3 burning questions for Michigan Football this Spring

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Spring ball is here, and for Michigan, there won’t be any time to waste as it pertains to getting answers. This is Year 1 under Kyle Whittingham, and while there’s plenty of optimism around the program, there are just as many unknowns.

Here are three things we need to learn about Michigan this spring.

Is Bryce Underwood ready to take control of this offense?

Let’s not overthink it — everything starts with Bryce Underwood. Whittingham has already made it clear who the Wolverines’ QB1 is, and the training wheels are off. That alone makes this spring’s quarterback development one of the more massive storylines on the roster.

Underwood’s freshman season showed flashes, but it also exposed just how raw he still is. He didn’t have a dedicated quarterbacks coach, the offense lacked structure, and it felt like he was figuring things out on the fly way too often.  

Enter: Michigan’s new-look offensive coaching staff. With Jason Beck calling plays and Koy Detmer Jr. working with Underwood daily, the expectation is we’ll see him reach that next level. Beck’s system is built around feeding its best player’s strengths, and Whittingham has already emphasized tailoring the offense to what Underwood does best.

Will spring tell us if Underwood is a superstar yet? Definitely not. But there should be discernible improvements.

What does this new offense actually look like?

You’ve heard about it. You’ve read about it. Now we need to see it.

Michigan’s offense is expected to look different in 2026, both schematically and stylistically. Under Beck, there’s expected to be more spread concepts, more tempo, and more balance between the run and pass — a shift from the run-heavy, tight end-driven looks Michigan has leaned on in recent years.

And the personnel is there to support it. Whittingham has already identified a core group of pass-catchers — Andrew Marsh, Jaime Ffrench, Salesi Moa and J.J. Buchanan. This group offers far more versatility than what Michigan had a year ago. That matters because this offense is supposed to stress defenses horizontally and vertically.

The real question this spring: does it actually all start to come together? What that would look like — the receivers getting open consistently, the timing being there and the offense feeling modern. We’ll be looking for signs that this thing is finally headed somewhere real.

Who steps up around the new core?

Every spring has breakout players, and Michigan could use a few this year. We already know some of the headliners — Underwood, Marsh, Jordan Marshall — but championship teams aren’t built on two or three really good players alone. You still need guys who emerge out of nowhere and force their way into the rotation.

That’s especially true for this roster. There are real questions at multiple spots, particularly on defense, where turnover has created opportunity across the depth chart. And even offensively, beyond the top names, there are roles up for grabs. Whittingham hinted at this himself — the staff has a general idea of the roster after winter workouts, but spring is where they truly find out what they have.

Translation: there are jobs up for grabs. So who will become a reliable second or third option in the passing game? Who will flash along the defensive front? Who will earn trust in key situations? Those answers don’t always come from the guys you expect, so it would be nice to see some under-the-radar players emerge.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll start to see whether it all actually clicks, or if Michigan is still searching for answers heading into the fall.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos