Bryce Underwood has announced his return for the 2026 season, putting all his trust in the Kyle Whittingham era at Ann Arbor. 2025 was a constant hit-or-miss for the star QB, the latter increasing in frequency as the season progressed. Whittingham has already taken note of his struggles and announced that they’ll be working on issues like footwork, among others. But a Michigan alum warned that they were not the most pressing issues.

“I think the challenge for this new staff is not only the footwork and the fundamentals and all those different things, all the details, but understanding that we cannot have one mistake,” former Michigan icon Devin Gardner told The Blue Print on January 8. “Because he’s going to have mistakes. I don’t care how good you are.

“You can’t allow one mistake to become five mistakes.”

Whittingham now has new QB coach Jason Beck in charge of honing Bryce Underwood. This has to work out for Michigan, especially because the QB handed them a major win by choosing to stay back. This is a 5-star they have on their hands, who needs to come back out at that level for Michigan to succeed next year.

Underwood showed his prowess in games against Central Michigan, Wisconsin, and Washington. But he has struggled to make a mark against big teams. Underwood was no match for the Oklahoma and Ohio State defenses. Rookie jitters got to him, and he ended up making disastrous plays. Underwood also found it difficult to get points up on the board, hauling in only 11 as QB1. But at the same time, his interceptions have racked up. They sit at 9 this season.

The QB also didn’t have a lot of help from his supporting cast. Michigan’s receivers are tied for the worst in the country in dropped passes at 19. However, his inability to read hidden coverages correctly also led to some misfires. Entering the Northwestern game, Underwood has been pressured 52 times and hurried 47 times. The QB tried to put himself on the line when others suffered, which ultimately limited him.

Bryce Underwood is only 16-of-43 on passes made during pressure situations and brought in only 233 yards. Plus, he also struggled landing throws that went for more than the line of scrimmage. He’s been able to connect on only 54% of these throws.

His entire season seemed to have replayed itself in the Citrus Bowl. Bryce Underwood started well, establishing a 10-3 lead over Texas. However, under pressure, the quarterback reverted to his rookie form. His poor decisions led to his passes being intercepted by Texas three times.

“You have a huge opportunity this spring and going into the summer to make sure that you show up a lot of the things that you saw wrong this past season,” Gardner added.

In case the grand Bryce Underwood experiment doesn’t work out, there will be trouble for Michigan at quarterback.

Bryce Underwood’s development will impact Michigan’s future

Michigan wasn’t simply getting the best prospect of the recruiting cycle. The Wolverines were spending big on him with the hope of him carrying Michigan football for the near future. They have already put $12 million on the line to do it. However, if Underwood and Whittingham fail to create harmony, Michigan’s recruiting efforts could suffer.

“The issue is, if you bring in a five-star with Bryce Underwood and he doesn’t reach his potential, it’s going to be much harder to get that next five-star,” Gardner said. “For Whittingham and his staff, this offseason is extremely important to get Bryce to realize his full potential.

“The next great quarterback is going to be that much easier.”

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Depth at quarterback looks shallow after Underwood. There is veteran QB Michael Keene, and there are 2026 signees Brady Smigiel and Tommy Carr. But Michigan wanted no catastrophes with Bryce Underwood in the first place. Curt Cignetti, on the other hand, the portal genius, had managed to get away with TCU’s Josh Hoover to replace Fernando Mendoza. If Whittingham needed more experience at QB, he would have to do his level best to find him now.