New Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham is in the process of cleaning up the mess that former head coach Sherrone Moore left behind.
Since winning the national championship in 2023, Michigan has had two seasons that didn’t live up to the standard of being “Leaders and Best”, both on and off the field. Michigan was 8-5 in 2024 and 9-4 in 2025. The lone bright spots were wins against Ohio State and Alabama in 2024. Besides those upset victories, Michigan teams under Sherrone Moore played poorly against top
competition — be it Texas, Oregon, Oklahoma and beyond.
While the results on the field started to suffer, so did the decisions made by Moore off the field — leading to him being fired in December for having an inappropriate relationship with a staffer and his subsequent arrest. Moore ultimately pleaded no contest to trespassing and malicious use of a telecom device.
Moore was also reportedly erratic during his tenure as a leader. The Athletic reported that “Moore would break down sobbing in staff meetings and lash out at other coaches” and “was seen eavesdropping on closed-door meetings inside Schembechler Hall.”
The good news for Michigan is they hired a head coach in Kyle Whittingham that can bring stability on the field and leadership without distractions off it. In January, Whittingham laid out his vision at Michigan.
“I’m excited to quell the drama, I guess you can say, and get things back on track, and have it be all about football,” Whittingham said. “And what we’re going to accomplish on the field, and I think the players are eager to do that too. And give them credit through all that they went through, to be able to get a nine-win season last year is pretty impressive.”
Whittingham has shown a track record of quelling drama, with 21 years as Utah’s head coach without a scandal to prove it. However, even if Whittingham guides Michigan is a more honorable direction, they still have a tough schedule in 2026. The Wolverines are on the road against Ohio State, Oregon and have tough home tilts against Oklahoma, Penn State and Indiana. Michigan will have to hit the ground running next season or they could actually lose more games than they did a season ago with four.
The hope will be Michigan can compete for a College Football Playoff berth this fall. Quarterback Bryce Underwood is entering his sophomore season and second as starter and he has talented playmakers around him in running back Jordan Marshall and Andrew Marsh. Further, Whittingham was able to bring in good talent from Utah including edge rusher John Henry Daley and receiver JJ Buchanan. There are unknowns about certain position groups including cornerback and linebacker, but Michigan has enough talent to make some noise.
Progress has also been made on the recruiting trail under Whittingham. Michigan’s 2027 recruiting class currently ranks No. 11 in the 247 Sports Composite Rankings, not far behind Ohio State at No. 8. Recruits see a stable program in Michigan and one that has brighter days ahead once more. It’s hard to believe that it’s been less than three years since Michigan won the national championship, and while a lot of drama has happened since then, Whittingham’s first year at Michigan is already off to a good start well before the 2026 season begins.
Michigan’s getting back to what made them championship-caliber in the past. And whether Michigan wins or loses in 2026, they’re going to be a tougher team. Old school is back. Walking the walk is back.
“What you can expect, physicality will be our calling card,” Whittingham said. “Usually, Utah, the place I was, we were the most physical team in the league, whichever league we played in, that’s not going to be any different here. And I believe in running the football. If you can win the line of scrimmage and be physical up front, you’ve always got a chance. That will be the trademark. And the identity of this football team is physicality, toughness, and grit.”
What happens this fall once the games start to count is anyone’s guess but it’s easy to bet that this team can limit distractions and play with honor under Whittingham, who’s 66. He’s earned that assumption.
