Utah doesn't appear to want to let sleeping dogs lie.
The Utes had essentially tried to force Kyle Whittingham into either retirement or handing over the reins to Morgan Scalley, relegating himself more to being a figurehead than a head coach, and it ended up backfiring. Whittingham ultimately chose to leave and accept the Michigan football job. Eventually, Utah was forced to settle, paying Whittingham $13.5 million over three years as part of his transition bonus.
Of course, that program was none too happy about that, and apparently it's trying to get another pound of Whittingham flesh. This time from the brother, Freddie.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Utah is suing the younger Whittingham brother, who serves as the tight ends coach in Ann
Arbor now, for 'breach of contract,' alleging that he 'abandoned his position' when he left Salt Lake City to follow his brother. Utah is saying that Whittingham did so on or around January 1, 2026 -- the day after the Utes' bowl game.
More:
Utah’s lawsuit alleges:
Freddie Whittingham failed to devote “full-time attention and energy” to being a coach for the Utah football program.
He never received written consent from Utah before engaging with the Wolverines about an assistant coaching position in Ann Arbor in January, as required by his contract.
Freddie Whittingham didn’t provide the Utes with written notice of his resignation before accepting his new position with the Wolverines.
He did not pay the “liquidated damages” required by his contract after leaving for Michigan.
This isn't completely unheard of but it is relatively rare in today's college football. We've seen coaches leave and move places all the time, with very few lawsuits, unless money has to be recouped. And certainly, we see coaches follow other coaches to other destinations. And that's what's rare -- seeing a position coach who is the brother of the coach that Utah essentially no longer wanted, being sued for following his brother.
Freddie Whittingham appears to be the only target here, considering offensive coordinator Jason Beck, wide receivers coach Micah Simon, quarterbacks coach Koy Detmer Jr., offensive line coach Jim Harding, and defensive ends coach Lewis Powell all followed Whittingham from Salt Lake City to Ann Arbor. Many of the aforementioned were at Crisler Center for Kyle Whittingham's public introduction during a January 2 basketball game. And yet, there's no sign of any of them being sued by the Utes.
We'll continue to monitor this story as it develops.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Utah sues Michigan football assistant Freddie Whittingham
