Bryce Underwood arrived at Michigan with the kind of hype that usually gets reserved for program-changing quarterbacks. Now, midway through his sophomore year, he’s on the outside looking in while true freshman Tommy Carr runs the offense.
That’s a sharp turn from where this all began. Underwood came in as the former No. 1 overall recruit, the arm talent-athlete combo built to lift Michigan’s offense to a level it hadn’t reached. Instead, he’s the one watching Carr take over a unit that has already moved on to its next option.
The road here was bumpy from the start. Underwood was pushed into a starting job as a true freshman with little guidance from his head coach on down, and the Sherrone Moore saga only made the situation messier.
Even with that chaos around him, the Underwood-led Wolverines still went 9-4 last year. But it never looked clean, and then Moore was fired for a myriad of reasons.
Michigan tried to reset. Kyle Whittingham was hired, Jason Beck came in as offensive coordinator, and the expectation was that Underwood would finally take off.
That never happened. His 2026 season has been defined by inconsistent accuracy, questionable decision-making and costly turnovers, and Michigan’s offense has never really found its footing.
Everything came to a head against Penn State.
At halftime, Michigan trailed 3-0 and Underwood had gone 5-of-11 for 43 yards with two interceptions. The Wolverines had only 80 yards of total offense, and Whittingham made the move to Tommy Carr in the second half. Michigan went on to win 21-18.
Carr didn’t light it up, but he did enough to keep the job. He earned his first career start the next week against Indiana, and even though Michigan lost 13-6 in overtime, he showed enough toughness against an elite Indiana defense to stay in the quarterback mix.
That leaves Underwood in a tricky spot, but not an impossible one. He’s still a talented young quarterback and athlete, and his physical tools are still there. He also played two snaps against Indiana, though nothing came of them.
The bigger issue is that Michigan’s problems have gone beyond the quarterback. The offensive line has been uneven, the running game hasn’t delivered and Beck has struggled to establish an identity. Underwood deserves blame for his play, but he can’t carry all of this alone.
Even so, time matters here. The longer Carr stays in the role, the tougher it becomes for Underwood to reclaim it. If Carr keeps developing and the offense starts to improve, Whittingham will have less reason to make another switch.
And there’s one more question hanging over all of this: would Underwood want to keep fighting for a job that once looked like it was his?
The transfer portal makes that a real possibility. Underwood arrived in Ann Arbor with huge expectations, and his college story is nowhere near finished. But with Carr getting valuable experience and Michigan looking ahead, Underwood’s future with the Wolverines has never felt more unsettled.
In Other News...
Michigan Enters Rutgers With Two Availability Questions Fans Will Watch
Michigan heads into Rutgers with a few notable availability questions still hanging over the lineup, most of them on the defensive side and up front. Starting right tackle Blake Frazier is questionable after sitting out the previous game, while safety Rod Moore is in the same category along with Jordan Young and Enow Etta. On the brighter side, linebacker Troy Bowles and center Jake Guarnera are both listed as probable, which gives Michigan at least some stability as it prepares for a road test.
The matchup also comes with its own set of injury concerns on the other sideline, since Rutgers will be without starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan and leading receiver KJ Duff. For Michigan, the bigger issue is still how much it can count on its own depth, especially if Frazier remains unavailable and the secondary keeps shifting around. Those final availability calls could shape how the Wolverines manage the game plan once kickoff arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Heads To Rutgers With Its Identity Under Real Pressure
Michigan heads to Rutgers still searching for a cleaner version of itself after the overtime loss to Indiana, and the questions around this team go well beyond one rough afternoon. The quarterback situation remains unsettled, the rushing game has not looked like the reliable anchor Michigan usually leans on, and the offense is still trying to sort out what changes fit best under the new coordinator. Even the line, long a point of pride in Ann Arbor, has become part of the conversation as the Wolverines try to turn more drives into something more sustainable.
Rutgers offers a chance to reset a few of those storylines, at least on paper. The Scarlet Knights have been one of the countrys weaker run defenses, which should give Michigan a path to simplify things and play to its strengths if it can finally do so consistently. The bigger question is whether the Wolverines can carry that opportunity into a steadier performance after a stretch of close losses that has started to test the teams confidence as much as its execution. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Has A Troubling Availability Question Ahead Of Rutgers
Michigan heads into its meeting with Rutgers with a few important moving parts on the availability report, and the most notable ones sit right in the middle of the roster. Safety Rod Moore is among the players listed as questionable, while left tackle Andrew Sprague has already been ruled out, leaving the Wolverines to sort through some real uncertainty on both sides of the ball as the week unfolds.
There is at least a little balance to the injury picture, since Rutgers is dealing with its own issues, including a missing starting quarterback and a doubtful top receiver. Still, Michigans focus is on who it can count on, and safeties coach Tyler Stocktons recent comments on Moores status only added to the sense that this is a situation worth watching right up until kickoff. [Read more 🡒]