By the numbers: U-M has improved on offense in four key areas in 2025

By Clayton Sayfie

Michigan Wolverines football has a much better offense than it did a season ago, which is no surprise because the Wolverines had an outlier of a year last season, finishing 129th nationally with only 286.2 total yards per game.

New offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey and freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood are the two biggest differences, but there are others to expand upon. The Wolverines have gone from 129th to 41st in total offense (418.1 yards per contest), and they are averaging 6.5 yards per play, which is good for 26th in the FBS and 19th in the Power Four.

Here’s a look at four key areas that Michigan has improved from a season ago.

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Overall passing game

Underwood, the 6-foot-4, 228-pounder who was rated the No. 1 overall recruit in the nation, has had his ups and downs — but the positives are better than the highs last season and the negatives are nowhere near as bad.

The Wolverines started three different quarterbacks in 2024, one of whom played at much less than 100 percent and retired in the middle of the season (Jack Tuttle). They won four games with less than 100 passing yards, including against Alabama (75) and eventual national champion Ohio State (62), finding a formula to win by essentially punting and leaning on the defense.

The defense has carried Michigan this season, but the passing game has been much improved. The Wolverines have thrown for more than 200 yards in six of 10 games, after doing so only twice in 13 outings a season ago. Michigan has gone under 100 just once, in a 31-20 win over Michigan State.

Underwood is more of a middle of the pack Big Ten quarterback, but not at the bottom like Davis Warren in 2024. The freshman ranks ninth in the conference with 7.7 yards per pass attempt, after U-M was dead last nationally at 5.4 last year.

The wide receiver play is much better. Last year, Michigan’s top wide receiver was Tyler Morris with 23 catches for 248 yards and 2 touchdowns. This season, the Wolverines have two wideouts with much more production — freshman Andrew Marsh (37 receptions, 565 yards, 2 TD) and graduate Donaven McCulley (30 catches, 442 yards, 2 TD). Marsh is 13th in the Big Ten in receiving yards — last season, tight end Colston Loveland was the only Wolverine in the top 50, standing No. 30 with 582 yards.

Offensive line’s run blocking

Michigan’s offensive line was one of the biggest reasons why the Wolverines’ unit struggled in 2024. Now, it’s one of 10 semifinalists for the Joe Moore Award, handed out to the nation’s most outstanding offensive line, in large part because U-M has only had 38 negative plays (13th-fewest in the country), due to Underwood’s mobility and an elite running back duo with junior Justice Haynes and sophomore Jordan Marshall.

Michigan has one of the nation’s top rushing attacks, averaging 223 yards per game (12th) and 5.7 yards per attempt (ninth). The Wolverines have rushed for 175-plus yards in eight games — winning all of them.

Haynes and Marshall are the keys, but the run blocking is much better, too. In 2024, the line paved the way for only 1.5 yards before contact per rush, per PFF. In 2025, that figure is a whopping 2.7 yards — up 80 percent.

The overall balance of the offense helps, too. With Michigan having hardly a semblance of a passing game last season, opponents could sell out to stop the run. This season, it’s more of a pick your poison situation.

Bryce Underwood’s mobility

The pass protection has been an issue, with Underwood pressured on 27.5 percent of his dropbacks and taking 15 sacks, but his mobility has been an X-factor for the offense. He’s scrambled 27 times for 176 yards. His 14 first downs on scrambles rank as the 13th most in the country, according to Sports Info Solutions.

It’s not just tucking and running that’s been effective for Underwood. According to Sports Info Solutions, he’s averaging 6.7 yards per pass on 42 attempts when 1) pressured and 2) either moving or shuffling. His ability to throw off platform has kept the Wolverines afloat at times, too.

Explosiveness

Hitting on explosive plays is a product of all of the above and more, of course, but the fact of the matter is Michigan is seeing those pop.

The Wolverines have had 142 plays of 10-plus yards (58th nationally), 49 of 20-plus (41st), 22 of 30-plus (48th), 11 of 40-plus (48th) and 9 of 50-plus (12th). Both Haynes and Marshall have 4 runs of 50-plus yards, tied for the third-most in the country.

For comparison’s sake, the Wolverines had only 35 plays of 20-plus yards in 13 games last season. They were the only team in the country — including the service academies — without a pass of 40-plus yards. This year, Michigan has only 2, but there have been 30 of 20-plus, ranking 79th, showing big-time progress.