Michigan hopes it has found a long-term solution to the quarterback woes that have plagued the Wolverines in 2024.
The school got a verbal commitment from five-star QB Bryce Underwood on Thursday. The Michigan native is the No. 2 player in the country, according to Rivals, and had previously been committed to LSU.
If Underwood signs with Michigan in December’s early signing period or the normal signing period in 2025, he’ll be the school’s highest-ranked recruit since Rashan Gary committed to the Wolverines in 2016.
Underwood would also be the first Rivals five-star to sign with the Wolverines since DB Will Johnson in 2022. Johnson has become one of the best defensive backs in college football and is a likely first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The verbal commitment from Underwood comes on the same day that Colorado landed a verbal commitment from five-star QB Julian Lewis. He’s the No. 6 player in the country and had recently de-committed from USC.
Underwood plays for Belleville High School, the same school that currently employs disgraced ex-Michigan staffer Connor Stalions. Yes, really. Stalions has been serving as an assistant for the school after his alleged advance scouting scheme was the storyline of the 2023 college football season.
It’s the second high school job for Stalions this season. He started the season at Detroit Mumford.
The connection with Stalions aside and any role the former staffer may or may not have played in Underwood’s recruitment, it’s hard to overstate the significance of Underwood’s flip for Michigan. The Wolverines have missed out on high-profile in-state QBs in recent years and drastically need a solid quarterback to overhaul the offense under first-year head coach Sherrone Moore.
The coach was understandably excited about the news on social media.
Michigan is just 5-5 with two games to go in the regular season thanks largely to porous QB play. Three different players have started at QB for Michigan this season and they’ve combined to complete less than 60% of their passes and throw nine TDs and nine interceptions. Overall, Michigan QBs are averaging just six yards per passing attempt.
If Underwood signs in December, he’ll have the opportunity to enroll early at Michigan and participate in spring practices.
The only player ranked ahead of Underwood in Rivals’ rankings is QB Tavien St. Clair. He has been verbally committed to Michigan’s archrival Ohio State since June of 2023. The Buckeyes added two top quarterbacks in the class of 2024 in Air Noland and Julian Sayin.
After Underwood’s commitment, Michigan’s 19-person class now provisionally ranks No. 11 in Rivals’ rankings.
First appeared on sports.yahoo.com