Grading coaching hires: Kyle Whittingham, Michigan agree to deal

The wildest college football coaching cycle -- perhaps ever -- has reached the hiring phase. New hires always come with hope and optimism, grand proclamations and the chance to get programs on the right track. But not all hiring processes are the same. The financial component with jobs is essential -- what schools are willing to spend not just on their head coach, but the assistants and support staff and, perhaps most important, the team roster. We will be reviewing all of the major coaching hires in the 2025-26 cycle, evaluating how each coach fits in the job, their major challenges and what it will take to be successful. We will also assign an initial letter grade for each hire. Jump to: Michigan | | Penn State | Iowa State | Cal | Kansas State Kentucky | Michigan State | UCLA | LSU | Ole Miss | Florida Arkansas | Auburn | Stanford | Oklahoma State Virginia Tech Kyle Whittingham agrees to five-year deal with Michigan Why is this a good fit? After the latest in a string of embarrassing scandals, Michigan needed an experienced coach who could primarily provide an element of stability and an adult in Schembechler Hall. Whittingham would bring a steady hand to Ann Arbor, and he's also a future Hall of Fame coach with decades of success. He guided Utah from the Mountain West to the Pac-12 to the Big 12, recording 10-win seasons in all three leagues with a No. 2 finish in 2008, consecutive Pac-12 titles in 2021 and 2022, and a nice bounce-back season this fall after a momentary slip. Whittingham's style of play will resonate with Michigan and its fans, as his teams typically thrive along the line of scrimmage and are known as being among the nation's most physical outfits. Despite not landing top-10 recruiting classes, he consistently put players in the NFL, as Utah has had 21 selections in the past five drafts. Despite saying he didn't want to coach past 65, Whittingham clearly still has the fire to keep leading programs. He has no previous association with Michigan, which is probably what the school needed after a very turbulent period. Whittingham will need to establish himself at a top program located well outside of his comfort zone, and his staff hires will be critical as many longtime Utah assistants were expected to remain with new Utes coach Morgan Scalley. But Michigan won't have to question the character or emotional makeup of its leader, which clearly became a problem toward the end with Moore. -- Adam Rittenberg What are the biggest challenges for Whittingham? Whittingham has spent the last 32 years at Utah, first as an assistant, then as head coach since 2005. Other than a five-year stint at Idaho State from 1988 to 1993, he has coached in the state of Utah his entire career. Whittingham faces the unique challenge of taking over in a completely new region at 66-years-old, at a program in desperate need of an...

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