College football has always been a little shady, but it used to stay in the shadows. Now? It’s basically a corporate bidding war played out on Twitter and podcasts. If you followed the 2024 recruiting cycle, you saw the wildest example of this yet. It involved the number one recruit in the country, a billion-dollar tech mogul, and a guy who reviews pizza for a living.
Honestly, the saga of Dave Portnoy and Bryce Underwood is the blueprint for how college sports works in 2026. It wasn't just a player picking a school. It was a hostile takeover.
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The $3 Million Rant That Started It All
In September 2024, Michigan was struggling. The post-Jim Harbaugh era felt shaky, and the quarterback situation was, frankly, a mess. Dave Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports and a Michigan alum who bleeds maize and blue, reached his breaking point.
He didn't just tweet about it. He went on a rant promising to personally fund a $3 million annual NIL "salary" to ensure Michigan landed a top-10 quarterback every single year. At the time, most people thought it was just "El Pres" being loud for clicks.
He wasn't joking.
Portnoy later confirmed he talked directly with Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore. The message was simple: Who do we need? The answer was Bryce Underwood, the five-star phenom from Belleville, Michigan, who was already committed to LSU.
How Michigan "Stole" Bryce Underwood
Underwood wasn't just any recruit. He was the consensus #1 player in the nation. For a long time, it looked like he was heading to the SEC. LSU had the momentum, the track record with quarterbacks like Jayden Daniels, and a massive NIL package of their own.
Then the "Michigan Man" cavalry arrived.
It wasn't just Portnoy. The "Great Bryce Underwood Robbery," as some fans call it, involved a meeting between Portnoy, the Underwood family, and Larry Ellison—the co-founder of Oracle. Ellison’s wife is a Michigan alum, and when you combine Barstool's marketing machine with Oracle-level wealth, the math starts to change.
Reports indicate the final package that flipped Underwood from LSU to Michigan was worth roughly $10.5 million to $12 million over four years.
LSU fans were (understandably) furious. Brian Kelly, the LSU coach, eventually had to address it, noting that the program had to "adapt" to a world where a kid could be offered an eight-figure deal to stay home.
The Reality of the Freshman Season
When Underwood finally stepped onto the field in Ann Arbor for the 2025 season, the hype was suffocating. Portnoy was on Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff calling him a "beast from another planet."
But college football is hard. Even for a $10 million teenager.
Underwood won the starting job as a true freshman, beating out veterans like Mikey Keene. But the stats didn't immediately scream "Heisman." He finished his first year with:
- 2,229 passing yards
- 9 touchdowns
- 6 interceptions
- 5 rushing touchdowns
Those aren't bad numbers for a kid who should have been at his senior prom a few months prior. However, when you’re the highest-paid player in the locker room, "not bad" feels like a letdown to some.
"Big Balls": Why Portnoy is Backing Off
By December 2025, the honeymoon phase hit a wall. Michigan lost "The Game" to Ohio State at home, and the offense looked stagnant. Suddenly, the same people who cheered the NIL deal started questioning the ROI.
Dave Portnoy, never one to hide his feelings, went on The Triple Option podcast and got blunt. He’s "out" on contributing more money if Underwood tries to renegotiate his deal.
"He’d have to have some big balls to say he wants to renegotiate now," Portnoy said. "I’m out of it."
It’s a fascinating look at the limits of booster loyalty. Portnoy helped get him there, but he isn't interested in a yearly bidding war to keep him from the transfer portal. He basically admitted that if a school like UCLA or an SEC powerhouse offered Underwood $20 million tomorrow, the kid might just leave, and Portnoy wouldn't lift a finger to stop it.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Deal
There is a common misconception that Portnoy just wrote a check and that was that. In reality, the "contract" is a complex web of marketing rights and installments.
- No Buyouts: Interestingly, reports surfaced that Underwood's deal doesn't have a traditional buyout clause. This makes him a "free agent" every single offseason.
- The Ellison Connection: While Portnoy gets the headlines, the heavy lifting likely came from the Ellison family and the "Champions Circle" collective.
- The "Home" Factor: People forget Underwood is from Belleville. The money mattered, sure, but staying 20 minutes from home while becoming a multimillionaire is a tough deal to turn down.
What This Means for You
If you’re a fan or even just a casual observer of the sport, the Dave Portnoy and Bryce Underwood saga teaches us three things about the current state of the game:
- Commitments mean nothing. A "hard commit" is just a placeholder until a better offer arrives. Until the National Letter of Intent is signed—and even then, thanks to the portal—everything is fluid.
- Booster fatigue is real. Even the wealthiest fans have a limit. If the performance on the field doesn't match the price tag, the "infinite" pool of NIL money can dry up fast.
- The "Market Rate" for a QB is set. If you want a generational talent at quarterback, the starting price is now eight figures. Programs that aren't willing to play in that sandbox will be left behind.
Practical Next Steps for Following Recruiting
If you want to keep track of how these deals actually shake out, don't just look at the initial headlines.
First, follow the Transfer Portal windows (usually December and April). That is when the real "renegotiations" happen. Second, keep an eye on collective transparency. Sites like On3 and 247Sports are getting better at tracking NIL valuations, though they are still largely estimates.
Finally, watch how Michigan handles their 2026 recruiting class. With Portnoy signaling he's "out" of the personal bidding business for now, we'll see if the Wolverines can maintain this aggressive spending model or if the Bryce Underwood deal was a one-time "emergency" measure to save the program.
The era of the "Professional Student-Athlete" is here. Whether it's sustainable is another question entirely.