Concerns grew as eyewitnesses got their first glimpse of what Kyle Whittingham's first team is going to resemble this fall. Recent spring games have also been very vanilla, so it could mean a whole lot of nothing, but more bright spots would have been something to raise the excitement of the program a little. The following are some things that Michigan has to work on before the season begins about four months from now.
Bryce Underwood's development
Many are saying that freshman Tommy Carr outplayed Bryce Underwood at the spring game on Saturday. Numbers-wise, he did. Underwood made one really good-looking throw, while he forced two others that should have been interceptions. While Carr made a splash, he improvised plays with his feet. Having a veteran like Mikey Keene or Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi to split their reps would have been ideal for both.
Kicking off year two for Underwood was anything but promising. Unfortunately, Rome wasn't built overnight, and Underwood still looks miles away from becoming the quarterback that many expect him to be. In one year, Jason Beck molded Devon Dampier into an 11-win passer, so there's light at the end of the tunnel. However, after Saturday's showing, it appears like this is going to be a long-term project. 3-9 for 22 yards is very uninspiring to open year two.
😬😬I think Tommy Carr Should have a real shot at taking the QB1 spot 🫣🫣
— VictorsDucky (@VictorsDucky) April 18, 2026
Pass Protection
There was no official count for how many sacks that the maize and blue defenses had on Saturday, but it sure seemed like a lot. Quarterbacks were scrambling for their lives to keep plays alive. I realize that the starters were not playing together and we only got one quarter out of Underwood, but blockers were constantly getting pushed back into the pocket. Whomever mans the line in the season, they'll have to be patient so that they can take some time and gel together.
Rush Defense
Jordan Marshall ripped off a couple of long runs, while Savion Hiter muscled his way for extra yards. Jonathan Brown saw some snaps too, but Thomas O'Meara scored the game's only touchdown. For most of the day, the running game was nothing special. Both defenses did a nice job and were more prepared for the practice than the offense was, but if you have to nitpick where there should be a weakness on the defense, it would have to be in the front seven.
There's no Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, Junior Colson or Cole Sullivan to man the middle of the unit. All joking aside, Western Michigan will run the football right at Michigan's defense in the opener if they are not suited to stop it. Plus the announcers did not mention any names outside of Enow Etta and Chase Taylor in the spring rumor mill.
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