The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545685
THE WOLVERINE 2026 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 159 INSIDE THE NUMBERS DREW HALLETT S ophomore quarterback Bryce Underwood needs to take the next step for Michigan football. Figuratively and literally. Last season, Underwood took the first step, even if it was a sloppy one. The Maize and Blue faithful hoped that Underwood, as the No. 1 prospect in his class and one of the most heralded true freshmen in program his- tory, would raise Michigan's of- fense from the heap of rubble it had been in the prior season. He did it. U-M jumped from 94th to 49th in Offensive SP+ and from tied-for-last (133rd) to tied-for- 69th in yards per pass attempt. Nothing spectacular, but it was more respectable. Underwood interchanged tantalizing dimes with poor footwork and reads while the Wolverines' defense propped up the team with a top-15 unit against a relatively soft schedule. This season, Underwood needs to be more consistent and reliable, and he must be ready to elevate Michigan's of- fense further. The Wolverines' defense has more uncertainty, particularly in the front seven after much turnover, and their slate should be much stingier. Michigan will not be able to rely on its defense to smother opponents all game to rack up wins. Antithetical of the DNA of Michigan football, its offense may be the better group that needs to generate points to carry the team to victories. And Michigan's offense has enough weapons to do it in running backs Jordan Marshall and Savion Hiter and receivers in Andrew Marsh and JJ Buchanan. But it will come down to Underwood, new head coach Kyle Whittingham and his assistants. This offseason, there has been a lot of commotion about whether Underwood is ready. Former NFL safety Eric Weddle, who played for Whittingham at Utah, created headlines when he panned Un- derwood after watching him at a spring practice, and the sophomore signal-caller had an underwhelming spring game when he went 3-for-9 passing for only 22 yards. There are understandable questions about whether his footwork, decision-making, touch and rhythm will improve, especially with a new offensive staff, including hav- ing a quarterback coach after not having one last year. But for all the questions about his arm, the biggest difference he could make is with his legs. Underwood is a dual threat. Yes, he has a rocket for an arm. But he can make game-changing plays when he tucks the ball and heads upfield. There is no better example of this than his 37-yard touch- down scamper that fooled and split the Nebraska defense last September. He fin- ished with 6 rushing scores last season — the most by a Wolverine quarterback since 2013. Underwood has speed that scares opposing defenses. However, former head coach Sherrone Moore was very reluctant to run his true freshman quarterback. Even though Un- derwood tallied 88 carries last season, Pro Football Focus counted 40 of them as scrambles and 22 as sacks. If that math is correct, only 26 were designed runs — an average of 2 per game. Moore defended this approach by citing the lack of other viable quarterbacks on the roster, saying, "If you run your quarterback, you better have two." Yet Underwood is not an un- dersized quarterback that can be battered down and prone to injury with numerous hits. He is 6-foot-4, 228 pounds and re- sembles the build of Cam New- ton. He is big enough to take the hits and deliver his own as he bruises his way to positive yards for U-M. While Moore and the prior staff did not take advantage of this weapon, it would be a sur- prise if Whittingham and his of- fensive coordinator, Jason Beck, do the same. Whittingham and Beck were not shy about calling runs for their signal-callers at Utah last season. Devon Damp- ier was fifth among Power Four quarterbacks with 142 run at- tempts, and only 32 of them were scrambles (24) or sacks (8). That is 110 designed quarterback runs for the starter only. That does not even include backup quarterback Byrd Ficklin's 66 carries, 59 of which were intentional, per PFF. That is 169 total designed quarter- back runs, nearly five times more than the number Underwood had. If Whittingham and Beck open that door for Underwood, it should add an- other dimension to Michigan's offense. Not only will opposing defenses need to account for junior Jordan Marshall and freshman Sevion Hiter on the ground, they will need to worry about when Underwood stretches the defense hori- zontally with his legs. Then, as defenses adjust to try to stop Underwood's legs and crouch closer to the box, it could and should open bigger windows for Under- wood to hit his receivers for big plays. It well could all come together in the air for Underwood: footwork, rhythm, reads and release. If it happens, Underwood could guide this Wolverines team back to the College Football Playoff. But don't be surprised if it happens because Whittingham and Beck let him take that next step with his legs, not just his arm. ❏ Bryce Underwood's Next Step Underwood needs to be more consistent and reliable in 2026, and he must be ready to elevate Michigan's offense further than he did a year ago. Arm strength aside, the biggest difference he could potentially make is with his legs as a runner. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL Staff writer Drew Hallett has covered Michigan athletics since 2013. Contact him at drew.c.hallett@gmail.com and follow him on X (Twitter) @DrewCHallett.