Michigan urged to bench Bryce Underwood for Tommy Carr after loss at Minnesota
The short version
- Minnesota beat Michigan in Minneapolis for the first time since 1977, Michigan's third loss after earlier defeats to Iowa and Western Michigan.
- Bryce Underwood went 10-of-21 for 101 yards and two interceptions; Michigan totaled 189 yards on 49 plays.
- Both Michigan touchdowns followed Minnesota interceptions — one short-field drive, one 74-yard return.
- Columnist Matt Hayes urges first-year coach Kyle Whittingham to give freshman Tommy Carr the job during the bye week.
- Penn State visits Ann Arbor after the bye, with Indiana, Oregon and Ohio State still ahead on the schedule.
A USA TODAY columnist says Michigan's losses to Minnesota, Iowa and Western Michigan show Bryce Underwood regressing, and calls for freshman Tommy Carr to start.
Michigan's loss at Minnesota on Saturday — the Gophers' first win over the Wolverines in Minneapolis since 1977 — has intensified scrutiny of quarterback Bryce Underwood and brought an open call for his benching. In a column published Saturday, Matt Hayes, senior national college football writer for the USA TODAY Sports Network, argued that first-year coach Kyle Whittingham should hand the job to freshman Tommy Carr.
Hayes wrote that the discussion in Ann Arbor can no longer center on the money Michigan committed to Underwood, whom he identified as the highest-paid player on the roster. In his view, the program's problem is the shrinking on-field return on that investment, with Underwood getting worse rather than better as the season moved from its opening month into October.
The numbers from Minneapolis backed the argument. Underwood completed 10 of 21 passes for 101 yards with two interceptions, and Michigan's offense finished with 189 yards on 49 plays. All 14 Michigan points came from Minnesota turnovers, with one interception setting up a short-field touchdown and another brought back 74 yards for a score.
After Michigan moved in front 14-7, the game turned into a string of failed possessions. Hayes counted the Wolverines' final six series as the end of the half, two interceptions, two punts and a turnover on downs. He described the offense as broken in nearly every phase, citing missed throws, missed reads, bad routes, drops, sacks, pre-snap penalties, overthrows, underthrows and tipped passes.
The Minnesota defeat followed earlier losses to Iowa and Western Michigan, games Hayes framed as ones Michigan let slip against beatable opponents. He wrote that Western Michigan held the Wolverines to seven points before what he called an assist from Big Ten replay, and he dismissed the conference's explanation involving separate game clocks.
Hayes also pointed to the gap between coach and quarterback: Whittingham did not recruit Underwood and, in an NIL-driven era, did not pay for him. His conclusion was that a program's obligation at some point is to win games rather than protect a costly signing.
The timing, in Hayes's view, favors a change. Michigan's open week allows Carr extended practice work with the first-team offense, and the schedule hardens from there, with a struggling Penn State team visiting Ann Arbor next and Indiana, Oregon and Ohio State still to come. His warning was that a team losing to Minnesota and Iowa faces far larger problems against that stretch.
For viewers mapping the Big Ten slate, Michigan's next scheduled game is the home date with Penn State in Ann Arbor following the bye week. Hayes closed by arguing the Wolverines' conversation must shift from what might have been with Underwood to what the program does next at quarterback.
