Joel Klatt's Take Shows Why Michigan Can't Go Back to the Bryce Underwood Well

The Wolverines aren't saying who their QB is going to be against Indiana.

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After making the move to bench Bryce Underwood in the second half against Penn State on Saturday, freshman Tommy Carr came in and sparked the Wolverines' offense. Down 3-0, Carr would lead three touchdown-scoring drives to propel Michigan to a 21-18 win over the Nittany Lions.

The key aspect of Underwood's benching was that he turned the ball over twice in the first half. Underwood now has six interceptions this season and has fumbled the ball a couple of times. Kyle Whittingham hasn't been shy about Michigan cutting back on the turnovers, which has been the difference-maker this season.

Klatt doesn't see Michigan going back to the Underwood well

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After reviewing the tape, Joel Klatt believes Carr is the right answer for Michigan, and can't go back to the Bryce Underwood well — at least for now. The Wolverines' defense has been great this season and, Klatt believes Michigan needs a quarterback who will play turnover-free ball and give Michigan's defense a chance.

"At the end of the day for a quarterback, your job is to go create first downs and score touchdowns," Klatt said. "That's it. That's it. And the guy that does it the best goes out and plays. And at least with the evidence that we have in front of us, the guy that does that the best at Michigan is very clearly Tommy Carr. The proof is in the production.

"They scored three touchdowns after the second half. You know, so like you can't I don't think you can like go back to that well, you know, the the yardage and the production. It's not just the points, it's the total yards. Total yards first half 80. Total yards second half 221. Rushing yards first half 37. Rushing yards second half 174. Turnovers first half two. Turnovers second half zero. They played winning football in the second half. They did not play winning football in the first half.

"So you stay with the variables in the equation that created the success of the second half. The defense deserves a chance for this team. This is a defense that is now number one in the country in yards per play and they will keep them in every single game. So, you just need somebody to go out there and be serviceable on the offensive side."

Putting Carr up against IU is bold, but a move Michigan needs to make

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Michigan was hopeful it was never going to come to this. Underwood was expected to take the next step in his development under Jason Beck, and if all went to plan, Underwood could've left for the NFL after the 2027 season. But that's not how things have turned out, and Carr is likely in line to start his first game as a Wolverine.

And Michigan was certainly hoping to not have its true freshman make his first career start against the reigning national champions coming off their first loss since the 2025 season.

Indiana is likely going to be the toughest defensive line Michigan has faced all season. The Hoosiers are fourth in the country with 24 sacks this season. Tobi Osunsanmi is fourth in the country with seven sacks and Stephen Daley is 17th with five sacks.

But we can't forget about the spark Carr gave Michigan's offense in the second half and neither has Kyle Whittingham. While it's not the team you'd want to throw the freshman into the fire against, he's earned a chance.

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