Saturday marked 1,085 days since J.J. McCarthy made his first start at quarterback for Michigan. That night was a rain-soaked affair that ended in a 56-10 victory over Hawaii. While there was little doubt McCarthy would excel when given the chance, it was encouraging to actually see the then-sophomore showcase the talent fans had been hoping to see. Michigan’s quarterback situation was in good hands for the foreseeable future.
This Saturday had a similar feel when Bryce Underwood took the field with
the starting offense. It’s unlikely you’d find a fan that didn’t envision success for the true freshman, but it was refreshing to actually see the talent on display during the 34-17 victory against New Mexico.
Much like in McCarthy’s case, you could tell there was something different about Underwood. The ball was routinely on time and on target. The ball jumped out of his hand, and he displayed great comfort making throws on the run and executing the offense in crunch time at the end of the first half. It was a great start to what many expect to be a great college career.
Not only that, but it was historical. Underwood threw for 251 yards in the game, which surpassed the previous high for yardage by a Michigan true freshman quarterback in their first start. Underwood himself, though, was critical of the effort.
“C-plus today,” Underwood said when asked to give his performance a grade. “There’s a lot of things I need to work on.”
Head coach Sherrone Moore, who sat beside his quarterback, could only chuckle.
From the first few snaps of the game, it didn’t look like there was much Underwood would need to work on. He was regularly finding open receivers and hitting his targets, helping execute two scoring drives to open the game. Even after an offensive lull in the second quarter, he led a two-minute drill at the end of the first half that ended with a perfectly thrown touch pass to tight end Marlin Klein for Underwood’s first career touchdown.
Moore knew what he was watching was impressive.
“I thought he played really well,” Moore said of Underwood. “He’s going to be very critical of himself when he watches film. He was critical of himself during the game. He has a high standard for himself and we have a high standard for us as an offense.”
Moore isn’t wrong to have that high standard for the offense — after all, you might expect more than 34 points in a home game against a smaller program like New Mexico. The fact the offense slowed down proved there’s room for improvement. However, it’s clear the offense is in a much better place than it was a year ago. There’s clearly something to work with at the quarterback position and in the run game. It was also encouraging to see so many receivers get their hands on the ball — Klein, Semaj Morgan, Channing Goodwin, Donaven McCulley and Justice Haynes all had multiple receptions.
Klein had the biggest breakout among the pass catchers, reeling in six receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown. Following the game, he also expressed confidence in his quarterback.
“You really just saw what (Underwood) can do on the college stage — playing with him it’s just been so much fun,” Klein said. “He’s gonna put the ball wherever it needs to be.”
Saturday felt a bit like déjà vu. Just as McCarthy’s first start against Hawaii gave fans a glimpse of what the future could hold, Underwood’s debut offered the same reassurance that Michigan is set at quarterback for years to come. However, the level of difficulty is only going to increase next week when the Wolverines go on the road to play against Oklahoma. Hopefully Underwood will once again show some poise during what will be one of the tougher tests he faces all season.
