Though this season may have not been the best for The University of Michigan Football team, the future looks a whole lot brighter. On the night of November 21, 2024, the football program secured a big asset for the future of this program. 5 star plus, which means they are 5 stars by the 4 major recruiting sites (ESPN, On3, 247 Sports, and Rivals). The number one recruit in the country, Belleville High School in Michigan, quarterback Bryce Underwood flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan.
Before committing to LSU, Underwood had a plethora of offers from many different schools. Some of the schools that Underwood originally took into consideration were Michigan State, LSU, Ohio State, Michigan, and Alabama. On January 6, 2024 after taking official visits to these schools, Underwood verbally committed to LSU. However, this commitment was not final, as college football does not host their official signing days until December 4, 2024, and February 5, 2025.
What makes this commitment so exciting is that Underwood is a Michigan native. Belleville High School is just over 18 miles away from the University of Michigan. Everybody remembers the memorable season the Wolverines had last year resulting in a national championship. Coming off of a national championship season the Wolverines went into a “rebuilding mode.” With head coach Jim Harbaugh leaving, and the majority of their star players including quarterback JJ McCarthy drafted to the NFL, the Wolverines were left with many questions about their future. Once Underwood committed to LSU, they were left with even more questions.
In the new day and age of college football Name Image and Likeness (NIL) has become a huge factor in recruiting players to your program. Michigan needed to step up, and make a huge money package to Underwood to have him change his commitment. Reports came out in the Fall of 2024 that Michigan was still pursuing Underwood, and trying to change his mind, to get him to commit to Michigan. Reports then came out that Michigan was preparing to offer him 10.5 million dollars to flip his recruitment to Michigan. Underwood shot down that offer quickly with a graphic on his Instagram page reading “#1 QB likely to decline Michigan’s $10.5M NIL Offer.” Underwood himself putting out this graphic, felt like the dagger in Michigan’s push for Underwood.
Then on the night of November 21, 2024, everything changed. ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported the news that number one QB Bryce Underwood would flip his commitment to Michigan. The news sent shockwaves through college football fans, and met with great excitement from Michigan fans.
Though it was clear the big NIL package of the reported 10.5 million dollars was enticing to Underwood, there were many other big factors in the Wolverine’s favor. Bruce Feldman from Fox Sports reported that former Michigan QB and NFL legend Tom Brady was a big part of this. Feldman shared that Brady helped by setting up Zoom calls with Underwood to convince him. Feldman added that Underwood and Brady shared Zoom calls, and Brady talked to Underwood about his future. Many High School players love the opportunity to play in front of 110,000 loyal fans. The Wolverines football program has held the attendance record in college football for many years as Michigan Stadium, the home of the Wolverines, holds 107,601 but can easily hold up to 115,000, as the attendance record is 115,109 on September 7th, 2013 against Notre Dame.
With Underwood committing to Michigan it has created a domino effect in the 2025 Wolverines recruiting class. According to the On3 recruiting database, the recruiting class jumped into the top 10 of all schools to number 8. As Underwood committed, his teammate from Belleville, Cornerback Elijah Dotson committed to the Wolverines. The number 8 recruiting class is expected to grow as the Wolverines have now hosted many other prospects from all over the country.
Underwood is clearly excited to join the Wolverines as the game right after he committed as the Wolverines took on Northwestern at Michigan Stadium, Underwood was seen taking pictures with fans, USA writer Isaiah Hole posted to X. He also took to social media after the shocking upset victory, for the Wolverines over Number Two ranked Ohio State with Underwood saying on Instagram “Hail Yeahhhhhhhhhh” with a graphic of the final score of the game.
Though this season was a little underwhelming for the Wolverines finishing 7-5 compared to their playoff aspirations, the future in Ann Arbor is looking brighter than ever as the Wolverines hope to build off of the big recruiting win of Bryce Underwood!
