More details of Michigan's disturbing 'Godfather offer' to Bryce Underwood emerge
While the Michigan Wolverines are rightfully celebrating its successful flip of 2025 top overall recruit Bryce Underwood from LSU, the details that led to this moment are a bit concerning. The NIL world is as ugly behind the scenes as it seems to the public, and it goes both for and against athletes. Underwood, who […]
While the Michigan Wolverines are rightfully celebrating its successful flip of 2025 top overall recruit Bryce Underwood from LSU, the details that led to this moment are a bit concerning. The NIL world is as ugly behind the scenes as it seems to the public, and it goes both for and against athletes.
Underwood, who previously laughed off a reported $10.5 million offer from Michigan, apparently just needed his price tag met. According to ESPN Baton Rouge radio host Matt Moscona, that price was $12 million.
Latest Michigan recruiting miracle threatens next generation of Ohio State Buckeyes
The Michigan Wolverines are in the midst of a terrible season after winning its first national championship since 1997. Despite their on-field success under Jim Harbaugh from 2021-2023, the Wolverines were left to deal with his rapid departure, uncertainty from a sign-stealing scandal, and the Ohio State Buckeyes continuing to play at a high level. […]
There's been a ton of chatter behind the LSU and Michigan programs over the last few weeks, and Underwood was said to be fully locked into LSU even until Thursday morning. I was an early reporter that Michigan was making headway with its NIL collectives, and that is rapidly causing fallout in the 2025 class.
However, considering that Underwood has been just a half-hour away from Ann Arbor this whole time, it's not a great sign that he named a crazy number, and Michigan jumped. While Underwood is an incredible athlete, the rest of the team is lacking, and he went for the biggest check.
I'm not hating on the player or the game, but this sudden shift immediately made insiders wonder whether Underwood will be poached from Michigan if 2025 doesn't start off swimmingly.
It's possible it won't matter because Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines revamp their roster. With revenue sharing coming soon and more NIL deals possible, the Wolverines could use the transfer portal to clear up weaknesses. However, the recent report of Underwood being more hung up from a soured relationship with Jim Harbaugh is hard for me and other insiders to believe.
Instead, Underwood called Michigan's bluff about funding. And it's okay that Michigan took the bait. However, they must be careful not to expect the phenom to single-handedly save the program from its current direction and understand that his recruitment will be open if the program does not perform on the field.
Here's Bryce Underwood's scouting report from Andrew Ivins of 247Sports.
Potential franchise signal caller with the ideal blend of size, arm talent and athleticism. Exhibited no shortage of field command midway through senior season, which makes sense given resume: over 48 career starts and upwards of 165 touchdowns accounted for. Those numbers are amplified even more by the fact that he’s extremely young for the grade and won’t turn 20 years old until his third year of college. Has continued to improve as a passer and has gotten much more in tune with his mechanics. However, the biggest revelation in his final prep campaign has been his ability to move the chains with his legs as he builds speed and dodges defenders as an open-field runner with a frame that’s north of 6-foot-3 and pushing 215 pounds. Displays excellent pocket awareness for his age and isn’t one that panics as pressure builds. Does best to stay on schedule and hit his marks with authority, showing the ability to not only challenge tight coverage windows with velocity over the middle, but also throw with both touch and anticipation to the second and third levels. Projects as a multi-year impact player for a College Football Playoff contender that has a chance to eventually emerge as a first-round pick in the NFL Draft with his tools. Might need a semester or two to find his footing, but ability to hunt big plays and distribute on the move could be hard to keep off the field even if he’s still learning how to dissect complex defenses.
