The biggest story of the year in college football recruiting was the Michigan Wolverines’ recent move to sign the country’s No. 1 superstar high school player, Bryce Underwood, from the LSU Tigers.

Underwood had been committed to play for LSU since last January, but Michigan never stopped recruiting its in-state stud. Underwood is from Belleville, Michigan, just 30 minutes from Ann Arbor, and last week the school finally made him abandon his commitment to stay home and become the Wolverines’ next quarterback.

Michigan’s method of recruiting Underwood was also a major point of discussion, as the Big 10 powerhouse reportedly gave the gunslinger a NIL deal worth up to $12 million, which he signed with the help of a billionaire backer of his champions The district collective was able to implement and stay at home.

Despite the fact that the method of duping Underwood a huge deal ultimately led to his commitment and likely his signing and future stardom with the Wolverines, a slim majority of Michigan fans are with the way the program is running did not agree with the recruitment process.

According to a poll of Maize and Blue fans by SB Nation, 53 percent of voters surveyed disagreed with the strategy of a NIL-centric approach, meaning 47 percent of voters thought it was the right path.

It’s not shocking not to see everyone on board right away, but it would be fascinating to wonder, three years after Underwood’s junior season, whether those same people have changed their tune on the matter, given his likely superstar status and the fact that no one knows what state NIL will be in at this point.

It takes some adjustment to both understand and accept that this is the reality of competing at the highest levels of college sports in 2024 and beyond. Unless guardrails are put in place – which will become increasingly likely in the next few years – recruiting today is the Wild West.

For teams that want to win titles, not keeping up and doing the same as others – and doing it better than them – just because you don’t like the way it’s done is not an option. After a very poor year as defending champions, Michigan’s signing of Underwood will help them do just that.