Michael Cohen
College Football and College Basketball Writer
RJ Young
FOX Sports National College Football Analyst
He’s 18 years old, one game into his college career, and already carrying the weight of one of the most storied programs in college football.
Bryce Underwood arrived in Ann Arbor carrying sky-high expectations and delivered in his debut, setting a school record for most passing yards by a Michigan freshman in a first start. But now comes the first real test: a road game against the No. 18-ranked Oklahoma Sooners.
How will Underwood perform under the spotlight on the biggest stage of his young collegiate career?
FOX Sports’ RJ Young and Michael Cohen weigh in on that ahead of Michigan’s Week 2 matchup against Oklahoma.
Bryce Underwood #19 of Michigan celebrates with teammates after the game against New Mexico. (Photo by Raj Mehta/Getty Images)
Michigan is set to travel to Norman to take on Oklahoma this weekend in a top-20 showdown. How much will this game shape the national perception of Michigan’s College Football Playoff chances this season – and how much of that falls on the shoulders of freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood?
RJ Young: If Michigan is to reach the national title game, beating a team like Oklahoma on the road is exactly what Bryce Underwood and the Wolverines will have to do. With a superstar freshman at QB and a stout defense, the Wolverines will hope to emulate Dabo Swinney’s 2018 Clemson Tigers and run the table. With Underwood, they have a player with the talent to do just that.
However, Oklahoma will not make it easy. Brent Venables is calling the defense — like he did for 2018 Clemson — and they have their own supreme talent at QB in John Mateer, who set a school record for passing yards in a debut with 392. This is the kind of game Michigan needs to win to convince others it’s a national title-caliber team in 2025.
Michael Cohen: Before diving into Saturday’s matchup between No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 15 Michigan, which features two programs right on the edge of the College Football Playoff conversation, let’s take a moment to consider how impressive Underwood’s debut was last weekend, less than two weeks removed from his 18th birthday. Underwood completed 21 of 31 passes for 251 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in an exceptional performance that only amplified the incredible expectations that have been heaped onto his broad shoulders for years. His 251 passing yards were the most during any debut by a Michigan freshman in school history. His four completions of 25-plus yards nearly matched the total of six produced by three Wolverines quarterbacks combined last season. He flashed tremendous arm strength, velocity and conviction on short and intermediate throws, some of which were zipped into tight windows, and he displayed beautiful touch on a lofted throw to tight end Marlin Klein from a precarious situation deep in his own territory.
Through it all, Underwood smiled and danced and high-fived teammates both on and off the field. He seemed to relish the moment and everything it represented for both himself and the Wolverines, injecting the offense with the kind of verve it hasn’t enjoyed since J.J. McCarthy led Michigan to a national title in 2023.
In terms of how much this game might shape the national perception of Michigan’s potential College Football Playoff candidacy, the answer is both quite significantly and, in some respects, not that much. As of right now, Saturday’s showdown with Oklahoma is one of only two games against ranked opponents remaining on the Wolverines’ schedule, with the annual clash against No. 1 Ohio State scheduled for Nov. 29. Head coach Sherrone Moore, who will serve a two-game, self-imposed suspension later this month, should benefit from a soft Big Ten slate that does not include Oregon, Penn State, Illinois or Iowa. And while it’s possible that Nebraska, USC or Washington could climb into the national rankings over time, none of them are viewed among the sport’s elite right now. So in that respect, given the relative ease of Michigan’s conference slate between now and the regular season finale with the Buckeyes, the chance to notch an impressive ranked win away from home is an incredibly important opportunity for Underwood and Co.
Bryce Underwood #19 of the Michigan Wolverines celebrates with teammates after the game against New Mexico. (Photo by Raj Mehta/Getty Images)
What’s also true, however, is that the CFP selection committee almost always favors the Big Ten and SEC when comparisons are made to lesser leagues like the ACC, Big 12 or the Group of 6. Which means that even if Michigan loses to Oklahoma this weekend — and even if Oklahoma stumbles down the stretch the way it has in recent seasons under Venables, worsening the defeat over time — evaluators and analysts alike will certainly give Michigan the benefit of the doubt come December if the Wolverines navigate conference play more or less unscathed. So in that respect, when it comes to larger CFP arguments, the simple fact that Michigan plays in one of the two unquestioned power conferences means it should have plenty more opportunities to reinforce its résumé, even without facing some of the league’s best teams. That’s just the nature of modern college football.
But if Week 1 taught us anything about Michigan’s chances this season, both on Saturday and beyond, it’s that the Wolverines will go as far as Underwood can take them.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.
Michael Cohen covers college football and college basketball for FOX Sports. Follow him @Michael_Cohen13.
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