Kyle Whittingham's to-do list as new Michigan football head coach

After news hit on Friday that Michigan had zeroed in on Utah's Kyle Whittingham, the two parties agreed on a deal to make Whittingham the 22nd head coach of the Michigan football program.

Whittingham, who is 66 years old, coached 21 seasons at Utah, compiling a 177-88 record with the Utes. He was a two-time Coach of the Year and had a perfect 13-0 season in 2008. The word stability comes to mind when thinking of Whittingham.

Not many coaches coach the same team for 21 years, and Whittingham won't only bring stability, but he will bring an advanced mind and someone who should be able to get the Wolverines back on track -- in multiple areas.

Now that he's hired, here are three things Whittingham needs to do.

Make staff changes that are needed

Michigan coach Tony Alford — Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

Like all coaching changes, the new head coach is going to assess the situation and bring in his guys, while possibly retaining some previous staff.

While the players appeared to like Sherrone Moore and he was a reason for some players being in Ann Arbor, it's hard to argue that the position coaches are a big reason for that as well. In my opinion, coaches like Tony Alford (RB coach), LaMar Morgan (DB coach), Biff Poggi (interim head coach), and Louis Esposito (D-line coach) are all valuable coaches to have on the staff.

All three have done a great job at recruiting and both Alford and Esposito have had great results on the field. If Whittingham chooses to keep any previous staff, those three should be considered at the very least. As with Poggi, he has been great in keeping players together following the debacle with Moore -- although his recent comments were a little discouraging.

Whittingham is a defensive-minded coach, so getting some good offensive minds inside Schembechler Hall will be a must. Last season, at Utah, Whittingham hired Jason Beck as the OC. Beck has been a QB coach and an OC for the past three seasons. While he doesn't have a ton of experience, Utah had the No. 5 scoring offense in the nation and No. 6 total offense. It would be an intriguing hire if Beck came along with Whittingham.

Retain talent

Michigan QB Bryce Underwood — Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Michigan might have missed the College Football Playoff in two consecutive seasons, but the Wolverines are littered with talent. By the end of the season, Michigan was starting six freshmen on the offensive side of the football and there were several young guys playing on defense.

The first order of business is making sure five-star Bryce Underwood is set to stay in Ann Arbor. There will be a flock of schools trying to get Underwood to leave and come quarterback their team, but Whittingham will need to sell Underwood on his philosophy of things. Assuming Underwood does stay, that should make it easier for him to help sell the idea to teammates -- players love playing with a legit five-star QB.

Whittingham also needs to speak with the 2026 class. Michigan signed a top class but that was under Sherrone Moore. Five-stars Savion Hiter and Carter Meadows are must lands and keeping around both Tony Alford and Louis Esposito would help keep them.

Get the culture back in order

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham — Rob Gray-Imagn Images

This feels like a given, but it's much, much needed. The culture was super strong in Ann Arbor under Jim Harbaugh for much of his tenure with Michigan -- especially in the last three seasons. That was part of the reason that Michigan gave the job to Sherrone Moore, but we've seen how that's gone.

Not only did Moore make grave mistakes, but there have been too many other issues involving the football program. Biff Poggi's recent comments calling Michigan a 'malfunctioning organization' were spot on.

The good thing with Whittingham is that he will provide stability for however long he is there. While his age is a concern for some, he could coach for another 5-10 years. Even if he is coaching for another five years, that would give Michigan plenty of time to reshape the culture for the better.

This hire feels very Jim-Harbaugh-like for the Wolverines, and that's a good thing for Michigan's culture.

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