Michigan football signees and recruits react to the hiring of Kyle Whittingham

Michigan football has its man after what felt like a long coaching search. Following Sherrone Moore's dismissal from the program back on Dec. 10, there were a ton of 'candidates' floating around. But at long last, Michigan hired long-time Utah coach Kyle Whittingham as its 22nd head football coach.

Whittingham coached Utah for 21 seasons and maintained a great culture, and Whittingham was known as a top-15 coach in college football. Despite his age, 66, Whittingham could come into Ann Arbor and coach for another 5-10 years -- his contract with the Wolverines was for five years.

The two-time Coach of the Year will now have to start assembling his staff, look at roster retention, and keep the 2026 recruiting class together. As of this writing, there have been three players from the '26 class to get out of their Letter of Intent -- most recently four-star WR Brady Marchese.

Following the hiring of Whittingham, Michigan Wolverines on SI reached out to some signees and commitments to get their take on Michigan's new head coach.

2028 four-star QB Donald Tabron II

"Michigan hiring Kyle Whittingham shows a shift toward a bright future [for] the program. While being new to coach Whittingham I feel that the direction of the program is trending in an upward pattern."

Three-star RB signee Jonathan Brown

"I've gotten good feedback from my coaches, family, and friends about this hire. I'm excited to meet Coach Whittingham and find out more about him. He'll learn about me too."

Three-star LB signee Kaden Catchings

"i think it’s great for us, he’s a great coach and we have been waiting impatiently for this."

Three-star OL signee Tommy Fraumann

"I can’t wait to get down on campus and meet Coach [Whittingham], what he has done at Utah has been amazing and I am very impressed by his dedication to the team. He’s a very experienced coach who knows how to develop players. Go Blue."

2027 Four-star QB commit Peter Bourque

"Seems like a great hire. Looking forward to meeting Coach Whittingham, his staff and seeing what they have planned for Michigan football."

2027 Three-star OL commit Louis Esposito

"I’m excited to build a relationship and get started. He had a long history of developing great offensive lineman and building good programs."

This article will continue to get updated

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