Michigan heads back out on the road this weekend still seeking bowl eligibility. In order to make the postseason, the Wolverines will have to play their best game of the year in the post-Jason Beck era when they take on the Oregon Ducks Saturday afternoon (3:30 p.m. FS1).
Head coach Kyle Whittingham met with the media on Monday morning for his weekly press conference to preview the upcoming game. Here are some key things he had to say:
On firing Jason Beck
The Wolverines made a move at offensive coordinator on Sunday,
relieving Jason Beck of his duties with the program. Whittingham released a full statement after the news was made official on Sunday, but he was also asked about it during the presser on Monday. He explained the decision was made on Sunday after watching film of the game.
“It just became apparent to me that we needed to make a change now, and there’s just too much regression in the offense in that particular game, and that’s what led to the decision,” Whittingham said. “ … It’s a tough call, but that’s part of the process, part of the job is making those tough decisions.”
He also said the decision was his alone and not influenced by anyone above him.
“Zero. Zero outside influence. Just my own analysis, my own feel.”
Whittingham also said that promoting Jim Harding to interim offensive coordinator was the “best fit for what we need right now for these last three weeks,” despite Harding not having “extensive play calling experience, but really nobody on the offensive staff has been in that role.”
Cool, man.
Finally, when asked if there will be more collaboration on offense moving forward and if fans should expect any major changes, Whittingham said, “You can’t do major changes at this juncture, and so it will be collaborative, and it had been collaborative and it’s never just a one-man show. But you can only do so much at this point of the season and there’ll be a few different wrinkles for sure, but to say there’s gonna be a complete overhaul, that’s not really feasible.”
Again, cool, man.
TBD on who the starting QB will be…again
One week after saying freshman Tommy Carr would be Michigan’s starting quarterback moving forward, it appears the Wolverines have an open competition at the position heading into the Oregon game.
Whittingham said it is “to be determined” who will start at quarterback this week, and that the coaches had discussions about inserting Bryce Underwood into the game on Saturday when things weren’t going well against the Spartans.
“Going forward, we’ll take a look at everything again and see what gives us the best chance to win, as it always comes down to that,” Whittingham said. Expanding on that further, he said the coaches are looking for more efficiency and that Carr missed “quite a few throws” against MSU.
Quick hitters
- Offensive lineman Blake Frazier, who left the MSU game due to an injury, will be doubtful to play on Saturday against Oregon, Whittingham said. Look for freshman Marky Walbridge to take his spot in the starting lineup if that ends up being the case.
- Regardless who was in at quarterback on Saturday, they were going to get pressured quite a bit, as the Spartans sacked Carr five sacks and pressured him even more. When asked about the offensive line, Whittingham said they “need to become more efficient up front,” but the issues on offense are much more than just the offensive line. “It was a disappointing outing by the coaches … it’s not just one thing.”
- As it pertains to Oregon, Whittingham said they’re a “talented football team and they got talent across the board, throughout the whole roster.” He pointed at their offense being better, especially at the quarterback position, since Dan Lanning fired offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer a couple weeks ago.
- When asked by Maize n Brew’s Charles Post what went wrong with Beck this year, Whittingham said it just “never seemed to click here” but that it’s “not all (on) Jason.” “Anytime you have issues like we have, it’s more than just one guy.” Whittingham said it has to be a collaborative effort by everybody, even though he admitted he won’t be involved offensively and will leave that to the assistant coaches.
- Whittingham said the coaches spoke with recruits in their 2027 recruiting class last night and that they are excited to put together a full cycle of their own players from the freshman class and the transfer portal. “We’ve got a lot of positive things going on in the ‘27 class … we feel like we know exactly what we need and exactly what needs to take place in recruiting.”
- Finally, “Those conversations are already in progress,” Whittingham said in regards to retaining current players on the team for next year. It sounds like those conversations began within the last few weeks. “You don’t wanna be a distraction too early in the season,” Whittingham said. “You gotta wait till the season’s winding down, but you can’t wait too long because then you’re gonna miss the boat. If you’re not talking to your players about it, someone else is.”
