Michigan Fans Can Thank Dave Portnoy For Underwood Flip, Kinda

When the Michigan Wolverine's quarterback troubles became wildly apparent and the team began to struggle mightily, Barstool Sports president Dave Portnoy said he would do his part in making sure the team solved the problem.

With the current climate of college football, particularly with the incentives of NIL for athletes, blueblood programs like Michigan have little excuse not to draw in the best talent. It's an environment where the rich can and in a way should get richer.

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Portnoy said in September he would do what it takes to make sure Michigan has an elite quarterback every season by offering $1-3 million per year toward that effort.

According to On3 via Barstool, that would put Michigan right in line with the top quarterback earners in college football such as Shedeur Sanders, Archie Manning, Quinn Ewers and Nico Iamaleava.

News broke Thursday afternoon that this plan had paid off as the top quarterback prospect in the country, Bryce Underwood from Belleville, Michigan, announced he'd flipped his verbal commitment to LSU over to Michigan.

Reports from On3 via Bleacher Report suggest that Underwood is set to make upwards of $10.5 million at Michigan. One LSU analyst reported the figure could be as high as $12 million.

Of course, Michigan fans quickly connected those dots and began praising a proud U of M alumni for playing his part in drawing in the nation's top recruit, especially during such a difficult season at the position.

Portnoy suggested his role in the flip was "tiny" in a post on X.

Either way, Michigan fans are big winners. Underwood is a highly-touted prospect and has the potential to be a starter in Year 1 at Ann Arbor. If he lives up to expectations, the Wolverines can get right back into the conversation to reach the College Football Playoff.