Bryce Underwood, Justice Haynes rewrite history as Michigan football mauls New Mexico in front of 110K+

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The No. 14-ranked Michigan Wolverines took down the New Mexico Lobos 34-17 in historic fashion under the lights inside The Big House in the most hyped game in recent history.

In a sold-out, packed house (110,648 fans) on Saturday, (Aug. 30), everyone came to Ann Arbor to see the debut of five-star recruit Bryce Underwood, and he did not disappoint as he put on a show for the ages.

Underwood finished with 251 yards, one touchdown, while completing 21-31 attempts, while Justice Haynes toted the rock 16 times for 159 yards and three touchdowns, both Michigan records in player debuts in program history.

He also became the fourth player in program history to start undercenter as a true freshman, joining:

1. Rick Leach (1975),

2. Chad Henne (2004) and

3. Tate Forcier (2009)

Once the ball snapped against New Mexico, Underwood also became the youngest starting quarterback (18 years old, 11 days) in the 146-year history of the football program.

1st quarter

Michigan fans didn’t have to wait long as the Lobos won the toss and deferred, giving those in attendance and the millions watching at home the debut of Underwood.

With the fane rocking out to Seven Nation Army, Underwood started his career with the Wolerines, completing his first pass to wide receiver Semaj Morgan for a first down.

Underwood nearly connected on a deep shot to Channing Goodwin, but it fell incomplete.

Underwood connected with Morgan to extend the drive, followed by a Haynes house call of 56 yards to take a 7-0 lead.

The Wolverines ran six plays for 78 yards and a touchdown in 1:57.

Underwood went 2-3 for 18 yards all to Morgan on his first drive as a Michigan man.

Wink Martindale had his defense ready as they came in and forced a three-and-out on the Lobos’ first possession of the game, resulting in the first punt of the game.

The stiffling defense held New Mexico to three total yards on their first drive.

Morgan fumbled the punt but somehow got the ball back to set up the Wolverines’ second possession of the game.

Underwood connected with Donaven McCulley for an eight-yard catch and run to set up a second down and two.

Jordan Marshall gained one yard on second down but picked up the first down on the next play.

Fans have been waiting on the Wolverines to run play action, and they finally got it as Underwood connected with tight end Marlin Klein for 25 yards to put Michigan in the red zone.

Marshall picked up eight yards combined on first and second down, setting up a third down and two, which Haynes converted for another first down.

After a Micah Ka’apana rush, alongside Haynes and Marshall, Underwood connected with fullback Max Bredeson, leading to another rushing touchdown by Haynes with a key block by Underwood to take a 14-0 lead.

Michigan’s scoring drive netted 76 yards on 13 plays in 6:46 as the buzz in the crowd erupted as the instant replay showed Underwood’s key block to free up Haynes for his second touchdown of the quarter.

The Wolverines’ defense got another key stop on third down and two as Jaishawn Barham laid the wood on quarterback Jack Layne, who threw an errant pass out of bounds, setting up their second punt of the game.

Underwood, in two possessions, went five-six for 55 yards before connecting with Klein for 14 yards on the Wolverines’ third possession of the game.

Fredrick Moore dropped a wide-open pass that would have been a first down, but McCulley ran a dig route on third and eight for seven yards.

To the dismay of the fans, head coach Sherrone Moore decided to punt on fourth down and one, which resulted in the ball going into the end zone on the Wolverines’ first punt of the game.

Underwood, in two possessions, went five-six for 55 yards before connecting with Klein for 14 yards on the Wolverines’ third possession of the game.

2nd quarter

The Wolverines’ defense opened the second quarter behind the stick as New Mexico managed two first downs as they were moving the ball, reaching the 50-yard line in three plays from their own 20.

But cornerback Zeke Berry broke up a third-and-10 to force another punt by the Logos.

New Mexico went zero for three on third down in the first half as the lights finally got turned on in the stadium.

Underwood on the Wolverines’ fourth possession of the game nearly threw an interception, leading to McCulley getting drilled across the middle of the field.

On third down and seven, Underwood threw a tight-window pass to Klein, which ricocheted off his hands, leading to their second punt of the half.

On the Wolverines’ defensive drive, pass rusher TJ Guy made an acrobatic interception to regain the ball for his offense at New Mexico’s 17-yard line.

But Michigan settled for a Dominic Zvada field goal from the 20-yard line to take a 17-0 lead with 8:21 to play.

Lobos’ Layne started heating up as he connected with Dorian Thomas, Keagan Johnson, and Scottre Humphrey to move the chains, followed by Deshaun Buchanan, who nearly made an incredible catch out of bounds on third down.

Michigan got called for offside and pass interference on the same play to extend the drive into the red zone of the Wolverines for the first time in the half.

New Mexico, with under three minutes to play in the half, went for it on fourth and one and connected on an unbelievable trick play to Thomas in the back of the endzone.

D.J. McKinney picked up the ball snapped to him, which bounced into his hand before making the wide-open pass to his teammate to cut the deficit to 17-7 with 2:23 to play.

In an unbelievable turn of events, Michigan returner Andrew Marsh fumbled the ball, giving New Mexico the ball back in their own red zone as momentum seemed to shift.

Michigan forced New Mexico to third down and 10 on their 29-yard line, but the completed pass picked up two yards, setting up a tense moment at the two-minute timeout.

Luckily, Michigan forced a field goal attempt, which was good from 45 yards to cut the Wolverines’ lead to 17-10.

The rotations on defense had fans scratching their heads as Michigan didn’t play Ernest Hausmann and Barham together.

When the duo was in the game, New Mexico didn’t move the ball.

Underwood, facing the first pressure scenario of his collegiate career, took his first sack to bring the Wolverines to third down and 14 with 1:31 to play as New Mexico smelled blood in the water.

He delivered as he connected to Goodwin across the correct hash for 39 yards.

The catch and run was longer than any passing play that Michigan had all of last season.

After picking up their first penalty of the half on offense, Underwood connected with McCulley, followed by Morgan, to set up another first down.

Haynes took a handoff for another chunk play, setting first down and 10 to go on the 15-yard line with 30 seconds to play in the half.

Underwood connected with Klein, who shook his defender on an out and in for 15 yards for both of their first touchdowns of their careers to take a 24-10 lead with 25 seconds to play before the half.

Michigan ran eight plays for 75 yards in 1:31 to extend the lead back to 14.

The Wolverines’ defense had zero sacks in the half but gained one interception while achieving 14 assisted tackles.

3rd quarter

Michigan opened the second half on defense and in search of a big stop, but Humphrey gained 16 yards on the first play of the half.

Pass rusher Derrick Moore nearly got the team’s first sack of the game as he laid Layne out leading to an incomplete pass.

Michigan’s defense was able to force another three-and-out, forcing another punt.

Underwood opened the drive with a play-action pass to Klein up the left sideline.

He then threw a no-look pass across the middle of the field while running right to Kendrick Bell for a 30-yard catch and run.

The kid is special with the pigskin. His wizardry hasn’t been seen in a Wolverines uniform in a long time.

The drive was stopped as Underwood tried to hit Klein across the middle but the pass was late and behind him as he got nailed causing the ball to fall incomplete.

Zvada capped off the 2:45 drive with nine plays for 73 yards with a 39-yard field goal to take a 27-10 lead with 10:19 to play.

With the momentum regained, Barham drilled Layne for a sack fumble, recovery, and touchdown, which was booth reviewed and overturned as the quarterback was down.

Barham got the first sack of the season, which rejuvenated the crowd in attendance, who started singing Living on a Prayer.

Barham was later called for targeting, and the play resulted in an automatic first down as well as an ejection and suspension for the first half of the Oklahoma Sooners game in Norman on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025.

The game went from almost being a blowout to New Mexico moving the ball into the Michigan 27 with under eight minutes to go.

On third down and four to play on the Michigan 10-yard line, New Mexico got the first down.

With the ball on the five-yard line, James Laubstein rushed the ball to the one-yard line.

Moore got a two-yard stop setting up a third down and three, but a pass interference was called on Jyaire Hill, leading to a Metcalf tackle for a loss of two.

But Layne hit Thomas, who broke free for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 27-17 with 1:40 to play.

The crowd went from screaming and singing to tense as Michigan was in need of a huge touchdown on the drive, but offensive lineman Andrew Sprague got called for holding.

After an incomplete pass, Underwood hit Klein for seven yards, setting up a long third down and 13 with less than a minute to play, but Marshall caught the pass for five yards, setting up a punt with 10 seconds remaining.

Humphrey was dropped in the backfield by Cameron Brandt for a loss of three yards.

4th quarter

The crowd was tense once again, but seemed to break out of their somber mood as Mr. Bright Side took over the stadium.

Michigan’s defense opened the fourth quarter with a Layne blocked pass attempt, which landed back into his hands for a two-yard run.

On third and 11, New Mexico decided to run the ball for another two-yard gain.

With the game on the line, New Mexico, with the ball on their own 42-yard line, went for it but was picked off by Brandyn Hillman for the team’s second interception of the game on the 20-yard line.

The play ended up flipping the field like a punt, so no harm was basically done except on the stat sheet.

With 99 yards on the day and two touchdowns, Haynes showed his big-play ability as he broke another run this time for 59 yards up the middle and down the sideline to the one-yard line.

Haynes punched it in for the hat trick as he got his first three-touchdown game as a Michigan man.

Haynes capped off the six-play 80-yard drive in 3:16 in record fashion, as he was the first freshman to achieve 159 yards on 15 carries in his Michigan debut since Chris Evans back in 2016.

Underwood had 238 yards on 19-28 pass attempts, breaking Forcier’s record for most passing yards by a true freshman in their debut since 2009.

During the historic moments, defensive back Cole Sullivan stopped another scoring with an interception on the three-yard line.

Sullivan later got the first sack of the game to also get a turnover on downs with 3:46 remaining.

Michigan got its second sack of the game by Dominic Nichols. Troy Bowles ended the game with a sack as well.

Postgame sound coming

History

The Wolverines have now played seven schools currently in the Mountain West Conference, and eight overall, including Utah when it was a member of the league.

Michigan holds a 15-1 record against Mountain West Conference schools after defeating the Lobos on Aug. 30, 2025.

The Wolverines remain undefeated, 14-0, against teams currently in the Mountain West Conference.

Last season, Michigan defeated MWC member Fresno State 30-10 in the opener.

→ Defense shines in season opener, leading Michigan football to victory over Fresno State

Michigan has an impressive 120-23-3 record in season openers.

The Wolverines have won 15 of their last 19 season openers and 50 of their last 63 games dating back to 1963, with a record of 50-12-1.

Michigan has won 10 of its last 12 season openers, with losses only on the road at Utah in 2015 and Notre Dame in 2018.

At home, Michigan boasts a 102-15-2 record in season openers, with a 17-7-1 record on the road and 1-1 in neutral site openers.