Through five weeks, the Jason Beck-Bryce Underwood partnership at Michigan has been more frustration than breakthrough.
This was supposed to be the move that straightened out the Wolverines’ offense. Instead, the early returns have been messy.
Underwood arrived as the five-star quarterback Michigan flipped from LSU, and the expectation was that he would lift the unit in 2025. That hasn’t happened.
He has struggled, he has been asked to carry too much as a true freshman, and the coaching setup around him has not provided much stability.
Beck was brought in to change that. Kyle Whittingham hired him with Underwood in mind, banking on the same coordinator who helped guide one of the most productive offenses in college football at Utah, even with less talent than Michigan has now. But five games in, the fit has produced only scattered flashes.
The biggest issue has been on the ground, where Michigan has been nowhere close to its usual standard. This is a program built on a punishing run game and a defense that wears teams down. The defense is doing its part - it is ranked sixth in the country and has spent a lot of time on the field because the offense has been so unreliable - but the rushing attack has gone missing.
Michigan is 100th nationally in rush yards per game. That is a brutal number for a team that is supposed to win by controlling the line of scrimmage.
Savion Hiter and Jordan Marshall were expected to pile up more than 1,000 yards, with Underwood adding production with his legs. Instead, the Wolverines have one run longer than 20 yards all season, and none of those explosive plays have come from that touted backfield.
Blake Frazier put it plainly earlier this week when he said the team needs to get back to its roots.
"I would love that,” Frazier said about getting back to running downhill at defenses more often. “This is Michigan football.
You think Michigan football, you think downhill runs. I would love to see that implemented a little bit more."
That would help, but it would not solve everything. Beck has also been trying to unlock Underwood as a passer, and that side of the offense has been just as uneven.
Michigan rebuilt the receiving group around him, bringing in Salesi Moa, Jaime Ffrench, and JJ Buchanan through the transfer portal. Buchanan has delivered.
Moa and Ffrench have not, at least not yet.
There have been bright spots. Andrew Marsh and Buchanan have both made plays in the passing game, and Underwood has shown enough to remind people why he was such a big recruit.
But the rough stretches have been loud. Too often he has looked like a freshman still fighting bad habits, shaky footwork, and panic when pressure gets close.
That is why some fans have already started talking about Tommy Carr. The article does not go that far, but the message is clear: Michigan needs much more from the quarterback position.
The numbers back that up. The Wolverines are 111th in the country in pass yards per game.
They were 104th a year ago, which is part of why Chip Lindsey drew so much criticism. The offense has not taken the leap Michigan wanted, and the problems are spread across the unit.
The tight ends have been a major issue, too. Zack Marshall apologized this week after leaked messages sparked attention, but the bigger concern is on the field. That group has been ineffective as blockers and has not given the passing game much help.
Spacing has also been a problem. There are too many snaps where Buchanan and Marsh line up on the same side, leaving the other side without much threat. That makes life easier for defenses and harder for Underwood and Beck.
Underwood has to clean things up as well. He has turned the ball over at least once in every game except Michigan’s 17-10 win over Oklahoma, and even in that one he put the ball on the ground twice, only to have the Wolverines recover both fumbles.
At this point, the story is pretty simple: when people are talking about benching the quarterback or firing the coordinator, the offense is not functioning. And when the offense is not functioning, the grades are going to be harsh.
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