com/RWeTskOV7M
— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) December 8, 2024
Whittingham, 65, recently cast doubt on his future. At a news conference several weeks ago, he admitted he was uncertain about whether he’d return to Utah next year.
“My decision will be made on what’s best for the program, not what’s best for me,” Whittingham said. “So, it’ll be completely determined on how I feel this program is best served going forward.”
Utah, ravaged once again by injuries, stumbled through its debut season in the Big 12. The Utes opened the year as the preseason favorite to win the conference. Instead, senior quarterback Cam Rising was limited to 3 games and Utah struggled in his absence. True Freshman Isaac Wilson threw 11 interceptions against 10 touchdowns in 9 appearances and the Utes went just 5-7.
They managed only 2 wins in 9 league games and lost 7 straight from Sept. 28 through Nov. 23. Utah snapped the skid with a 28-14 win over UCF to end the year, but missed a bowl game for the first time in a full season since 2013.
In July, Utah named defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley as the head coach in waiting. Offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig stepped down in late October and has since hired New Mexico offensive coordinator Jason Beck.
Whittingham is 167-86 as Utah’s head coach. He is tied for the second-longest tenured coach in the FBS, behind only Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
