The majority of Michigan fans disagree with the recruiting methodology that uses the NIL for Top QB

On By Littum

The biggest college football recruiting story of the year has been the Michigan Wolverines’ recent flip of future superstar No. 1 high school player in the country Bryce Underwood of the LSU Tigers.

Underwood had been committed to play for LSU since last January, but Michigan never stopped recruiting their in-state stud. Underwood is from Belleville, Mich., just 30 minutes from Ann Arbor, and the school finally got him to reverse his commitment last week to stay home and become the next quarterback for the Wolverines.

Michigan’s method of recruiting Underwood has also been a major talking point, as the Big 10 powerhouse has been reported to have given the gunslinger a NIL deal worth as much as $12 million to flip and stay home with the help of a billionaire backing their Champions. Circle collective.

Despite the fact that the method of dangling a huge deal in front of Underwood ultimately got his commitment and likely his signature and future stardom for the Wolverines, a slim majority of Michigan fans don’t agree with the way the program went about it the recruitment.

According to a survey among fans of corn and blue from SB Nation53 percent of voters surveyed disagreed with the strategy of a NIL-centric approach, meaning 47 percent of those who voted agreed that it was the right way to go about things.

It’s not shocking not to see everyone on board right away, but it would be fascinating to ask that three years after coming off Underwood’s junior season, the same people have changed their tune because of his likely superstar status plus the fact that no one knows what state NIL will be in at that time.

It takes some getting used to both understanding and accepting that this is the reality of competing at the highest level in college sports in 2024 and beyond. Until guardrails are put in place – something that seems more likely to occur over the next several years – recruiting in this day and age is the Wild West.

Not keeping up and doing the same as others – and doing better than them – simply because you don’t like the way it’s done is not an option for teams that want to win titles. After a very poor year as the defending national champions, Michigan landing Underwood will help them do just that.