Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Michigan fired offensive coordinator Jason Beck.
The Michigan football team fired offensive coordinator Jason Beck after a loss to Michigan State. He will not be given the opportunity to finish out his first season in Ann Arbor.
The decision proves players right in their criticism of play calling. Beck’s presence turned the locker room against the coaching staff midway through the season.
Head coach Kyle Whittingham stood by his assistant through the first eight games of the year. Beck couldn’t survive another poor performance this weekend.
Michigan’s offense is awful.
The Wolverines rank 126th in the nation, averaging 19.6 points per game. They’ve scored 21 points or less in seven of nine contests.
Against Michigan State, the offense was held to six points. It gained just 192 yards. Michigan did not get on the scoreboard until there were less than two minutes left in regulation.
The lacking production is a trend that’s led to drama throughout the year. Starting quarterback Bryce Underwood was benched for freshman Tommy Carr during a win over Penn State. The unit has not looked good with either signal caller under center.
In early October, tight end Zack Marshall blamed Jason Beck and the coaching staff for Michigan’s failures. A leaked text message conversation revealed a player revolt.
“I want everyone off Bryce’s a–. Bryce is a good QB. Beck is a problem.”
-Zack Marshall
Marshall ripped scheme and play calling while calling out Beck by name. On Sunday, he was proven right.
Jason Beck was fired.
Per the terms of his contract, Jason Beck is set to be owed up to $10.1 million dollars. That’s nearly $7 million in salary and nearly $3.1 in retention bonuses. The contract is subject to off-set and mitigation. It’s believed to be the biggest buyout for a college assistant.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 8, 2026
He will not coach Game 10. He is set to be owed up to $10.1 million according to Pete Thamel. It is thought to be the largest buyout for a college football assistant.
Beck followed Whittingham from Utah in the offseason. His offense in Salt Lake City ranked 4th nationally last year in scoring. He was made the sport’s highest paid play caller.
This year, there’s been a massive dropoff. Whittingham previously placed blame on execution, not coaching. He refused to take accountability for the offensive struggles.
 “Jason Beck’s track record has been very, very good offensively. It’s been an offense that’s very hard for defenses to deal with when it’s functioning at the level it needs to function at. When you lose a couple of games, everything comes into question. You cannot just make wholesale changes…
“It’s a new offense for (Bryce Underwood)… There are a lot of reads that need to be made in this offense, a lot of RPO aspect to it. There’s going to be reads not only in the throw game but in the run game. Those reads are critical to the success of the offense. We’ve just got to continue to work on making the correct reads in those situations.”
-Kyle Whittingham
Something changed between that conversation in October and today. Jason Beck is no longer employed by the University of Michigan. He has been fired.
There are some that believe the school threatened Whittingham’s job if he continued to stick by Beck’s side. Those rumors have not been proven.
“The results have not matched our desired outcome, and I felt that a change in leadership was required for our offense,” Whittingham said in response to the move, suggesting the decision to fire Beck was his alone.
Whatever the case, the Wolverines will be working with a new play caller for their final three games.