The Kyle Whittingham era in Ann Arbor is seemingly on life support, and after Saturday's loss to the Oregon Ducks, it may not survive the weekend. On paper, going on the road and losing a close game to a Top 25 Oregon team isn't the end of the world, but when added to everything else, it only makes matters worse. As of the results on the field weren't making things bad enough, Kyle Whittingham stuck his foot in his mouth this week.
Whittingham decided to point toward Oregon's NIL spending during a press conference earlier in the week for some bizzare reason.
"He really does a great job recruiting and It doesn't hurt that you have $50+ million dollars at your disposal to, in essence outbid everybody. Not everybody, but a lot of people. But that's not his fault. That's a credit. I mean, that's a credit to their program and their dedication and desire to win and the support they have. NIL is the name of the game in recruiting these days."Kyle Whittingham
Dan Lanning has punished Mike Gundy for similar comments, and when he had a chance to respond to the press, he didn't mince his words, seemingly calling out the fact that the Wolverines fired the highest paid offensive coordinator in the country, Jason Beck, and how much they're paying Bryce Underwood.
"They’re spending more of their money on their coaches that they’re letting go, so maybe it makes it hard to sign players. But I know they’ve signed a couple of guys that we weren’t able to compete with what they decided to do, and maybe a lot of that money is tied up for them in another player. I don’t know."Dan Lanning
Kyle Whittingham's NIL comments proved to be ignorant in easy Oregon win
When you watched the Oregon Ducks win over Michigan, it was clear that Dan Lanning was right on the mark with the shots he took at the Wolverines. The decision to fire Jason Beck might have been the right move by Michigan, but who knows as their offense only scored 7 points on a broken run play by Savion Hiter.
The bigger issue might be the fact that the Wolverines offense resembles what everyone thinks of in the era of leather helmets, as they still haven't discovered the forward pass. The player Dan Lanning hinted at tying up Michigan's money Bryce Underwood, was stuck in a game of musical chairs with Tommy Carr with neither finding success.
The $12 million quarterback Underwood played stretches in this game, but his biggest impact was the fear Oregon's defense had of his rushing ability. The two quarterbacks combined to go 6-20 for just 71 yards without a touchdown, and Tommy Carr fumbled in the 4th quarter to help seal the deal. Add in the fact that the Ducks seemingly dropped a dozen interceptions, and the two were abysmal.
The bigger issue for Whittingham isn't how much teams are spending, but just how bad of a coaching job he's doing. Trailing by 2 scores for most of the second half, Michigan never attempted to play with some tempo or to pass the ball, and the countless runs were costly as the Ducks forced a pair of fumbles.
Dan Lanning, on the other hand, turned to the hurry-up offense and was clearly bothered by Whittingham's NIL comments as he tried to tack on another touchdown, leading 28-7. Dylan Raiola found Dakorien Moore before the 2-minute warning to get the Ducks inside the 10-yard line, but the offense stalled and settled for 3 to make the deficit worse.
When you watched this game, there were only a few times when Oregon had a glaring talent advantage, which should be the biggest concern for Whittingham. This coaching staff clearly has no clue how to find any offensive success, and it's likely going to cost them their job. Add in the defensive mishap that allowed Dakorien Moore to score before halftime, and there's no example of solid coaching to point to.
Whittingham called out Oregon for spending big, but when you talk trash you better be able to back it up, and the Wolverines instead looked like a team that didn't belong on the same field.
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