Michigan's Bryce Underwood one of two freshman Big Ten quarterbacks who could start in 2025

The consensus No. 1 player in the 2025 class comes to Ann Arbor with all the excitement of a heavyweight prize fight. His commitment instantly reinvigorated the entire fanbase and raised the bar in Ann Arbor for future years. The recruitment of Underwood made national news as it is rumored he was offered over $12 million via billionaires and eccentric CEO's (we see you, Dave Portnoy).

Regardless how it happened, Underwood flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan and the Underwood era is now loading in Ann Arbor. Michigan did go out and secure the services of Fresno State QB Mikey Keene in order to add depth and experience, and he'll certainly push Underwood in the QB battle this spring/fall.

As an early enrollee, Underwood will get a look at the playbook, concepts, and college life. It still seems likely that Keene will get the start in Week 1, but Underwood's talent and upside will make it extremely difficult to keep him off the field. It's hard to see a scenario where the true freshman isn't taking starting reps at some point in 2025.

2. MALIK WASHINGTON, MARYLAND

The 6-foot-4 215-pound Washington has the clearest path to the starting position of any true freshman in the Big Ten. With the departure of incumbent Billy Edwards, Jr, the Terps are left with little experience or talent in their quarterback basket. After Edwards, Maryland was left with three freshman and a redshirt sophomore on their roster in the quarterback position, none of whom have the talent level of Washington. The Terps did go on and land former UCLA QB Justyn Martin, and he'll certainly be squarely in the QB battle this spring and into the fall.

But Washington has proven himself to be a winner and the ultimate competitor, and it wouldn't be all that surprising to see him win the battle for QB1. As with any talented freshman, a solid grasp of the playbook and adjusting to life at the collegiate level is just as important as raw talent. We'll see how Washington adjusts in the months to come.

When it comes to Washington and Underwood, both of these young men possess the talent and upside that will make it hard for their head coaches to keep them on the sideline for long. Look for them both to either start game one or be firmly entrenched behind center at some point in 2025. Trial by fire for two gunslingers with bright futures ahead of them.