Portnoy calls for Michigan coaches to be fired after loss

Michigan’s 15-6 defeat by Michigan State at the Big House on November 7 prompted Dave Portnoy to call for the firing of head coach Kyle Whittingham and offensive coordinator Jason Beck. Neither team scored a touchdown in the game.

Portnoy blamed the coaching staff rather than the players, and said the team’s performance was among the worst he could remember. He also called on Whittingham to leave without taking a buyout.

Michigan has lost four of its past six games and tallied 21 points or fewer in six of its previous seven contests. Michigan State came in without a Big Ten win and left with a 3-6 overall record after upsetting a Wolverines team favored by 14 points at home.

Beck, who followed Whittingham from Utah and is the highest-paid offensive coordinator in college football, shifted from the press box to the sideline at halftime. Whittingham said after the game that he was not considering a coordinator change at that moment, but would assess the entire operation after the season.

Ohio State remains on Michigan’s schedule. Portnoy said he was nearly hoping Michigan would lose the rest of its games, including against the Buckeyes, if that would bring about a coaching change.