Here’s what Utah players had to say about Kyle Whittingham, who stepped down at Utah on Friday.
Byrd Ficklin only played for a Kyle Whittingham-coached team for one season, but he has the soon-to-be-former Utah coach to thank for his burgeoning college career.
Despite winning an Oklahoma state championship in his junior season and putting up 2,351 passing yards and 30 touchdowns with just four interceptions and 687 yards and 13 scores on the ground in his senior season, Ficklin was under-recruited out of high school.
The one Power Four school that took a chance on him at that time? Utah.
When Ficklin was offered by Utah in late November of 2024, the program didn’t even have a full-time offensive coordinator after Andy Ludwig’s midseason resignation.
Originally committed to Texas State, Ficklin flipped his commitment to Utah after the Utes came calling prior to signing day.
Without a permanent offensive coordinator on staff, Whittingham was the person who personally recruited Ficklin and gave him a chance to be a Power Four quarterback when other programs passed.
“Coach Whitt, he is the main reason why I’m here. He recruited me personally. He called me while I was at dinner with my family. He called me himself and asked me to come on my visit and offered me the exact same day,” Ficklin said.
Whittingham had never seen Ficklin play in person, but the quarterback’s high school film didn’t lie. Watching the tape, Utah’s coach saw a quarterback that made an impact and was a winner, and knew he had to take the chance and offer him.
On his initial phone call with Whittingham while being recruited, the longtime Utah coach told Ficklin that he was going to hire an offensive coordinator who would put the ball in the best players’ hands. That’s exactly what Jason Beck, Utah’s offensive coordinator, did this season.
“Just trust Coach Whit. He told me trust him, he’s going to get somebody in here that will place the ball in the best players’ hands. With Coach Beck, that’s what he’s been doing. I think he’s been getting the ball to his best players on the field and you can see from week in, week out, that it has been working really well,” Ficklin said.
Though Ficklin had just one season with Whittingham, the 66-year-old coach gave him the chance that he was waiting for and changed his life.
“Coach Whitt, he took that chance and I’m very blessed for him to do that,” Ficklin said.
Starting quarterback Devon Dampier is another player who Whittingham made an impact on in a short amount of time.
“Before I came here, that was one of the GOATs to me. You hear about best coaches out in college football and he was one of them, so just for him to live up to that, the guidance he’s given me, the respect and just the knowledge he’s given me about the game, I love that guy. I appreciate him for giving me this opportunity to be quarterback here,” Dampier said.
Whittingham demanded toughness and accountability from his players, and his teams took on the personality of their head coach. “You will become us, we will not become you,” was a key cornerstone of Utah’s culture, especially in the transfer portal era.
At the same time, another key part of Utah’s culture — driven by Whittingham — has been the emphasis on the family aspect of the program and caring for players off the field.
Under Whittingham, Utah consistently had a stellar graduation rate, and many former players keep in contact with him to this day.
“That’s the type of personality he is, man, very easygoing, very easy to talk to. You can literally come to him with any problems, literally, and I’m talking about even as a current player or a former player,” former Utah receiver Kenneth Scott said.
“I’ve reached out to him many times just post-playing days, just asking him for guidance. What’s his thoughts, what’s his opinions on how I should move about things as far as if I wanted to go into coaching, etc., and he just gave me solid advice, being a good mentor, and so he’s an overall good person when it comes to that.”
At Big 12 media days in July, less than six months after Dampier had arrived in Salt Lake City, the Utah quarterback spoke about his off-the-field relationship with Whittingham.
“There’s never a time where Coach Whitt walks by me … it turns into a conversation every time. It is very rare that I’ve ever walked by him and it was just ‘Hi.’ It’s never that,” Dampier said.
“So the fact that he’s always having a genuine conversation with me, not even talking about football, I don’t remember the last time he asked me a football question, to be honest. It’s always about how my family’s doing and how I’m doing personally.”
Though the media and fans caught glimpses of Whittingham’s humor here and there, that aspect of his personality was brought up by multiple current and former players.
“I’ve had a great relationship with him. The more and more I get to know him, the more and funny he is,” said cornerback Smith Snowden.
“When you get to spend a little bit of time with him outside of the football field, he’s witty. He makes jokes, he loves to joke around, but when it’s a football field, he’s busy, strictly business.”
Added Scott: “Man, Coach Whitt is actually funny. He’s very humorous. He likes to crack jokes, and I think that’s the side (of him) people don’t really get to see too much about, but if you really catch it in the media interviews and stuff like that, he’ll throw some jokes at you.”
Whittingham had a unique opportunity to impact the lives of over 2,500 players over his 21 seasons at Utah, and after the school announced that he was stepping down, messages of gratitude came rolling in.
Here are some of the reactions from Whittingham’s current players and assistant coaches, who will try to send him out with his 178th win at Utah when the Utes take on Nebraska in the Las Vegas Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
I’ve lived in Utah County for the majority of my life. Until last year, my life in the State of Utah revolved around BYU in some form or fashion — as a student-athlete, athletic administrator, and a football coach.
— Mark Atuaia (@CoachAtuaia) December 13, 2025
10 years ago, I left Provo to become a master of my craft with… pic.twitter.com/NP4LAMqyUa
Love yuh coach! You took that chance on a kid from Oklahoma🤞🏽 very blessed https://t.co/MfBgCXHEf8
— Jamarian “Byrd” Ficklin (@FicklinJamarian) December 12, 2025
It’s been an honor to play for you Coach.
— Logan Fano (@LoganFano) December 13, 2025
I’m grateful I got to be a small part of your legendary journey!
LOVE YOU COACH!
GO UTES! https://t.co/AJ9eaTjbm4
One of the greatest to ever do it!! https://t.co/9s6WQ6lT9f
— John Henry Daley (@JohnHenryDaley1) December 13, 2025
BUILD THE STATUE 🐐 https://t.co/c1eoVtsSmi
— Spencer Fano (@FanoSpencer) December 12, 2025
fun while it lasted , love coach 🤞🏽 https://t.co/4JLMftncSm
— 𝓓𝓪𝓷𝓲𝓮𝓵 𝓫𝓻𝓪𝔂 (@Danielbray2_) December 12, 2025
Thankful to have a year with the GOAT. Learned so much-still learning. Let’s go get 11 wins boss https://t.co/I2WGDqjM5R
— Micah Simon (@micahsimon_) December 13, 2025
Thank you for the best years of my life Coach Whitt!!
— Jaren Kump (@jarenkump68) December 12, 2025
One of the main reasons I came and stayed at the U! The best coach in football, love you coach! Let’s be great 1 more time https://t.co/VrtGagyJJq
It’s been a blessing being able to play for the U and @UtahCoachWhitt this year. Winning cultures start from the top down. A standard of excellence, a clear vision, and consistent work in pursuit of one goal made this place special. Thank you Coach Whitt. pic.twitter.com/trui6LgRkR
— RD ‼️ (@Davis_Ryan2) December 13, 2025
Thankful for this year with Coach Whittingham. Legendary ball coach and an even better person! Let’s go get #11 https://t.co/KeT95ULhp3
— Koy Detmer Jr. (@COACHKDJR) December 13, 2025
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Category: General Sports
