A Look At Michigan’s New Coaching Staff

Michigan’s coaching staff under new head coach Kyle Whittingham is officially set.

Much of Whittingham’s staff comes with him from Utah, but some staff was retained from the previous regime, and some were brought in from other programs. While the roster still remains in flux, Michigan has found some stability in a fully-filled out coaching staff.

Here’s a look at the Wolverines’ new sideline personnel…

Whittingham brought a lot of his offensive staff with him from Utah, and Jason Beck is at the top of the list. He only spent one year as Utah’s offensive coordinator, but he led the Utes to the second-ranked rushing offense in the country, a style that fits well in Ann Arbor.

Prior to his one-year stint at Utah, Beck made stops as an offensive coordinator at New Mexico and Syracuse.

Offensive line coach Jim Harding is the gem of the positional-coach hires. In his 12 seasons as an offensive line coach at Utah, he turned Salt Lake City into an NFL O-Lineman breeding ground, sending 13 players to the next level.

The high-level offensive line play under Harding was a big reason for Utah’s success running the ball as well, making him a great fit for the Wolverines.

Also from Utah, Micah Simon takes over as the wide receivers coach. A former standout receiver himself at BYU, Simon has spent the last two seasons under Beck as a wide receivers coach.

Freddie Whittingham, Kyle Whittingham’s brother, assumes the position of tight ends coach, the same position he held for 10 seasons at Utah.

During his time with the Utes, Freddie turned them into a hotbed for tight end development, with current Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid as the prized protege. 

Rounding out the Utah transplants on the offensive side, Koy Detmer will serve as the quarterbacks coach, a position that did not exist in Sherrone Moore’s tenure.

Detmer has followed Beck from Syracuse to New Mexico to Utah, and now to Michigan. With a young quarterback in Bryce Underwood under center for the Wolverines, he’ll figure to be heavily involved in his development.

Whittingham retained running backs coach Tony Alford from the previous staff. Alford is one of the most respected running backs coaches in the country, so retaining him was massive for the Wolverines. A very good recruiter alongside his coaching prowess, Michigan’s running back room is in great shape under Alford.

Jay Hill will take over defensive coordinator duties at Michigan after serving the same role for three years at BYU. Despite working at Utah’s rival, Hill actually worked under Whittingham with the Utes from 2001 to 2013, working in various capacities.

In 2024, BYU’s defense ranked 13th in the country, but it took a step back in 2025, falling to 35th. The Cougars led the country in interceptions in 2024 and finished seventh in 2025.

Hill brings defensive backs coach Jernaro Gilford with him from BYU after he spent 10 years as the defensive backs coach in Provo.

Gilford himself was a great defensive back at BYU, and brings a wealth of experience to Whittingham’s staff.

Defensive ends coach Lewis Powell also comes over from Utah. He’s spent the last 11 years in the same role under Whittingham and has produced a wealth of NFL talent over his tenure, including six draft picks.

The son of Kyle Whittingham, Alex Whittingham worked with the Kansas City Chiefs defense from 2018 to 2025. He spent time working with the defensive line and secondary, but worked with linebackers from 2020 to 2024.

While with the Chiefs, he was a part of three Super Bowl wins in 2020, 2022, and 2023.

Kerry Coombs was hired just four days before Moore’s firing, but Whittingham was able to keep him on staff. Coombs has been successful wherever he’s coached — whether it be college or NFL — and the Wolverines hope that trend continues in Ann Arbor.