Ann Arbor, Mich. • Michigan has fired offensive coordinator Jason Beck a day after losing 15-6 to rival Michigan State, a source briefed on the decision told The Athletic. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet official.

Coach Kyle Whittingham brought Beck from Utah and made him the highest-paid OC in the country at $3 million per season. Beck’s offense was supposed to bring out the best in five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood, who is also earning roughly $3 million per year, but the pairing never clicked.

Beck’s tenure got off to a shaky start as the Wolverines needed a controversial clock ruling and a last-second Hail Mary to beat Western Michigan in his first game, a performance that foreshadowed the struggles to come.

Michigan benched Underwood halfway through the season and replaced him with freshman Tommy Carr. Neither quarterback could rescue an offense that ranked near the bottom of the Football Bowl Subdivision in scoring and yards per game. As the season wore on, it became apparent that Michigan was at a loss to fix an offense on pace for its lowest scoring output since Bo Schembechler’s Wolverines averaged 17.9 points per game in 1984, the year Michigan lost starting quarterback Jim Harbaugh to a broken arm.

“We’ve got some serious issues,” Whittingham said after the Michigan State loss. “We’ll go to work tomorrow. I don’t know what else to say. We’re not going to just give up on the season.”

Whittingham, asked Saturday night if changes were needed with Michigan’s play caller, said, “Not right now,” adding, “At some point you’ve got to have results.”

Michigan’s results haven’t been good. The Wolverines rank No. 132 in the FBS in total offense and have been shut out in their past three first halves at home.