ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The standing-room crowd lined up several rows deep for the final game of Bryce Underwood’s high school career.
The playoff matchup between Underwood’s Belleville High School and Detroit Catholic Central drew an announced crowd of 7,800, which appeared to be about twice what the stadium could hold. The PA announcer had to tell fans several times not to stand along the railings, and sheriff’s deputies had to move spectators back from the field on more than one occasion.
That’s what happens when the No. 1 prospect in the nation comes to town. It was a surreal scene involving a five-star quarterback in the middle of a heated recruiting battle, even more so because Connor Stalions, the central figure in Michigan’s sign-stealing scandal, was sitting in the Belleville coaching box. Although Underwood is regarded as a generational talent, Detroit Catholic Central got the better of him that day, intercepting him twice and handing Belleville a 35-21 loss.
As Underwood walked off the field, it still appeared likely that he’d play his next snap in an LSU uniform — the same LSU uniform he was wearing in a since-deleted Instagram post announcing he was “likely to decline” a massive NIL offer from Michigan. Six days later, Underwood shook up the 2025 recruiting board by flipping his commitment to Michigan, his hometown school. Two program sources said Underwood could earn more than $10 million from multi-year NIL agreements during his time at Michigan.
Here are five thoughts about what this means for the Wolverines.
This changes everything for Sherrone Moore
On the field, Moore’s first season has been a disappointment. The Wolverines are 5-5 and have myriad issues, none bigger than their subpar quarterback play. This was setting up to be an angsty offseason, but landing Underwood changes things dramatically. Instead of worrying about the future, Michigan fans now have a big reason to look forward to it.
Moore isn’t Jim Harbaugh, and that’s become obvious 10 games into his head coaching career. Harbaugh is one of the best team-builders in football and had a gift for getting the most out of every player on his roster. Harbaugh also had his blind spots, one of which involved his reluctance to embrace the realities of bidding for elite recruits.
Harbaugh put a premium on culture and, right or wrong, seemed to think that signing recruits to big NIL deals could be detrimental to team chemistry. Based on Underwood’s decision, Moore is willing to do what it takes to get the best players and trusts his ability to manage the locker room.
“It’s part of football now, right?” Moore said this week. “NIL is part of recruiting. It’s been a huge piece of it. We’re just continuing to strive to get the best players that fit us and the best players we can, and we’re getting the support we need to do that.”
Michigan still has questions to address in the offseason, and Moore still has to prove that he can get the program back to contending for Big Ten championships and College Football Playoff berths. But this recruiting class ought to give him some breathing room after a challenging season.
Michigan couldn’t have done this a year ago
One of the early storylines at Michigan involved the struggle to get the school’s big-money donors engaged with NIL. Michigan wasn’t as aggressive as other schools in pushing the envelope, in part because the program was under NCAA investigation and wanted to be cautious. The thought all along was that if Michigan could find a way to get its wealthy alumni base involved with NIL, there wouldn’t be many programs capable of doing more.
A year ago, it would have been hard to imagine Nate Forbes, chairman of the Champions Circle collective, issuing a statement thanking billionaire Larry Ellison for his help in landing a No. 1 recruit. The combination of a coaching change, the loosening of NIL restrictions and better organization put Michigan in position to pull this off.
Those Who Stay (Home)…
🏆: https://t.co/S6BlxHpKoX pic.twitter.com/R0awBSCEfa
— Champions Circle (@ChampCircleUofM) November 21, 2024
It remains to be seen what will happen to collectives once the House settlement is approved and revenue sharing takes effect. Even if the NCAA can’t stop players from taking money from boosters, it’s likely that deals like this one will be subject to more scrutiny once players begin receiving direct payments from the schools. There’s a window for collectives to strike deals with players before the revenue-sharing cap takes effect, and Michigan was in position to take advantage.
Michigan should still sign a portal QB
For 2025, Michigan’s quarterbacks will be Underwood and … who? It’s unclear what Underwood’s signing means for Jadyn Davis, the top quarterback prospect in Michigan’s 2024 recruiting class. Davis hasn’t played a snap this season but was projected to compete for the job next year. His path to becoming the starter at Michigan just got harder.
Underwood is a massive talent with the tools to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL, but he’ll need to be developed. It’s not a given that he’ll start from Day 1. Michigan should do its best to land a veteran quarterback from the portal who can lead the team until Underwood is ready to take over.
It may be difficult for Michigan to land a top-tier quarterback from the portal now that the program has invested this much in Underwood. Even if it means going down to the next tier of quarterbacks, Michigan should try to sign a transfer who has started games at the FBS level and can take some of the pressure off of Underwood.
Michigan’s 2025 class is loaded
This class, which sits at No. 9 in the 247Sports composite rankings, has a chance to be Michigan’s best since early in Harbaugh’s tenure. Michigan’s 2017 class, headlined by Donovan Peoples-Jones, finished No. 5 in the 247 composite rankings and had two five-star prospects, just like this one does. With Underwood and five-star offensive tackle Andrew Babalola, Michigan has the No. 1 and the No. 14 player in the composite rankings, and the Wolverines aren’t done.
On3 reported Thursday that Michigan was making a run at five-star offensive lineman Ty Haywood, an Alabama commit and the No. 20 player in the composite rankings. Four-star defensive back Elijah Dotson, Underwood’s Belleville teammate, has already flipped to Michigan, and On3 projects four-star wide receiver Derek Meadows could flip from LSU to Michigan as well. Another top target, four-star linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng, announced he wouldn’t be visiting Texas this weekend as planned.
Michigan is already the big winner of flip season, those few weeks leading up to the early signing period when players change their minds. Now the Wolverines have a little less than two weeks to surround Underwood with as much talent as possible.
The pressure’s on Underwood … and Moore
The crowd that showed up to Underwood’s final high school game was nothing compared to the crowd that awaits him at Michigan Stadium. There’s pressure that comes with playing for the hometown school and coming in as the future of the program. After a down year in 2024, Michigan will be feeling heat to turn things around next season, and depending on what happens in the transfer portal, a lot could fall on Underwood’s shoulders.
There’s also pressure that comes with signing such a big contract. If Underwood struggles or doesn’t play as a freshman, fans may find it hard to exercise patience. It’s a reality of recruiting in 2024 that players like Underwood command big offers, but it’s also a reality that most freshmen need time to adjust. Underwood already looks and throws like a college quarterback, so it shouldn’t take long for him to make an impact. Is he a Day 1 starter? We’ll have to see.
Moore also has a lot riding on this decision. Pressure comes from not having a quarterback, and in that sense, Moore is a lot better off than he was 24 hours ago. As great as Underwood is, Michigan still has a lot of its future wrapped up in one player. For Moore and Underwood to succeed at Michigan, they’ll have to succeed together.
— The Athletic‘s Ralph Russo contributed reporting to this story.
(Photo of Sherrone Moore: Michael Miller / ISI Photos / Getty Images)
