Michigan finally owned up to it. Not in the typical sense, mind you. But enough to clear the deck of doubt.
Kyle Whittigham is the new Michigan coach, and if that doesn’t say we’ve officially disowned anything and everything Jim Harbaugh era, nothing will.
The lying and cheating. The obstruction and obfuscation. The shame and embarrassment.
All of it replaced with one fortuitous hire of a ball coach who doesn’t take spit from anyone.
“Michigan is synonymous with tradition and excellence — both on the field and beyond” Whittingham said in a statement released by the school.
And with that, all of those closeted Michigan Men who choked down what Harbaugh and Sherrone Moore and Connor Stalions and Santa Ono and Warde Manuel were selling over the past three seasons, stepped into the fresh, cleansing sunlight of change.
Real, unvarnished, deal with it change.
If you know Whittingham, there’s zero chance some university relations flak penned that statement for him.
“Our entire program is committed to upholding those values while striving for greatness together,” Whittingham’s statement continued.
Together — instead of a one-man island running roughshod over nearly 150 years of standards and principles that defined a university, a bucolic college town and the ideal of amateur sports.
Look, we all know what college football has become. The money game is clear and undeniable — for universities and players and coaches — but it doesn’t mean you have to sell your soul to make it work.
Or in this case, as Harbaugh famously proclaimed, beat Ohio State or die trying.
It doesn’t mean the president of the university (Ono) does everything in his power to protect the football coach (Harbaugh), and kneecap the athletic director (Manuel) from managing the most important face-first employee on campus.
It doesn’t mean the athletic director then cower in the face of managing the football coach, who then does whatever he wants — including flouting the NCAA rulebook — to bring a championship to Michigan.
It doesn’t mean the president and athletic director run cover for Harbaugh and the program during not one, but two NCAA investigations during what would become the greatest season in the history of the program.
It doesn’t mean the president and athletic director then compound the problems, and double down by hiring a two-time NCAA cheater (the recently fired Moore) to follow the guy who spent the previous four seasons burning down the university’s once spotless reputation.
But Michigan got that national title, baby. It got a four-game winning streak over Ohio State.
And now it has a real, live sheriff in town to clean up the mess. To walk through Schembechler Hall and once again be clear and concise: it’s about The Team.
The entire university team.
This carnival of the absurd ends now. Harbaugh fled for the NFL, Ono fled in May, and got his comeuppance when Florida refused to hire him after initially sending his name to the board of trustees for his appointment as president.
Moore was fired after two seasons because he was a train wreck waiting to happen. And then ― I know this is going to shock you ― it careened off track worse than anyone could’ve imagined.
The only one left is Manuel, who will be gone soon enough.
Whittingham, 66, found his way to Ann Arbor after Utah made it clear it was ready to move in another direction despite the success — and Whittingham made it clear he wasn’t done coaching.
Michigan somehow not only stumbled into the best hire of the offseason, but landed a wildly successful coach who worked magic at Utah despite recruiting limitations. And by limitations, I mean money.
Money buys players, players win championships. In lieu of that, elite coaching and development can win championships, too. Just not as often.
Put those two together, and you’ve got a formula to rise from the mess Harbaugh, Moore, Ono and Manuel created. A chance to power wash the filth in one offseason, and come roaring back in 2026.
A chance to move forward quickly with elite young quarterback Bryce Underwood, and a stacked roster that needs supplementing from the transfer portal — and needs the real, tangible development Whittingham and his staff showed season after season, while working in the college football shadows in Salt Lake City.
Now he’s on the big stage at the Big House. The guy who began his coaching career in 1985 as a graduate assistant at his alma mater BYU, who hasn’t since spent a single season east of the state of Utah.
He’s not a Michigan Man, all right.
And that’s exactly what Michigan needs to clean the mess and win big again.
