One of the richest men in the world helped flip the recruiting race for Bryce Underwood, the consensus No. 1 high school football player in the Class of 2025. Considered a generational quarterback prospect, Underwood originally committed to LSU before receiving a whopping $12 million NIL deal from Champion’s Circle, Michigan’s NIL Collective.
Larry & Jolin Ellison’s Donation Prove Vital In Underwood’s $12M NIL Deal
Ellison, who ranks No. 2 on Forbes’ real-time billionaires list, is not a Michigan alumni but the Wolverines apparently hold a special place in his heart. That’s because his current wife, Jolin Ellison, bleeds maize and blue.
Jolin graduated from the University of Michigan and is a big fan of Michigan Athletics, which helped the Oracle co-founder shell out a significant sum of money to help keep the football program atop the national recruiting rankings.
“I am a big fan of the University of Michigan and Michigan Athletics. We are excited to support our student-athletes, so they can go compete at the highest level in college sports,” Jolin Ellison said in a statement.
Champions Circle chairman Nate Forbes broke the news by personally thanking Larry and Jolin Ellison for their contributions, “I want to personally thank Larry and his wife Jolin who were instrumental in making this happen by providing Champions Circle with invaluable guidance and financial resources.”
Of course, the announcement came at the expense of LSU fans, who have already started to call for the firing of head coach Brian Kelly. Kelly, who has a reported 60.8 million contract buyout if fired by the end the season, is currently on the hot seat following an underwhelming 7-4 campaign.
Tom Brady, Dave Portnoy Also Credited For Helping Flip Underwood
Larry and Jolin Ellison weren’t the only celebrities to make an effort to help bring Underwood home to the Big House.
Tom Brady and Barstool founder Dave Portnoy were also among the high-profile names who reached out to Underwood during the recruiting process.
In fact, CBS Sports reported that Brady and Underwood had a one-on-one FaceTime call down the stretch that helped sway his decision to come to Ann Arbor.
Underwood will be joined by fellow five-star recruit Andrew Babalola, who will help protect the No. 1 recruit at offensive tackle.
