ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Nobody seems to know exactly how much NIL money Bryce Underwood is making to join the Michigan football team. But it doesn’t really matter. It’s worth it.
In the wake of Underwood’s decision to flip from LSU to Michigan on Thursday evening, there were plenty of hot takes flying from LSU and rival fan bases.
They said it’s crazy to pay a high school player millions of dollars. They said no recruit is worth that kind of money. They said Michigan looks foolish and desperate.
But they’re wrong. No matter how much Underwood was promised, this is one of the biggest recruiting wins in the history of Michigan football.
Recruiting profile
If you don’t follow recruiting closely, Underwood was the starting quarterback for Belleville High School the past four years, winning back-to-back state titles as a freshman and sophomore and getting to a third-straight championship game as a junior.
His team fell short in the quarterfinals this month, but Underwood still had a strong season. Here are his career high school stats, according to 247 Sports:
- 2021: 2,888 yards, 39 touchdowns, four interceptions.
- 2022: 2,762 yards, 37 touchdowns, unknown interceptions.
- 2023: 3,329 yards, 44 touchdowns, three interceptions.
- 2024: 2,095 yards, 29 touchdowns, three interceptions
Underwood is the No. 1 overall player in the 247 Sports Composite rankings. ESPN and 247 Sports both rank him No. 1, and Rivals has him at No. 2.
The player comps are outrageous. Underwood has been likened to Trevor Lawrence and Vince Young coming out of high school. He’s the sixth-highest-ranked quarterback recruit ever behind Lawrence, Young, Bryce Young, Justin Fields, and Quinn Ewers. That’s at least four superstars -- maybe five.
Michigan’s QB situation
One of the reasons Michigan had to win this battle was its current messy quarterback situation.
The Wolverines have not recruited the position well since J.J. McCarthy committed in 2021.
In 2022, Michigan landed two three-star QB commits in Jayden Denegal and Alex Orji. The following year, they got Kendrick Bell, who switched to receiver, and Jack Tuttle in the transfer portal.
Stars aren’t everything, but they do matter. That type of recruiting at the most important position wasn’t going to cut it.
Last year’s class included four-star Jadyn Davis, but he has not yet stepped foot on the field for the Wolverines, despite their lack of veteran talent.
Davis Warren has been Michigan’s leading passer this season, with 869 passing yards, five touchdowns, and six interceptions.
As a team, the Wolverines have 10 touchdown passes and nine interceptions on the year, with just 1,346 passing yards in 10 games. The situation is dire.
On Oct. 30, the only quarterback in Michigan’s 2025 class, four-star Carter Smith, decommitted, making this a true Underwood-or-bust situation.
It’s impossible to win at the highest levels of college football without strong quarterback play, so Michigan desperately needed something to go right. There’s no better way to start than with the No. 1 player in the class.
Protecting backyard
This isn’t just about Underwood, though. It’s also a reflection of Michigan’s recruiting as a whole.
Let’s say Michigan lost this recruiting battle. We’re talking about the reigning national champions failing to land a quarterback who goes to school 20 minutes down the road. Even though he’s guaranteed to start as a freshman because there’s nobody else on the roster.
That would not have looked good.
And perception is very important in recruiting. The last thing Michigan needs in the midst of a disappointing season on the field is the added stigma among recruits that this is not a place to be.
Michigan had every possible advantage with Underwood: geography, playing time, money -- you name it. If that still hadn’t been enough, that would have been a major setback.
Recruiting momentum
Underwood’s commitment will also likely start a domino effect for Michigan’s recruiting, which has been solid but not elite during this run of three-straight Big Ten titles.
When McCarthy committed in 2021, he helped build and solidify his entire class -- a class that led Michigan to a 40-3 record from 2021-2023.
Underwood could have the same effect. At the very least, high-end skill players will pick up the phone when Michigan calls.
And boy, does this team need skill players.
If you take out Colston Loveland -- who will soon be in the NFL -- Michigan’s leading receiver has 170 yards on the season.
That’s right: 170 yards. In 10 games.
No matter how bad the quarterback play is, that’s an alarming void of offensive weapons.
But top wide receivers are going to want to play with the best quarterbacks in the country, so Underwood should get Michigan’s foot in the door for those conversations.
Recruiting momentum is a real thing, and Michigan now has a chance to capitalize.
Returning to top of college football
Michigan was one of the sport’s elite during the four-team College Football Playoff era.
The Wolverines had the sixth-highest winning percentage from 2015-2023. They were one of only five teams to go to multiple playoffs and win at least one game.
Michigan’s 2023 season is tied for the best in the history of the sport, at 15-0. It won three-straight Big Ten titles. This program was absolutely thriving.
Then, McCarthy, Jim Harbaugh, and dozens of other players and coaches left for the NFL. And the result has been a rough encore.
Michigan needs to stop this slide before it snowballs. Look at how long it took the program to recover after Rich Rod and Brady Hoke. The 2024 season can either be a blip on the radar or the start of something much worse.
How do you get back on track? Recruiting.
With Underwood, Michigan has a foundational piece for the 2025 class and beyond, and the future doesn’t seem so grim.
NIL implications
The Underwood recruitment is also a sign that Michigan has finally unlocked the potential of its NIL program. And that’s huge news.
Michigan fans are among the most passionate (a polite way to put it) in the world, and it has one of the largest living alumni bases.
If the Michigan money cannons are firing, then the Wolverines should start recruiting with the big boys.
That’s not to say the Wolverines are going to start throwing millions of dollars at every highly rated high school player (like Texas A&M and Miami). But it opens the door for Michigan to chase a few blue-chip prospects each cycle, like McCarthy and Will Johnson.
Michigan has the brand, the prestige, and the resources to be a perennial playoff team in this new format, so if it’s finally willing to spend money in this NIL era, coaches won’t have to recruit with their hands tied behind their backs.
Final thoughts
No recruit -- not even one as highly rated as Underwood -- is a certainty. There’s a chance he doesn’t end up being a star player at the college level.
But this recruitment isn’t just about Underwood for Michigan, and that’s why I think he will end up being worth every penny, regardless of what he does on the field (within reason).
If this puts Michigan on the map from an NIL standpoint and helps them build a couple of top-end recruiting classes, then the program can bounce back from a bad 2024 season and immediately get back into contention.
There aren’t many ways to instantly make up for a 5-5 season, but landing the top high school quarterback is one of them.
Sherrone Moore has some work to do on his staff and roster this offseason, but he deserves credit for winning on the recruiting trail despite everything else that’s going on.
Now he has the face of Michigan’s next era in the fold, and there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
