Kyle Whittingham’s Michigan Lost 31-7 at Oregon. The One-Year Experiment Is Already Collapsing.
Michigan went to Eugene on Saturday and scored seven points. The Wolverines lost 31-7 to Oregon at Autzen Stadium, fell to 5-5, and now have to beat one of the two best teams left on their schedule just to reach a bowl game.
Kyle Whittingham was hired in December to steady a program that had just fired Sherrone Moore for cause. Eleven months later Michigan is 2-5 in the Big Ten and has lost five of its last seven. The offense ranked 116th in FBS in scoring going into this week. That is worse than the mess he inherited.
Seven Points, and Six of Twenty Passing
One number explains the afternoon. Michigan’s quarterbacks combined to go 6-of-20 for 71 yards with no touchdowns. Tommy Carr started, went 1-of-5 for eight yards, and was benched late in the first quarter for Bryce Underwood. Underwood went 2-of-8 for 26 yards. Carr came back out to start the second half anyway.
The strange part is that Michigan actually outrushed Oregon 215-126. Savion Hiter broke a 70-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, the longest run of Michigan’s season, and finished with 107 yards. That was the entire offense. The Wolverines lost two fumbles, failed on fourth-and-goal at the Oregon 3, and got outgained 467-286.
Oregon’s Dylan Raiola, starting because Dante Moore is out for the season with a concussion, completed his first nine attempts and finished 20-of-28 for 341 yards and four touchdowns. Dakorien Moore caught a 59-yard score with six seconds left in the half. Jeremiah McClellan had 105 yards on four catches.
Michigan also lost its leading receiver. JJ Buchanan, who has 646 yards and five touchdowns this season, left in the first half with an apparent shoulder injury and did not return.
Whittingham Has Looked Checked Out Twice in Eight Days
During the first quarter, On3’s Clayton Sayfie posted video of Whittingham walking roughly 20 yards away from his defense while the unit huddled before an Oregon drive. It is possible he had handed that huddle to his assistants. Michigan has not explained it, and no other outlet has independently covered the clip, so treat it as what it is: one video, posted by one reporter.
The reason it landed at all is the pattern. Eight days earlier, during the 15-6 loss to Michigan State, cameras caught Whittingham staring into the distance with his headset mic pushed up on fourth-and-21. ESPN’s Dan Wetzel said on Nov. 10 that Whittingham “doesn’t look engaged” and predicted he would not be coaching at Michigan next season.
He Picked a Fight With Oregon’s Checkbook and Lost by 24
Whittingham spent Monday night talking about Oregon’s resources, saying it “doesn’t hurt that you have $50 million at your disposal to, in essence, to outbid everybody.” Dan Lanning answered two days later: “They’re spending more of their money right now on their coaches that they’re letting go.” Lanning also called Whittingham “a Hall of Fame coach” he has “nothing but respect for,” then won by 24.
Lanning’s shot about coaches being let go was not a guess. Michigan fired offensive coordinator Jason Beck on Nov. 8, nine games into his tenure, and handed the job to interim coordinator Jim Harding.
What Is Actually Left
UCLA comes to Ann Arbor on Nov. 21, undefeated and ranked fourth under first-year coach Bob Chesney. Then Michigan goes to Ohio State on Nov. 28. Lose both and the Wolverines finish 5-7 and stay home in December.
Whittingham won 177 games in 21 seasons at Utah, more than anyone in school history, and took the Utes to back-to-back Pac-12 titles in 2021 and 2022. He is a good football coach who took a hard job at 66 with an athletic director, Warde Manuel, who is stepping down at the end of the calendar year. Michigan is paying him roughly $8.2 million a year through 2030. Nobody has reported a buyout figure, which is now the only number that matters.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
