The Michigan Wolverines suffered an absolutely brutal, unacceptable 15-6 loss to the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday night at The Big House. Seriously, it was a gut punch, and if you ask me, head coach Kyle Whittingham should be the one paying the biggest price for it.
The Blame Game Is Already Old
Whittingham, who is hitting 67 soon, has been around long enough to know when a program is off the rails. What’s wild is he’s been deflecting blame left and right, even before the season kicked off. He’s pointed fingers at his coaching staff and his players, saying it could take a “couple years” for offensive line coach Jim Harding to get that unit where it needs to be. And get this, he threw the previous strength and conditioning staff under the bus this past offseason, claiming they never had the players bench press. His bottom line? They had “a lot of work to do.”
But here’s the kicker: just last year, under the previous coaching staff, Michigan was playing “meaningful games” in November. This year? These November games feel totally “meaningless,” unless they somehow pull off an incredible win against Ohio State. Whittingham was brought in to be the “adult in the room,” the guy who would bring “discipline, stability and fundamentals” back to a program that lost them. Nine games into his first season, and honestly, they’ve got none of that. His Utah teams were never the most talented, but they almost never beat themselves. They tackled well, they dodged penalties, and they protected the football. This Michigan squad? It’s the exact opposite, and that’s the problem.
“Soft” Is Now the Program’s Default Setting
This team is getting flagged at a rate that ranks among the worst in the whole country, and their turnover margin? Yeah, that’s one of the worst in college football, too. They nearly choked against Western Michigan, a team they were favored to beat by four touchdowns. Then they lost to Iowa and Minnesota, both games where they were favorites. Corner Rod Moore told the media the team played “soft” in Week 1. Whittingham himself used that same word after the Penn State game. And five weeks later, after that dismal showing against Michigan State, that word still fits perfectly. Saturday night was the absolute worst version of it.
Michigan State walked into The Big House winless in the Big Ten, now they’re 3-6 overall. The Wolverines looked utterly unprepared from kickoff to the final whistle, and that falls squarely on this coaching staff. Don’t even try to tell me this roster lacks talent. With a blue chip ratio of 47.8 percent, they’re loaded, one of the highest in the Big Ten! Talent doesn’t explain losing to Minnesota. Talent definitely doesn’t explain losing to Michigan State. Those are failures of “preparation, discipline and in-game decision-making,” and guess who’s in charge of all that? The head coach.
Look, I get the counterarguments. It’s Year 1, the program’s in transition, firing a coach after one season feels reactive, and that buyout won’t be cheap. Plus, Michigan’s in the middle of searching for a new athletic director and a presidential transition, so more instability is the last thing the department needs. But if the on-field product keeps looking like this, what’s stability even worth?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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