Michigan football targeting ex-Utah coach Kyle Whittingham

Michigan football appears to be closing in on Kyle Whittingham as its next coach.

Whittingham, the legendary former Utah coach, has “emerged as the focus of the University of Michigan’s coaching search,” according to a new ESPN report.

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Three people close to the situation who were not at liberty to speak publicly confirmed with the Free Press that there is heavy interest in Whittingham from Michigan’s side. There is expected to be a briefing for the University’s higher ups later Friday morning.

He stepped down as the Utes‘ coach after this past year when he led Utah to a 10-2 record in his 21st full season.

Whittingham still has one game left to coach. Utah faces Nebraska in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 31, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. against Nebraska, about 30 minutes after U-M’s Citrus Bowl begins in Orlando, Florida.

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Kyle Whittingham coaching record

He went 177-88 overall in his time at Utah, his only head coaching gig at the college level. He coached the Utes in the Fiesta Bowl after the 2004 season when Urban Meyer left Utah for Florida.

It was an incredible two-decade plus run for Whittingham in Salt Lake City. He helped the Utes transition first from the Mountain West to the Pac-12 and then from the Pac-12 to the Big 12. His best teams were known for their physical style and controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides on the ball.

After a disappointing 5-7 season in 2024, Utah rebounded this year with an 10-2 impressive campaign, but Whittingham’s tenure came to an unceremonious ending.

Did Kyle Whittingham retire? Why he left Utah

It’s complicated.

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On the surface, Utah’s season was not nearly bad enough to move on from Whittingham. And he didn’t retire – at least not from coaching.

Whittingham, who announced he was stepping down at Utah last week with a year left on his contract, has expressed interest in Michigan’s position, the Free Press has learned. He told reporters Thursday that he’s “in the transfer portal.”

Whittingham led the Utes for more than two decades in three different conferences (Mountain West, Pac-12 and Big 12) and proved to be a consistent winner. He won the Mountain West once (2008) and the Pac-12 twice (2021-22)

He won seven or more games 17 times, eight games or more 15 times, nine games or more 12 times and had eight seasons of 10 wins or more and has an 11-6 record in bowl games.

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Whittingham has been on staff in Utah for nearly half his life, beginning in 1994 as defensive line coach before he became defensive coordinator in 1995 while coaching safeties or linebackers for the next decade.

Defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley will take over for Whittingham after the bowl game in a similar succession plan to what happened after Meyer left Utah.

Kyle Whittingham age

He is 66.

Despite rumors that Whittingham was going to retire after the 2025 season, he made it clear that was not the case and he was still interested in coaching when asked about if this was a retirement.

“Who knows?” he said to media in Salt Lake City. “I’m stepping down, step away and reevaluate things. … I’m a free agent, I’m in the transfer portal. It’s a different feel, but I’m at peace. And I did not want to be that guy who overstayed his welcome with people saying, ‘Hey, when’s this guy gonna leave?’ That was not my intention – ever. I hope I didn’t do that. I’m sure with some people I did do that. To me, the timing was right.”

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Why Michigan is looking for new coach

The reason Michigan is looking for a new coach in the first place, is another story entirely.Wh

Former Michigan coach Sherrone Moore is awaiting a probable cause hearing in January and wearing a GPS tether after his firing by athletic director Warde Manuel on Dec. 10 after the surfacing of “credible evidence” of an illicit relationship with a staffer and a subsequent arrest for allegedly breaking into her apartment and threatening to kill himself. That resulting in charges for third-degree felony home invasion, misdemeanor stalking and misdemeanor breaking and entering.

(The Free Press generally does not identify people described as domestic crime victims without their consent.)

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In football-related issues, Moore was the second of U-M’s past two coaches to find himself in hot water. First, Jim Harbaugh was suspended twice during a pair of NCAA investigations, the latter of which – involving Connor Stalions’ sign-stealing scheme – resulted in more than $30 million in fines for the program and numerous show-cause edicts for U-M coaches (including Moore).

In addition to the two-game suspension levied by the program for his role in the sign-stealing scandal, Moore was set to be suspended for the first game of the 2026 season. He was also suspended for the first game of the 2023 season as part of a program-issued punishment for recruiting violations during the coronavirus pandemic.

It’s unknown when the Whittingham news could take the next step, but according to ESPN, “Whittingham’s candidacy is expected to be shared with top Michigan officials on Friday,” and a deal could become official shortly after if it gets approved.

He is not expected to coach the team against Texas in the Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31. The team will be led by interim coach Biff Poggi.

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Once the hire is announced, Michigan’s players will have five days to enter the transfer portal, and 15 days after entering to select a new team, or return to the Wolverines. Also, the NCAA’s standard transfer-portal window runs from Jan. 2-16.

[ MUST LISTEN: Make “Hail Yes!” your go-to Wolverines podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ]   

Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football targeting ex-Utah coach Kyle Whittingham