ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- As spring ball progresses for Michigan football, some defensive players have marveled at the talent of Bryce Underwood, the former No. 1 recruit in the country and five-star quarterback. While part of it is his unique makeup, another surprising element has been his ability to use his legs to evade pressure or make a play upfield.
But it's not just the players marveling; even the defensive coaches can't help but do the same.
Defensive line coach Lou Esposito has very little to do with the quarterback -- except for that his group is responsible for pressuring or putting opposing quarterbacks on the ground. While the defensive linemen have complained about Underwood using his legs, Esposito more so cannot believe what he sees when it comes to his arm.
"He moves around really well, and people talk about that all the time," Esposito said. "But I think the biggest thing for him is how he throws the ball. That's what's different. Like how he throws the ball is special. And obviously, he's a great athlete. He's a unique talent, and he's going to make us better, and he has been making us better, which is good."
The good news for the defense is that Underwood's ability to use both his arm and legs helps improve the unit, especially in the spring.
Quarterbacks aren't live, meaning that they aren't meant for contact as some other offensive units are. While that could be a bad thing for some teams, Esposito says that the defense uses that to their advantage. He uses the example of when you see defensive linemen from other teams penetrate the offensive line in games, but have so little body control that the quarterback still makes a play as they evade pressure.
Well, Michigan has a plan for that.
"Obviously you have to beat a block, right? You've got to beat the guy in front of you to get to the quarterback," Esposito said. "But then when you get there, you have to be in an athletic position to stay away from them. So how many times do you watch a football game and you see guys, they win on the edge and they're out of control and they missed the sack?
"So in reality, sometimes not hitting the quarterback, you have to be in an athletic position at the point of contact to get away from them, and our guys are doing that. So you practice it that way. Now, if you're just taking the guys and running them away from the quarterback, you're building a bad habit. And Coach Moore -- we don't do that here. There is a quick whistle, but we do not do that.
"And we know we've got to – no matter who's in a quarterback, that's the most important guy on the football field for us. If we have a quarterback that's upright and plays well, we normally win here, and that's what we do. And our guys, they have fun with it. They kind of go by Bryce and say some things, and he does – the next play, he'll come and throw a dime. So it's been good. It's been good competition. He's a special player."
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Bryce Underwood wows DL coach, improving Michigan football pass rush
