Much of the excitement and buzz was around Bryce Underwood, the nation’s number one overall recruit, who was easily the most talked about player on the day. With a NIL deal that is reportedly worth $10 million to $12 million for the early enrollee Freshman, high expectations definitely come as well.
Underwood came out of the tunnel early for warmups and all eyes in the stadium were on him. The Quarterback, from nearby Belleville High School, showed off tremendous arm strength throwing a number of bullets to his Blue Team receivers but only completed 12 of 26 passes during the game. On paper, his 187 yards passing was impressive but the bulk of that came on the last play of the game when he found receiver Jalen Hoffman, who caught the ball on their own 36 yard line and ended up breaking away running 66 yards and scoring to complete the 88-yard pass reception touchdown.
Overall Underwood’s performance may not have lived up to the hype, but it certainly showed potential. After all, it was the 17-year-old’s first time competing in Michigan Stadium and we can expect that with more time and snaps, some of the freshman jitters that were surely felt will go away and the timing with his receivers will become more precise.
With so much buzz around Underwood, many forgot that Michigan has another high rated Quarterback on the roster. Class of 2024 signee and second year signal caller Jadyn Davis is set to challenge for the starting role. Davis was once the number two overall prospect in his high school class and while he didn’t see the field much his freshman year, many thought he should have been given a chance to show his talent. For the 2025 season, he will compete with Underwood and Fresno State transfer Quarterback Mikey Keene (who hasn’t arrived on campus yet) for the starting job.
In Saturday’s Spring game, Davis showed poise and confidence leaving some to argue that even though his team lost and his numbers weren’t as good (completing 6 of 17 passes for 74 total yards), that he had the better game compared to Underwood. The fact is that camp will serve to be a great competition for all the Quarterbacks and it probably won’t be an easy decision for Head Coach Sherrone Moore to choose an opening day starter. When asked about the two QBs in the post-game press conference, he mentioned how both Underwood and Davis are practicing and competing well, stating “Bryce makes him better and he makes Bryce better. They compete and at the same time celebrate each other”.
Michigan has traditionally had great Running Backs each year and the next group of Backs may continue to follow that. Second year rusher Jordan Marshall, who finished last season strong, is expected to compete for the starting job against Alabama transfer Justice Hayes when the season starts. However Junior Bryson Kuzdal and Sophomore Micah Ka’apana both showed on Saturday that they will make the competition much tougher for the first two guys. Both Kuzdal, for team Maize, and Ka’apana, for team Blue, had double digit carries in the game, with Kuzdal leading all rushers with over 105 rushing yards total.
Most Wolverines fans saw Marshall perform well and help Michigan in the win over Alabama to end the season in the ReliaQuest Bowl. He didn’t play much in the spring game on Saturday, carrying the ball only four times, but that gave the other guys a chance to shine. The other front runner for the starting back is Hayes, who comes in this season from Alabama. Hayes had an impressive 8.5 yards per carry on Saturday, rushing for 51 yards on just 6 carries. His physical style of running was on display and gives everyone something to be excited for.
Defensively, the Wolverines lost some key players that will be entering the NFL draft in All American Cornerback Will Johnson, Linemen Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant, and Linebacker Makari Paige. Despite this, the defense looks like it will still be one of the better units in the conference. In Saturday’s Spring game, neither the Maize nor Blue team scored easily. While the Maize team was shutout, the Blue team scored two touchdowns with the second coming on a trick play on the final possession of the game.
Overall, both teams recorded two or more sacks (two sacks for the Maize team and four sacks for the Blue team). The Maize team also racked up seven tackles for a loss in the game. Sophomore Defensive Back Jeremiah Lowe had a great day in coverage picking off Davis twice for the Blue team’s two interceptions. Transfer Defensive Back Tevis Metcalf had the one interception for the Maize team. For the Linebackers, it was Sophomore Cole Sullivan playing big, leading all tacklers with seven total including a sack and two tackles for a loss.
Yes, there are several areas the team will look to work on when they enter fall camp. However, the talent that this team has will continue to be developed and give it a promising future. Fans also have to keep in mind that the Spring game features returning players and freshmen that enrolled early, so there are a number of talented class of 2025 signees that will be on the team in September that have yet to step on campus, including a number of four star signees like Offensive Tackle Ty Haywood, Defensive End Nate Marshall, and CB Elijah Dotson. Nevertheless, we’ll have to wait until August 30th, the date Michigan opens up the season with a home game against New Mexico in pursuit of another National Championship.
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