BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill rolls the dice by joining Whittingham at UM

BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill is joining Kyle Whittingham at the University of Michigan to be the next defensive coordinator in Ann Arbor. Hill has spent 10 seasons as an FCS head coach at Weber State and three seasons as a defensive coordinator in a Power 4 conference at BYU. After the success he had at BYU, it seemed like he was going to stay in Provo until the right FBS head coaching job opened up.

That is no longer the case.

While UM is, at the moment, a bigger destination than BYU, it is also much riskier. Ann Arbor is a dumpster fire right now. The man they called to put it out was just recently forced out of the job he had spent 20 years at in favor of his defensive coordinator. Utah was more worried about losing Morgan Scalley in the long run than they were about Kyle Whittingham staying, that the Utes and their head coach of two decades decided he’d ‘retire.’

That all changed when the cheatingest program in college football history continued to melt down. With more turmoil in Ann Arbor, causing another coach to leave in disgrace, UM wanted someone who could run a mostly clean and disciplined program and carry a loyalty that bordered on arrogance for the blue and maize. So, naturally, they thought of Kyle Whittingham. If their rivals at Ohio State could have a former Utah head coach (Urban Meyer) lead them to a national title, why not them?

Whittingham immediately began poaching coaches from the rest of the state of Utah to join him in Ann Arbor. He got Utah offensive coordinator and former BYU quarterback Jason Beck to take the offensive coordinator job and then went after Jay Hill. It took some convincing, but Hill left Provo (I can’t help but wonder if BYU fans will keep showing love to UM mega donor and troll Dave Portnoy now).

It’s a bit of a riskier option for Hill to go be the defensive coordinator with Whittingham’s new program. At age 66, it doesn’t seem like Whittingham will be there for a long time, which is a double-edged sword for Jay Hill. If Whittingham struggles at UM in a league that has Ohio State, Oregon, USC, Washington, Illinois, Iowa, and Penn State, then when his time there comes to an end, Hill would need to go be a defensive coordinator elsewhere again to rebuild his track record and hopes for a Power Four head coaching job. However, if Whittingham and Hill succeed, then when Whittingham retires for good, Jay Hill may just take the keys to the car and become the next head coach of a historic and historically controversial program.

Had he stayed at BYU, Hill likely would have had an FBS head coaching job open up for him after one more season. Possibly even a Power Four head coaching job. That would have been the safer path up the ladder in the coaching ranks. But Hill decided to roll the dice and count on himself. As an Ohio State-BYU fan, I wish he’d taken another road, and while the Big Ten may not yet know, they’re going to find out about the defenses Jay Hill can put together.