ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- In April, many wondered aloud if the spring game was a bit of an omen for the state of the Michigan football offense. Incumbent starter Bryce Underwood, the former No. 1 overall recruit in his second year, struggled mightily, while true freshman Tommy Carr -- grandson of former Wolverines head coach Lloyd Carr -- was electric.
So when the season showed much of the same, despite coaches standing behind Underwood, there was more than a curiosity about whether or not Carr could lead the team to better results. And after Saturday, we're no longer wondering.
Behind the scenes, the staff wasn't quite ready to pull the trigger on Carr. And even after the game, head coach Kyle Whittingham shared some of his hesitancy about inserting
the first-year quarterback.
"He's still very slight," Whittingham said. "We've got to be careful. He's 195 pounds on the 6-3.5 frame. That will change over time, but right now, he's got some work to do in that regard."
But still, Carr came in, and the offense appeared to be transformed.
While it wasn't Carr's Michigan debut, it was the first time he was truly tasked to run the offense. With the Wolverines down 3-0 at the half, Carr was told that it was now his show, and he had to go out and win the game. Afterward, he shared just how that went down.
"At halftime, they told me that it was my time, and I was prepared for this since Week 1," Carr said. "So I prepared every day like I was a starter and got the call. There was a little bit of nerves, but I knew I was prepared and ready for this moment."
Before Carr came in, the crowd at The Big House was as quiet as a mouse. Perhaps the last time that it had been so silent was back in 2014, when the Wolverines were fighting for bowl eligibility and couldn't reach it in the penultimate game of the season against Maryland. But after the half, when Carr ran out onto the field, the crowd erupted, and it remained raucous for the rest of the contest.
The Michigan legacy certainly appreciated the response, and he felt like it helped provide the spark the team needed.
"It was awesome," Carr said. "I mean, just to look at the crowd cheering, walk into that in the middle of the field, and be out there with my linemen and everything, it was a great experience. And to get that first snap, complete the first pass, got me feeling good, and ready to continue with that momentum."
Carr didn't exactly set the world on fire as it came to his passing yards. He didn't turn the ball over as Underwood had, most importantly, but he only threw for 47 yards -- just four more than Underwood. Still, the offense was much more productive, rushing for 174 yards in the second half after managing just 37 yards on the ground in the first.
Everything worked together to help the Wolverines win, 21-18, with Carr crediting the run game and the defensive performance helping get the maize and blue over the hump.
"Maybe, I mean, we definitely ran the ball a lot better," Carr said. "Hit some explosive runs in the game. I've had a few passes, but mainly it was all in the run game. And then defense came in with three turnovers, scored off of those three turnovers. So that's what we gotta do is just be efficient in the run game, and defense get takeaways, and we gotta score when we get those opportunities."
Whittingham was reluctant to name Carr the starter going forward, but it will be the biggest challenge yet on Saturday, as Michigan hosts defending national champion Indiana at The Big House.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Tommy Carr reveals how Michigan told him he was replacing Bryce Underwood
