Sherrone Moore raves over Bryce Underwood, early impact ahead of freshman season

Bryce Underwood isn’t waiting to make his impact felt at Michigan. At the Big Ten Media Days on Thursday, Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore raved about his freshman QB.

“He’s grown every single day since he’s been on campus,” Moore said. “He’s been with us since December, continues to do everything he can to be, one, the best teammate he could be. Two, to be best student he could be. And then, three, to be the best football player he could be and quarterback that he could be for our football team. He does everything the right way.

“He makes sure that he attacks everything the best way. And I literally just got off the phone with him calling me, asking me what time he’s got to be at the team meeting on Tuesday. So, he wants to make sure he’s on time and do everything right. He’s a great teammate, great kid, great young man. Jay and Beverly, his parents, have done an outstanding job of raising him, but I consider that for all our student-athletes at Michigan.”

Expectations are sky-high for Underwood, who was the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting cycle, according to Rivals’ Industry Rankings. Underwood is expected to immediately start for Michigan this season after the Wolverines had severe passing woes last season.

In fact, Michigan only averaged just 129.1 passing yards per game last season, the least of any Power Four program. For reference, the Wolverines averaged 213.7 passing yards per game in the 2023, the year they won the national championship.

Bryce Underwood has not only gained his head coach’s respect, but his teammates’ too. Earlier this offseason, Michigan wide receivers coach Ron Bellamy heaped praise on Underwood, revealing how he’s already established a leadership role among his teammates.

“He doesn’t get rattled. He’s always working,” Bellamy said. “You love that as a coach, because you know the quarterback usually leads the team and guys follow. You can see that following now with some of the guys — not just guys in his class, but some of the older guys too that Bryce has done a good job with.

“… “I’m most impressed with his leadership and the way he comes out there ready to go every day. For a young kid, that’s pretty impressive.”

It won’t be much longer until Underwood makes his Michigan debut. On Aug. 30, the Wolverines will kick off their 2025 campaign with a showdown against New Mexico at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will air live on NBC.