Much was made of Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood’s completion percentage as a true freshman in 2025. Underwood completed 60.3% of his passes. However, diving deeper into the numbers, Michigan’s receivers didn’t help him out nearly enough.
Michigan receivers dropped 29 passes last season. If those 29 drops were catches instead, Underwood’s completion percentage would have been 69%. While Underwood’s freshman season was far from perfect, a completion rate of nearly 70% would have been impressive, and if he had a little more luck, it would have helped perception of his accuracy woes. Moving forward, will Underwood have more luck on his side, as well as elevated play at receiver? There’s optimism that the answer is yes.
- Semaj Morgan, who led Michigan with eight drops last season and was on the field far too often while contributing next to nothing, has since transferred to UCLA. Further, Andrew Marsh had a breakout freshman season, rising from reserve player to the go-to target in Michigan’s offense. The chemistry between Underwood and Marsh is undeniable. Marsh didn’t record a drop last season and will be WR1 heading into 2026.
- Michigan also added more talent at wideout, including Texas transfer Jaime Ffrench and Utah transfer JJ Buchanan. Ffrench is a former four-star prospect, and Buchanan turned into a key contributor as a freshman at Utah, with 26 receptions for 427 yards and five touchdowns. There’s also true freshman Salesi Moa, who has received glowing reviews since he’s been with the program.
- There should also be hope that fewer drops will occur under new offensive coordinator Jason Beck and new receivers coach Micah Simon. Michigan will have more of a spread offense under Beck that’ll see more four-receiver sets.
Michigan ranked No. 104 in passing last season, but new concepts in the passing offense could make all the difference in the world for Michigan’s wideouts.
“I feel great about it, to be honest,” receiver Andrew Marsh said about the passing game. “Moving forward this year, I feel like there’s so much freedom really route running and kind of conceptually I really feel like every five guys on a team can be an option each play.”
Underwood, a former five-star prospect and the No. 1 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class, will only reach his potential by not only improving on his craft, but having a supporting cast that does their job as well.
“It’s important we get him playing to his potential And he’s got a ton of it, I can tell you that right now,” Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham said this offseason. “His toolbox is absolutely incredible with his size and strength and speed. We’ve got to make sure we get him dialed in.”
