Kyle Whittingham’s first mission at Michigan isn’t installing a new playbook; it’s rebuilding the broken offensive line that nearly derailed Bryce Underwood’s career before it truly began. Whittingham is using this offseason to work on his mistakes and make sure Underwood is settling down better in the new system.

With spring practice swinging in full strength, Bryce Underwood is again back in the headlines. In the practice sessions, he is doing “Bryce Underwood things” and looks ready for his breakout year as per On3’s intel. But the team still needs to take better care of the ball. In one practice, a recruit saw the defensive backs intercept three passes, which shows the offense is still making some mistakes.

Michigan’s offensive line was a big mess last season. For example, in their 23–14 loss to Oklahoma, the line had serious problems protecting Bryce Underwood, who rarely had enough time to make plays because of heavy pressure from the defense. The result? He just completed 9 of 24 passes for 142 yards. Then the team allowed about 1.5 sacks per game, which added up to 28 total sacks last season. The team needs to protect its quarterback properly.

Now, it’s not like the team isn’t doing anything to improve their gameplay. Under new offensive line coach Jim Harding, the team looks strong and ready to make an impact. Harding isn’t just adding mass, but also rebuilding the pocket’s interior integrity. Heavier, stringer guards provide a firmer anchor against the bullrushes that constantly forced Underwood into hurried throws last fall. A clean interior pocket finally allows him to step into his deep reads rather than just scrambling prematurely.

Then their running back room is also seeing a major development. Players like Jordan Marshall and freshman Savion Hiter are all set to perform well behind a better offensive line. Whittingham even called Hiter “special,” showing how much talent he has. Then there’s tight end Hogan Hansen, who’s doing better and even getting compared to former All-American Jerame Tuman in the way he plays. At wide receiver, JJ Buchanan is one.

Kyle Whittingham is also focusing more on simplifying the offense so that players can adjust to the system more quickly. So that they can perform even better. Whittingham’s simplified scheme drastically reduces the pre-snap blocking adjustments. For Underwood, trusting his protection is just half the battle. In fact, less hesitation up front translates directly to a more confident and decisive trigger man.

“Three or four years ago, we made a concerted effort at Utah to simplify,” Whittingham said. “With the portal and the roster turnover and all, you can’t have a scheme on either side of the ball that takes a year or two to learn.”

Last year, OC Jason Beck did the same using a special system at Utah, where players could play different roles, not just one fixed position. This made it hard for other teams to defend and helped Utah perform really well, as they ranked very high in offense, third-down success, and rushing. On the other hand, Michigan struggled last year, especially in getting first downs and keeping drives going, and its 66th rank shows it clearly.

With those improvements, Kyle Whittingham is also making sure Bryce Underwood develops properly, too.

Kyle Whittingham shows high hopes for Bryce Underwood

Despite being a freshman last season, Bryce Underwood came up strong on the field. He passes for 2,428 yards with a completion percentage of 60.9%, with 11 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Then he also ran the ball for 392 yards and scored 6 more touchdowns, showing his exceptional dual-threat skills.

Last fall, the lack of a dedicated quarterbacks coach clearly stunted Underwood’s growth. The previous staff frequently handcuffed his elite scrambling ability. Now, with Koy Detmer Jr. and Jason Beck refining his mechanics, the playbook is actively opening up to maximize and make total use of his dual-threat abilities.

What’s interesting is that Detmer even spoke on the In the Trenches podcast last month, saying that Underwood is gaining confidence again and steadily improving his skills. Michigan’s coaches now plan to let him run and throw more, making the offense stronger. Even Kyle Whittingham expressed his confidence in Bryce Underwood’s potential.

“If Bryce can get everything smoothed out and get the deficiencies he had fixed, the sky’s the limit for that young man,” Whittingham said.

In his freshman year, Underwood averaged 216 total yards per game. This season, he is ready to do even more for the team. Coach Whittingham and his staff want to help him throw more accurately and make better decisions on the field. Now, we just have to wait and see how this season goes for him.