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Biff Poggi wanted the Michigan job; he didn’t hide that. But even though the Wolverines chose Kyle Whittingham instead, Poggi isn’t bitter. In fact, he sounds genuinely thrilled about the direction Michigan football is heading.
Speaking with reporters ahead of Michigan’s Citrus Bowl showdown with Texas in Orlando, Poggi didn’t hesitate when asked what he thought of the hire.
“Oh, I think he’s a perfect fit. I think it’s a great, great hire,” Poggi said via the Detroit Free Press, praising Whittingham’s presence, demeanor, and message to the team. Poggi added that Michigan’s players have already responded well to their new coach, and that says a lot.
“He’s very likable, by the way. I like him. The kids are real excited about him. I think all his fans are really excited about him, and I think he’s going to be just what the doctor ordered.”
That’s an especially meaningful endorsement coming from Poggi, who just a week earlier described the Michigan program as a “malfunctioning organization.” In his eyes, Whittingham is the steady hand, and grown-up voice, the program needed.
“He talked about his expectations starting in January: discipline, toughness, doing the right thing,” Poggi explained. “He’s actually older than I am, and that’s what I think we might need around here, a little bit of adult supervision and getting everybody back to doing what you’re supposed to do.”
That line in particular felt like classic Poggi, honest, blunt, and maybe a little tongue-in-cheek. But the respect is real. He compared Whittingham’s style to the foundation Michigan was built on decades ago.
“He’s a back-to-the-glory-days type of Michigan football coach,” Poggi said, leaning into the program’s blue-collar roots of physicality and grit.
And even though Poggi himself is 2–0 as Michigan’s interim head coach this season, he made it clear he’s not about to offer Whittingham unsolicited advice.
“No, I don’t have any advice to give a guy who’s won 180-some football games,” Poggi joked. “That’d be like me giving Dr. Ben Carson advice on how to do brain surgery.”
So yeah, if anyone was looking for tension or awkwardness here, it doesn’t exist.
Instead, you have a respected program leader giving a full-throated endorsement of Michigan’s new direction… and maybe even sounding a little relieved that someone with Whittingham’s track record is taking the wheel.
And if Poggi’s reaction is any indication?
Michigan’s locker room is buying in — fast.
Go Blue.
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Don Drysdale
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