Texas coach Tom Herman was blown away by a stat about his opponent that was brought up during Thursday’s Alamo Bowl head coach press conference in San Antonio.
Though Utah’s stingy defense and prolific offense both produced impressive stats this season, the data point that caught Herman’s attention was about the Utes’ head coach — in particular, Kyle Whittingham’s obsessive workout habits.
This came up when Whittingham was humorously asked about his workout streak and how he remains motivated to exercise. It’s widely known that the 60-year-old Ute coach is a gym rat who keeps himself in tip-top shape. His muscular calves are even often the subject of jokes.
It’s likely not many were fully aware of his extreme level of devotion to working out before this press conference. The Texas coach certainly wasn’t.
“It’s kind of a sickness now. I’ve been doing it for a while,” Whittingham said. “What do you want to know? How many days I’ve done it?”
Whittingham then divulged his impressive secret.
“We’re right around four thousand days, give or take,” Whittingham admitted. “Leave it at that.”
Herman, clearly awed by the admission that his counterpart had worked out for so long without a break, interrupted Whittingham.
“Straight days?”
“Yes.”
Herman laughed. “That’s real? Walking? Running?”
“Elliptical, stair-step, swimming, every day,” Whittingham responded.
“Four thousand?” Herman asked.
“For sure,” Whittingham said, laughing. “I’m constantly trying to outwork my diet, which is hard to do.”
The longtime Ute coach said he continues to hit it hard more for his mind than his body, though.
“It keeps me sane. If I didn’t do it, I’d go insane,” Whittingham said. “It’s more for a mental deal than physical.”
By the way, the Alamo Bowl social media manager did the math and tweeted out, “15 more days until @UtahCoachWhitt hits 11 straight years of working out every day!”
If you’re looking for verification, Utah football’s equipment staff backed up Whittingham’s sweat-producing stat, tweeting out, “We can confirm that this is accurate.”
Several sports fans joined in on the social media conversation, jokingly pointing out that Whittingham’s workout streak is almost as long as his football team’s winning streak against rival BYU.
ALAMO BOWL
No. 11 Utah (11-2) vs. Texas (7-5)
Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
Tuesday, Dec. 31, 5:30 p.m. (MST)
TV: ESPN
Radio: ESPN 700AM