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Josh Pate: Bryce Underwood Flip "Crippling" for Brian Kelly's LSU Tigers

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nick Meyer | Last updated Nov 22, 2024 10:45 AM ET

The Louisiana State Tigers have hung tough in the Southeastern Conference this season despite the loss of star players Jayden Daniels, Brian Thomas and Malik Nabers to the National Football League.

Brian Kelly's team has not gotten over the hump in its biggest games of the season, however, dropping their opener to USC and losing three straight games to Texas A&M, Alabama and Florida in their last three weeks of the season.

On Thursday afternoon, the Tigers got what many believe to be the worst possible news for the 2025 recruiting class as the nation's number one overall prospect, quarterback Bryce Underwood of Belleville, Michigan, decided to flip his commitment to coach Sherrone Moore's Michigan Wolverines.

Tigers starting quarterback Garrett Nussmeier is a junior with eligibility for next season, but he almost certainly won't be sharing a locker room with Underwood, the 6-foot-4, 214 pound prospect who many expected to become the next Jayden Daniels in Baton Rouge, LA.

On Thursday evening, college football analyst Josh Pate shared his unfiltered thoughts on the "earthquake" that resulted from Underwood's flip to the 2022-2023 College Football National Champion Wolverines.

"(LSU fans) are not happy about the way the season has gone, but everybody has put their stock into 'Yeah but,'" Pate said.

"And the 'Yeah but' has been, 'Yeah, we're not going to the Playoff this year, but, we've got Bryce Underwood coming in,' and now you don't. And it's going to be an uncomfortable December if they don't fill that void, and I don't know how they do it."

Pate added that Kelly and the Tigers will be able to use the NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) funds that have opened up to "swing" for additional Class of 2025 players, but said that they may "go down swinging."

Pate also spoke about the nature of Underwood's flip and the timing of his change of heart, speaking to the difficulty of setting things right for coach Kelly and the LSU football program's staff.

"This is the eleventh hour that this is hitting LSU in, it sucks...This is not a death blow, but it is a crippling blow for LSU, and it is potentially the beginning of something very special for Michigan."

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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