As the Michigan Wolverines charge into the 2025 college football season, a surge of excitement is building in Ann Arbor. The team is building momentum after powering through last year’s transition. And much of the buzz now centers on a freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood. With the regular season fast approaching, coaches and insiders believe that Underwood’s emergence could be the key to restoring Michigan as a championship contender.
Michigan’s quarterback situation dominated offseason headlines. The Wolverines clearly needed help in that area after a dreadful 2024 campaign behind center. That’s where Bryce Underwood, a highly touted freshman, enters the picture. According to SI.com, Offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey has praised Underwood as “very, very advanced for his age,” spotlighting his high football IQ and physical readiness, even as he adjusts to the complexities of a collegiate offense.
“He’s a football junkie,” Lindsey said, highlighting Underwood’s habit of arriving early, staying late, and immersing himself in the playbook. While the learning curve is real, Lindsey and other coaches are confident that Underwood’s relentless work ethic will pay off in a big way for the program.
As most Michigan fans are very well aware, the Wolverines passing game in 2024 was not remotely close to good enough. In fact, they were one of the worst teams in the country. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), the Wolverines were one of the lowest-ranked Power Five teams by passing grade last season. They finished with a 55.5 PFF passing grade during the regular season, landing them 66th in the country.
The fact that Michigan managed to win 7 games (during the regular season) and get a bowl win with this anemic aerial assault was a testament to the talent and coaching already on the roster. But to take the next step, the Wolverines know improvement under center is critical.
But Michigan’s success (relatively speaking) with no good passing game last year reveals a key factor. The Wolverines (and by extension, Underwood) don’t need to become a top 10, top 15 passing team this season. They just need to return to some level of baseline competence, to return to the middle of the pack. Put another way, Michigan just needs to be average. According to PFF, average is right around the 71-72 grade mark. See below:
There’s one team on the above list that serves as a good comparison case for Michigan: Texas. Texas and Michigan are both blue blood programs, with great recruiting, great history, excellent facilities, good coaching, recent history of success, and a record of churning out NFL prospects. Texas made the CFB Playoff last year with an average passing attack. Could Michigan do the same with its talent and coaching? It seems very likely they could.
It’s also important to note that Michigan isn’t going to suddenly become an air raid offense. Their identity still revolves around the run, defense, and special teams. But even incremental passing gains will make a massive difference. Underwood isn’t tasked with being a day-one superstar or posting national-best numbers. Rather, his job is to efficiently manage the offense, capitalize on play-action chances, and make defenses pay for loading up against the run. If he does that, expect a big improvement on the scoreboard and in the win column.
One word of caution with this optimism however. Underwood is still a freshman. There are going to be bumps along the way. Expecting a true freshman QB to lead Michigan to a deep postseason run is misguided. And while an improvement is expected in 2025, the real re-emergence for the Wolverines is likely going to come in 2026.
Still, the Wolverines could push for 9 or 10 wins and a playoff spot this season. With a star-studded defense, a proven coaching staff, and a blue-chip quarterback grinding to improve day after day, Michigan has a path back to contention. If Bryce Underwood can deliver even average quarterback play, Michigan’s ceiling rises dramatically, and so does hope in the “Big House.”
Disclaimer: The content of this article was originally published as a YouTube video on the SMI College Football Show YouTube channel. With AI assistance, the publisher of the video created this article based on the content of that video.
