How Michigan’s Bold QB Move Could Change Its Season

I’ve seen a lot of chaos in college football. But this past weekend? This was a show for the ages.

Five of the top seven teams in the AP Top 25 went down. But let’s be clear: these results didn’t come without controversy.

There was a stunning quarterback shakeup at Michigan, a former blue-chip recruit thriving at Houston, and two officiating blunders that really have me questioning the sport’s consistency and accountability.

Michigan’s ‘Bold’ QB Change

Anyone who is close to the Michigan football program could see it coming.

After five full games and an underwhelming first half against Penn State on Saturday, it was time for a change at quarterback. Bryce Underwood had completed just 5 of 11 passes for 43 yards and thrown two interceptions.

Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham made the decision to bench him.

This was a bold move considering Underwood was the No. 1-ranked QB prospect in the 2025 recruiting class and inked a massive NIL deal that was reportedly in the $12 million range.  

But here’s the truth: The change had to be made due to a stunning lack of growth from Underwood.

Whittingham turned to true freshman QB Tommy Carr — and the name should ring a bell. Carr is the grandson of former Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr, while his brother, CJ, is Notre Dame’s QB1 and a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate.

The younger Carr impressed during Michigan’s spring game and continued to build confidence in the coaching staff throughout fall camp.  If not for an additional second being put back on the clock in Week 1 vs. Western Michigan, one can imagine this change might have happened sooner. 

I was impressed with Carr this past Saturday as he immediately provided a spark to an offense that’s been anemic. After managing only 80 yards of total offense in the first half, the Wolverines totaled 221 yards in the second half alone and scored 21 second-half points with Carr under center.

Michigan only asked Carr to throw eight times in the game, but his impact was immediate. On his first play from scrimmage, off an RPO, Carr kept it and threw a strike to wide receiver JJ Buchanan with accuracy and rhythm seldom seen this season, sending a message that Michigan wasn’t going to just hand off all game. This was followed by a sprint-out on third down for another completion that probably would have been a first down had wide receiver Andrew Marsh trusted his speed and ran towards the sticks. 

Michigan offensive coordinator Jason Beck even mixed in a flea flicker, which was well covered and fell incomplete, but in doing so, it proved this staff has full confidence in the freshman signal-caller.

Then there was this telling quote from Whittingham in his weekly press conference on Monday:

“There’s never been a QB I’ve been around that studies more than Tommy Carr,” Michigan’s head coach said. “His football IQ is off the chart.”

It’s hard to argue with that. And between the wide variety of throws and a 23-yard scamper for a touchdown, Carr’s dual-threat ability had me thinking: 

How effective could this offense be if this move was made earlier?

Underwood acted as the consummate pro throughout the game, congratulating Carr every step of the way, but you have to wonder if he has a future in Ann Arbor? 

Whittingham has no plans to reveal his answer to that question.

“We know exactly what we’re doing and our plan going forward,” Whittingham said to the media this week. “We’re not going to tip our hand to the opponent, but we have a good plan in place.”

If Carr is indeed the starter moving forward, things won’t get any easier this week when the Wolverines take on No. 6 Indiana, which boasts one of the toughest defenses in the country.

Keep an eye on how much pressure Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines brings against Carr. Haines has ramped up his blitz rate over the past couple of weeks, which could spell trouble for the Wolverines. On one play last week, Carr completed a shallow cross to tight end Hogan Hansen, but it wasn’t clear whether he saw the “Corner Cat” blitz coming off the edge. He was fortunate the protection picked it up in time.

I’m sure he will see a lot more of where that came from this week. 

One Name To Know …

Sometimes, the best place to get your career back on track is right back home. Just ask Houston quarterback Conner Weigman, who is making the most of his second chance.

A former five-star dual-threat quarterback, Weigman arrived at Texas A&M with plenty of promise. But injuries, adversity and a coaching change eventually pushed him to the bench and, ultimately, into the transfer portal in search of a fresh start. He found it at Houston, returning to familiar territory near his old stomping grounds and helping build a program still establishing itself in the Big 12.

Weigman is now 16-4 as a starter after leading the Cougars to a shootout victory over No. 20 Oklahoma State last week. In a game billed as a quarterback duel with Cowboys gunslinger Drew Mestemaker, Weigman stole the show, accounting for 395 total yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Whatever shortcomings showed up during his time in College Station seem to be fading into the rearview mirror — so much so that some in Aggieland might be wondering if they let him go too soon.

The improvement shows up on film. Weigman’s throwing motion is more compact, his accuracy has improved, and he’s showing better anticipation. His ability to release the ball before his pass-catcher gets into his break is a sign of the timing and trust that can separate good quarterbacks from great ones.

Weigman’s mobility also forces opponents to account for him as a runner, creating another layer for Houston’s offense.

Here’s a cold, hard fact: No quarterback has been more productive over the past four weeks than Weigman, who has accounted for 18 total touchdowns. He’ll need to keep that pace if the Cougars hope to pull off the upset against a Utah offense averaging 40 points per game, the best mark in the Big 12.

A win over the Utes would give Houston even more momentum. Not just toward a Big 12 title and a CFP berth, but toward proving Weigman has what it takes to lead an NFL franchise in 2027.

What I’m Watching …

So much chaos. So much controversy.

Two officiating controversies caught my attention this past weekend, and both reinforced my belief that college football needs a centralized officiating system to improve consistency and a reworked replay-review process.

First up: one of the greatest rivalries in college football — Miami vs. Florida State.

Growing up, I witnessed these programs meet six times when both were ranked in the top five, with national championship implications on the line. This past weekend’s matchup may not have carried those same stakes for Florida State, but the Hurricanes represent the ACC’s best chance to get a team into the College Football Playoff.

In double overtime, Florida State had the ball at the Miami 36-yard line with one last shot to tie the game. Florida State QB Ashton Daniels dropped back and found wide receiver Micahi Danzy for what appeared to be a touchdown, only to be wiped away by a bogus holding penalty on left tackle Xavier Chaplin. 

Don’t believe me, check it out.

Florida State, still in need of a touchdown and two-point conversion, had one more chance. Daniels dropped back, scrambled and heaved a Hail Mary that appeared to be grabbed by both Florida State WR Duce Robinson and Miami DB Bryce Fitzgerald. The two players fell to the ground, both having hands on the football appearing to be simultaneous possession, which is awarded to the offense.

Even the broadcast booth thought Robinson had made the catch. However, after a review, ACC officials announced the call on the field was upheld, leading to an interception. Miami survived and moved up to No. 1, while FSU was left devastated with Mike Norvell on the hot seat.  I’ve continued to push for a change in how we treat replay reviews. As of now, the replay process goes as follows: 

• The call on the field stands unless there is indisputable video evidence to overturn the ruling made by the on-field officials.
• If the video is inconclusive, split, or does not clearly contradict the initial ruling, the original call stands.
• Replay at this juncture is NOT meant to re-officiate or parse subjective judgment calls unless a rule allows it. Instead, focusing on objective facts.
• Indisputable video rule must show with 100 percent proof that the on-field crew was wrong. If not, the decision is preserved.

I believe we’ve come to an inflection point. 

When a play goes to review, the initial call on the field should be ignored and the play should be re-officiated through the review.  We are in an era of TV consumption that provides a better vantage point to the replay officials in the booth or even viewers at home than the officials on the field.  Access to tools like slow motion or still shots allow for more accurate determinations. 

Furthermore, in an effort to remove potential bias amongst conference officials, why not have one national officiating organization?  We can all agree on the process of determining our national champion, but we can’t figure out how to nationalize officiating? Instead, we continue with an archaic process, utilizing officials from varying conferences, with replay centers scattered throughout the country and, in the most critical moments, leaning too heavily on the judgements made by officials on the field in an era where the margins of difference are paper thin. 

This sounds like a recipe for these absurd outcomes to continue.

Finally, let’s get to the biggest controversy of this weekend. Late Saturday night in the final seconds of the BYU vs. Notre Dame game, QB CJ Carr sprinted out to throw a widened fade to WR Jaden Greathouse that fell to the ground incomplete.  However, one glaring issue: there was still one second left on the clock.

Forget the fact that there was a missed defensive pass-interference call, neither the officials nor the broadcast booth recognized the remaining time on the clock. 

To make matters worse, the Big 12 released the following statement: 

“Following the Big 12’s review of the final play of Saturday’s Notre Dame-BYU game, it was determined that time remained on the clock when the ball hit the ground, and the play was incorrectly cleared by the replay officiating crew.” 

FOX Sports rules analyst Mike Pereira added: “It is embarrassing for all officiating, quite frankly. Everybody gets brought into this, even the NFL and high school officiating, because it is such a ridiculous miss that has nothing to do with judgement. Nothing. I understand missing pass interference. This especially, after what happened six weeks ago (Ending to Michigan vs. W. Michigan), it’s embarrassing. They get one more play.” 

It’s baffling to think we could have another controversy surrounding the ending of a game after what happened in Week 1, but it only further highlights the need for change.

I would attack this in three ways: 

• Install clocks with decimals to more accurately determine the time left in the game. The NCAA did this for basketball following the NBA pioneering this technology in the 1989-1990 season.
• Install a red light system around the clocks to highlight when the clock strikes 0:00 to aid the replay review.
• Use a buzzer or horn to create an additional layer of confirmation signifying the clock is at 0:00.

We owe it to the sport we love to get these calls right.