The No. 19 Michigan Wolverines improved to 3-0 on September 19, 2026, routing the UTEP Miners 52-17 at the Big House in Ann Arbor. After a sluggish first half that left Michigan trailing 14-7, the Wolverines exploded for 28 third-quarter points to secure a dominant non-conference victory.
Bryce Underwood and the Michigan Offense Find Their Rhythm
Weather played an early role as rain fell through the morning and afternoon at Michigan Stadium, dropping temperatures and forcing both teams to lean heavily on the ground game. UTEP made its first trip to Ann Arbor looking to spoil Michigan’s momentum in a dreary, rain-soaked afternoon. UTEP won the toss and elected to receive to open the second half, sending Bryce Underwood onto the field to lead the offense. Running back Bryson Kuzdzal returned the kickoff 23 yards before Underwood connected with Andrew Marsh on a wide receiver screen for seven yards. On second-and-three, Underwood ran the same play and found Marsh again, this time for a 14-yard catch-and-run. Underwood then handed the ball to Marshall, who gained four yards up the middle, before JJ Buchanan hauled in a 9-yard pass. UTEP called its first timeout of the game with 12:57 remaining. Underwood followed with a 10-yard play-action pass to Buchanan. Marshall lost a yard on an outside run, and Underwood then threw the ball into the dirt toward Marsh, setting up third-and-11 with 11:53 remaining. With the ball at the 32-yard line, Underwood escaped pressure, and UTEP capitalized on early mistakes, jumping out to a 14-7 lead late in the second quarter after a fumble by Savion Hiter led to a Miners touchdown.
Quarterback Bryce Underwood weathered an early mistake on Michigan’s opening drive to put together his most efficient outing of the young season. Underwood completed 19 of 25 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns in just three quarters of work according to reporting from ClickOnDetroit, while adding 22 yards on the ground and finishing 19-25 with two touchdown passes and zero interceptions overall. Protection around him was good, he rarely looked panicked, and he was able to find open receivers down the field while running sparingly to protect him from taking more unnecessary hits. Bryce Underwood finished 19-25 with two touchdown passes and zero interceptions, adding 22 yards on the ground and losing a fumble as about his only mistake of the day. The bigger point to be made here is that Underwood has gotten better each week since the season began.
“I think we’re trending in the right direction,” Whittingham said after the game. “Our most productive offensive game by a landslide. If you can get to 60 with points and first downs, you have about a 90-percent chance to win. We didn’t come close to that the first two weeks, but today over 70.”
Kyle Whittingham, Michigan Coach
Andrew Marsh and JJ Buchanan Dominate the Passing Game
Marsh hauled in eight catches on nine targets for 68 yards in the first half alone against UTEP, including a sensational grab along the sideline that was initially ruled incomplete, before finishing the afternoon with 10 receptions for 105 yards and a touchdown as detailed by the source articles.
Fellow wideout JJ Buchanan also established himself early, catching Underwood’s first touchdown pass of the day—a 21-yard strike right before halftime—and posting a strong first-half stat line of five catches for 66 yards and the touchdown. Buchanan finished with seven catches for 92 yards and a score according to the source articles, anchoring a passing game that combined for 17 receptions and 197 yards between the two receivers, with the Michigan pass game needing to get going with Big Ten play beginning next week.
Savion Hiter steps Up as Jordan Marshall Exits with Injury
The ground game finished with 39 carries for 181 yards and three touchdowns, paced by freshman running back Savion Hiter. Despite coughing up a first-half fumble, Hiter bounced back with two rushing touchdowns, averaging 5.6 yards per carry on 11 attempts for 62 yards, and scored the first touchdown of his college career to tie the game at 7-7 in the first quarter.
Hiter’s performance proved vital after starting running back Jordan Marshall exited the game in the third quarter with an injury following 12 carries for 59 yards and a touchdown. Marshall walked off the field under his own power and did not return after the play in the third quarter, leaving Hiter looking more than capable of taking over RB1 duties and prepared to take on a full workload against Iowa next Saturday if Marshall isn’t able to suit up.
Defensive Standouts and a Big Man Touchdown
Michigan’s defense pitched a dominant performance after trailing 14-7 in the first half, as a third-quarter barrage opened the game up with 28 straight points while the defense generated multiple sacks and forced three-and-outs, ultimately outgaining UTEP 253 to -10 and outscoring them 38-0 across the remainder of the contest. Linebacker Chase Taylor led the team in tackles on the day with five, while also racking up a tackle for loss and half of a sack. Troy Bowles and Max Alford each had four total tackles and one tackle for loss, while Aisea Moa and Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng combined for four tackles and half of a tackle for loss, and true freshman Markel Dabney made the first tackle of his college career while the linebackers were flying all over the field vs UTEP.
The defensive highlight came late in the third quarter with Michigan leading 38-14 when the defense started to smell blood and defensive lineman Jonah Lea’ea added the capper to a dominant third quarter. Lea’ea read a UTEP screen pass and showed off some impressive hands while rumbling, bumbling, and stumbling into the end zone to give Michigan a 45-14 lead, emerging as a significant strength for the team alongside an offseason of question marks that has turned into answers for the linebacker group three weeks into the season.
Tommy Carr Caps the Scoring as Wolverines Look to Conference Play
With the outcome firmly decided, the Wolverines closed out the 52-17 blowout victory over the UTEP Miners at a rainy Michigan Stadium. The team now sits at 3-0 on the season and is set up heading into conference play, where they will prepare for next week’s matchup against Iowa.
