“He’s like the supernova… [Best] freshman ever in college football,” Dave Portnoy said about Bryce Underwood ahead of the Oklahoma game. The man is pretty much blinded by love for Michigan, so it’s no wonder he has such high praise for Michigan. You’ve got to give it a little to the young QB, because he does have serious firepower in him. But those young shoulders caved against Oklahoma. While Portnoy must’ve been the first in line to defend him, Urban Meyer, surprisingly, throws out a lifebuoy for Underwood.

The best player in the 2025 class went only 9-for-24 on passes and threw for 142 yards. The more alarming fact is that the Michigan star had zero scores. Within one week, doubts started arising about the phenomenal QB, who was a risky choice for QB1 in the first place. Underwood stole the show in New Mexico, though. He went 21-of-31 for 251 yards and also managed one TD. We knew that Oklahoma was going to be the first time where his strengths would be tested. And he failed them, big time. Meyer, however, thought that Underwood was getting a lot of unnecessary criticism.

“You know what I still see? Incredible talent,” Meyer said in a September 10 episode of The Triple Option. “What did you think was going to happen? He’s facing Brent Venables. I think one of the best defensive coordinators and I coached against him,” the former Buckeyes coach added. Remember, Venables took on play-calling duties for the defense this year after the nightmare of 2024. Though the defense was the only functional unit of the squad, Venables simply does it better. He won the Broyles Award in 2016 at Clemson, so there’s little doubt about the defense the HC was going to roll out for Underwood.

“They play 1/3 bare, 1/3 odd, and 1/3 four down. And for the viewer/listener, that, I mean for a quarterback and offensive line – I’ve coached it – that’s almost impossible to prepare for,” Meyer added. It just wasn’t the night for That Team Up North at Norman. Poor Underwood even misread a play call, which led to tensions between him and Justice Haynes. The RB ended up creating the only look-back-worthy moment for Michigan with his 75-yard TD in the 2 half. Venables’ defense battered through a weak offensive line–very little worked for Michigan that day.

While Ohio State reigns at the top of the AP poll after Week 2, Michigan has fallen out of the Top 20. The Wolverines were still able to save face, now standing at No. 23. Meyer isn’t trespassing that far into enemy territory. Instead of singling out Michigan, he threw the whole Michigan offense under the bus.

Urban Meyer brings out the fallacies of Michigan’s offense

Oklahoma has jumped up 5 spots in the poll and is now at No. 13. If Venables continues this way, he could even get off the hot seat. This Week 2 game was a coin toss, as both were said to be presenting strong squads. With Underwood at the front, it sure looked like Michigan was. But the game wasn’t just a disaster for the QB—it was for everyone on that side of the ball. “What do you think’s going to happen with a true freshman? My point is this is that it’s not the true freshman’s job to win that game. It’s the players around them,” Meyer said.

The Michigan offense was missing the production of TE Marlin Klein, and then team captain Giovani El-Hadi took a blow as well. Even then, it was just a complete waste of skill and talent. Except for Haynes’ 75-yard TD rush, no other rushing play went more than 10 yards. Underwood, also, is yet to display the other side of his dual-threat ability. Wide receivers were also a no-show. The clear leaks in the O-line, compounded more so by El-Hadi and Zeke Berry’s departures, added more woes to an already struggling Bryce Underwood.

Michigan plays Central Michigan in Week 3, which, at this point, is a lighthouse that’s beckoning Bryce Underwood from rough seas. “I still think he’s going to be a great player,” Meyer said at the end. It’s tough not to be starry-eyed when it comes to Bryce Underwood, even if he is from the enemy lines. But did the young star have a chance against Oklahoma in the first place?