Bryce Underwood may have grown up watching the rivalry, but he learned on Saturday, Nov. 29, it’s an entirely different animal to play in it.
Michigan football’s freshman quarterback got his first taste of the best rivalry in college sports and didn’t deliver in the way Michigan fans had hoped as the Wolverines lost, 27-9. It’s their first loss to the Buckeyes since 2019.
Early on, he was slowed down by the game plan. Michigan had an extremely conservative approach in the first half with just five passes in the stat sheet (there was a sixth that was flagged for defensive pass interference). Underwood finished the game 8-for-18 passing for 63 yards.
It wasn’t all Underwood’s fault – there were a few drops and at times he didn’t have a ton of time to work in the pocket – but the confident freshman did not do enough to turn the tide in U-M’s favor against a stifling Ohio State defense.
Bryce Underwood grade vs Ohio State: D
There wasn’t a moment where Underwood took the game over. He was under pressure, sure, but for the first time perhaps since September, the moment felt just a bit too big. On third-and-goal in the first quarter, he threw a fade to Donaven McCulley that never gave him a chance. On third-and-14, he threw a checkdown to Bryson Kuzdzal that never had a chance to pick up a yard. He had just two passes that converted third downs through the first three quarters and neither of them went more than 6 yards down field.
The only pass completed that was truly down field was to McCulley who skied between three defenders to haul in a 26-yard reception. He was nearly picked off in the fourth quarter when he targeted McCulley on a curl. He was sacked on the next play. Then, on third-and-18, he threw … a check down to Deakon Tonielli for 2 yards. His favorite target, Andrew Marsh? He didn’t have a single reception. Underwood’s legs were shut down, too, with Arvell Reese frequently serving as a spy. He ran six times for 1 yard with four carries going for 2 yards or fewer.
On his last drive, he threw an interception that was the perfect exclamation point to a bad day.
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Bryce Underwood grade for Michigan vs Ohio State: Disaster all around
