He just wanted a better deal.
Utah announced Friday that it had agreed to a deal that will pay Whittingham $2.6 million in 2015 and provide an automatic $100,000 raise each year through 2018. The entire contract is worth $11 million.
“We are excited to come to terms on a contract extension for Coach Whitt and under his leadership, we’re looking forward to a successful football season next fall and in the years to come,” athletic director Chris Hill said in a statement.
Utah finished last season 9-4 with a 45-10 victory over Colorado State in the Las Vegas Bowl. The Utes finished ranked No. 21 in the final AP poll.
However, reports surfaced in late December that Whittingham was unhappy in Salt Lake City and was looking for a way out. His main gripe was that Hill was "trying to sabotage" his program by not making more money available to his assistants.
Speculation about Whittingham’s unhappiness was only fueled by defensive coordinator Kelani Sitake and defensive line coach Ilaisa Tuiaki going to Oregon State, and offensive coordinator Dave Christensen leaving to become offensive line coach at Texas A&M.
However, Hill refuted the rumors saying he had met with Whittingham and that everything was fine.
Whittingham is 85-43 at Utah and has been with the program in some capacity for 20 seasons. He took over for Urban Meyer following the 2004 Fiesta Bowl-winning season.
For more Utah news, visit Utezone.com.
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Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter! Follow @YahooDrSaturday
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From Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo Sports - Utah's Kyle Whittingham agrees to new contract, will make $2.6 million in 2015
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