If it feels like I’m hedging below and people say that I am hedging my bets, that’s totally fine. I don’t care about being right or being first, whatever you want to call it. I care more about being as informed as I can possibly be so I can give you everything you need to know without the BS. I don’t want to pump smoke but I also don’t want to let something pass me by without saying SOMETHING about it. I’m all about the stone cold facts.
I know elsewhere have made opinions known and that’s totally fine. We’re not going to discuss what is said elsewhere, how it’s done or whatever. That’s none of my business.
Let’s start with the facts.
- Sherrone has spearheaded a serious push for Bryce Underwood. FACT.
- Bryce Underwood has been receptive to the advances. FACT.
- Some in the recruiting circles report that Bryce is legitimately “torn”’on what to do next. FACT.
- Michigan has significant support for NIL moves like this, and others, moving forward. FACT.
- There’s been fundraising going on and it’s impressive how much Warde Manuel and Sherrone Moore have worked together to get to this point with NIL in totality. FACT.
Now, let’s discuss the unknowns and what I’m hearing. If you remember the QB discussion during fall camp, whether it was Alex Orji or Davis Warren starting, it all depends on who you ask.
I have two very split camps when I ask around. One side is essentially saying this thing will happen and it’s going to happen sooner rather than later. I would say this side is very pro-Michigan so there’s an obvious Maize & Blue tint to the discussion. This side has been FAR more vocal than the other side that I am about to discuss.
Do I take stock into this side? Of course, but I simply don’t have enough tangible evidence to say, “Absolutely, this is going to happen. Just wait on it.” Maybe it does but we all know the pro-Michigan chatter is obviously biased.
Now on the flip side, there’s a contingent I speak to that says no chance. No way this happens. I would say this side is pro-Bryce which could mean a variety of things. One, the obvious, is that this is the direction this thing is going to go, it’s not going to happen. The other is that this is a sensitive subject and no one really wants to be the one who lets the cat out of the proverbial bag. There is NOTHING out there to suggest that Underwood and his camp have officially turned the Wolverines down and is formally sticking with LSU. There may never be and he could send in his LOI to Baton Rouge and that will do it. With that, this thing is still very much alive despite those mentioned above saying it’ll never happen.
Another thing that could work in U-M’s favor is what happens with LSU staffing once the season is over. OC Joe Sloan is heavily linked to the ECU head coach opening, that’ll help the Wolverines’ chances. Of course, if Brian Kelly were to leave, that helps as well. There’s nothing to suggest that Kelly will leave, I’ll add.
All of this is to say that we’re sitting here waiting for what to do next. We’re waiting for the go ahead to post a story. I always want to be prepared and we’re about transparency here, we’ll have a prewrite done so we won’t be caught with our pants down. We’re also waiting to hear an official turn down, that won’t require a story. If that’s us hedging, that’s fine. As I said, I don’t care about being first or being “right”. I care about being prepared and being on the right track.
If you don’t appreciate us playing it down the middle, all I can say is that you’re just going to have to deal with it, respectfully. There’s A LOT of moving parts that still need to move and I’m not going to make an emotional response based on small movements. I need the big picture and we don’t have that quite yet.
This is MY official stance. This is what I will point to when asked about Underwood. Of course, it’s always subject to change based on new information we receive.
All I can say now is to just be patient and let it play out. The fact that we’re even discussing this is a major change in approach that is very encouraging for anything U-M does in the future.
