According to multiple reports on Thursday morning, new Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham is set to hire Utah offensive coordinator Jason Beck with him to Ann Arbor.
Beck is a young, up-and-coming offensive coordinator who has made his way
quickly from the Mountain West to the top of the Big Ten. He was the play caller New Mexico in 2024 before spending one season at Utah in 2025.
In Albuquerque, the Lobos ranked second in the Mountain West and No. 5 in the FBS in rushing offense (253.6) while leading the league and ranking fourth in the country in first-down offense (298). His quarterback, Devon Dampier, threw for 2,768 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2024.
After a successful season at New Mexico, Beck made the move to Salt Lake City, where he led one of the most explosive offenses in the country. The Utes’ were ranked No. 6 nationally in 2025 by averaging 478.6 yards per game, second in rushing offense with 269.8 rushing yards per game and 37 rushing touchdowns, and No. 5 in scoring offense, averaging 41.1 points per game. For reference, Michigan ranked 58th nationally in 2025 with 398.9 yards per game.
Utah currently has two first team All-Big 12 offensive linemen in Spencer Fanu and Caleb Lomu — who are both projected first-round NFL Draft picks in the spring — and Dampier was the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
Beck also spent two seasons (2022-23) at Syracuse, serving as the quarterbacks coach both years while also calling plays in 2023. He coached a 1,000-yard rusher in LeQuint Allen with the program setting single-game records for total offense in a season opener (677) and the most rushing yards by Syracuse since 1996 in Week 10 (392). Beck also coached the quarterbacks at Virginia from 2016-21, and at BYU from 2013-15, where he coached Taysom Hill.
Beck prides his offensive scheme on putting guys in positions that will make them successful and not forcing them into categories. It is a modern, wide-spread system focused on a foundation of read-option and Run-Pass Options (RPOs).
In 2025, Dampier threw for 2,180 yards to go along with a 22/5 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He also ran 127 times for 687 yards and seven touchdowns. If the Wolverines can retain quarterback Bryce Underwood, Beck has the ability to get the most out of the young quarterback’s varied skillsets.
“That’s exactly what he does,” Whittingham said of Beck’s system in September. “And what it does is puts D-coordinators in a situation where: ‘How do we treat this guy? Is he a wideout? Is he a running back? Is he a tight end? What exactly is the match up going to be?’ And that, in particular, is a challenge for teams that have sub packages, or that sub in and out with your different groups.
“It certainly causes problems and how to identify the guy and how to categorize the guy. Jason has a really good feel for getting the most out of his guys and putting them in positions where they can do the things they do best. Instead of asking the guy to do something that maybe is not his cup of tea, he does a great job of finding their role and maximizing that role.”
The Michigan offense is substantially better with Beck now in the fold, and with a history of developing quarterbacks, running backs and top offensive linemen (in a short period of time), there may not have been a more perfect fit for the Wolverines.
