The Michigan football spring game is on Saturday and we finally got some clarity on the status of Bryce Underwood.
Kyle Whittingham revealed earlier this week that the spring game was going to be more of a showcase for the younger players. He said that the starters would mostly get rested.
Whittingham didn't clarify if Bryce Underwood was among them. He's obviously a returning starter, but is also a young player who could use more snaps. The snaps he's gotten all spring probably aren't going to be any different, so it's probably not a huge shock that Tony Garcia of the Detroit Free Press is reporting that Underwood won't play on Saturday.
Bryce Underwood won't play in Michigan spring game
The 6-foot-4 freshman quarterback played most of the snaps last year in the Michigan spring game. He needed the experience, though. Underwood now has a year's worth of starting experience.
There were ups and downs as a freshman, but Underwood completed 60 percent of his passes last season and had 17 total touchdowns. He also averaged 218 total yards per game.
It would have been fun to see Underwood operating in the new offensive system with Jason Beck calling the plays, but surely, the new coaching staff is guarding against injury. Besides, they have had an entire spring to evaluate Underwood. Expect to see a lot of Tommy Carr, an early enrollee who is already making a push for the backup job.
By all accounts, things have gone well. There are still going to be some growing pains from time-to-time. Think of J.J. McCarthy when he was a sophomore. That should be the expectation this season, with a higher volume of runs for Underwood, who is supposed to be unleashed this season as a runner.
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