Michigan benched struggling starter Bryce Underwood at halftime, turned to Tommy Carr for a spark, and held off Penn State 21-18 behind the backup’s late touchdown run in Ann Arbor.
Tommy Carr jogged onto the field to cheers, then delivered the play Michigan needed. With 2:58 left, the relief quarterback converted a third down on a 12-yard touchdown run that gave the Wolverines a two-score lead and helped seal a 21-18 win over Penn State on Saturday in Ann Arbor, Mich.
First-year coach Kyle Whittingham made the switch after Underwood threw two interceptions in the second quarter. The move paid off. Michigan improved to 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the Big Ten, avoiding its first three conference losses in a season since 1967. Penn State fell to 3-4 and 0-4 in league play.
CBS Sports reported the halftime change was designed to jolt a stagnant offense, and Carr answered on the ground when it mattered most.
Underwood’s afternoon unraveled before the break. He threw two interceptions in the second quarter alone. That gave him five picks in three games and six on the season, one more than his five passing touchdowns.
Whittingham did not wait. He benched the starter at halftime and handed the job to Carr.
"The idea at halftime was to create a spark and Tommy did just that,"
Whittingham said.
The coach also praised how Underwood took the demotion.
"Bryce couldn’t have handled it any better,"
Whittingham said. He declined to name a starter for next week’s home game against No. 5 Indiana.
Carr’s insertion changed the tempo. In the third quarter Michigan seized a 14-3 lead. Bryson Kuzdzal ripped off a 43-yard touchdown run. Carr then ripped a 22-yard draw that set up Jordan Marshall’s 1-yard scoring plunge.
Penn State quarterback Rocco Becht matched Underwood’s turnover problems, throwing two interceptions of his own. The Nittany Lions still clawed back. Early in the fourth, Carson Hansen scored on a 2-yard run and the two-point conversion cut the deficit to three.
Then Becht lost a fumble at the Penn State 16. That mistake set up Carr’s decisive 12-yard touchdown run on third down with 2:58 remaining. Michigan led by two scores.
"To score that touchdown to seal the game was huge,"
Carr said.
Becht answered with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Chase Sowell with 1:11 left, pulling Penn State within three again. Michigan recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.
Carr’s moment carried extra weight at home. His grandfather Lloyd Carr coached Michigan to the 1997 national championship. His other grandfather, Tom Curtis, starred as an All-America defensive back for the Wolverines and still holds the program record with 25 interceptions. Father Jason Carr was a walk-on quarterback and Michigan graduate. Brother CJ Carr starts at quarterback for Notre Dame.
Lloyd Carr attended the game. After his grandson’s touchdown run, the old coach’s reaction was simple: “wow.”
Tommy Carr, looking ahead to seeing his brother, kept it short.
"Can't wait to see him,"
he said.
The loss was Penn State’s fourth straight under new coach Matt Campbell, hired after James Franklin was fired a little more than a year ago. Last season the Nittany Lions endured a six-game skid. This group is stuck in another slide at 0-4 in Big Ten play.
"We’re not where we want to be but I believe this group is pounding away,"
Campbell said.
Becht did not hide from the result.
"This game is super humbling,"
he said.
Penn State gets a bye before hosting Purdue on Oct. 31. Michigan hosts ranked Indiana next.
When a starter turns the ball over and the backup finishes the job, coaches who value results over depth-chart pride get rewarded, and Michigan just got the win it needed.
