What they're saying after Michigan's 34-17 win over New Mexico, Bryce Underwood's debut

The Michigan Wolverines grabbed a 34-17 win over New Mexico on Saturday night in Ann Arbor in the debut of freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood.

Underwood’s performance was the biggest takeaway for most, with many of the narratives emerging after the game centered around the first-year starter.

There were plenty of perspectives on what went down after the fact. Here is a sampling of Sunday morning’s talking points.

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore

Overall, the real thing that we wanted to do is that we did not want turnovers. We had one on special teams. I think he learned from that. It was a young freshman, and he was down about it. He was still down after the game. At the end of the day, these guys are kids. They’re young men that we have to teach these lessons, and we got to help them through these lessons. So at least things are going to happen. And he’s going to learn from it, and he’s going to get better from it. So I think that piece from it. We didn’t want to miss a lot of tackles on special teams and defense. And I wanted consistent energy throughout the game. And I felt like there was consistent energy from snap one all the way to the end. It didn’t matter who was in there. Guys played physical. Guys played fast.

There are things we got to clean up, we got to get better at. And we know that. And the best part about it is our kids know that. They understand the standard of Michigan football. And they’re as disappointed at times than anybody else. They’re more disappointed because they’re the ones putting in the work. And our coaches are the ones putting in the work. So they know the standards that they want to uphold, and we know what we want to uphold. So we’re going to work to get better. And for this young man, I thought he played really well. And he’s going to be very critical of himself when he watches film. He was critical of himself during the game. And he has a high standard for himself, and we have a high standard for us as an offense. But it’s not just him. It’s everybody on offense together pulling on one string. So to play the way he did, not turn the ball over, throw touchdown passes, and go down on that two-minute drive, I couldn’t do that as a freshman. So that was impressive.

John Borton, The Wolverine

Michigan delivers no perfection, but plenty of hope

Underwood (21-for-31, 251 yards, one TD, zero interceptions and a 68 percent completion rate) connected on a clutch third-down throw to sophomore wideout Channing Goodwin for 39 yards, with under two minutes remaining in the half.. Then with just 25 seconds left before intermission, the rookie QB floated a perfectly thrown 15-yard touchdown to tight end Marlin Klein (six catches, 93 yards yards, one TD) — the first touchdown toss of Underwood’s career.

“I thought he played really well,” head Coach Sherrone Moore said of Underwood. “He’s going to be very critical of himself when he watches film. He’s critical of himself during the game. He has a high standard for himself, and we have a high standard for us as an offense. But it’s not just him. It’s everyone on offense together, pulling on one string. To play the way he did, not turn the ball over, go down on that two-minute drive … that was impressive.

Michigan’s first possession of the second half began on their own 6. What followed signaled not only a more aggressive approach by new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, but also the confidence in Underwood to carry it out. The rookie faked a handoff and floated a throw to Klein for 27 yards to dig the Wolverines out of trouble. Underwood then dialed up a Nolan Ryan fastball down the middle for 30 yards to junior wideout Kendrick Bell, setting up 39-yard field goal by grad kicker Dominic Zvada, who nailed his only two tries.

Chris Balas, The Wolverine

Michigan 34, New Mexico 17: Notes, quotes, and observations 

if there was any doubt the Michigan offense was going to be different under new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey — well, there isn’t anymore. This isn’t your big brother’s “smash” offense, nor is it much smash at all. In fact, it was a little more — maybe much more — finesse than we thought it be.

Fact is, though, maybe it needed to be given the inconsistency of this offensive line when it comes to getting push. It was a concern of ours heading into the game and one not put to rest Saturday night, though big plays in the running game helped inflate the stats (especially Justice Haynes’ 56- and 59-yard runs). It became evident in the underwhelming win that not only is the true freshman quarterback possibly their best player already (with running back Haynes stating his case, too, with 159 yards and three scores), but the guy they want to make plays on third and fourth and short, too.

So, yeah — it’s different. And while that’s not necessarily bad, it’s probably going to take some getting used to. Watching Ohio State “Tressel-ball” its way to a 14-7 home win over Texas while Michigan’s freshman quarterback threw 31 times, completing 21 for 251 yards and a score, felt a little odd.

But with a talent like Underwood, well on his way to being that “generational talent” many have pegged him, you play to that strength every day and twice on … well, Saturday.

Stewart Mandel, The Athletic

Mandel’s Final Thoughts: Lee Corso salute, Arch Manning’s shockingly bad day and more Week 1

Arguably the wildest recruitment of the NIL era occurred last November when Michigan flipped five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood from LSU thanks to a generous donation (believed to be north of $3 million a year) from billionaire Larry Ellison’s Maize-and-Blue-bleeding wife, Jolin. It was evident since spring that Underwood would be the Wolverines’ Week 1 starter. And he’s off to a promising start.

Underwood went 21 of 31 for 251 yards, one TD and no picks in a 34-17 win over New Mexico. He looked comfortable and confident, albeit against an overmatched foe. On a third-and-14 from his own 21 shortly before halftime, he lasered a 39-yard pass to redshirt freshman receiver Channing Goodwin, after which Underwood helped his team build a two-touchdown lead

Underwood wasn’t the only notable newcomer for Michigan’s offense. Former Alabama RB Justice Haynes ran 16 times for a career-high 159 yards and three TDs. It’s hard to know how good Michigan’s defense might be based on a Mountain West opener, but Sherrone Moore’s more pressing issue was fixing last year’s 129th-ranked offense. If nothing else, he appears to have more weapons.

However, the degree of difficulty increases significantly next week when the 14th-ranked Wolverines visit No. 18 Oklahoma. The Sooners’ heralded transfer QB John Mateer (Washington State) threw for 392 yards in a 35-3 tune-up against Illinois State.

Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire

5 takeaways from Michigan football’s 2025 opener, highlighted by Bryce Underwood’s debut

Underwood went 21-for-31 (67.7%) for 251 yards and a touchdown in his college debut. He looked sharp, in command, and in control. In fact, of his 10 incompletions, the majority of them could have or should have been caught. He was accurate, had good timing, made smart decisions, and looked nothing like a typical freshman would in his first game.

Now, is New Mexico an impressive defense? It’s hard to say, but probably not. But we’ve seen worse performances against worse teams, and if one thing can be said of Jason Eck’s Lobos, they’re well coached and didn’t exactly make a lot of mistakes.

If nothing else, this showing by Underwood should give some confidence about next week at Oklahoma. Because even if the defense falters, it looks like the Wolverines could actually be built to withstand a shootout or be capable of making a comeback.

Austin Meek, The Athletic

Michigan’s Bryce Underwood era opens with a win and plenty of room for improvement

One quarter into the season, the good vibes surrounding Bryce Underwood’s debut seemed strong enough to carry Michigan all the way to a Week 2 showdown at Oklahoma.

Michigan scored two quick touchdowns against New Mexico in the first game for Underwood, the five-star freshman quarterback and No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2025. When he wasn’t throwing a block to spring Justice Haynes into the end zone, Underwood’s primary job was to stand there and look good while Michigan’s running backs churned out the yards.

The celebratory mood didn’t last. New Mexico clawed back into the game and turned up the tension at Michigan Stadium. While Michigan’s 34-17 victory had a few anxious moments, it gave Underwood a chance to show why he’s been touted as a game-changing quarterback

Bob Wojnowski, The Detroit News

Wojo: Underwood flashes big arm and uncommon poise, lifts UM past stubborn Lobos

The Wolverines made mistakes, probably more than they’d like. Not a surprise in a season opener with lots of new faces and a freshman quarterback.

Here’s the surprise: The freshman quarterback made very few of the mistakes. And in a sharp debut that will stir imaginations even more, Bryce Underwood made the biggest throws in the biggest moments.

It got uncomfortably close for Michigan against a five-touchdown underdog, but every time it threatened to get tighter, Underwood would rip a laser for a first down, or running back Justice Haynes, the transfer from Alabama, would rip a clutch run. Growing pains were evident, but the growth spurt officially began Saturday night as Michigan held off New Mexico, 34-17.

Underwood started fast in his first college game, handled late pressure, and then let the running game and defense finish the job. The nation’s No. 1 recruit showed the poise, the accuracy and the arm — oh my, the arm — to confirm he can do a whole lot more.

Tony Garcia, Detroit Free Press

Michigan football grades: A mixed bag in season opener, saved by two new shiny toys

Michigan’s defense was responsible for surrendering 14 points − three of them were set up by a special teams blunder. Parts of the unit were quite good, namely the run-stopping, which held the Lobos to 1.8 yards per carry.

Meanwhile, the Lobos needed 48 pass attempts to pick up 217 yards (4.5 per attempt) and one of the touchdowns came on a trick play. The main issue was a pair of penalties that negated two turnovers. One of them saw Jaishawn Barham called for targeting – that not only took away a scoop-and-score but will keep him out the first half of Week 2 at Oklahoma (unless Michigan’s appeal to the Big Ten is successful).

“I’d say it was smooth, we got a couple things to fix,” safety Brandyn Hillman said. “I feel like we got to run to the ball more, I feel like our tackling was pretty good. Just little things like I said. … I wouldn’t say that’s our best game performances we’re gonna put out, but it was smooth.”