After what has felt like a long, exhaustive search, Michigan has hired its next head coach. Kyle Whittingham will be taking over Michigan State’s most hated rival.
And he has a (short) history with Pat Fitzgerald.
Whittingham has faced Northwestern two times in his Utah head coaching career, and he’s 0-2 against the Wildcats. One of those losses was to Fitzgerald back in the 2018 Holiday Bowl.
That’s right, Fitzgerald is undefeated against Michigan’s new head coach, which might give him a leg up when the two face off every year from now on, but seven years is a long time between matchups. Whittingham is still probably a little salty for the fashion in which Fitzgerald’s Wildcats beat his Utah Utes back in 2018.
Northwestern trailed 20-3 at halftime before storming back to take a lead in the third quarter out-scoring the Utes 28-0 in the third frame. There were no more scores after that and Northwestern’s defense stepped up in the second half to secure a win.
While this means next to nothing about the future matchups between these two new rival coaches, it does show that Fitzgerald knows how to make some elite halftime adjustments.
The Michigan-Michigan State rivalry is going to feel a lot different
We are far removed from the days of Mark Dantonio vs. Jim Harbaugh. The rivalry is going to feel a lot different with two brand-new head coaches for the second time in the past few years.
The rivalry felt watered down when Sherrone Moore and Jonathan Smith squared off, and at least Mel Tucker knew how much the rivalry went and he won a couple fames against Michigan. Smith didn’t exactly know how to embrace and treat the rivalry. Fitzgerald won’t be the same way.
And Whittingham, too, knows all about fierce rivalries as he had coached in the “Holy War” every year against BYU. Those two programs hate each other almost as much as Michigan and Michigan State.
The rivalry has undergone some interesting changes over the past few years, but having two brand-new head coaches squaring off might take some luster away from the early battles.
At least Fitzgerald knows how to beat Whittingham.
Now it’s time for him to improve his 1-9 career record against the Wolverines.