Bryce Underwood will play his sophomore season at Michigan for new coach Kyle Whittingham.
Underwood, a Detroit native, was the nation’s No. 1 recruit out of high school in 2025 and famously flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan after Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison helped fund his $12.5 million NIL deal with the Wolverines. He announced he is returning to the program on social media Monday night.
Whittingham was more of a factor in Underwood’s decision to stay than Ellison, a source with knowledge of the situation told Front Office Sports. Ellison’s wife, Jolin is a Michigan graduate and led to his involvement with the Champions Collective.
The 6-foot-4 signal caller was Michigan’s starting quarterback as an 18-year-old true freshman and led the team to a 9–4 record that ended with a 41–27 loss to Texas in the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 31. Underwood showed signs of his massive potential, throwing for 2,428 yards on the season, but threw for just 11 touchdowns with nine interceptions.
Michigan fired its head coach Sherrone Moore after two seasons on Jan. 10 for having an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. Shortly after being fired, Moore was detained by police after he went to the staffer’s apartment. He has been charged with third-degree home invasion, stalking, and breaking and entering. Moore’s firing led to speculation that Underwood would enter the portal to play for a different coach.
Instead, Underwood will play for Whittingham, who the school hired on Dec. 26 after 21 years at Utah. Whittingham won 67% percent of his games in Salt Lake City, and now has a quarterback to build around in Ann Arbor.
