At 65 years old, chatter had begun to pick up the last several years about the pending retirement of Kyle Whittingham at Utah.
Back in July, the program decided to rename defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley the Utes head-coach-in-waiting, a title he previously earned before it was taken away.
After a season that started with a lot of promise resulted in a challenging 5-7 finish that saw offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig step away in-season, many wondered what Whittingham's commitment to the future of the program would be.
Today, he answered those doubts about his future plans with a release and just two words.
"I'm back," he shared.
That makes it abundantly clear the Morgan Scalley era at Utah will have to wait one more year.
2025 will mark the 22nd season of Whittingham leading the Utes and their second season in the Big 12.
Whit may be the only coach in college football history to lead his program in three different conferences (Mountain West, Pac-12 and Big 12).
He has compiled a 167-86 record atop the program that he took over following the departure of Urban Meyer heading into the 2005 season.
See the full release from Utah below.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.