Saline — Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood said he has been training “smarter,” working on consistency, and simplifying the game during the offseason while under the tutelage of private quarterback coach Jordan Palmer and also during the spring with Wolverines position coach Koy Detmer.
Underwood, who enters this fall as the Wolverines’ starting quarterback after starting last season as a freshman, spent Saturday morning and early afternoon at Saline High at a youth camp bearing his name.
He has been scrutinized since arriving at Michigan last year as the nation’s top-rated recruit out of Belleville, and heads into this season with much to prove. Underwood completed 60.3% of his passes for 2,428 yards and had 11 touchdowns against nine interceptions. He also had 88 carries for 392 yards and six touchdowns.
But under new head coach Kyle Whittingham and his staff, Underwood is getting more coaching and development and now is working with California-based Palmer, whose quarterback client list includes Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Joe Burrow. Earlier this year, Underwood shared on Instagram a photo of him and Burrow working with Palmer.
Underwood, voted a captain during spring practice, knows this is a big season for him and that expectations are high.
“I want to prove to myself that I am what I think,” Underwood told a small group of reporters Saturday.
What kind of quarterback does he think he is?
“I feel like I’m the best player to ever come out of Michigan,” he said. “Now it’s time for me to show up.”
During the spring game, Underwood only played a quarter and freshman Tommy Carr played the bulk and earned considerable praise from Whittingham, who also shared Underwood played well throughout the practices. Earlier this month, however, former NFL safety Eric Weddle, who played for Whittingham at Utah where he was head coach the last 21 seasons, harshly criticized Underwood during a “Zero 2 Sixty” podcast interview.
Weddle said he attended Michigan’s spring practice and said Underwood would not hold onto the starting job.
“Mark my words … don’t be surprised if the backups are playing early because that Underwood kid, I don’t think he could throw or play quarterback,” Weddle said on the podcast. “So, we’ll see.”
During an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show, Weddle offered context to his comments about Underwood.
“Everyone just thinks when I say he can’t throw it means he literally can’t throw it,” Weddle said. “It means I don’t think he’s very accurate. And when I say I don’t think he can play quarterback, it means playing the position at the standard that I think he should be at.”
Underwood, not long after the Weddle critique, posted a laughing emoji on Instagram with the message, “keep zzz”, suggesting people are sleeping on him. He also posted an Instagram story featuring The Joker from Batman.
When asked Saturday about people like Weddle criticizing his game, Underwood didn’t say much.
“I mean, game on Sept. 5,” he said referring to the season opener against Western Michigan. “I’ll let that speak.”
And about The Joker post?
“Nah, it ain’t got nothing to do with him,” Underwood said, adding he’s been a fan of The Joker since he was a kid and was contrasting that to the Batman references made about him last season.
Whittingham, during the Triple Option podcast with Urban Meyer earlier this year, revealed Underwood did not have a dedicated, full-time quarterback coach on the Michigan staff last season. Now, Underwood is working with Detmer and then, in the offseason, with Palmer. What Palmer has taught is just not about technique.
“(I’ve learned) how much of the mental aspect of the game really matters,” Underwood said. “How mentally stable you need to be. How mentally sharp. That’s my focus.”
Also, Palmer has been teaching him to have consistency with every aspect of his training.
“Basically, how to simplify the game for myself,” Underwood said. “How easy I can make the game, and how easy can I make it look.”
And with Whittingham and the new staff, so much of the approach to practice and training has changed.
“I’m working smarter than I was last year,” he said. “Just blessed for this season to come out.”
Underwood arrived at Michigan with considerable hype and a hefty, multi-million dollar NIL package. He made several bold statements, telling The Detroit News in April 2025 that, “What I feel like I do best, I lead and I’m an honest-to-God game-changer”. Then, during the Big Ten Network’s preseason camp show from Ann Arbor last August, Underwood confidently said, “they’ve seen a lot of freshmen, but I feel like nobody has seen a freshman like me.”
He hasn’t made statements like that for some time, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t believe what he said last year.
“No matter what, I stand on what I said,” Underwood said. “Now it’s time to move forward with that.”
Underwood said regarding team goals that he will do what it takes to win. Asked his personal goals, he offered more of the same.
“Whatever my team needs,” he said. “We want to win. That’s it.”
achengelis@deroitnews.com
@chengelis
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan QB Bryce Underwood motivated to prove himself in Year 2
Reporting by Angelique S. Chengelis, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Angelique S. Chengelis, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
