Michigan surprisingly added a quarterback late in the offseason — who is most affected by the addition of Jake Garcia?
The Michigan Wolverines made a surprising addition earlier this week, bringing in former East Carolina quarterback Jake Garcia from the transfer portal. With football less than three months away, schools have their rosters more or less sorted, but the Wolverines had a need at QB2 and decided to go with the former ECU, Miami and Missouri signal caller.
Without going too deep into what Garcia himself brings to the table, his arrival certainly has ramifications for the rest of the quarterback room — and even a bit at the program level. While Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene is a clear loser of this move (with his injury likely making it a possibility), he is far from the only affected party in Ann Arbor.
Winners: Sherrone Moore and Chip Lindsey
Year One showed Sherrone Moore his desperate need for a legitimate quarterback, but also highlighted the embarrassing lack of floor from the position group as well. For those who have (mercifully) forgotten just how bad last season was, Michigan ended up 131st in passing yards per game, 120th in passing touchdowns, and 127th in passer rating.
Garcia is not necessarily a huge cause for celebration, but he certainly gives the Wolverines a floor. The former top-50 recruit has reasonable numbers throughout his career and would be more competent than any of last season’s options should he need to play significant snaps. Obviously, the hope is for him to solely be a reserve option, but at least Moore and Chip Lindsey have a solid Plan B, which is a critical need for teams with any sort of College Football Playoff aspirations.
Loser: Mikey Keene and Jadyn Davis
There was a time where it looked like Mikey Keene was going to be the Day 1 starter, even if the job would likely be handed over to the incoming blue-chipper by the end of the year. Instead, Keene’s health made that possibility dwindle significantly throughout the spring, with Garcia’s signing this week effectively ending that pathway for good.
Still, Keene knew that he was unlikely to be the long-term solution in 2025, and adding Garcia does not really change that. Who it does really affect is Jadyn Davis, whose shot at ever being a real contributor at Michigan looks over. The fact that Davis could not find snaps amidst last season’s quarterbacking disaster says a ton, and his exclusion from the ReliaQuest Bowl once Davis Warren went down was pretty much the final nail in the coffin. Davis is all but gone with now both Keene and Garcia supplanting him on the depth chart.
Neutral: Bryce Underwood
When Keene got hurt this spring, the doors opened wide for the prodigal son, and all reports point to Bryce Underwood seizing that opportunity with no plans of letting it go. Starting a true freshman quarterback is always a risk, but this is no ordinary freshman, and for better or worse it looks like Michigan is going to embrace the future from the start.
That means that Garcia should have little affect on Underwood. I suppose that his leash is a bit shorter now given a potentially more ready backup as opposed to a rusty Keene, but starting a true freshman must come with a large cushion to begin with anyway. Competition is good, as is having a veteran presence for the young star, so I think this addition to the quarterback room has as many pros as cons for Underwood.