ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan scored zero points in back-to-back first halves in each of the last two weeks. Tommy Carr sparked the Wolverines' offense against Penn State, but there weren't any sparks this weekend against Indiana. Michigan's defense did what it could to keep the Wolverines in the game.
Josh Hoover threw for 81 yards and tossed his first interception of the game. But Michigan's offense didn't score a touchdown and the Wolverines suffered their third loss of the season, this time in overtime, 13-16.
Michigan benched Bryce Underwood in favor of Carr. Underwood wasn't playing well and was turning the ball over. Carr turned it over twice against Indiana. Honestly, it doesn't matter who starts for Michigan — the issues go far beyond the quarterback.
Play calling has been a mess this season. Michigan isn't putting its players in position to succeed and a great example was Beck's head-scratching decision to go naked bootleg on a third-and-one on Indiana's one-yard line. Carr was sacked and Trey Butkowski missed a field goal.
"Everything falls on my shoulders," Whittingham said after the game. "So whatever happens in the course of a game is on me. That was not a good football call.
"No, that was not a good call at that point in time. Do I have the ability to overrule? I can overrule anything in the whole program. And so like I said, it circles back to me. But it was a very disappointing outcome and a call that I know Jason wishes he had back because it really was damaging."
Whittingham continues to point toward Beck's track record. There is no denying Beck was successful at both New Mexico and Utah. But the Big Ten is a different animal. And both Whittingham and Beck are figuring that out now.
"Well, we've got to get better," Whitingham said of his offense. "I mean, there's no doubt about it. And it's a long season, and I have always judged the season as a whole.
"I don't judge the season in segments or game by game. You just look at the whole body of work. And the whole body of work so far, he'll be the first to tell you, not good enough. We've got to get better, and there's a lot of areas that really nowhere you can say, 'Hey, we're doing this pretty good."
Keeping the roster together
There are still five games left, but after suffering their third loss of the season, the Wolverines' goals are out the door. No Big Ten title, no College Football Playoff, and now Michigan is playing to win at least six games to reach a bowl game, while hoping to beat both Michigan State and Ohio State.
With the new age of college football — Name, Image, and Likeness, along with the transfer portal — recruiting your own roster is a 365-day job. Michigan is a talented team. The Wolverines have players other programs will want, and Whittingham will have to figure out how to keep the buy-in with this roster.
"I believe these guys love football, and they want to compete," Whittingham said of his team. "And that's what it's all about. There's, shoot, probably of the 130 teams in the country, there's probably half of them with the same problem we got.
"You're not where you want to be, not where you hope to be. But if you love football, and you love to compete, and you're a competitor, you keep working, and you keep coming back to fight every single week, regardless of circumstance. And that was one of the messages in the locker room, is, hey, we just keep going.
"We've got a lot of football left. We've got five full games left, and maybe more beyond that, depending on how it plays out. But if you've got guys that don't want to play all of a sudden because they've had a couple setbacks, then you've got the wrong guys in the locker room."
Players like Andrew Marsh and Savion Hiter, along with Jordan Marshall and others, aren't being used to their full potential. The Wolverines aren't adjusting to what the personnel calls for and it's only hurting their development. Players are able to transfer at will, and if things don't improve with Michigan's offense in the next five games, there could be serious consequences at the end of the season.
Recruiting for the program
But it's not just keeping the roster together that's a concern. It's recruiting for the future of the program. As of now, the Wolverines are on the cusp of having a top-10 recruiting class in 2027. Michigan is also trying to build something special for 2028. On Saturday, the Wolverines hosted a pair of five-star players, including Georgia quarterback commit Jayden Wade.
While Michigan is a big-name school and a destination for many players — how many offensive players are thinking about how they can shine in this offensive scheme? I'd guess not many.
"Well, you're always concerned with recruiting, no matter what's going on with your team," Whittingham said. "Trying to get the best players in here. And the pitch there is, 'Hey, we need you because we're struggling. You come in here, and you're going to help us fix this.'
"And so there's always a way to sell your program and entice players to want to be here. Plus, it's Michigan. I mean, who doesn't want to be in Michigan? It's a great place. And so much going for it in so many areas, not just the football program. So it's not a hard sell."
Whittingham has a point, and that was a major pitch to Bryce Underwood, along with some NIL money. Underwood was supposed to be the savior of the program and the cure to the Wolverines' quarterback problems. But it doesn't matter who you recruit, or who you pay to come in. If the personnel doesn't match the scheme — things aren't going to work.
The long-time Utah coach was brought to Ann Arbor to stabilize the program and for there to be adults in the room. The Wolverines had an identity. They didn't need to be turned into a Big 12 school, and that's not going to work in the Big Ten. With goals out the window, it's time to focus on retention and figuring out the offensive coordinator issues.
Whittingham has some things to think about and it could either fix the program or set it back another few years.
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