Kyle Whittingham Draws Thunderous Laughter with Ohio State Rivalry Comments

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

The Michigan Wolverines pulled the trigger on Kyle Whittingham as the team’s new head coach Friday, giving fans of one of the country’s most successful programs plenty of reasons to celebrate.

The Wolverines pounced on one of the state of Utah’s most successful coaches of all-time just two weeks after Whittingham resigned following a 10-2 season in Salt Lake City.

The 66-year-old Whittingham will head to Ann Arbor with working knowledge of the Ohio State rivalry gleaned from his longstanding relationship with former Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer, whom Whittingham coach with during his time with the Utes.

Whittingham’s comments on Ohio State drew thunderous laughter at a Sunday press conference as media questioned the new Michigan head coach.

Whittingham Dishes on Buckeyes

Whittingham dished on the Ohio State Buckeyes when asked point blank about whether he dislikes them or not.

“Just to be clear, do you dislike Ohio State?” he was asked.

“I do now, I guess,” Whittingham replied as people began laughing.

“But like I said, I followed them for quite a while, me and Urban were on the same staff at Utah I was the defensive coordinator, so there was a real tight bond there and I followed his career and obviously stayed in touch throughout his career, and had great success there, but now I’m on the right side of the deal now, so yeah,” Whittingham added.

Will Whittingham Strike Back in Columbus?

The Wolverines lost to Ohio State this year in a game that wasn’t close for most of the second half.

The Buckeyes took advantage of a disjointed, floundering young Wolverines team in the midst of snow showers at Michigan Stadium just days before former head coach Sherrone Moore was fired for an inappropriate relationship with assistant Paige Shiver.

Whittingham will likely go up against a seasoned, former national championship winning coach in Ryan Day next year with the game scheduled to be played in Columbus, Ohio.

The Wolverines have won four of the last five in the series but Ohio State’s dominant 2025 win will likely make them the favorites heading into next season.

Michigan will counter with a coach who knows how to develop quarterbacks and teach both fundamentals and discipline that appeared to be lacking at times under Moore.

Michigan has overcome the odds before and next year will be almost certainly be another chance for the Wolverines to do it again against the Big Ten‘s second place team from 2025.

Related: Kyle Whittingham Sends Clear Message on Age Concerns at Michigan Press Conference

Related: Kyle Whittingham Uses 6 Words to Describe Meeting With QB Bryce Underwood

Related: Wink Martindale Emotional About Expected Release From Michigan Wolverines

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Dec 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the College section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos