What's Next: 3 Priorities for Kyle Whittingham, Reportedly Michigan's New Coach

Michigan hired a winner — literally and figuratively in Kyle Whittingham, with whom the Wolverines reportedly finalized a five-year deal on Friday.

Most importantly, he’s a clean name, with no ties to the Jim Harbaugh regime, who can stabilize the program at a moment of great tumult.

"Someone better tell [Ohio State coach] Ryan Day there’s a real ball coach at Michigan now," an SEC assistant coach told me.

Whittingham brings more than two decades of coaching experience to one of the biggest brands and best-known programs in the sport. After succeeding Urban Meyer — who is widely regarded as one of the best college football coaches of all-time — at Utah, Whittingham put together an impressive 21-year run as the program's head coach.

While Whittingham was traveling Friday with the Utes to the Las Vegas Bowl, where Utah plays against Nebraska on Dec. 31., he is expected to join Michigan at the Citrus Bowl, where the Wolverines will take on Texas, also on New Year's Eve. 

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Last season, Whittingham capped off a 177-88 record in Salt Lake City with a 10-win season and a No. 15 ranking. He’s shown he can win on the biggest stages the sport can offer, too. Alongside two Pac-12 Conference titles and one Mountain West Conference title, he led the Utes to a 2005 Fiesta Bowl win and, in the 2009 Sugar Bowl, a dominant 31-17 win against Nick Saban’s Alabama to cap an undefeated 2008-09 season.

Whittingham is one of the most highly-regarded head coaches in the sport and more than ready for the opportunities and challenges the Wolverines face.

"They fell into a perfect hire for their situation," an industry source told me.

Now, at 66, Whittingham will bring that experience to a Michigan program in turmoil following the surprising but necessary decision to fire former Wolverines head coach Sherrone Moore. What’s next are the three most important action items on a list of to-dos for the Wolverines and their new head coach.

1. Retain Michigan QB Bryce Underwood

This one hasn’t changed since I wrote about Michigan's to-do list back on Dec. 11. Since Moore’s firing for cause, Underwood is the most important person to retain in the entire Michigan program. 

"If he enters the portal, that could put them back further than losing the head coach," a Big Ten assistant coach told me.

As a true freshman, Underwood accounted for more than 2,500 total yards, 14 touchdowns and eight giveaways through this season. Retaining QB1 in Ann Arbor, regardless of who the next head coach is, gives the Wolverines the best chance to compete for conference and national championships in 2026.

Along with Underwood, running back Jordan Marshall, wide receiver Andrew Marsh, cornerback Jyaire Hill and offensive tackle Andrew Sprague enjoyed breakout years for the Wolverines and, as core players, are expected to be integral to their success in 2026.

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2. Hire a staff that improves the roster immediately

Michigan is in the midst of a trying time for itself, its fans and its alumni.

Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel moved swiftly to install Biff Poggi as interim head coach, and one reason was to give the team the best chance to stay intact while it identified its next permanent head coach. Amid the coaching search, the No. 18 Wolverines are also trying to finish this season with 10 wins and a victory against No. 13 Texas in the Citrus Bowl.

"If they get through the bowl game, beat Texas and hire the right guy, it’s the best save they can hope for," a Big Ten assistant coach recently told me.

Since then, Poggi has been candid about the dire situation the Wolverines are in just days before the program’s game against the Longhorns.

"We sent them home for Christmas [Monday], and I think there’s a really good chance that we’re going to have many more opt-outs for the game unfortunately," Poggi told a recent episode of The Stampede, a Texas Longhorns podcast.

"Because we’re in such a state of flux, and when they get to this business of it, they think, ‘We don’t have a coach, we’ve had this situation with our former coach, there’s investigations, all these things. I don’t know who’s going to coach me. Why do I want to play in that game?’ I can see some of that happening."

Poggi revealed no Michigan players currently are in ongoing negotiations for agreements for the upcoming season.

"We’re not able to give anybody a financial agreement because we don’t have a permanent coach," he said on The Stampede.

That moratorium will need to come to an end — fast. The Wolverines need to not only hire a general manager to retain the current roster but also to hit the portal hard when it opens from Jan. 2 to 16.

3. Layer your winning traits over the top of the Wolverines

The Wolverines rank No. 12 in the 2026 recruiting cycle in the On3 Industry Comparison, a composite of the three major recruiting services. Players like five-star Savion Hiter, a two-time MaxPreps All-American tail back, are signed to the program.

Moving to hire offensive coordinator at Utah Jason Beck will help with that. Beck, who joined Utah last year, vastly improved the Utes offense. Utah averaged the second-most points (41.1) and yards per game (478.6) in 2025, and quarterback Devon Dampier threw for 2,867 total yards, 29 total touchdowns and three just five interceptions last season.

With Underwood at quarterback, Beck would have a passer in Ann Arbor with a comparable skillset to Dampier but who is younger and, arguably, more talented.

The offense, though, won’t be built around the quarterback's ability to throw the ball, but rather the offense’s ability to run it. Whittingham’s teams have, like Michigan, prided themselves on being dominant in the trenches.

"I can say with confidence we should be the best offensive line since I've been at the University of Utah, which has been forever," Whittingham said last July at Big 12 Media Days.

In 2025, Utah produced the Outland Trophy winner, awarded to the nation’s best interior lineman, in offensive tackle Spencer Fano, who expects to be a first-round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft. Given the resources that will be provided to him at Michigan, there’s no reason to believe he cannot outdo his 2025 offensive line and produce the kind of unit upfront that is capable of winning the national title.

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.

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