Alex Whittingham is one of the least talked-about names on the Michigan Wolverines' new coaching staff. He just gave everyone a reason to pay attention.

The son of head coach Kyle Whittingham, Alex spent his entire career climbing the NFL ladder, most recently serving as an assistant defensive line coach with the Kansas City Chiefs before joining his father in Ann Arbor. Michigan released a video this week on X where he laid out exactly how he thinks about linebackers.

He pulled his entire philosophy straight from baseball.

"Within baseball, there's the concept of a five-tool player that's being able to hit for average, power, fielding ability, arm strength, and speed on the base paths," Alex said as Michigan Football page posted the interview on X on June 24. "I kind of stole that and converted it to how we look at it as linebackers."

That is a genuinely different way to think about the position. Instead of just playing fast or being physical, Alex wants his linebackers to be complete in five specific areas. He laid out all five tools.

"What we teach every day in our room is being able to communicate, being able to block the strut, get off blocks, being a cover guy that can cover man or zone, being able to be a pass rusher on certain downs when we ask you off the edge or hit the A-gap, and then tackling," he added.

He saved the most important one for last. In the same video, Alex emphasized that tackling is arguably the most important skill on defense. He noted that getting to the ball means little if a player cannot finish the tackle.

During his time with the Chiefs, Alex helped reach the Super Bowl five times, including the title-winning campaigns in 2020, 2022, and 2023.

After making the transition to college football, he highlighted some of the key differences between the college and professional levels.

Alex Whittingham on how accountability works differently in college

College is a different conversation entirely. Alex had to figure out a whole new way of getting the best out of players when he got to Michigan.

"It's a little different, accountability in the NFL versus college," he said, per Wolverines Wire. "There's more to be accountable for in college."

He explained how his father's approach to that challenge has shaped his own coaching.

"That has kind of been a trademark for Coach Whitt for a long time, is letting the players have that accountability for each other, for the program, for their respective units, and then getting them bought into that," Alex said in the same video.

According to Alex, the goal is for players to understand the bigger picture, allowing them to support and correct one another rather than depending only on coaches.

That player-driven culture is something Kyle Whittingham has built everywhere he has coached. Alex is now trying to bring that same standard to Michigan's linebacker room.

Do you think Alex Whittingham's five-tool philosophy can help Michigan build one of the Big Ten's best linebacker groups in 2026? Let us know in the comments.

Read more at Michigan Football Community.

Written by

Farheen Fathima

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar