Wolverine Digest

'This changes everything for Michigan': Jake Butt reacts to Bryce Underwood flip

It's a game-changer for Sherrone Moore and the Wolverines...

Matt Lounsberry

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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Michigan football's flip of five-star Belleville (Mich.) quarterback Bryce Underwood took the college football world by storm this week, and generated a ton of discussion on how the No. 1 overall recruit would impact the Wolverines' future.

Big Ten football analyst and Michigan alum Jake Butt was in on the discussion, and called Underwood's commitment a game-changer for head coach Sherrone Moore.

"This changes everything for Michigan. A huge, huge win for Sherrone Moore," Butt told fellow analyst Joshua Perry on Chicago Sports Network.

Butt noted how Jim Harbaugh's fortune changed after landing a big-time quarterback commit in J.J. McCarthy, and said Underwood could have a similar impact on the Moore era in Ann Arbor.

"I mean, Jim Harbaugh struggled to get that big-time recruit. Look at what happened the one time he did — J.J. McCarthy — playoff appearances and a national championship," Butt said.

As we've seen in the hours and days since Underwood flipped from LSU to Michigan, the five-star quarterback has already turned Michigan into a more attractive landing spot for some of the top high school talent in the country. The Wolverines were already recruiting well before landing Underwood, but have drawn even more interest from some of the nation's best prospects in the days since.

"Bryce Underwood is talented in-and-of himself, but the other key...when you get a quarterback like this in your class, other recruits want to join him," Butt said. "Michigan needs wide receivers. I'd love to play wide receiver for this guy. Hey, you need running backs? I'd love to be in the backfield next to this guy. Hey, I'm gonna play defense, I might as well go play defense next to a guy that can lead me to a national championship. That's the gravity of getting an elite recruit like Bryce Underwood."

In the midst of a disappointing 5-5 year heading into the Northwestern game, Moore and Michigan needed a jolt to get the turnaround started in Ann Arbor. That's exactly what the Wolverines got with Underwood in the fold.

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Matt Lounsberry
MATT LOUNSBERRY

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