When Kyle Whittingham took over at Michigan, he didn’t just inherit a Big Ten job. He inherited the Ohio State rivalry. So when he admitted to leaning on Urban Meyer for staff advice, it raised eyebrows fast. In Ann Arbor, Meyer’s name is basically off-limits, and Whittingham is learning that the hard way.

Whittingham didn’t duck the question of whether he relied on the former Buckeyes coach for advice. He answered honestly, with a little humor mixed in. “Urban Meyer, I don’t know if that’s a four-letter word around here,” Whittingham joked during his December 28 press conference.

And now that he’s officially the Wolverines’ head coach, has his dislike for Ohio State kicked in? Whittingham didn’t hesitate. “I do now!” he said.

That backstory is a tough pill to swallow for the Maize and Blue faithful. Is their new head coach close to Urban Meyer? Yeah, that’s not exactly what Michigan fans were hoping to hear. But the connection runs deep. Whittingham served as Meyer’s defensive coordinator at Utah in 2003 and 2004, and together they built one of the best defenses in program history.  That run ended with an undefeated season and a Fiesta Bowl win in 2004.

Whittingham has openly said that the stretch prepared him to become a head coach. When Meyer left for Florida after that season, he personally pushed for Whittingham to take over at Utah, and the move worked out pretty well. Whittingham went on to become the Utes’ all-time winningest coach over a 21-year run. That kind of bond doesn’t just disappear. And that’s precisely what makes Michigan fans uneasy. Meyer’s history with Ohio State is still a nightmare in Ann Arbor.

From 2012 to 2018, he went a perfect 7–0 against Michigan. It was something he once called his “No. 1” accomplishment. He treated ‘The Game’ like a year-round obsession, reportedly assigning a staffer to scout Michigan full-time and even building rivalry-focused drills into spring practices. He famously refused to say “Michigan,” calling them “that team up north” instead.

The results were brutal. Ohio State outscored Michigan 275–189 during those seven meetings, including the wild double-overtime win in 2016 and the humiliating 62–39 blowout in 2018. It was the most points Michigan had ever allowed in a regulation game. With a résumé like that, it’s easy to see why Meyer’s name still feels like a four-letter word in Ann Arbor.

A major restart at Ann Arbor under Kyle Whittingham

Kyle Whittingham isn’t the kind of head coach who doesn’t let ego get in the way, especially with a fresh start. And that’s exactly why Michigan’s new boss isn’t afraid to look across enemy lines if it helps him build the best staff possible. Utah and BYU are longtime rivals, with their annual showdown famously known as the “Holy War.” However, that history isn’t stopping Whittingham from zeroing in on BYU’s defensive coordinator, Jay Hill.

Michigan is heavily targeting Hill to bring his defensive expertise to Ann Arbor. Hill has spent the last three seasons at BYU as defensive coordinator and associate head coach, helping the Cougars field one of the Big 12’s top defenses since joining the league. Before that, he ran Weber State for nearly a decade. Earlier, he played and coached under Whittingham at the University of Utah.

So yeah, the familiarity is real. Whittingham has always trusted guys he knows, and Hill fits that mold perfectly. If Hill does make the move, Kalani Sitake will be left to figure out whether BYU replaces him from within or looks outside the program. Whittingham went 11–6 in the Holy War during his Utah days. Now, he might be lining up one last win over BYU by snagging one of their most valuable assistants.

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