Analyst says Michigan job is 'tailor-made' for one college football head coach

The Wolverines could definitely look his way in the coming days.

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Following Michigan firing second-year head coach Sherrone Moore, everyone believes they know who the perfect candidate for the Wolverines is. One name that is being talked about, maybe not as much as it should be, is Arizona State's Kenny Dillingham.

Dillingham took the Sun Devils to the College Football Playoff last season and is one of the more enticing young coaches out there. According to Josh Pate, he believes the Michigan job is tailor-made for Dillingham.

"I feel kind of strongly about this, that job looks tailor-made for a guy like Kenny Dillingham," Pate said on ESPN's Get Up. "I know other names will be thrown out. I know -- I'm telling you, Kenny Dillingham, for most college football fans, is a guy they've heard sound bites from. He's the guy that took Arizona State to the Playoff last year, 'Oh, he's that guy Cam Skattebo played for'. Kenny Dillingham, to me, has the right mix of freshness and also really, really intense.

"I watched Kenny Dillingham operate in Dan Lanning's building up in Oregon and fit in very seamlessly. But also, look what he's done with the quarterback position and what Michigan has not been able to do with the quarterback position. Look at the toughness his teams play with. I know right now, they are looking around and looking at names. I don't think Kenny Dillingham's name should be too far down that list. And he's done a whole lot more with a whole lot less... He's the name I would circle."

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Dillingham, age 35, was the offensive coordinator at Memphis, Auburn, Florida State, and Oregon before he became the head coach at ASU back in 2023. After a three-win season with the Sun Devils in Year 1, he took ASU to the College Football Playoff in 2024 and won eight games this season.

Dillingham has been known for his explosive offenses and ability to develop quarterbacks. While there will be more notable names that Michigan could target, Dillingham is definitely an interesting name, and one that the Wolverines could look at.

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