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4 head coach hires Michigan still must avoid at all costs
Posted on 12/23/25 at 5:10 am
Posted on 12/23/25 at 5:10 am
Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri
His record is solid. Drinkwitz has led Missouri to a pair of 10-win seasons. He was the SEC Coach of the Year in the 2023 season, but it feels like he would be Rich Rod part two.
Outside of wanting to run the ball, Drinkwitz doesn't feel like a fit. He also just stole away Michigan's offensive coordinator, Chip Lindsey, from the 2025 season. So it doesn't seem like this is happening, which is good.
Drinkwitz would be a disaster.
Biff Poggi
If Drinkwitz is the Rich Rod on this list, Poggi is the Brady Hoke.
Don't get me wrong, Poggi is someone that Michigan football owes a huge debt of gratitude to. He was stellar as the interim head coach during the 2025 season, and his leadership over the past two weeks has been critical.
Anyone head coach hired should want Poggi on staff as the associate head coach. But he shouldn't be the permanent head coach, or even the head coach for a year.
Kyle Whitingham and Poggi are each 66. If Michigan is going to hire someone that old, it should hire Whittingham, someone who was recognized by ESPN as one of college football's top 10 head coaches prior to the 2025 season, when his Utah Utes went 10-2.
3. Josh Heupel, Tennessee
You wonder if you might hear the name of Josh Heupel start to surface in connection to the Michigan football job. He was mentioned as the end of the Penn State coaching search, but didn't seem that interested.
Maybe he would be interested in Michigan, yet the Wolverines shouldn't be interested in him. Heupel is a solid recruiter and a great offensive mind.
He just doesn't seem like a fit at Michigan. Tennessee made the College Football Playoff in 2024, but got destroyed by Ohio State.
It feels like that would happen a lot if he were the Michigan football head coach.
Heupel would be Brady Hoke with a spread offense, one that actually works.
4. Brian Kelly
Regardless of the resume, Brian Kelly should never be a candidate for this job. He would be a disaster at Michigan.
Any of the others on this list would be much better than Kelly. His name hasn't been mentioned, and it probably won't be; you worry if Michigan gets really desperate, his name could appear on the radar.
Just a reminder that would be awful.
This article was originally published on gbmwolverine.com as 4 head coach hires Michigan still must avoid at all costs .
Wow! This is something!
LINK
His record is solid. Drinkwitz has led Missouri to a pair of 10-win seasons. He was the SEC Coach of the Year in the 2023 season, but it feels like he would be Rich Rod part two.
Outside of wanting to run the ball, Drinkwitz doesn't feel like a fit. He also just stole away Michigan's offensive coordinator, Chip Lindsey, from the 2025 season. So it doesn't seem like this is happening, which is good.
Drinkwitz would be a disaster.
Biff Poggi
If Drinkwitz is the Rich Rod on this list, Poggi is the Brady Hoke.
Don't get me wrong, Poggi is someone that Michigan football owes a huge debt of gratitude to. He was stellar as the interim head coach during the 2025 season, and his leadership over the past two weeks has been critical.
Anyone head coach hired should want Poggi on staff as the associate head coach. But he shouldn't be the permanent head coach, or even the head coach for a year.
Kyle Whitingham and Poggi are each 66. If Michigan is going to hire someone that old, it should hire Whittingham, someone who was recognized by ESPN as one of college football's top 10 head coaches prior to the 2025 season, when his Utah Utes went 10-2.
3. Josh Heupel, Tennessee
You wonder if you might hear the name of Josh Heupel start to surface in connection to the Michigan football job. He was mentioned as the end of the Penn State coaching search, but didn't seem that interested.
Maybe he would be interested in Michigan, yet the Wolverines shouldn't be interested in him. Heupel is a solid recruiter and a great offensive mind.
He just doesn't seem like a fit at Michigan. Tennessee made the College Football Playoff in 2024, but got destroyed by Ohio State.
It feels like that would happen a lot if he were the Michigan football head coach.
Heupel would be Brady Hoke with a spread offense, one that actually works.
4. Brian Kelly
Regardless of the resume, Brian Kelly should never be a candidate for this job. He would be a disaster at Michigan.
Any of the others on this list would be much better than Kelly. His name hasn't been mentioned, and it probably won't be; you worry if Michigan gets really desperate, his name could appear on the radar.
Just a reminder that would be awful.
This article was originally published on gbmwolverine.com as 4 head coach hires Michigan still must avoid at all costs .
Wow! This is something!
LINK
This post was edited on 12/23/25 at 5:12 am
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Posted on 12/23/25 at 6:12 am to TrueLefty
The problem is who’s going to go there right now? The investigation will drag for at least a year and will overshadow the program. They’re probably going to have to go the Matt Luke/Mike Shula route for a couple of years while this all gets sorted and any penalties levied.
Actually Brian Kelly might not be a bad choice, available, down the list a little bit with a few years left in him, and would have nothing to lose by giving it a go.
Actually Brian Kelly might not be a bad choice, available, down the list a little bit with a few years left in him, and would have nothing to lose by giving it a go.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 6:22 am to TrueLefty
They probably shouldn't hire me either. I wouldn't do a good job.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 6:25 am to TrueLefty
Also, Ray Charles
- no coaching experience
- legally blind
- been dead for 20 years
- no coaching experience
- legally blind
- been dead for 20 years
Posted on 12/23/25 at 7:19 am to genro
quote:
Also, Ray Charles - no coaching experience - legally blind - been dead for 20 years
OK, but still a better option than Chad Morris
Posted on 12/23/25 at 7:23 am to TrueLefty
I hear Mike Shula is free.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 7:28 am to parrothead
Do they have someone who is currently coaching in the CFP perhaps already on the hook. It seems like not pulling the trigger now makes that opinion likely. Maybe a top OC or DC in the NFL. The regular season has 2 weeks left.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 8:01 am to TrueLefty
Connor Stalions is available 
Posted on 12/23/25 at 8:35 am to SECCaptain
DEI U at Ann Arbor will hire Minter within a month. They will just kick the Show Cause down the road.
Their AD will be history soon. That guy is top shelf DEI.
Their AD will be history soon. That guy is top shelf DEI.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 8:35 am to TrueLefty
I think I would be looking to the NFL for the next coach. Far removed from college for the last few years. A young up and comer. I suspect they will end up OK. Timing is bad for this recruiting class but they are Michigan.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 8:52 am to TrueLefty
quote:
4. Brian Kelly
Please hire Brian Kelly. Then I get most of my hate out on one team.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 9:24 am to TrueLefty
quote:Brian Kelly
1 head coach hire anyone must avoid at all costs
Posted on 12/23/25 at 9:30 am to SECCaptain
Posted on 12/23/25 at 10:25 am to TrueLefty
quote:
Biff Poggi
name checks out
Posted on 12/23/25 at 10:27 am to TrueLefty
This is a crucial hire for Michigan. With the very public issues of the previous coaches, Michigan needs a man whose mere presence radiates personal control and self-discipline......
Posted on 12/23/25 at 10:34 am to TrueLefty
quote:
4. Brian Kelly
I disagree with this and not just because i want to offset his buyout. UM is going to be a dumpster fire for a couple years after all this. BK isn't winning any national championships, but he can bring stability and structure to a team thats going to need it. Give him a 3 year deal, let the storm pass and the program settle, then move on to a better candidate.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 10:38 am to TrueLefty
Michigan should 100% hire Kelly for a $54,000,000 deal. Great coach. No one out works him. Non stop recruiter. Totally present during national signing day and the portal. Has the ability to take over offensive play calling. Quickly able to identify team and schematic weaknesses and address them. Always willing to talk to recruits without needing an appointment. Never takes a vacation, especially to Florida beaches in the middle of portal windows. Perfect fit.
This post was edited on 12/23/25 at 10:40 am
Posted on 12/23/25 at 10:47 am to TrueLefty
I hate to say this, but I actually think Brian Kelly would be a solid gap fill for Michigan until they clear the hurdle of the Moore scandal.
He ended up not being what LSU paid for, but there is no doubt that he stabilized the program at a time when LSU needed it. Michigan is at a point where they desperately need to calm the waters and stabilize the program. I can't see any of the big name coaches touching that program with all shite flying around. Kelly could come in for 3-4 years and at least make things more palpable for the next big name that comes available down the road.
He ended up not being what LSU paid for, but there is no doubt that he stabilized the program at a time when LSU needed it. Michigan is at a point where they desperately need to calm the waters and stabilize the program. I can't see any of the big name coaches touching that program with all shite flying around. Kelly could come in for 3-4 years and at least make things more palpable for the next big name that comes available down the road.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 11:04 am to mrbroker
quote:
Do they have someone who is currently coaching in the CFP perhaps already on the hook. It seems like not pulling the trigger now makes that opinion likely. Maybe a top OC or DC in the NFL. The regular season has 2 weeks left.
I keep waiting for someone to take a flyer on Glenn Schumann (UGA's DC). He was co-DC with both Dan Lanning and Will Muschamp before being sole DC for the last couple of years.
Lanning worked out very well for Oregon as a hire so that might make others more likely to look on Schumann favorably. He's been interviewed for several NFL DC postions (including the Eagles). He's also young so if he hits a team like Michigan could keep him for a long time (35).
I don't want him to go anywhere, but if Michigan were waiting for a playoff guy, he might be a smart hire. He's got no Michigan ties though... just GA and Bama.
Posted on 12/23/25 at 11:27 am to SneezyBeltranIsHere
Michigan is already going through a pregnancy scandal involving a head coach
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