After a controversial home win over Western Michigan in Week 1 left Michigan (and the Big Ten) facing so many questions, the Wolverines spent Saturday delivering answers at the Big House.
Under heavy scrutiny, sophomore quarterback Bryce Underwood had one of his best performances and led Michigan to a 17-10 victory over No. 11 Oklahoma at Michigan Stadium.
“I’m very happy,” Underwood told Fox Sports. “Just very thankful for my teammates holding me accountable this entire week to be the best man I could possibly be.”
Underwood keeps it, Underwood scores! pic.twitter.com/Ig0oF06uce
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 12, 2026
Underwood rushed for 87 yards on 18 carries, including a 38-yard scamper for a second-quarter touchdown, and he completed 9 of 17 passes for 111 yards while looking much more comfortable in the pocket.
“Great response by Bryce,” Michigan coach Kyle Whttingham said. “An excellent game. Defense was lights out pretty much the entire game.”
Jordan Marshall gives us the lead! pic.twitter.com/UooLm2MGh5
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 12, 2026
A game-winning 1-yard touchdown run by Jordan Marshall with 7:53 to play came off a big play by the defense. Defensive back Jyaire Hill returned an interception of John Mateer to the Oklahoma 6.
Overall, it was a solid performance by the unranked Wolverines, who fell from 16th in the country despite winning their opener. Michigan became the first team since the AP Poll moved to 25 teams in 1989 to win a game while ranked in the Top 16 and be unranked by the next poll.
They played a much cleaner game against Oklahoma and committed no turnovers.
Jyaire Hill gets his hands on it and sets us up perfectly! pic.twitter.com/LQg5RwDv9Z
— Michigan Football (@UMichFootball) September 12, 2026
There were some asterisks with the Wolverines’ first victory at home over an SEC team since 2006.
Oklahoma lost senior linebacker Kip Lewis to a knee injury in the first quarter, and the defense struggled at times in the absence of its leader. Michigan committed 11 penalties for 90 yards, including two costly personal fouls on third downs during the Sooners’ eight-play, 90-yard drive for a 10-10 tie.
But at the very least, a convincing home win over the 11th-ranked team in the country should return Michigan to the AP Top 25.
“They did more,” Whittingham said of his players. “That was a great effort. Team effort. Still got a lot of things to clean up. That was way too many penalties. Very proud of the way they responded after our performance last week. They worked hard all week in practice, and it showed out here today.”
The Wolverines have a tough remaining schedule with Indiana, Penn State, Oregon and Ohio State looming. But the win over Oklahoma will provide some hope of salvaging a memorable first season with Whittingham.
Talk about a bounce-back performance from @UMichFootball 〽️@JennyTaft caught up with HC Kyle Whittingham after a big win against No. 11 Oklahoma pic.twitter.com/FK99lBvVUc
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 12, 2026
