The Michigan Wolverines are expected to start freshman Tommy Carr on Saturday against No. 6 Indiana after he led a comeback win over Penn State last Saturday following the benching of former top recruit Bryce Underwood, according to CBS Sports' Matt Zenitz. Carr had a modest game passing the ball, completing 5 of 7 passes for 47 yards, but the Michigan offense operated much better with Carr under center, and he aided the rushing attack with four carries for 36 yards and the game-sealing touchdown. That performance was enough to convince Kyle Whittingham that it was time to make an official quarterback change in Ann Arbor, as Underwood will slide into the backup role for now.
The grandson of legendary Michigan coach Lloyd Carr and the brother of Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr, Tommy Carr was a four-star recruit in the 2026 class out of Saline, Michigan, and opted to sign with the Wolverines, understanding he might not get the starting job until his junior year. However, with Underwood struggling, his opportunity comes much sooner than anyone -- including him -- was expecting, and now he'll live out his dream as the Michigan starter. Carr will be thrown into the fire against an Indiana team that will be looking to make a statement after letting their last game against Ohio State slip away.
While the Hoosiers haven't been as dominant overall as their national title-winning squad from a year ago, the defense remains one of the best in the country, and the freshman will have his hands full. While Indiana isn't an ideal team for a freshman to make their first start against, making the change ahead of this game suggests it could be a permanent move. The move to Carr illustrates that Michigan recognized the struggles with Underwood as the starter were untenable.
Michigan is 105th in the nation in scoring offense at 22.7 points per game, but even more than that, potential scoring drives have been negated by turnovers. With a defense that is good enough to compete in the Big Ten, the Wolverines cannot afford not to take care of the ball. Underwood completed just 58.1% of his passes for 924 yards, five touchdowns and six interceptions in his six starts.
If you exclude the UTEP game, in which he completed 76% of his passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns, his completion percentage drops to 53.5%. From a financial perspective, benching Underwood is a stunner, but Whittingham has been hinting at a possible quarterback change since the opener, when Michigan barely escaped in a controversial fashion against Western Michigan on a last-second Hail Mary. It has been clear all season that Whittingham hasn't been thrilled with the offensive operation with Underwood under center, and despite his tremendous physical gifts, the Wolverines' offense has been both inconsistent and lacking explosive plays.
It's one thing to struggle with accuracy if there are also big plays being produced, but Michigan is 119th in the nation in pass plays of 20 yards with just 13 this season. With Carr, Whittingham seems to be hoping to get a more consistent operation that can lean on the running game and keep things on track by being more accurate in the passing game. The message to the young quarterback will undoubtedly be that his job isn't to carry the Wolverines offense, but to simply help it be the best and most efficient version it can be.
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