Michigan will begin its 2025 season with a true freshman starting at quarterback for just the fourth time in program history, and the first since Tate Forcier in 2009.
True freshman Bryce Underwood was the consensus No. 1 overall high school football player in the 2025 recruiting class. After originally committing to LSU, Michigan was able to flip Underwood to become a Wolverine.
A large reason for Underwood's switch in commitment was a $12 million NIL deal he agreed to with Michigan. But, how exactly did that deal culminate?
Three Key Figures Helped Michigan Flip Underwood
It all started when Barstool's Dave Portnoy publicly pledged that he'd spend $3 million annually to get Underwood to Michigan. Shortly after, Portnoy got a call from Michigan about somebody who wanted to talk to him.
"They said, 'Hey, there’s this donor who wants to talk to you.' I said I’m doing this by myself, and I don’t need to talk to anybody," Portnoy said (h/t Fortune.com). "And they said, ‘Please, this woman is a big fan of Barstool and you; she’d love to talk to you. Her name is Jolin.'
"They said, ‘Oh, her husband is a guy by the name of Larry Ellison. Have you ever heard of him?’ Oh, Larry Ellison? The No. 2 richest guy on the planet? Yeah, I’ll take that phone call."
Larry Ellison is a chairman and the co-founder of Oracle Corp. But, his wife, Jolin, is a 33-year-old woman who's originally from China with the real name of Keren Zhu. She went to Michigan and graduated in 2012 with a degree in international studies, according to Fortune.com.
That led to the Ellisons, Portnoy and the Underwood family connecting over a zoom call. Jolin Ellison gave her pitch that she'd do anything it took get the Michigan back to championship contention, and soon after Underwood flipped his commitment.
Michigan's Champions Circle NIL Collective ended up offering Underwood between $10 million and $12 million over his four years, which trumped LSU's reported $1.5 million annual offer.
However, it was more than just the NIL money that caused Underwood's flip. Michigan's legendary quarterback Tom Brady has done numerous Facetimes with Underwood to be a mentor for the young quarterback and Underwood's hometown is just 15 miles from Ann Arbor.
Another influence came from former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions. Stalions was part of the Michigan staff prior to the 2023 sign-stealing scandal and then coached as a volunteer assistant at Underwood's high school.
There were a lot of factors that contributed to Underwood flipping his commitment from LSU to Michigan. Although closeness to home and great mentors played a role, so did the money.
If it wasn't for Jolin Ellison's desire to to get Michigan back to championship contention at any cost, Underwood may not be a Wolverine heading into 2025.