Josh Pate compares explosive rushing ability of Bryce Underwood to Cam Newton

Michigan is off to a 3-1 start to the season. But perhaps more importantly, freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood has settled in quite nicely.

He was instrumental in the team’s win over Nebraska this weekend, helping the team bounce back from an earlier loss to Oklahoma. And in the process, Underwood earned an incredibly favorable comparison from college football analyst Josh Pate.

“Man, when he got into the open field… I don’t want to do this,” Pate said on Josh Pate’s College Football Show. “I’m going to do it, whatever. There are no standards around here. Remember when Cam (Newton) got to Auburn, they played LSU early in the year? And he pulled away from a guy named Patrick Peterson in LSU’s secondary.

“There were no Patrick Petersons on the field yesterday for Nebraska, but the way Bryce Underwood hit that different gear when he got in the open field reminded me of how it put my jaw on the ground when I first saw Cam Newton just turn it loose in the open field early in that 2010 season at Auburn.”

That is quite the comparison. And Bryce Underwood has proven a very capable runner over the last two weeks, something fans didn’t see much of in the opening two weeks.

He has run for 175 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries. Elite stuff.

“That is where I will end the comparison, because that’s not fair,” Pate said. “But just a little moment in time versus moment in time, that’s what I thought. It was a big-time competitive character sort of check for Michigan. And spoiler alert: They’ve still got it.”

Bryce Underwood helped the team win. And Michigan has its identity at this point.

The Wolverines are as good on the ground as anyone in the country. Pate broke it down.

“They were ripping off explosive runs left and right,” he said. “It turns out if they just keep doing that, it’s not an exception to the rule. See, I watched Michigan rip off explosive touchdown runs in a game, against like New Mexico, and then I remember saying, ‘Well, if they don’t do that against Oklahoma it’s going to be a problem.’ Well they did lose to Oklahoma but even that game they ripped more off. And they’ve done it every game since.”

How well did Bryce Underwood and Michigan perform on Saturday? The explosives in the run game were notable.

“Seven of their carries yielded 221 and three touchdowns on the ground,” Pate said. “Their longest passing play was 16 yards. Didn’t even matter. Underwood threw the ball because he kind of felt like it every now and then. Didn’t even need to.”