Longtime Utah coach Kyle Whittingham agrees to be Michigan's next head coach

Whittingham joins Wolverines after two decades at the helm of the Utes

Kyle Whittingham has been named as the next head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Kyle Whittingham, the architect behind Utah's rise in the college football hierarchy over the past two decades, has agreed to a deal to be the next head coach of Michigan.

Whittingham agreed to a five-year contract to be the Wolverines' next head coach roughly two weeks after it was announced he was stepping down as the Utes head coach following the team's postseason matchup with Nebraska in the Las Vegas Bowl Dec. 31.

An official announcement from Michigan was expected to be made Friday, according to ESPN.

Reports early Friday morning indicated Wolverines brass began the process of making Whittingham the program's 22nd head coach over the past week, with the expectation that he'd join Michigan for its Citrus Bowl game against Texas in Orlando Dec. 31. The Wolverines recently named Biff Poggi as the interim head coach after firing Sherrone Moore earlier in December.

What it could mean for the Utes

Whittingham's decision to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, will have a ripple effect on the coaching industry, especially in the state of Utah.

Utes offensive coordinator Jason Beck will reportedly be on the list of assistants Whittingham targets to be part of his 2026 staff at Michigan. Beck, who joined Utah following a stint at New Mexico, was largely responsible for the Utes' offensive turnaround in 2025. Utah averaged 41.1 points per game — just the third time since 1930 that Utah put up over 40 points per game — and was No. 6 in the Football Bowl Subdivision with 478.6 yards per game (Utah averaged 329.8 yards per game in 2024).

Jason Beck. | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Junior quarterback Devon Dampier played an integral role in Utah's success on the offensive side of the ball as well through his dual-threat capabilities. Dampier decided to transfer to Utah after Beck, who was his offensive coordinator at New Mexico, was hired by the Utes.

Should Whittingham pull Beck out of Salt Lake City, it shouldn't come as a surprise if Dampier's name pops up in the transfer portal. Dampier made it clear during a radio show appearance earlier in December that while he believes in Morgan Scalley's ability to lead Utah moving forward, he trusts and has a deep connection with Beck.

If Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood decides to transfer, that'd clear a path for Dampier to follow Beck with the expectation of being the Wolverines' next signal-caller.

BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill is also a name to monitor over the coming weeks. Hill was on Whittingham's Utah staff from 2001-2013, wearing multiple hats as a positions coach and special teams coordinator during that span.

In the short-term, it doesn't appear Whittingham will be on the sidelines for Utah's Las Vegas Bowl game against Nebraska. If that's the case, Scalley's head coaching career will start sooner than expected.

Kyle Whittingham's legacy at Utah

Whittingham, who took over full-time head coaching duties in 2004 after initially joining Ron McBride’s staff as a defensive line coach in 1994, finished the 2025 regular season with 177 career victories, ranking No. 3 among all active Football Bowl Subdivision head coaches and No. 3 among head coaches who have remained at the same school. He was the second-longest tenured head coach at the FBS level and is tied for the third-oldest (66) with Temple’s K.C. Feeler.

Whittingham led Utah to two Rose Bowl appearances, three conference championships, and an undefeated season capped off by a win over Alabama in the 2008 Sugar Bowl. He earned three national Coach of the Year awards, including the AFCA and Bear Bryant Awards in 2008, and the Dodd Trophy in 2019.