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The college football world was shocked on Thursday night when the No.1 QB in the 2025 recruiting class, Bryce Underwood, flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan. 

The Tigers, and Brian Kelly, thought they were in a great spot with Underwood, staving off the Wolverines since Underwood committed to the Bayou Bengals last January. One of the most interesting aspects of his recruitment was the reported NIL package that the Wolverines were willing to offer for Underwood’s services, which are desperately needed in Ann Arbor. 

According to reports, the Wolverines had bumped their offer to around the $10.5 million range over the last few weeks, hoping to sway Underwood. When that number was reported, the Michigan native quarterback took to social media to affirm his commitment to the LSU Tigers. 

But, a few minutes later the post was deleted. This ought to have been a clear indication that this recruitment wasn’t over, and that Underwood was still in-play for Michigan, no matter what a young kid posts on social media. 

While LSU thought that it was in good shape with the super-talented quarterback, there was something brewing behind the scenes with the Wolverines. Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore and his staff never budged, continuing to recruit the LSU commit, knowing that they still had a chance to flip the quarterback who played high school football just down the road in Belleville, Michigan. 

Nothing Is Done In Recruiting Until Papers Signed, Figures Agreed To

The simple truth is that until a young man signs his name on a contract that binds him to a particular school, the recruitment part is never finished. This would prove to be the case for Michigan, which certainly paid off on Thursday night. 

Speaking with one industry source on Thursday afternoon, it was clear that Bryce Underwood was looking at Michigan for more than the money. It was noted that one of the reasons for the change of heart had to do with LSU’s ability to develop quarterbacks, not just pluck them from the transfer portal, but actually develop them. 

But obviously, the money, and location helps, especially for a young man who will enter college with such high expectations. 

The same could be said for Julian ‘JuJu’ Lewis, who de-committed from USC in recent weeks and announced that he would be playing college football for Deion Sanders and Colorado. This type of thing happens every day in the recruiting world, even if the public is not made aware of the situation. 

There are contracts being discussed daily with high school prospects that will potentially change the future of programs across the country. And while you might think that because a player has committed to a school that he must have a contract already signed, this is not the case. 

As LSU found out on Thursday, everything changes by the day, or minute, in college recruiting. And now, the Tigers are left holding a bag, while Michigan is the one that will cash-in on Bryce Underwood’s services.