Michigan OC Chip Lindsey explains why program added summer transfer to QB battle

The Michigan Wolverines are waging a quarterback competition during fall camp centered around freshman Bryce Underwood and graduate Mikey Keene, but sophomore Jadyn Davis and graduate Jake Garcia, are also in the mix early on.

Underwood and Davis split reps in spring ball with Keene injured, but Garcia joined the program as a late addition this summer, giving them some more veteran depth to run a true competition in camp.

“We’ve got two new guys now in the mix,” Lindsey said. “In the spring, with only two quarterbacks getting reps, it was pretty easy to rotate them. Now we’re getting all the guys involved, and it’s been good. Jake’s new; he’s been here maybe a month, and you can tell he’s experienced. He carries himself well.

“Mikey’s the same way. He’s really good with the little things like handling the huddle, communication, and preparation. Both of those guys have helped the younger players, including Bryce and Jadyn, by showing them how to prepare.

“If we’re talking about a specific play, I might make a point, and then Mikey, who I’ve worked with before, might add something too. It’s a collaborative room where everyone’s trying to help each other. But at the end of the day, it’s still a competition, and everyone understands that.”

Garcia will be attending his fourth school in five years after starting at Miami (FL) (2021-22), followed by stops at Missouri (2023) and East Carolina (2024). Coming out of high school in California and then Georgia, he committed to USC before flipping to the Hurricanes. Garcia was a four-star prospect and the No. 53 player nationally in 2021 and the 10th-ranked quarterback, per the On3 Industry Ranking.

Garcia’s collegiate career has been marked by unfulfilled potential, at least per his high school ranking. After playing in 15 games with 7 starts in four seasons, where he’s completed 188-of-310 passes (60.6%) for 2,376 yards and 15 touchdowns with 16 interceptions, he joins Michigan as the No. 1,075 player and No. 77 quarterback in this transfer portal class, per On3’s Industry Ranking.

Six of his career starts came last year at East Carolina before being benched for former Michigan State signal-caller Katin Houser. He threw 8 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, completing 60.2% of his passes. 

“I think we’re looking for some experience, and with Mikey not getting to participate in the spring,” Lindsey said. “We weren’t sure at the time [about Keene’s status], and I think just adding some pieces to the puzzle. Davis [Warren] obviously being down for a while, now we have some experience in that room, with at least a couple of guys who have played a lot. If not, then you were gonna be one less of that, and then if Mikey lingered or whatever, then you’d be in some trouble.

“So I think really just providing depth in that room.”

Having Keene and Warren on the mend from injuries meant Michigan had to adjust its quarterback prep during spring ball. It was good to get the young players experience, but also put them both on even more of a pitch count.

“It’s just when you go through spring with two guys and you start looking around, wow, that’s a lot of reps. We had to cut individuals in the spring because of too many throws and the reps and so forth. So just really building some depth, and not just depth from bodies, but quality depth, guys that maybe have played a little bit.

“Seeing our situation that we had at the moment with Jadyn and Bryce, we needed a couple of guys that have played. But at the same time, we want to take the right person too. There was some opportunity to take some guys earlier that we kind of passed on. But at the end of the day, I thought Jake was a great fit for us. And I didn’t really know him. I had recruited him a little bit a long time ago. But he’s been a great addition. He’s got a great attitude. He’s still learning, but a lot of fun to be around. He’s fit well in the room.”

Keene was a three-star recruit in the 2021 class and played his first two seasons at UCF before transferring to Fresno State in 2023, throwing for 2,976 yards, 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Last season, he threw for 2892 yards with 18 touchdowns and 11 picks. Keene started the 2024 season opener at Michigan, going 22-of-36 for 235 yards with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions.

Some have speculated that he is the biggest threat to Underwood for Michigan’s starting job, and despite the injury concerns this offseason, Lindsey says he is back in the rotation.

“He’s coming along great now,” Lindsey said. “But at that time, I was worried about it. And when you look at pure numbers, we wanted to add one more [quarterback] anyway.

“I think [he has time to win the job]. One thing, he’s got his experience, right? He did miss those opportunities. But in some ways, we got Jadyn and Bryce a ton of reps because of it. Mikey has played in an offense that is similar from a passing game standpoint. So I think that opportunity is still there for him. We’ll just see how it plays out.”