Few players are under more fire early in this 2026 college football season than Michigan quarterback , and for good reason. The former five-star recruit played one of his worst games in Week 1, a that was just one second away from being a shocking loss.
Now, Underwood will be up against a much tougher test in Week 2 when he tries to solve ’ exotic Oklahoma defense. He failed to do so in an early 2025 meeting, when Underwood finished 9-of-24 for 124 yards in a blowout win for the Sooners in Norman.
Coming into the 2026 meeting, a Big Ten defensive coach explained why Venables’ defense is such a for a quarterback like Underwood, via Bruce Feldman of The Athletic.
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“Oklahoma put a lot of stuff on tape (to defend Underwood) for the playbook last year,” said a Big Ten defensive coach, whose team faced Underwood in 2025. “Venables exposed him. Underwood struggles with all that variance that Venables loves to do. They have so much volume of stuff, and guys are getting calls in late. It’s almost like OU can be too exotic with all they’re doing, but even if they cut (a Michigan receiver) loose, I don’t know if Underwood could find him. It looks like he’s seeing ghosts. This is not a great matchup for him.”
In the season opener against Western Michigan, Underwood finished 12-of-22 with 170 yards and one touchdown to one interception, numbers that were significantly buoyed by the last-second Hail Mary that some will argue shouldn’t have even had the chance to happen.
Now, the pressure is squarely on Underwood for a Michigan team that had high hopes and expectations coming into this season. New head coach if he doesn’t pick up his level of play, as Tommy Carr waits in the wings for his chance to start.
With a brutal matchup coming in Week 2, Underwood is going to have to find a solution fast, or he will find himself on the bench.
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