Given all the hype and anticipation surrounding Bryce Underwood’s first collegiate start, naturally, all eyes were on the Michigan football team’s freshman quarterback Saturday.

Hours before kickoff, fans pushed up against barriers to watch Underwood step off the team bus. When he introduced himself as the starter in a prerecorded video on the jumbotron, cheers grew noticeably louder. His first pass attempt of the game, a checkdown to junior receiver Semaj Morgan, drew a roar.

Doing what was asked of him early and maintaining control once the sun had set, Underwood threw for 251 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions to lead the 14th-ranked Wolverines (1-0) past New Mexico (0-1), 34-17, in the season opener.

For the first quarter of the Bryce Underwood era, though, the former-No. 1

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