Underwood, who turns 18 later this month, has not officially been named the starting quarterback yet. But, with graduate transfer Mikey Keene having dealt with an upper body injury this offseason, Underwood has the inside track to QB1 for Week 1.

Michigan’s football program might have arrived to Big Ten media days in Las Vegas last week with a perceived frontrunner to land the starting quarterback job in 2025, but head coach Sherrone Moore insisted that is not the case.

McCarthy and Underwood both seem to have a similar approach to the game and the team, but their build and play styles are different. McCarthy was the best QB that Michigan has had in a long time, but Underwood possesses a lot of physical traits that raise his ceiling.