Kyle Whittingham details huge improvement in Bryce Underwood from spring ball to Week 1

Michigan football is back this week, and while it feels like everyone is excited to see what this team can do, let's face it, everyone wants to see how much Bryce Underwood really improved. After an abysmal showing in spring ball, Underwood has gotten a lot of hype from his coaching staff and teammates, so it's time for him to put his money where his mouth is.

All throughout fall camp, we have heard about Underwood's improvement with his feet, his comfort in the pocket, leading this offense, and so on. Granted, this is fall camp, and as head coach Kyle Whittingham said in his press conference on Monday, they have done everything they can to protect Underwood, from keeping the linemen away from him to not hitting him at all.

Now, Underwood has to show all that buzz and hype wasn't for nothing as the Wolverines take on Western Michigan on Saturday. Whittingham seems to have all the faith in the world in Underwood, believing his jump from spring ball to the start of Week 1 is night and day.

"We feel he is markedly better through fall camp than he was at any point in spring," Whittingham said. "How he's operated and how he's gone through his reads, just how he's got command of the offense, is way further ahead than what you saw in spring."

Bryce Underwood needs a breakout season to not fall into "bust" status

Last season was not what anyone wanted to see from Underwood. Granted, he was named the starter really only because of injuries ahead of him, and he didn't even have a quarterback coach. The situation Underwood was put in was not a good one, but now it seems like everything has changed.

While Underwood at times should have kept his mouth shut during the offseason with a lot of narratives going around about his level of play this season, now he gets the chance to prove it on the field. Whittingham said now it's time to see if everything Underwood has done in fall camp translates, and with the way things sound, if it does, Michigan could be in for a great season.

Underwood came to the Wolverines as the No. 1 overall prospect in the Class of 2025 and a five-star recruit with a massive NIL deal, so big things are expected of him. Last season didn't produce even those to what was expected of Underwood, so now he needs a breakout year in order not to fall into a "bust: category.

There have been many five-star and even top-ranked recruits to come out of high school who were expected to perform at a high level and just never did. One name that comes to mind that should make Michigan fans smile is former 2018 Ohio State recruit Tate Martell.

Underwood doesn't want to fall into that category, and he has a chance to save himself from it with a solid season this year. He has all the pieces around him with a strong offensive line, a stacked running back room, and even a strong wide receiver corps.

This is the year for Underwood to prove he can make it in college football, and it seems like Michigan is firmly behind him.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow