ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Jordan Marshall scored on a tiebreaking 1-yard run set up by an interception midway through the fourth quarter and Bryce Underwood ran for a 38-yard touchdown to help Michigan bounce back and beat No. 11 Oklahoma 17-10 Saturday.
“They were determined to have a lot more passion, energy and physicality,” coach Kyle Whittingham said. “Everything that we were looking for in this game was missing last week.”
The Wolverines (2-0) were the butt of jokes after a lucky break put a second on the clock and gave Underwood another chance to complete a game-winning Hail Mary against Western Michigan last weekend.
“We knew last week wasn’t our standard,” offensive tackle Blake Frazier said. “The noise didn’t matter to us.”
They responded with a signature win in Week 2 under Whittingham, who said earlier in the week that Underwood had to show signs of improvement to keep his job.
He did.
Underwood ran for 87 yards, including his touchdown run late in the first quarter, and threw for 111 yards without a turnover.
“I’m willing to do whatever it takes for us to win,” he said.
The Sooners (1-1) were favored to win by nearly a touchdown but never led. They were scoreless until John Mateer threw a 22-yard touchdown to Mackenzie Alleyne midway through the third quarter.
They had the ball at the 50 with 3:05 left to play and turned the ball over on downs after gaining just 3 yards. They had another opportunity at their 15 with 1:06 to go and ran out of time after gaining just 10 yards.
“I certainly was planning on coming in here and talking about the great comeback that we had, but fell short," coach Brent Venables said. "Really disappointed in how things shaped out.”
Jyaire Hill, who was called for unnecessary roughness when Oklahoma had the ball at its 2 in the third quarter, stepped in front of Mateer's pass at the Sooners 30 and returned it 24 yards to set up Marshall's go-ahead touchdown.
“I didn’t think he was going to throw it,” Hill said.
Sloppy play
Michigan had 11 penalties for 90 yards a week after getting flagged nine times for 80 yards. Oklahoma hurt its comeback chances, too, with nine penalties for 76 yards.
Ground game
Underwood completed 9 of 17 passes, including 2 of 4 for 15 yards in the second half.
“We understand we’ve got to throw the ball a lot better,” Whittingham said. “We can’t just sit there and rely on running the ball.”
The takeaway
Oklahoma: Standout linebacker Kip Lewis injured his right knee in the first half and didn't return, taking away one of the top players on one of the nation's best defenses.
“He’ll miss some time,” Venables said after the game.
Michigan: After an awful performance in the opener in every phase that dropped the Wolverines out of the AP Top 25, they likely will be ranked again.
Up next
Oklahoma: Hosts New Mexico on Saturday.
Michigan: Hosts UTEP on Saturday.
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Larry Lage, The Associated Press
