Throughout the summer, Michigan football recruiting has been on a roll. However, Monday's commitment of four-star quarterback Peter Bourque might be the most important.
The 2027 quarterback who is ranked in the top 100 overall, 86th overall according to the Rivals Industry rankings, and seventh among quarterbacks, committed to Michigan football over the likes of Penn State, which was viewed as the favorite, and over 20 other offers.
At 6-foot-4, 195-pounds, Bourque is everything you could want in a quarterback prospect. It's a massive commitment in 2027, and here are three thoughts on what it means for the Michigan Wolverines.
Another QB with 5-star potential
Ranked 75th overall in the 247 Sports composite rankings, it would be easy to see Bourque moving into five-star range. There is plenty of time for rankings updates and Bourque feels like a good candidate to move up.
Over the past four classes, Michigan football has cleaned up on the recruiting trail. Jadyn Davis, Brady Smigiel, and of course, Bryce Underwood are all ranked in the top 160 overall.
Smigiel was ranked in the top 100 at the time of his commitment but has now dropped. Underwood was the top-ranked player in his class. Davis hasn't exactly developed as expected.
That's why Bourque's commitment is so important. He's got the chance to be the next five-star quarterback signee for the Wolverines, depending on how the next two years ago in high school.
Either way, you always want to land an elite quarterback as early as possible in a recruiting class, and Michigan football achieved that on Monday.
The heir apparent to Bryce Underwood
It was critical for the Wolverines to land a truly elite quarterback in this class. Smigiel's ranking is dropping. Michigan fans tried to dismiss that when it happened to Davis, but the rankers ended up being right about Davis, at least so far.
Even as a redshirt freshman, Davis doesn't seem anywhere close to seeing the field. If Smigiel has a similar path to development, then the Wolverines will be stuck without a sure-fire starter. There are options in the portal sure, but those are becoming less and less with revenue share.
However, the best thing is always to develop your own talent. Ohio State has done an exceptional job of that, outside of adding Will Howard last offseason, a move they didn't even need to make, they just ran off Kyle McCord because he couldn't beat Michigan.
Even if Bourque isn't a five-star, if he lives up to the billing, he'd be a freshman during Underwood's junior season. Bryce is likely going to the NFL draft after the 2027 season, so if all goes according to plan, he could be ready to pass the torch to Bourque, who could be the next great Michigan QB.
An underrated athlete
One of the things that people constantly underrate about Underwood is his athleticism. The arm is so incredible it's easy to overlook what the 6-foot-4, 228-pound quarterback can do with his legs.
With Bourque, it would be easy to make the same mistake. Yet, as a sophomore, out of Massachusetts, Bourque rushed for 317 yards and seven touchdowns. Here's what his high school head coach told Brian Dohn of 247 Sports about the four-quarterback.
"His three best traits are arm strength, athleticism, and he is elite at being able to extend plays and make something happen when the natural timing doesn't work out," Jeff Moore said to 247 Sports. "He has elite arm talent, he has elite athleticism and ability to extend plays and keep his eyes down field."
Moore coached at UMass, so he knows a thing or two about college football. That's a strong scouting report and one that should have Michigan football fans stoked about the Wolverines new quarterback commitment.
Most importantly, Michigan has proven once again it can land elite talent at the game's most important position.