Quarterback Bryce Underwood calling himself the best player to ever come out of Michigan turned a lot of heads. Not everyone thinks it was a smart move.

Steve Deace, host of the Michigan Podcast, addressed it directly on the Locked On Wolverines podcast with host Isaiah Hole.

"Make wild proclamations as much as he does, become memes and everything else as much as he does, especially without the performance to show it. I think he's making it way harder on himself than it has to be with this," Deace said on the Locked On Wolverines podcast.

The concern isn't about confidence. It's about timing. Underwood is heading into his sophomore year with questions still swirling around his accuracy, his decision-making, and whether he can perform in big moments. Putting a target on your back before answering any of those questions adds unnecessary pressure.

Deace pointed out that when you rank the quarterbacks of Michigan's four toughest opponents, Underwood sits fifth.

"Nowhere near Dante Moore. The best player in Michigan history. Dante Moore is going to maybe be the number one pick in the draft next year. Nowhere near Julian Sayin," he said on the Locked On Wolverines podcast.

Moore could be the number one overall pick in next year's draft. That's the competition Underwood is walking into.

Deace also raised something that makes the 2026 season feel even more high-stakes with head coach Kyle Whittingham approaching 70 years. He explained what happens if Underwood can't deliver in those games.

"It's very clear when this season is over that he could not deliver in those games, not a single one of them. I 10,000% believe Michigan will move on," he said.

The staff won't wait indefinitely either. There's a quarterback currently at Utah who knows the system, is finishing his degree and has a fifth year of eligibility available.

Deace is not counting Underwood out; he just wants a quarterback who steps up in the fourth quarter to lock in a win when the team needs him most.

Isaiah Hole compared Bryce Underwood’s 2026 expectations to JJ McCarthy

The name Isaiah reached for was not a Heisman winner. Not a top draft pick. Just JJ McCarthy in the middle of his 2022 season.

"Kind of similar to mid-season 2022 JJ McCarthy, who wasn't necessarily throwing all over the yard, wasn't as efficient as he was in year three, but was certainly someone that Michigan fans weren't particularly complaining about too much," Isaiah said on the same podcast.

That's a realistic bar. McCarthy managed the game, made the throws that mattered, and let the defense and running game do the heavy lifting. Michigan won a lot of football games that way.

Deace also pointed out that Michigan should have a top five defense and top five running game in the Big Ten this year. For six or seven games, that combination should be enough on its own. The quarterback question only gets answered in the other four.

Do you think Bryce Underwood can deliver in Michigan's biggest games this season? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Farheen Fathima

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore