Free Press sports writer Tony Garcia grades No. 19 Michigan football after the Wolverines' 52-17 win over UTEP on Saturday, Sept. 19 in Week 3 of the 2026 college football season at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
Offense: B+
This would've been an "A," if not for the slow start: Two fumbles and a three-and-out on the first four drives. Still, the Wolverines scored on six straight drives (including five TDs) before taking a knee to end it. QB Bryce Underwood was crisp, going 19-for-25 for 223 yards and two touchdowns – one apiece to to JJ Buchanan (seven catches for 92 yards) and Andrew Marsh (10 for 105).
"We had more of a game planning concerted effort to get Andrew the ball because
we hadn't got him the ball enough in the first two games," coach Kyle Whittingham said. "He's a guy that is one of the better receivers in the Big Ten, and we've got to utilize him."
True freshman running back Savion Hiter fumbled once but found the end zone twice, for his first two career scores, and ran 11 times for a team-high 62 yards. That is concerning, though. The line, absent tackle Andrew Sprague, didn't get much push, as U-M averaged just 4.4 yards per carry and had just two rushes of more than 12 yards.
Defense: A-
There was poor eye-discipline on two play-action passes, both of which ended as touchdowns – one from 45 yards out, the other from 18. Other than that, it was a fantastic afternoon again for Jay Hill's unit, which had 11 tackles for loss (with 11 players contributing) and four sacks,. The highlight came when defensive tackle Jonah Lea'ea picked off a screen and took it back 6 yards for a touchdown. The unit came out of the half strong, forcing three straight three-and-outs before the pick-six. UTEP finished the third quarter with negative-5 yards, no first downs and negative -1 yard rushing (on nine carries). UTEP averaged just 3.2 yards per play and converted two of 12 third-downs attempts.
"We have a lot of people that can come in and make plays," linebacker Chase Taylor said. "Even if that front four, front five ain't there, we've got another front four, front five that can come in and play."
Special teams: A-
It was a quiet day for the special teams unit, but what was on display was good. Cam Brown punted just once, but it went 45 yards with no return.
Marsh didn't have many opportunities for a punt return, but the one he did he took for 10 yards. Trey Butkowski really gave the team a lift when he banged home a 49-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to take the lead and also made all seven of his extra points.
Michigan's kickoff game, at least, was exceptional, sending seven of nine kickoffs for touchbacks and allowing just two kickoff return, for 39 yards. The hands team also handled its first opposing onside kick of the season.
Coaching: B-
The Wolverines were favored by more than four touchdowns for the second time in three games and, for the second time in three games, came out completely flat. A holding call on Eli Owens negated a long run early and set up second-and-long, which led to a fumble. Then, a Dom Nichols sack was negated when he jumped offsides. On the next play, UTEP connected on a 45-yard touchdown pass for a 7-0 lead. The second half surge mostly wiped out that impact, but with Big Ten play starting next week, U-M won't have the excuse of not getting up for a game anymore.
"I mean, we just didn't play our best game [in the] first half, and kind of went into halftime thinking kind of like the same thing that we were thinking Western Michigan, that we weren't giving our all," Hiter said. "So we went out second half and finished the job."
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Tony Garcia is the Michigan beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football grades vs UTEP: Passing game picks it up in 2nd half
