Kyle Whittingham confirms hire of Jason Beck, claims Michigan OC will be a 'big plus'

Utah offensive coordinator Jason Beck is following head coach Kyle Whittingham to Michigan. During an appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay on Thursday, Whittingham raved about the addition of Beck to his Michigan staff.

“That’s huge for us,” Whittingham said. “Jason did such a great job for us this past season. We were what, fifth the nation in total [offense], fourth in scoring [offense], second in rushing offense. So, he’s a guy that’s moved the football and scored points everywhere he’s been, and it’s going to be a big plus for us having him there in Ann Arbor, as well as a bunch of the other guys who run the staff at Utah that are going to come with him.”

The 2025 campaign was Beck’s first season under Whittingham. Alas, as Whittingham mentioned, Beck immediately turned Utah’s offense into one of the best in the country.

Utah’s run game was particularly spectacular. The Utes averaged 266.3 rushing yards per game, the second-most in the nation.

Prior to joining Utah, Beck was an offensive coordinator at New Mexico and Syracuse. He also coached quarterbacks at those schools, along with at Virginia and BYU.

Beck played quarterback at BYU from 2004-06. He primarily served as the team’s backup. In his lone career start, he led the Cougars to a 38-0 triumph over Utah State.

Beck should bring much-needed innovation to Michigan’s offense. The Wolverines haven’t ranked in the top 50 in total offense since 2023, when Jim Harbaugh led the program to a national title.

Additionally, Beck could be an excellent mentor to quarterback Bryce Underwood, who is entering his sophomore season. Underwood was the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting cycle and started in all 13 of Michigan’s games this season.

Michigan’s hire of Beck could contribute to Underwood returning next season. Kyle Whittingham has met with Underwood and was complimentary of the young QB earlier this week.

“Well, I did a lot of listening (in my meeting with Bryce),” Whittingham said. “I wanted to get feedback from him. I wanted to get to know him, just everything from growing up, family, you know, what’s important to him. And it was a great conversation. He’s a special young man. Carries himself the right way.

“You gotta have a quarterback (that has) the ‘it’ factor. And Bryce has the ‘it’ factor, and along with a ton of talent, big, strong kids, 6-foot-4, 225-plus pounds and so his ceiling is very high. The offense we’re going to bring in here, I think, is going to suit him to a ‘T,’ and I think he’s going to really, really excel and have a great experience here.”