Kyle Whittingham Gives Updates on Michigan Football Injuries, Strategy Against Iowa

Kyle Whittingham took to the podium on Monday to discuss the aftermath of Michigan’s disastrous 20-19 loss at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes.

If you were looking for reasons to be angry, Whittingham may have given you some ammo there. If you were looking for hope for the future, there is some hope there as well.

Ultimately, what Whittingham says won’t matter too much if Michigan gets back to their winning ways on Saturday against PJ Fleck and the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The hope is to see some progress as Whittingham noted that they are 3-1, but he feels like they are 0-4.

With that in mind, here are some of the highlights of things he said in his Monday availability.

Reinforcements Coming

Andrew Babalola goes through warmups before the Michigan spring game | Getty Images

Last week, Michigan was perilously thin on the offensive line and it looked like disaster was going to strike further when Blake Frazier was laying on the ground in agony. Frazier was able to finish the game, which we’ll get to in a minute.

The reason the injury was even scarier was because of the lack of reinforcements Michigan had behind Frazier.

The big news from Monday’s availability was that former five-star offensive tackle Andrew Babalola is hopefully going to return to practice next week. If Babalola can get himself in a position where he could contribute, Michigan, at minimum will have some depth on the offensive line.

With Andrew Sprague out of the lineup, the Wolverines are using Evan Link as their left tackle with Frazier moving to the right side.

Link has performed admirably at left tackle, but could be a solution to some of the issues Michigan has on the interior if Babalola is able to play.

With Sprague and Frazier both nursing injuries, Babalola provides depth if nothing else.

The other big piece that was missing from the lineup was Michigan’s rhino, Manuel Beigel. Beigel missed Saturday’s game and gave way to Avery Gach.

Whittingham expects him to return to practice this week, which likely puts him in line to play on Saturday against the Golden Gophers.

Still Some Concerns

Michigan defensive end Dom Nichols (8), left, and defensive end John Henry Daley (90) celebrates — USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

With good news came some concerning news. Blake Frazier was able to finish Saturday’s game, but is noted as day-to-day this week. The same is true for star defensive end John Henry Daley who exited the game on the final possession.

Frazier was able to finish the game, while Daley missed the final play.

If Daley can’t play, Michigan has plenty of depth at defensive end. If Frazier cannot go, Michigan is in a really tough spot at offensive tackle.

The availability report will be something worth monitoring throughout the week.

Jay Hill Calls the Defense

The final defensive call of Saturday’s game has been under fire with Jay Hill choosing to have a linebacker as a spy with his cornerbacks in press man coverage on a play that Iowa had to throw the ball into the end zone.

Obviously, the call did not work as Iowa was able to score a touchdown with Reece Vander Zee playing the role of hero.

Whittingham said he felt that was the best structure of the defense for the situation.

Forgive me if I don’t agree. Hank Brown is not the mobile quarterback Michigan had faced in the first two weeks, and only rushing three players on the final series allowed Brown to be far too comfortable in the pocket.

Nonetheless, Whittingham did not necessarily defend the call, just noted that Hill is the one who made it.

They Did Consider Throwing

Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham next to quarterback Bryce Underwood (19) reacts — USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The final offensive play of the game for Michigan was discouraging due to how conservative it was. The Wolverines faced a third-and-5 with a chance to ice the game by getting a first down.

Bryce Underwood had played what Whittingham called his best game. Aggression in that situation felt warranted. Instead, Michigan ran the ball to bleed the clock for as long as they could, and trusted their defense.

You know what happened next. The Wolverines head coach did note that they did consider throwing the ball on the final play.

He would later note that his team needs to do a better job of putting games away.

Giving his players a chance to make a play in that situation would be a good start.

Penalties

Last, but certainly not least, Whittingham did address the penalty issue. Sort of.

He did note that his team is committing too many penalties. That’s an admission of the problem.

He also was not harsh enough on Zeke Berry’s personal foul penalty saying it was not overly egregious.

He did note that it was avoidable, but Whittingham is wrong. It was egregious, and a benching next week could be justifiable.

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