Everyone seems to believe that Michigan has a Bryce Underwood problem. That was the narrative coming out of the Week 1 win over Western Michigan.
Underwood completed his first five passes of the game, but finished 12-for-22 for 170 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He fumbled the ball in the fourth quarter, and also had an interception overturned because the defender was out of bounds.
The post-game grades weren't good. Joel Klatt, who will be calling the game for Fox, sounded the alarm about Underwood.
Despite the struggles, most agree that it's way too early to give up the former five-star quarterback. Some have suggested Tommy Carr could see the field if Underwood struggles on Saturday against Oklahoma, at least if he looks like he did against Western Michigan.
That would be a disaster if Michigan's starting quarterback plays like that again. It's up to the coaches to put him in a position to succeed. On that note, Brian Kelly, the former LSU head coach, who Underwood was committed to at one point, has some advice.
Brian Kelly tells Michigan football how to fix Bryce Underwood
"He's not a dropback quarterback that's gonna sit there and read through progressions. He's a half-line guy. You need to keep him on the move. You need to run him. You gotta run this kid. He is big, physical, strong, and fast, and he's tough," Kelly said on SiriusXM Radio. "I know his skill set. And to sit back in the pocket and go through progression reads, that's not him. So, I'm looking forward to Week 2 and finding out whether there is a bridge here on both sides where (Underwood) comes, he says, 'Listen, coach, you gotta run me. These are the things I can do.' And then Michigan obviously grants him that, with changing the offense."
I'm not sure about the last part: Underwood making suggestions about the offense. He should have some input, but Jason Beck should have an idea of what to do with him.
While Kelly is usually the last person I'd want to take advice from, he did have some success with quarterbacks, and this idea isn't the worst. Underwood needs to run. He likes RPOs. He threw well on the move last season, and as he showed last week, he can throw the ball down the field.
Looking back, it's hard to say Michigan played to his strengths last week. It was also the first game in a new offense. We'll see if Kyle Whittingham and his staff take up Kelly on his advice.
Michigan football fans just have to hope the Wolverines figure out a way to make Underwood successful on Saturday; otherwise, it could be another long day for the entire team.
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