Michigan’s 2026 campaign has been underwhelming in Kyle Whittingham’s first year at Ann Arbor. If the offense wasn’t delivering when the Wolverines were winning, two back-to-back Big Ten losses only exacerbated the concerns. Even then, Whittingham announced that the status quo would continue for Penn State, a statement that didn’t sit well with the fans.

During his Monday press conference coming off the bye week, Whittingham announced that Bryce Underwood will start Michigan’s Week 7 game against the Nittany Lions, as reported by Michigan insider Brice Marich. Moreover, offensive coordinator Jason Beck is also set to continue calling plays. Both Underwood and Beck have been under fire for Michigan’s hapless offense.

While it’s difficult to change things during a week-to-week schedule, the timing of the bye week raised some hope among the Michigan fan base. After the Minnesota loss, Whittingham was also quite blunt in what he thought of the offense.

“We might have to make some tough decisions here. We’ll see,” Whittingham said after the loss. “But, you know, right now to this point through this portion of the season, it’s unacceptable. The results are unacceptable right now.”

However, those ‘tough’ decisions didn’t include changing the quarterback or the play-caller. While the anger is directed at how the offense has been performing, Whittingham’s promises served as fuel.

“That is terrible news for Michigan fans,” one fan commented under Marich’s post after hearing the news. Another fan said, “They have to fire him now.”

Since the very start of the season, Michigan has struggled to get going on offense. It started with a poor outing against Western Michigan, a game that the Wolverines controversially won on an Underwood Hail Mary. The struggles continued against Oklahoma, but they got ignored because the Wolverines had defeated a ranked opponent.

But it’s difficult to ignore them when the team is not winning. Against Iowa, Underwood looked better throwing the ball, but Michigan lost the game due to some sloppy defensive mistakes late in the fourth quarter. Then against Minnesota, it was the same old.

The offense fell apart in the second half and crossed the 50-yard line merely twice the whole afternoon. They were struggling to keep their drives alive and, in the end, had just 11 first downs.

Underwood was sacked three times, including twice in the fourth quarter. However, this wasn’t the only thing that was concerning. His back-to-back interceptions are what caused a frenzy among the fans. But these are not new issues.

However, his 2025 campaign came without a dedicated QB coach. These things were expected to change under Whittingham. At the moment, it seems like Underwood is a bad fit for Beck’s offense.

“Not good news. If Bryce hasn’t figured it out in 18 starts at Michigan, it’s unlikely he will,” one fan commented.

Another fan added, “They can’t bench him, lol. Underwood’s contract probably has a clause that prevents them from benching him. That’s the simplest explanation.”

It was not just the QB who was under the radar; fans were also questioning the offensive coordinator, Jason Beck, for calling plays too. Every play called was either too predictable or did not establish a run game against Minnesota.

“Makes no sense; Whitt is trying to lose his job,” another angry fan said about Whittingham’s poor decision-making.

Michigan is averaging 315.8 total yards per game and is averaging just 5.2 yards per play. Morever, the Wolverines are averaging just 23 points per game. These stats made them the second-lowest-scoring team in the Big Ten. It remains to be seen whether anything will change against the Lions.