Kyle Whittingham: Building a Winning Culture | On the Line with Jim Pyne

0:04 Welcome to On the Line with Jim Pine. I'm Jim Pine. This episode is brought to you by PLS Aviation. Private Aviation. Perfectly executed. Now let's get on the line. With over 177 wins, several Coach of the Year awards. A future Hall of Famer from a football family of greatness. The head coach at University of Michigan, Coach Kyle Whittingham.

0:31 Coach, welcome to the show.

0:33 Thank you, Jim. Appreciate you having me on.

0:35 Yeah, no, great to be here, Coach. I did some research for the show. Your dad, right? Your dad, you played for your dad, you coached with your dad. You know, that had to be an awesome deal. My dad was special to me. My dad played and all that stuff. But what is your dad, what did your dad's influence on you that you do today?

0:51 And what does your dad mean to you?

0:53 Wow. Well, first of all, I'm a defensive guy by trade. I was a D coordinator, played linebacker, and uh everything that I subscribe to philosophically, fundamentally, technique-wise, schematically, I learned from him. In my opinion, he's the best defensive coach, uh, well, certainly the best defensive coach I've ever been around.

1:10 And having the opportunity to play for him in college, like you mentioned, was awesome. And then uh we were able to reunite in uh you know as fellow coaches uh a few years down the road. He was the defensive coordinator at Utah, and I I was uh able to join him there as the D-line coach. We spent one year in that capacity, and then he went back to the NFL and uh was with the Raiders for four or five years.

1:31 And when that was over, he came back uh to Utah. I was still there, and I was now the D-coordinator, and so he was the linebacker coach for me. So we had a couple different dynamics there, but but uh I'll tell you what, uh nobody was a better teacher, better motivator than Fred Whittingham. And I I owe a ton of any success we've been able to have uh to him and and what I learned from him.

1:51 Family's everything, dad's everything. So I saw his nickname was Mad Dog, right? Is that Yeah.

1:57 What's that story, Coach? Well, he had a couple nicknames, Fearless, Fearless Fred, Mad Dog, but but uh he was in the NFL for eight or nine years and and was a uh you know a tough guy, a throwback, you know, one of the guys that that uh you know it's just they don't they're not around anymore. But he was he was a uh linebacker, played uh for the Rams, for the Saints, and the Eagles and the Cowboys.

2:19 And uh I guess the story has it, it was in it was in New Orleans, and uh the Saints were just a brand new team, and he got picked up in the expan expansion draft. So he comes walking in the locker room and he says, Who's the toughest guy in here? And big guy named Doug Atkins. I don't know if you remember Doug Atkins.

2:34 Yeah, yeah.

2:35 He was a giant, you know, six foot eight, three hundred pounds, and and uh really uh you know one of the legends in call in uh in in the NFL, and and he said, I am. He jumped up and said, I am, and my my dad said, Not anymore, you're not. So that that uh you know, and a million stories just like that.

2:50 You know, he they ran pretty hard, those Saints, down in the French quarter, down in you know, what was it, 67, 68, 69, right in that time frame.

2:57 Yeah, it's a good it's an interesting place. I coached a year down there with the Saints. During Katrina, yeah, during Katrina. I was I was assistant O-line coach, and uh yeah, so I've I lived a year in New Orleans and great people, great place.

3:08 And uh was John Pas John Pease on that staff?

3:11 Uh no, I know John, yeah. John was uh later on we were together and uh Yeah, yeah, no, he was he was on the staff. He was a scouting of yeah, personnel. Yeah, great guy, Coach Pease, yeah.

3:20 Very close friend of mine, so he was so sad when he passed, but but uh he was with us at Utah on our staff there for several years, and and uh what a great person.

3:29 Great person. Football's a small world. So what's something your dad taught you? Just you know, one thing that you still use today, something that like you think your dad when you do it when you're coaching the team.

3:39 Oh man, just just the being consistent with the players every day. That was something that he was very big on. Is you know, they they need to uh know what to expect every single day. Players thrive on structure and discipline, and uh always told me to you know just make sure you're you're the same guy every day, and and that when they walk in the facility, they know what the expectations are, and and uh you know that's uh you know one of the critical things to uh success.

4:01 Yeah, absolutely. And I and I know families, everything, I'm the same thing. I come from a football family. You have a br a brother on the staff and you have your son on the staff too, which I know it's pressure on them because hey, they like that. I've been there, I worked in a company my brother was part of too.

4:14 And you're like, hey, I gotta perform and hold up to my end of the bargain here. But for you, coach, you got two trusted people on your staff with everyone else, too. Everyone's like brothers as coaches, but that's gonna be a nice thing that you're developing your son, still still being the father of the relationship.

4:30 What does that mean to you to have you the family?

4:33 Yeah, it's awesome. And uh, you know, it's I my wife is uh especially ecstatic that my son is here because we were in Utah for for a lot of years, 30 plus years. And the last eight years, my son Alex, who is on our steph, the he's the one that coached the linebackers here, uh, was with the Chiefs for with Andy Reid over there and and tried to get him over to Utah a few times when he was you know at the Chiefs.

4:54 He said, Dad, we're winning Super Bowls.

4:55 I'm having fun here, Dad.

4:57 I'm working for Andy, and so I said, Okay, I get it. And and so three Super Bowl rings later, and I I you know got this job. And I said, Okay, now I need you to come over here and and uh join the staff. And so he he pulled up stakes, and him and his wife and three little grandchildren of ours. That's awesome.

5:13 Moved to Ann Arbor. So and I've got eleven grandchildren, the other eight are in Salt Lake, so we were able to be around those eight and not see Alex as much, and now we're around Alex's and we don't see the other eight very often, but but it's a good thing. And family, family is uh huge for me, and my brother Freddie coaches the tight ends and and uh does a great job, and he was with me at Utah, and he's been with me on the staff in one capacity or another for about 12 years, and really is is uh great to be able to have that uh situation.

5:38 Sure, absolutely. And I did a little research. You went to BYU coach as a running back initially, right? A running back, then you switched to linebacker. You've never so I and I know I know who you are and stuff. Tough physical, hard nose type stuff. Your dad's we just talked about, but what is that you you know, a running back, linebacker?

5:57 Those are two physical, tough positions. When I see that and I know your style, you want to run the football and you want to stop the run because that's that's who you are, right? I mean that tell me about that. That's your style, right? You you gotta run and stop to run.

6:09 100%. There's nothing more demoralizing to an opponent than to be able to, you know, as for us to run the ball right down their throat, there's nothing they can do about it. That was uh something we did very well last year at Utah. We ended up second the nation in rushing, and uh it's just it's different.

6:22 You know, when you run and you're physical, that seems to do more psychological damage than when you're throwing the ball. So that's something I subscribe to. And then defensively, like you said, you got to stop the run. If you if you turn a team one-dimensional and say, hey, you can't run the ball, you're gonna have to throw, then you can get them in third long, get after the quarterback, and that that's really a the simple formula of what we do on defense.

6:42 Absolutely. Lavelle Edwards. So Andy Reid, I was on the show last week. Coach Reed said, Hey, I said, Coach, what's the best advice you ever get from anybody? And he said, Lavelle Edwards told me, you know, when he was whipping his butt, he said, you know, you go, if you go to the head coach with a problem, have it have a solution too.

6:59 Great advice. Yeah, I use that in life and business for people I tell people that work with me, hey, if you come with a problem, come with a solution. Let's think it through. You may not give we may not do what your solution is, but it's a good idea, right? So what did Lavelle Edwards mean to you and what you know, maybe a story about him that you work today that you still think of?

7:15 Yeah, well, the the opportunity to play for Lavelle was was awesome. Uh what a great man, great coach. Uh, such a steadying influence on a program. You know, no, you know, it wasn't a roller coaster ride. It was very, very steady, very disciplined. And uh I think really what I learned from Lavelle was surround yourself with great assistants and let them do their job.

7:34 You know, don't micromanage. And uh he had some terrific assistants come through there and uh did just that. You know, he let them do their job. You hire them for a reason, you hire them because they're good football coaches, so so let them coach. And and uh that was one of the big takeaways. I had a chance to not only play for Coach Edwards, but be a graduate assistant for him for a couple years.

7:52 And so that was a whole different perspective as well, and that's that was a great experience for me.

7:56 Yeah, and coach, I was gonna mention that too. How the world is so small. 1985, you're a GA at BYU. You're playing a bowl game against Ohio State, right?

8:06 Yes, sir.

8:06 Right. In in Orlando, Florida. There was a 14-year-old kid in those stands. That was me. I was at that game.

8:13 Oh, you're just a youngster, man. Yeah.

8:15 I'm 54 now. I'm not not too young, but yeah.

8:19 Trust me, you're the youngster.

8:20 I feel old. But yeah, I mean, I remember that in the irony now. You're Michigan, Ohio State. Anything you pull from that game that you you know, you remember one of your first games as a coach against Ohio State.

8:31 Yeah, well, nothing. I don't I don't know if I'm pulling anything from it, but I certainly remember it. And uh man, they had some physical guys. Who was their nose guard? Was it Crumrow? I can't remember what his name was.

8:39 Tim Crumry, maybe? Yeah, Crumrai.

8:41 I think he was a big physical nose guard, and they had a strong running attack.

8:46 Keith Byers, I think was Keith Byers, you're that was who it was.

8:49 Yeah, that's who it was. I just remember that was uh one of the physical games. I believe it was low scoring. I can't it was a while ago, and I can't remember.

8:55 Yeah, 10-7. 10 to 7. Who won?

8:58 I can't remember.

8:59 I think they won. I think you're your the BYU quarterback Bosco threw a few interceptions that game. It was a close game. The interception at the end cut, you know. So I was there, I remember that. Great stuff. But anyhow, it's just how the how the world is. But doing that too, like you know, there's a guy on your staff, I mean Luther Rellis, Luther, right?

9:16 Luther's a great guy. You coach you coached Luther at Utah. I I played with Luther, played against him in the NFL, Detroit. Yeah, great, great guy, tough physical guy. And I, you know, the interesting thing about Luther, a family guy's got 12 kids. I think five of them play in it play NFL football. I mean, yeah.

9:32 So you're gonna tell me. I mean, I know he's a good coach because he how do you co how do you have five kids play high-level football? So he's a good man, good coach.

9:40 He is on the Utah staff. He he has uh sons that play for him there, and it was, you know, I I just felt that uh and he felt the best fit for him was to to remain where he was. And uh you're right, he's got a talented group of of sons, and I think uh if the one that is there at Utah ends up playing in the NFL, I think that'll be six guy, six sons that are that played in the NFL at one time or another, which you know, you're hard pressed to find a family that uh uh you know has that many play players in the NFL.

10:05 Yeah, unbelievable, unbelievable. So, coach, your team's toughness, discipline, development, accountability. You know, you said when it's a coach-led team can be good, but a player-led team can be great. Right. What to talk to me about that philosophy.

10:18 Yeah, I believe the owners or the players got to take ownership. Uh, they gotta govern the team, make sure that you know, when you're out of practice, things are going the right way. If the coaches are doing all the yelling and screaming and getting guys going, then then like I said, you can be okay, but you can't.

10:31 I've never been a part of a a great team that was not player-led and player-driven. And uh, you know, we had some really good teams at Utah, some undefeated teams, and and uh that was exactly the case. The players really took charge and and uh made sure things got done the right way.

10:45 How do you uh how do you create the player-led culture?

10:48 It's something you stress and and uh you talk about it every day, and pretty much as a coach, you're gonna get what you emphasize. That's you know it's not a hundred percent accurate, but but most of the time, you know, the things that you emphasize and and stress to the players, they'll pick up on and realize that uh hey, this must be important because he keep he keeps talking about it.

11:04 And so uh that's really you know, I I talked about being consistent and and letting the you know having the players know what to expect every day when they come into the facility, and that that's part of it, is preaching the same things. If every single day you're preaching a a new mantra or a new idea or whatever, then you know it's like what's important.

11:20 And so you gotta focus on what's important and continue to make that important and they'll pick up on it.

11:25 Coach, can you manufacture toughness? So do you do you either have it or you don't have it?

11:29 You know, I think that's uh a question that I'm not sure if there's an absolute answer. I think you can improve someone's toughness and let them figure out how to become comfortable when they're uncomfortable, you know, and you know, with you know, conditioning and things that you can do for them. But but a lot of guys come to you, you know, with great toughness, and that you know, those are the guys that that obviously don't need a whole lot of spend a whole lot of time on, but but uh in that regard.

11:52 But but I I I think it's both ways. Some guys can learn toughness, some guys can't. I mean, some guys just they are who they are, and and uh they're in your program four years and really haven't got much tougher. But but uh I think you can to a certain extent you can uh you can make a uh a young man mentally and physically tougher.

12:08 Sure. And you you built a career built developing players over four to five years in today's world of college, right? You got the NIL, the portal, and you know Michigan's a great i iconic school, brand and stuff. I'm sure it has the resources to kind of recruit and keep guys. How how do you how do you get guys into into in today's world?

12:26 How do you how are you doing that? How would you do that?

12:28 Yeah, it is tough because the instant gratification is what they want, and instant results and uh you know playing time and and uh Utah, you're right. We had a a really good developmental system where they you know we don't recruit guys with the you know, they may be lacking a little bit of weight or you know, whatever the case may be, and and soak them in the system for two or three years and then they're ready to play.

12:47 But very few guys are gonna be patient enough to sit around for two or three years until they're until their numbers called. And so now at Michigan, you know, we were able to we're able to recruit uh much more of the you know, the higher profile recruits, the four and five star guys who are much more ready to compete at the college level.

13:03 And so it's a little bit different process here, but uh it still boils down to player development and you know, recruit, develop, and manage. That's an axiom we had at Utah for many years. You recruit the raw talent and the and the right guys, uh, you know, that fit your program, uh develop those guys, and then you know, you just gotta continue to to uh manage the players and make sure everyone's doing the right things.

13:23 Sure, sure. And what the weight room, coach, I know you're that's a big room for you guys and you personally and stuff. You know, a lot of people don't understand and know that the strength coaches spend probably the most time with a lot of the players than you know, than coaches on a daily basis and get to know these guys.

13:37 I've been in the Michigan weight room, beautiful. I mean, I I don't know if you redid it a little bit or something, but it wasn't Did you? Okay, there was a clock up there counting down the Ohio State game and all that stuff, which I get. But I and I'd love to hear what you did, but that does the chalk fly in that room?

13:51 It was a very pretty room. I was, you know, I I I remember my old days at Virginia Tech. We had a little room, and but the chalk was flying, people were spitting and sweating. I was just one in Michigan, it's very pretty. So what what changes did you make, Coach?

14:03 Yeah, well, the first thing is when we first got here, we had we strength tested, and uh that was probably the biggest eye-opener for me uh of anything that I discovered here was the lack of strength of the football team. They just weren't very strong. And and for whatever reason, uh, you know, they didn't bench press last year and you know, some other core lifts that we feel pretty strongly about.

14:22 And so I brought my strength coach with me from Utah, Doug Alisaya, who I think is the best strength coach in the country. And uh he went to work with them. And uh in the last seven months we've made huge gains. I think it was 98% of the team PR'd in just about every lift that we had uh that we tested them on.

14:38 And uh, you know, foot football's a physical game, and you better be you know better have physicality and it starts in the weight room. And I believe mental toughness starts in there as well. You talked about players spending more time in the with the strength coaches than than probably their position coaches, and and so a lot of the onus of that is on the strength staff to to push these guys and and uh start to develop and instill the mental toughness.

14:59 100%. That's that's shocking. It didn't bench press. I've I've never seen that in football. But coach, what what are your lifts? You the bench squat clean, what do you what do you got? What's your core?

15:08 No, that's the core right there. Bench squat clean. Yeah, a little bit of deadlift. But uh we're pretty we're pretty basic and how I say that, but our we're really on the cutting edge, you know, scientifically, of what we do in the weight room. And and uh we've really got, you know, weight the weight room has changed so much in the last 30, 40 years, you know, the the methods and the tactics, and and uh but uh our guys do a great job.

15:28 That's the bottom line.

15:29 It's funny you said I remember in college we had an old strength coach, too. Mike Gentry was a great guy, and he we we were going to play Oklahoma, and he he told us he's like, hey guys, the 45-pound weights in our room are 45 pounds in their room, too. So you said the the it's changed, but the weights still weigh the same, right?

15:44 You get someone's gotta lift them up and move them, right? Exactly.

15:46 Yep.

15:47 More things change, the more they stay the same. That's right. So Coach Reed, it was at BYU around the same time you were great. Coach coached me, great man, great guy. He's unbelievable success that he's had, and just uh I love his values and principles and just the man he is. I guess you did you guys cross paths at BYU or your teammates?

16:04 We were close, very close. We hung out together a bunch, spent a lot of time together, and uh very close to this day. And yeah, like I said, he gave my uh my son his start in uh in coaching, and and uh really you know, he's working with Coach Reed and Spagnolia at Kansas City was a invaluable experience for my son.

16:23 But but me and Andy, uh, he's a close friend, like I said. We we talk uh quite often, exchange texts, and uh we had uh we had some good times at BYU, I can tell you that.

16:33 Yeah, no, I know Coach Reed, amazing coach. He's he was an old lineman, right? So you guys probably cracked heads a little bit, right? Yeah, yeah. I love it. Those are the best friendships, right? Guys that you know you got battled each other, practice, and then you hung out at after practice. That's great stuff.

16:48 Coach, so you're at Michigan now, you take over. A big thing on, you know, people listen, leadership, transition, right? You've transitioned. You you were retiring at Utah, incredible run out there.

16:58 Retiring, not retiring, stepping down.

17:00 No, you okay. Step that's right. That's right. Step down. That's right. And then you transition now to where you're at right now. How do you handle and how to just advise for people transitioning from one thing to the next? What do you do, Coach? That's how do you handle transition?

17:15 Well, first of all, you know, I haven't had a lot of transition because I was at Utah 30 31 years. So I was in a place or two before that. But but uh, you know, first of all, coach what you know, you know, just just stick to who you are and what what you believe in, and uh you know, don't deviate. And and so that that was you know, we talked about John Pease before we went on the air, and he's he taught me that.

17:35 He says, you know, you believe in what you're doing, you feel like you're doing the right things, then keep doing them. You know, and you can't panic when things don't go exactly the way you want them. And if you you know you hit some bumps in the road, you can't wholesale change everything, and uh because that's not the answer.

17:48 And so bottom line is is stay true to what you believe and coach what you know, and don't uh you know have have confidence in that and don't uh don't deviate from that.

17:57 Sure. Hey coach, I I I played for nine years, I coached for three in the NFL, then I went out in the business world after that. It was my path. And one of the first stops I did, I worked for IMG, I sold Michigan and Florida. I sold the block. So I understand Michigan, the largest living alumni base, it's powerful, the blockam, the whole deal, right?

18:14 You know, but I'd say this impolitely nice, a confident group that you know, we're Michigan. They there was they recruited me in high school, Gary Mole and stuff. And I it is but interesting for you, you going in the room, and I know how this works, and you're a humble guy, good guy. Or you go in a room, Michigan looks at you, oh, this guy's from Utah, whatever, and just said so coach, you were three and oh against Michigan, right?

18:35 As a head coach, right? You know, right? Yeah, so that that's the credibility, respect. I don't care, you know, you're walking in those rooms, people, Michigan's a confident group, but you were three and oh. I mean, how what does that mean to you? And it's got to add a little chest out, little like, hey, if you guys are gonna give me a little heat, like, you know, I I know who you guys are, but we figured you guys out too, right?

18:58 Yeah, yeah, that gave me a little bit of credibility going in, and and uh, you know, the players uh I think that help with the buy-in, because that that's 90% of anytime you get to a new situation, you know, buy-in from the players is gonna be critical, and especially buy-in from the top 10%. You know, if you get the if you get the top 10% of your players as far as you know, the top the best 10% as far as talent, and they're in, then everything seems to follow suit.

19:20 And so uh, you know, having a three and oh record against Michigan certainly, certainly help with that buy-in factor, and and uh hey, this, you know, they maybe these guys do know what they're doing.

19:29 So a hundred percent, yeah. Street cred. That's that's that's everything in those locker rooms. The other coaches I've had on have been like, hey, you can stand up in front of these teams, but they're gonna figure out real quickly, and in a in a week it will take them. If you don't know your stuff, you're not a guy, you know, you're gonna lose the locker room, I'm sure.

19:45 But three and oh, and who you are, the toughness, the weight room. I love that. That's that's the hats off to you and all that. So I guess, coach, when you're recruiting in Michigan, you touched on it, gets a lot of four and five stars, right? But you you've probably made a living off three stars, no stars at Utah, right?

20:01 Yes. How do you how do you handle that, especially today with the NIL guys you're negotiating, you're paying guys? What's your thought on that? You know, the three stars, would you rather make a three star into a great player or the five star comes in? Does he live up to his uh ability? I guess what's your thoughts on all that?

20:15 Well, there's arguments for both, and I think it depends where you're at, you know, because you know, some schools you're just not gonna you're not gonna get the four and five stars. You're not, they're not gonna go there. Just it's not a higher high enough profile uh university or program or whatever the case may be.

20:28 And so, uh, you know, at Michigan, in order to compete with who we got to compete with, you know, we've got to get you know the best of the best in recruiting. It's uh college football is all about recruiting. Ninety percent of your success or your lack thereof is gonna be tied to recruiting. You know, if you have if you have issues in your program, you can trace it back to recruiting mistakes.

20:45 You know, if you're winning championships, you trace it right back to really good evaluation and and uh recruiting the right way. And so recruiting is uh absolutely critical and tantamount, so something we do every day. You there's uh three hundred and sixty-five days a year now. You're recruiting in some way, shape, or form every single day.

21:00 And and there's still a place for developing players at a place like Michigan, but but you better have some of the ready-made, you know, really high profile guys as well that are ready to come in and contribute very soon.

21:12 Yeah, and can you coach today's player the same way you did 20, 30 years ago? Wha how how's that?

21:18 You know, I I've been asked that question a lot and and and thought about it a lot, and you know, I think basically kids haven't changed that much. You know, they're still young men and trying to figure out who they are and that type of thing, but but uh you know, certainly the NIL, the transfer portal, the dynamics of the game have changed and and uh it's it's nothing doesn't even resemble what the game was like six, seven years ago.

21:42 I mean it's it's so so dramatically different, and and I think there's bigger changes on the horizon than than what we've experienced. I think there's gonna be a massive overhaul here pretty quickly, and and uh 'cause what we got going right now is is just not sustainable. I mean, NIL budgets and expenses are going up twenty, thirty, forty percent a year.

21:59 Uh yeah. You're gonna have in this next recruiting cycle, the twenty seven signee class, probably a dozen fifty million plus rosters in the country, and and uh it's it's just out of control and and it's not sustainable, like I said. And so I think there's gonna you know, you almost have to blow up the whole system and and start over and and uh get some guardrails and some structure to it.

22:19 Because right now it's there is none. It's just it's the wild west, as you hear over and over. People use that term, and and it's just it can't continue this down this road because it it just won't work. The math doesn't work.

22:30 Right, no, the system's broken, in my opinion. I mean the conferences need to align, but it everyone's competitive, right? Every school wants to be there, wants to know no one can agree. But I guess uh, coach, how how much of your time is spent, you know, it's a business now and in the past, you gotta raise money to help the school raise money.

22:46 How much of your time, especially with what we talk about, you're paying the players, how much of your time versus 20 years ago is spent raising money?

22:52 Yeah, well, this summer was incredibly uh hectic. You know, I was all over the country, literally. I mean, we had, you know, and it's twofold. It's trying to raise money, obviously, and then trying to connect with the alumni and and you know, let them know what we're all about and who we are. And and so we we were on the road, I was on the road almost the entire June and and a lot of July, just going throughout the different alumni chapters and and uh you know talking and speaking to them and you know, educating them as to you know who we are and what hopefully they can expect at Michigan and and also at the same time saying, hey, you know, again, what I told you, recruiting's the most important

23:25 thing in college football, and NAL is the most important facet of recruiting. And so if you want to put together these really good classes and and stay competitive, you gotta you gotta step up to the plate. And even if it's distasteful, I mean a lot of people don't like NIL and think it's ridiculous, but it's not going away, at least not right now.

23:42 And and so if you want to stay competitive, like it or not, you got to embrace it because you either embrace it or you embrace irrelevancy. That's where you got where you're going.

23:49 Right, no question, no question. Coach, we're about four weeks away from the opener of Western Michigan. Are you guys working on them right now? I'm sure you've been working all offseason, kind of building up packages for them. What are you gonna do? What are you gonna do? Then you got I think some big games right after Oklahoma.

24:02 So you're focused on you know Western Michigan. So four weeks, you guys, is is two a days anymore? Is it all one a days?

24:09 Yeah, no two-a-days, unfortunately, Jim. You get uh, you know, I used to love two a days as a player. I mean, it was just the grind. I relish the grind, but but uh we're getting ready and and we still we have not, it's still really early. We're only two practices in. We haven't broken into scout teams and that type of thing yet for full-on preparation.

24:26 But uh we definitely have a game plan, at least a preliminary game plan set up, and and uh you know, a few minutes of each practice is devoted to you know the looks they're gonna see on September 5th, but but uh that won't go wholesale until about two weeks out from the game. That's when it'll all focus in on the uh the one opponent.

24:43 Sure, sure, sure. No, and and you you came in about seven months ago, you know, it was some issues before at Michigan. You're the you know, again, Urban Meyer. I you know you coached with Coach Meyer, he I loved his quote, said Michigan fell into the right guy, right? I mean, you're the you know, in my opinion, a perfect, disciplined, structured, hard-nosed, credible guy.

25:01 You come in. How's that whole transition been? That's been a big transition, maybe for Michigan to you. How's that whole process been?

25:09 It's been really good. And I was so impressed with the players here. When I first uh got the job, they were on the bowl site down in Orlando. I flew down to the bull site and interviewed every player on the football team. It took me three days, eight hours a day to get it done. But I was so impressed with the the type of young man that's here at Michigan.

25:26 They were tuned into their academics, they all of them knew their GPA and what they were gonna do with their major, and am I gonna go to grad school and this and that? So I was thoroughly impressed with their attitudes. Uh, they were respectful, and uh, you know, it was just uh something that uh because I wasn't sure what to expect.

25:41 You know, was it gonna be a bunch of entitled guys, four and five star guys that were, you know, that uh you know just had a different attitude, but but uh these guys are hungry to play football. You know, the the issues that have been surrounding the program were not player-driven. I mean, the players had no issues.

25:57 I mean, they you know, knock on wood as soon as you say something, then you know, then you get a call at 2 a.m. in the morning. But uh it was it was uh quote unquote the adults in the room that were uh you know having the the issues, and and uh that's one of the first messages I brought is hey, you know, let's we're gonna put the drama to bed and just start, you know, going to school and playing football and while you're here and not having all the distraction.

26:19 And and they they are just craving that. And and to their credit, like I said, all through the the distractions for lack of a better word, they held strong and they you know managed to win nine games last year through it all. And so uh to their credit, they they've handled it very well, and it was sure.

26:35 And I guess Andy Reid, I love talking about Coach Reed. You have discussions with him, you know, he left uh Philadelphia, went to Kansas City, great things. You're you is any discussions with him, advice that he gives you to kind of help you with transitions or what you do. What do you what do you I guess with you and Coach Reed?

26:50 Anything you can gleam off of him and his success?

26:53 Yeah, he's he's uh one of the you know all-time best to ever do it, and uh share ideas quite often. And uh, but mostly when we talk, it's just catching up and talking about old times. And and uh, you know, I've gone out was when he was at Philly, I went out to see him there, and then I've been out, you know, obviously at Kansas City with my son there.

27:09 I probably went to what 20 games over the past you know seven or eight years, and and every Super Bowl they've been in, I've I've been at that. So so uh just just having him as a as a sounding board and and a and a friend uh has been invaluable for me. And uh, you know, he's got uh you know, he's just done such a great job wherever he's been.

27:27 And and uh you know, you talk about a shoe-in Hall of Fame coach. I mean, he's he's as good as there as there's been.

27:32 Yeah, no, great man. Great. I'm happy for him, all the leadership he's done. Right. And coach, I guess when when it's you know, at the end, in 20 years from now, 30 years from now, what what do you want your former players to say about you?

27:43 Well, hopefully that I was somewhat instrumental in making them ready and preparing them for to be great husbands, great fathers, you know, contributors to society and the community, and and uh, you know, life lessons. Hopefully they they we we help them become equipped to uh be successful in life. And and you know, the short version of my job, and with uh our players are here for three reasons, and I tell them this all the time.

28:05 Number one, get your degree, graduate so you have a future. Okay, number two, win championships, and number three for a lot of them, because a place like Michigan, there's a lot of talent, get guys ready for the NFL. And so that that's that's the short version of what we're all about, and and along the way, if we can uh instill, you know, some real good values in them so they can that can help them through the rest of their life, then then uh that's what it's all about.

28:26 Hey coach, if you're talking to a CEO or another head coach or someone taking over an organization, building a culture, bill of thing, what's the best advice you'd give somebody to lead an organization?

28:36 Well, I would say that uh you know culture is instilled one day at a time, one decision at a time, one conversation at a time. I mean, it's a process and uh culture is of huge importance and don't don't underestimate or undervalue culture because it's it's uh it's maybe the single most critical aspect of what you're doing.

28:54 And so again, like I said at the onset here, stay consistent with what you're doing. The play, you know, let your employees or your players, as the case may be, they they gotta know exactly what to expect every single day and what uh you know how you operate and and uh just being consistent. That I it always comes back to that word.

29:09 Players, you know, love to be treated consistently.

29:12 Hey coach, last question. I guess you got 11 grandkids. I guess if you had them all sitting around, you know, you love them, you teach them. What what what's the best life advice you're gonna you're gonna teach them?

29:22 I would say work hard and treat people the right way. I mean, that's it it's pretty simple. I mean, uh and probably treating people the right way is is is number one in my life and and how I try to operate. And uh, you know, just just do the right things and and treat people good and and I think you'll be okay.

29:38 That's great. Awesome coach. Thank you. Hey, best of luck this season. Big things. Michigan's a better place because you're there. They're gonna be stronger for sure. The bench presses are going up.

29:47 We will be stronger, yeah.

29:49 I'm looking for strong physical tough. I know they're gonna be because of you, and uh best of luck, and maybe we'll have you on again and thank you for the time. Really appreciate it, Coach.

29:57 Really appreciate you having me on. Thank you.

29:58 Thank you. Take care. Okay, bye-bye. See you.