ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Former Michigan football walk-on and current starting quarterback Davis Warren hasn’t exactly received an abundance of accolades in his short career. But now he’s being shadowed by arguably the most notable quarterback in the country, the No. 1 recruit in the 2025 recruiting class, Bryce Underwood.
The former five-star enrolled in classes this week and took the field for his first practice on Thursday. Though Underwood can’t play in Michigan’s next game, the ReliaQuest Bowl against Alabama, he will soon be competing with at least Warren for the starting quarterback role next year.
Yet Warren is loving what he’s seeing from the not-yet true freshman.
“Bryce, he’s started to get rolling here with us. And, man, he’s a great kid,” Warren said. “First and foremost, loves football. You can tell he’s a competitor — humble, wants to get better. And I think that’s — I mean, I think it’s a bit of a little bit of a beautiful thing, the way he came in versus the way I come in, you know? Couldn’t be any more different in terms of — I don’t know if there was even an article written about me when I committed, and I’m sure there’s been a lot written about him!
“But you wouldn’t be able to tell. He’s just a guy who wants to get better, wants to improve. Knows he’s got a lot to learn, just like any freshman would. But he’s been great. Today was really his first day the (freshmen are) rolling with us. And, yeah, he wants to help this team win games, just like I do, just like everyone in this building wants to. That’s the way coach Moore built it. He’s built the recruiting classes. And, I’m so glad that Bryce is here, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun to have him.”
Underwood will be brought along slowly. There’s no reason to throw him to the wolves right out of the gates given the earliest he can play in a game is August 2025. But Warren has seen him in limited action throwing the football and he has been impressed.
“Yeah, so we’ve done some things. And you’re not the No. 1 recruit in the country for no reason,” Warren said. “So he’s a super talented kid, and he cares about the details, wants, like I said, wants to get better, wants to do things the right way, and do things the Michigan way.”
Whether fans want to admit it, Underwood will have a learning curve. Though Warren obviously would like to retain his position as the starting quarterback next year, he’s aware of that learning curve while recalling his own experience. And he’s taking it upon himself to help pull Underwood along to lessen it.
As well as to help him understand that he’s not only going to have good days, there are going to be some down ones, too. It’s all about how he works through the latter if he’s to have more of the former.
“We were just trying to get Bryce to help him find his helmet today. So there’s a certain level of getting that all figured out, and making sure you know all those things,” Warren said. “There’s a lot going on. I remember my first practice and just trying to make sure I wasn’t late and everything lined up. But I remember making one good throw and coach Harbaugh hyped me up. And that was kind of what I needed at the time to kind of feel like, OK, I belong and can move forward. And I know Bryce — no one has a perfect career, right? No one — you know, no one. Maybe you can name one or two guys ever that have been that have, but everyone’s had hiccups. I mean, even Peyton Manning threw the most interceptions, I think, for a rookie in NFL history, or whoever you can name anyone.
“So everyone’s going to have ups and downs. I’ve had ups and downs in my career, and he’s going to have ups and downs too. But I know he’s well-suited for it. And that was kind of my message to him, is just take it all in stride. Take it all as a learning opportunity. Be humble, be hungry, and you’ll fit in well here and earn the respect of the guys — because that’s a huge part of playing quarterback is having the respect of the group and knowing that when you’re out there, they can trust you to make the right play and be the competitor to go win the game.”
Underwood will be able to practice throughout ReliaQuest Bowl prep before moving on to winter conditioning, spring ball, summer conditioning, fall camp and then the season. He may have close to 40 practices before he sees the field for the first time, if it comes at the earliest possible opportunity.