Kyle Whittingham sees Michigan title quest as 'final challenge' - ESPN

ORLANDO, Fla. — After Kyle Whittingham stepped down at Utah earlier this month, he left the door open to return to coaching.

He had no idea that within a day, he would get a call about a head coaching vacancy at a school he had admired since he saw the Michigan Wolverines' famed winged helmets as a 7-year-old watching college football alone in his living room.

That call set off a series of more calls and conversations, culminating with the 66-year-old Whittingham taking the job at a program where Big Ten championships and College Football Playoff appearances are expected.

«Michigan is a special place — a legitimate opportunity to win a national championship,» Whittingham said. «It has happened here. So, I looked at it as a final challenge.»

That challenge comes two weeks after Whittingham left Utah, where he spent the previous 32 years, including 21 as the head coach while compiling a 177-88 mark. So, yes, it felt a bit odd for him to be wearing a maize and blue polo during his introductory news conference on Sunday in Orlando, where Michigan is in town to play Texas in the Cheez-It Bowl on Wednesday.

Whittingham is under no illusion about what he has walked into, saying he knows the «gist» of what has happened within the program. Earlier this month, coach Sherrone Moore was fired for engaging in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member, discovered through a university investigation.

Moore faces three criminal charges, including felony third-degree home invasion, for allegedly confronting the staff member at her residence after being fired. Last week, interim coach Biff Poggi called Michigan a «malfunctioning organization» and argued for a culture reset.

Michigan launched an investigation into its football