Michigan HC Kyle Whittingham talks Bryce Underwood's development ahead of 2026

When Kyle Whittingham was named the new coach of Michigan football, he knew he needed to do whatever it took to keep QB Bryce Underwood in the fold. The Wolverines signed Underwood ahead of the 2025 season as the No. 1 player in the 2025 cycle.

The dual-threat signal caller passed for 2,428 yards, 11 TDs, and nine INTs, while adding 392 yards with his legs and six scores on the ground.

Appearing on The Triple Option podcast on Monday with former Ohio State coach, and friend, Urban Meyer, the former Buckeye coach questioned Underwood's development througout the season.

Meyer noted has Michigan didn't allow Underwood to use his legs for the first few games, but once Sherrone Moore missed the first game of his two-game suspension, Underwood was let loose. However, his mechanics appeared to get worse as the season went on, and Whittingham revealed what most people thought -- he didn't have anyone working with him.

Michigan QB Bryce Underwood — Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Whittingham is bringing over both Jason Beck to run the Wolverines' offense and Koy Detmer Jr. to coach Underwood. Whittingham says they are already in a good place working with Underwood.

"You know, first of all, from what I understand, there was no dedicated quarterback coach working with him on a daily basis," Whittingham told Meyer. Which has to happen when you get a young, young man, 17 years old, he didn't turn 18 till like mid-season.

"And so he's a guy that really could have been in high school last year as far as his age. But, there's some things in throwing mechanics and the -- just seems to smooth out n his fundamentals and technique. And we're already got a good start on that.

"And Jason Beck and Koy Detmer, outstanding quarterback developers and coaches. So we're already going down that path, but you talk about a ton of upside and Bryce Underwood's got it all. He's 6-foot-4 and 225 plus and has a cannon arm.

"And so he's, he's the whole package. We just got to get him refined."

How hard was it to keep Underwood in the fold

Coach Meyer questioned how hard it was to keep Underwood at Michigan with the new coaching staff. According to Whittingham, Underwood was on board right away. He was able to have a long meeting with his prized QB during the Citrus Bowl and once he met his coaching staff -- he was ready to roll.

Getting Underwood to announce has helped Michigan bring in a few playmakers via the transfer portal. The Wolverines have landed Texas WR Jaime Ffrench and Utah WR/TE JJ Buchanan.

"You know, it was pretty, pretty much let's go," said Whittingham. "There was maybe a little hesitation until he got to know me and the, and the rest of the staff. But once he got to know us, it was on a good trajectory from that point. And then he announced, of course, several days ago and really helped our recruiting when he announced, and it was a stabilizing factor for us."

There are still a few days left of the transfer portal and Underwood is likely still working to bring more talent into Ann Arbor.

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